Apr 7 - Chili Cookout - Mathews Point (posted 5/1/10)

Matthews Point Marina - Social Get Together for the "CHILI COOKOUT"
The Chili Cookout April 7th and 8th was a great way to celebrate SCOO's first "overnighter" of the 2010 Social Season at Matthew's Point Marina.
Blue Skies and gentle breezes provided an ideal opportunity to put up the sails. While the water at the marina was a little low, all the boats were able to dock or anchor out successfully.
With 10 boats and 23 members and guest in attendance, the club house proved to be a great facility to kick back and relax for a funtime . Chili...Chili...Chili, a spread of appetizers and deserts, no one was in want for food as we retired for the evening. While the wind picked up and gave us a little more than a gentle roll, everyone was ready for the new day. Coffee and muffins in the club house for the early risers who wanted to linger
Captains Jerry and Molly Grubb - Wind Dancer
Andy and Mary Anton - Marissa
Bill and Maggie Arndt - Maggie's Magic
Will and Nancy Huff - God Speed
Stu and Alice King - The Restless Two
Richard and Gerta Lampe - Blue Norther
Carl and Penny Monell - Take Five
Hansa and Hildegard Nickstadt - LuLu
Greg and Nancy Piner - High Spirit
Joe and Paula Valinoti - Ilgatto
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Mar 31 - Neuse River Shakedown (posted 5/1/10)

SCOO's Neuse River Shakedown commenced on the waters of the Neuse River off of Oriental, NC on Wednesday, March 31, 2010. It was a sailor's day weather wise....a little overcast with breezes in the 10-15 knot range. Twenty one (21) boats initially registered for the event and eighteen (18) made it out. Unless I've messed up, the following are the eighteen boats that participated (in no particular order): MAGGIE'S MAGIC, SEA CLOUD, OUT OF THE BLUE, RI RA, SLOW DANCE, MERRY MARY, MISS EL, DETOUR, GODSPEED, RESTLESS TWO, WIND MELODY, TAKE FIVE, TRACHELLE II, MIRANDA, QUIXOTIC, IL GATTO, WHITE GATE and JIMMYNIX.
THE SHAKEDOWN IS SCOO'S FIRST ON THE WATER EVENT OF THE SEASON. The theme for this years "SHAKEDOWN" was two fold; (1) A TRIAL RUN....TO DETERMINE....WHO IS IN CHARGE????....IS THE BOAT READY??????.....ARE YOU READY????...to SHAKEOUT THOSE SAILS, GET THAT ENGINE RUNNING ETC., AND FIND OUT WHAT'S WORKING AND NOT WORKING BEFORE OUR SEASON GETS UNDERWAY, and (2) "Etiquette of the Road", which covered some of the INLAND "Rules of the Road", that SCOO members routinely encounter traveling within our cruising grounds, including the ICW. Basically addressing Rules 9,12,13,14,15,16,17,18 and 34. I'm not going to discuss these rules here...However, every Skipper and Admiral should be familiar with these rules and hopefully your interest is piqued and you'll look them up.
The SHAKEDOWN commenced a little after noon with a leisurely "cruise" around the government marks off Oriental (Adams Creek, Garbacon, and Oriental). Under the auspices of SCOO Vice Commodore Gerry Crowley and Skipperess Cheryl Crowley aboard RI RA. Vice Commodore Crowley "broadcast" the afore stated rules over VHF channel 72 with a "Pot Luck" that followed at Pecan Grove around 1630 hrs.
The weather held and a good time was had at Pecan Grove thanks to the event's social chairs: Dan and Dottie Miller, who insured that adequate supplies of "Oriental Champagne" were on hand to quench participants thirst. Three "awards" were presented by 'drawing'....We are not going to divulge the three "winners" as these awards/prizes are very suitable for "re-gifting" and we want each winner to have plausible deniability!!!!
I wish to thank all that participated in the...on the water event and for their brought "dishes" for the Pot-Luck and also our social committee's for their efforts. We took numerous pictures which are being posted to SCOO's web site....hopefully very soon.
Respectively submitted, SCOO Vice Commodore Gerry Crowley

Mar 24 - Oyster Roast (posted 4/1/10)(Photos 4/30/10)

SCOO's 2nd Annual Oyster Roast took place at Sea Harbor Marina on 24 March 2010 and the group had the pleasure of enjoying a beautiful sunny day. The members were first served steamed and raw oysters upon the opening at 1230 hrs until the food service table was set up and the fried oysters were served to all at the end of the food line.
There were 7 bushels of fresh oysters to feast on and were steamed under the direction of Jack Herman and his able bodied crewmates.
The 4 gallons of shucked delicacies were prepared by John Valassis and staff and seemed to be enjoyed by the members.
Our many thanks to the dockmaster, Landon Winstead , the members of Sea Harbor for the use of the marina, and to all of the Social Committee who made this a very successful opening of the SCOO Year.
Bill Arndt
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Oct 20-23 - Morehead/Cape Lookout (posted 10/31/09)

A total of 4 power vessels and 8 sailing vessels took full advantage of a welcomed weather change.

After a week of dreary, cold, rainy weather, Tuesday dawned clear and beautiful, although a bit nippy.

On Tuesday, sailing vessels Quixotic, Wind Melody, Maggie's Magic and Blue Norther headed to Cape Lookout while power vessels, Sea Cloud, Counter Offer and Ali Cat (w/Rhumbline's crew aboard) headed for Portside Marina in Morehead City.

The Cape Lookout sailors were welcomed by calm, cool breezes and sunny, azure skies. After anchoring in the "hook" they proceeded to enjoy the natural beauty of Cape Lookout.... the perfect setting for lazy days of fishing, dinghy explorations to the surrounding beaches, the lighthouse and Shackleford Island...cocktails at sunset.

The Morehead City sailors found the day perfect for fishing from the pier (ask Ali Cat about using bananas for bait), watching a friendly white egret walk the pier catching a fish or two along the way (perhaps inspired by Ali Cat), reading a good book, and enjoying laughter and storytelling over cocktails at the Gazebo. Later, Ali Cat dined at the Ruddy Duck while Sea Cloud enjoyed dinner aboard Counter Offer.

The family owned Portside Marina was very accommodating...giving SCOO a special docking rate and inside restaurant and shopping tips. Boats arriving at Portside were surprised to see a beautiful 150 ft. sailing vessel tied at the face dock with a sign touting "free tours". The Peacemaker, built in 1989 in southern Brazil by a Brazilian industrialist was breath-taking. With her 33 ft. beam, 14 ft. draft, 380 ton displacement and 10,000 square ft of sails supported by a mast height of 126 feet above the waterline, the Peacemaker was thrilling to see. What an unexpected addition to our trip!

Arriving Wednesday, Godspeed (with Vice Commodore Kellogg as first mate - the ladies joined them later by car), Miss El (Captain Tom demonstrated his excellent docking skills), Merry Mary (sporting a brand new canvas sun cover handmade by former Commodore Duffie), Pinafore (with Peter's new IPhon aboard) and Wind Dancer (this was her third SCOO overnight ) for a total of 8 SCOO boats at Portside. Some folks went antiquing, visited a bakery and some "tourist" shops....the guys visited a marine store disguised as an ACE Hardware. Early in the evening we gathered at the gazebo for cocktails...then all 20 of us walked to Floyd's 1921 for a fabulous dinner.

On Thursday the Morehead City flotilla headed to Cape Lookout. Thankfully, the trip was very pleasant....clear skies and warm temps. After setting anchor, dingys were launched and visits and exploration began. The water was so inviting....two mermaids (or would that be mermaidens?) were seen swimming around Wind Melody! In the evening dingys made their way to the old Coast Guard pier for cocktails and a cookout. Everyone brought a dish to share and brats were masterfully grilled by Quixotic's captain. Thanks to Maggie's Magic and Merry Mary for providing their grills. After a satisfying evening of warm fellowship and good food, everyone headed back to their boats to enjoy the unbelievable sunset.

Friday morning greeted us with a stunning sunrise and smooth seas for our trek back to Oriental.

Folks on this SCOO cruise had one of those spectacular warm, fall weather bursts to remind us how great it is to be here.

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Oct 15 - Heritage Night (posted 10/22/09)

Our original intention to hold this event at Matthew's Point Marina in Clubfoot Creek did not materialize in the face of a weather forecast for rain, wind, seas, and low temperatures. A poll of the signed up boats unanimously supported a change in venue. The management at Sea Harbour Yacht Club kindly allowed our use of their facility on short notice. The following boats were represented.
MARISSA, Mary and Andy Anton
TENACITY, Ron and Jayne Demers
WINDANCER, Elaine and Dennis Snyder
MINTAKA, Beth and Bill Michne
MISS EL, Tom and Ellie Finta
MAGGIES MAGIC, Bill and Maggie Arndt
OUT OF THE BLUE, Ed and Jane Bliss
LANSA, Eric and Mary Anne Lind
MERRY MARY, Mary and George Duffie
PINAFORE, Peter Freeman and Sue Gill
LULU, Hans and Hildegard Nickstadt
MIRANDA, Ken and Carol Small
TAKE FIVE, Carl and Penny Monell
WHISPER, Doug and Lew Carmichael
A most pleasant cocktail hour was followed by a fabulous dinner featuring a variety of interesting ethnic foods and desserts. After dinner the attendees were invited to tell us something of the background of the dishes they had brought. As you can imagine this resulted in some most interesting stories!
Bill & Beth Michne

Sept 30 - Commodore's Cup (posted 10/5/09))

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Sept 21-24 - Bath/Washington Cruise (posted 9/28/09) (photos 10/4/09)

(The Trip with Many Cruise Leaders)
There was great participation in this trip; however, the Cruise Captains kept changing. Tom and Ellie and MaryAnn and Doug were the original leaders.
MaryAnn and Doug had some late repairs to their boat unfinished, so the leadership transferred to Tom & Ellie on "Miss El".
Part way up the Bay River, Tom noticed the charge voltage on the alternator was 16.8V. This would most certainly ruin the batteries, so they turned back home.
Before turning back to Oriental, there was a transfer at sea of the party food to Anton's, aboard Marissa. Mary Ann and Doug had provided the first night's happy hour snacks to put on "Miss El". So with that done, the rest of the fleet carried on to Bath and/or Washington
The following boats continuing on the trip were: Egret, Marissa, TS, Manana, Ali Cat, Pelican, Merry Mary, Wind Dancer, Miranda, Il Gatto, Sea Cloud, Walkabout, Larkspur, LuLu, Blue Jacket, Maggie's Magic, Baby, and the Cutler's. Some boats skipped Bath and one or two boats skipped Washington- but all in all it was a well attended cruise.
There was a first night cocktail hour at Bath hosted by the Anton's and Hickman's and a second night party on the Washington docks hosted by Mary Duffie and others. Tom and Ellie did attend Washington by car.
The next day, a number of lucky people were treated to fresh Mexican bakery treats by Carol Small. Later in the day there was a lot of sightseeing and a number of the group (13) enjoyed a nature tour aboard the Estuarium's pontoon boat. We even got to see two Bald Eagles soaring and learned a lot of facts about the Tar River Basin. Gordon and Ann Kellogg came up by car and joined the group for lunch and to see the film La Bohème
Tom Finta
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Sept 8 - Regretta (posted 10/15/09)

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Aug 6&7 - Moonbeam Cruise (posted 8/23/09)

What started out, as a one-day cruise became a two-day event. Six boats went over on Thursday Aug. 6th before the event was changed to the 7th due to forecasted thunderstorms and possible high winds.
The following boats arrived on Thursday:
Jerry and Molly Grubbs - Wind Dancer
Stacy and Bob Taylor - Pelican
Hans and Hildegarde Nickstadt - Lulu
David and Sandy Netting - Second Wind
Kurt and Gurt Klingman - Egret
Steve and Kim Snyder - Fine Lion
Steve and Kim are in the process of applying for SCOO membership - they sail a Catalina 42.
On Friday the following boats arrived:
Gerry and Cheryl Crowley - Ri Ra
John and Julie Rahm - Island Chariot
Joe Valinoti - Il Gatto
Buddy and Kay Rogers - Hearts Desire
The Grubbs and Snyder's stayed over from Thursday. Buddy and Kay Rogers with the Evens' aboard arrived on their 53' Hatteras. Now that's a trip - twin diesels, total a/c, wet bar, huge saloon, etc, etc, etc. We all gathered in the salon for a very comfortable cocktail hour before heading home that evening. The Grubbs and Snyder's stayed over Friday night before heading home and Ocracoke respectively. The weather was perfect and no mosquitoes - it can't get any better than that.
Earl (standing in for Will Huff)

July 14-16 - Dowry Creek (posted 8/11/09)

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June 19&20 - Summer Solstice (posted 7/3/09)

On Friday, June 19th, 2009, nine boats voyaged to lower Broad Creek for the annual SCOO Summer Solstice Cruise. Eight boats tied up to the Lind's dock in Whortonsville, while RiRa tied to a neighboring dock, due to depth. The weekend proved to be one of the hottest weekends so far this summer, but did not deter the cruising fun! New members, inactive members and experienced members alike shared in this event.
Friday afternoon, Skippers and crew joined for a potluck and BBQ on the Linds deck. Crews representing Merry Mary, Spindrift, The Restless Two, Take Five, Miss El, RiRa, Miranda, Symmetry and Odyssey joined the crew from Lansa for good food, good social talk and boating stories and cheering the horses hoers. Larry Jones won the closely contested game of horseshoes.
Saturday, most vessels competed in the Whortonsville Yacht and Tractor Club Annual Race with our very own Miranda taking first Place!
Sunday saw some boats heading home while others remained at the Linds dock for the next cruise - Thursday River Dunes Cruise, which is close by on Lower Broad Creek.
Ken & Carol Small

June 9&10 - South River (posted 7/3/09)

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May 26-29 - Cape Lookout Cruise (posted 6/2/09)

I would like to express our thanks to several of the SCOO members. While at the Annual Meeting @ St Peter the Fisherman Church earlier this year Connie & I agreed to be Co-Cruise Captains for this event with Jay & Karen Parker. Had we not been sitting with the Parkers, we probably would not have attempted this task. Jay & Karen were excited about the trip and felt that we would enjoy it too. Thanks for your encouragement Jay & Karen! Since that time, the Parkers have had some medical issues preventing them from sailing to Cape Lookout this spring. George & Mary Duffie stepped up to the plate and agreed to help Connie and me with the event. Thanks George & Mary for your help explaining the Beaufort tides/Inlet to us before we got there and for your help with the memos to the members to keep this event on schedule!
TUESDAY:
Seven boats made the trip down the ICW from Oriental on 26 May to the Beaufort City Docks. These boats included "Merry Mary" (George & Mary Duffie), "TS" (Dodge & Connie Hickman), "Odyssey" (Bob Dales), "Pinafore" (Peter Freeman & Sue Gill), "Pelican" (Bob & Stacey Taylor), "Sea Shell" (Walt & Mary Ann Brown) & "Symmetry" (Larry & Roberta Jones).
The group had a fantastic Covered Dish supper (Spiral Ham provided by SCOO) on the "fish cleaning tables" at Beaufort City Docks followed by conversation & chat. Walt & Mary Ann Brown on "Sea Shell" had earlier decided not to cruise to Cape Lookout.
WEDNESDAY:
We (captains & crew) met on the docks after breakfast to look at the wind predictions for the next few days and to decide if we should proceed to the Cape. The decision was GO!
George Duffie ("Merry Mary") was having some issues with the engine raw water pump, but felt that he could accomplish the required repairs in a few minutes.
Crews returned to their respective boats to prep for the departure from Beaufort. As we departed the docks, George Duffie determined that his engine's raw water pump was leaking and he felt that the right move for him would be to return to Oriental. A disappointment for George and the other
boats planning to go to Cape Lookout.
Five boats ("TS" (Dodge & Connie Hickman), "Odyssey" (Bob Dales), "Pinafore" (Peter Freeman & Sue Gill), "Pelican" (Bob & Stacey Taylor), "Sea Shell" (Walt & Mary Ann Brown) & "Symmetry" (Larry & Roberta Jones)) made a safe passage to Cape Lookout with calm seas and just enough wind to provide good sailing (about 6 knots SOG).
After setting anchor, most crews used their "dinks" to venture to the beach for shell collecting and beach adventures.
A planned Happy Hour on the beach was modified by dark clouds about an hour prior to the event. Connie and I boarded our "dink" "TS too" and made the rounds to the 4 other SCOO boats at anchor. We invited each crew to "TS" for Happy Hour in 30 minutes. We also left a zip-lock bag of "parts" (cucumber, soda straws, tooth picks, sheet of paper) for a race during Happy Hour.
All crews arrived at "TS" with their cucumber sailboats and hors d'oeuvres. There were a lot of creative skill involved in both the cucumber sailboats and the hors d'oeuvres.
Soon after the cucumber sailboats were launched, most boats were lying on their side with their sails in the water, but continued to float. The winner was determined by the boat that moved the greatest distance from "TS" in 3 minutes! First place was "Pelican" (Bob & Stacey Taylor) closely followed by "Pinafore" (Peter Freeman & Sue Gill). SCOO provided "parts" to support the RACE & prizes to the top two positions.
Yes, the race was clean (including some rain), but there were rumors of a protest early in the race. Many laughs and good conversation continued for a couple of hours while enjoying the yummy hors d'oeuvres.
THURSDAY:
"TS" (Dodge & Connie Hickman), "Pinafore" (Peter Freeman & Sue Gill) left Cape Lookout Thursday morning after a most enjoyable visit. "TS" hit the tides just right and was able to ride them almost up to Adams Creek.
"Pelican" (Bob & Stacey Taylor), "Symmetry" (Larry & Roberta Jones) and
"Odyssey" (Bob Dales) returned to the Oriental area on Friday.
Connie and Dodge would like to mention that this was our first time to Cape Lookout and it is one of our all time favorite anchor locations!
Cruise Captains: Dodge & Connie Hickman, George & Mary Duffie
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May 11-15 - Ocracoke, Englehard, Manteo Cruise (posted 5/30/09)

After a nearly perfect cruise with ideal weather on the 2007 Manteo adventure, this year the wind gods dealt us a very difficult hand. As of May 9, 23 boats had registered to attend with as many as 32 expressing an interest in attending in the preceding weeks.
Finally, after two weeks of southwesterlies which kept many boats aground, a weather front passed through, the wind abated and shifted enough to allow 12 boats to take advantage of lighter northerly winds and to depart on Sunday before Monday's forecasted northeasterlies began. These boats included "Maggie's Magic" (Bill and Maggie Arndt), "Bay-B" (John and Doris Bischoff), "Out of the Blue" (Ed and Jane Bliss), "Merry Mary" (George and Mary Duffie), "Ali-Cat" (Gordon Keller and Marguerite Howard), "Blue Jacket" (Jerry and Donna Luh), "Lulu" (Hans and Hildegard Nickstadt), "Whispering Sea" (Tom and Joyce Russell with Gordon and Ann Kellogg), "Calculation" (Doug Sligh and Mary Ann Parham), "Miranda" (Ken and Carol Small), "Quixotic" (Art and Elise Tierney), and "Kory" (Henry and Karen VanGamper).
Monday's weather turned nasty with N-NE winds topping 30 knots with rain showers. Five additional boats were unable to leave for Ocracoke. However, "Egret" (Kurt and Gert Klingman) made it out to Brandt Shoal only to turn back after fighting beam seas for several hours. Monday evening the threat of rain cancelled the usual gathering under the trees; however, several folks walked out to the Cafe Atlantic and enjoyed good food and fellowship. Anxious moments were spent later listening to the weather forecast for the trip north on Tuesday and it sounded like a one-day delay might be in order.
Tuesday morning was welcomed with sunny skies and diminished N-NE winds. It was decided to continue on to Engelhard as planned. (Tom Russell awoke with severe back pains and was unable to proceed for several days. The Kelloggs were welcomed by the VanGampers and continued the cruise aboard "Kory". "Bay-B" also remained in Ocracoke due to a need to return to Oriental sooner than expected.) "Ground Breaker" (Ed and Sandy Braun), "Ri Ra" (Gerry and Cheryl Crowley), and "Symmetry" (Larry and Roberta Jones) departed directly for Engelhard; however, "Symmetry" received an emergency call and had to return home. Twelve boats arrived safely in Engelhard and our hosts, Frank and Edna Summerlin at the Big Trout Marina, welcomed us with plenty of dock space. A radio call was received from "Merry Mary" that a GPS problem had put them on the wrong side of the outer channel markers and into shallow water. Frank Summerlin and his crew quickly launched their runabout and were successful in pulling "Merry Mary" back in the channel. Edna and Frank served the fleet with another great meal of oysters, shrimp, flounder and fresh vegetables.
Wednesday morning saw the fleet depart for Manteo early and the forecasted N-NE winds meant motoring and motor-sailing for everyone. Carl Jordan at the Manteo Waterfront Marina had enough dock space for all twelve boats. A reception at the Gazebo was attended by all with plenty of hors d'oeuvres contributed by SCOO and others. A special thanks to the Luhs for preparing great chicken wings in three flavors for all to share.
Thursday was spent sight-seeing by some and catching up on boat maintenance by others. During the afternoon, winds developed from the southeast with small craft warnings displayed. Conditions, however, did not deter Stuart Westcott and his harbor cruiser "Captain Johnny" from entertaining us with a tour and lecture about the Manteo harbor area while transporting us to the Shallowbag Bay Marina and our dinner date at Stripers. Unlike the 2007 experience, Stripers service was well done and the entree choices varied and well-prepared. During the afternoon Kurt and Gert Klingman joined our group after driving up from Oriental and very generously provided Gordon and Ann Kellogg with a ride home.
Friday arrived with several boats leaving for the Chesapeake and others heading toward the Albemarle Sound and a scenic cruise home. As of this writing, many interesting stories have developed from both groups which will be shared by all in the near future.
Cruise Captains: Gordon and Ann Kellogg, Jerry and Donna Luh
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April 28 - Clubfoot Creek (updated 5/2/09)

The Clubfoot Creek Cruise took place on Tuesday the 28th and Wednesday the 29th of April. This was our first as "Cruise Captains" and we were very happy Jay and Karen were able to join us as CoCaptains. They rafted up with us which made a great two boat platform for entertaining all 28 club members in grand style. A few boats arrived either without dinghies or had malfunctions due to various reasons and were given boat to boat launch service including a tow.
We enjoyed wonderful weather with light winds during the day allowing for a little sailing which then laid down at night making for great sleeping. What a great turn out for SCOO! Whispering Sea arrived on Monday for an extra night out and on Tuesday the fleet arrived starting with Ali Cat and ending with Whisper. There were 14 boats in the armada and included Ali Cat, Gordon and Marguerite; Diogenes, Jay and Karen; Kory, Henry and Karen; Lulu, Hans and Hildeg! ard; Miranda, Ken and Carol; Pinafore, Peter and Sue; Ri Ra, Rear Commodore Gerry and Cheryl; Sea Shell, Walt and Mary Ann; Take Five, Carl and Penny; Whisper, Doug and Lew; Whispering Sea, Tom and Joyce; Windbag, George and Judy; Wind Melody, Dick and Donna; and Xanadu, Richard and Renee (in alphabetical order of boat names). This was such a wonderful and exciting gathering of great sailors with so much experience and many stories to tell. Happy hour started a little before five and lasted past seven. As always there was a bountiful supply of food, especially the appetizer of choice, Deviled Eggs. Despite much encouragement for a photo op, no one fell in or otherwise provided entertainment for the assembly. We did take lots of pictures and hopefully some if not all are attached. We had asked captains for poems on how their boats were named and several were read during happy hour and were most entertaining. The poems were placed in a hat for the grand drawing for a r! equired piece of summer cruising gear, a giant fly swatter (re! ally, it only works on giant flies) which was won by Peter and Sue on Pinafore.
Around ten or eleven PM (after my bedtime) we heard noises that sounded like multiple gun shots coming from shore but happily no pirates boarded our boats.
A sailboat departing the anchorage on Wednesday morning came along side Whispering Sea and asked about our gathering. They were certainly envious of our fun.
Tom and Joyce Russell
s/v Whispering Sea

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April 22 - Commissioning Day (posted 6/4/09)

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April 2 - Neuse River Shakedown (posted 4/27/09)

The original date for this first SCOO on-the-water event of the season was April 1st. When the weather forecast the night before was unfavorable, we switched to the rain date of April 2nd. The April fool's day joke was on us when the rain failed to materialize on April 1st but did arrive on the "rain date." As we all know, there are two ways sailors can get in trouble with NOAA forecasts - one is not to listen to them; the other is to listen and believe them. We chose the latter.
Twenty-one boats with fifty-four participants signed up for the shakedown event but when the weather turned sour, thirteen boats and thirty-four intrepid crew members braved the elements. The shakedown exercise involved a piloting exercise where the participants had to go to various waypoints and identify the objects on the bearings they were provided. A 16 knot breeze and misty rain provided challenging conditions for those trying to hold their handheld compasses steady.
The winners of the piloting exercise were provided with nautical baskets at the pot luck supper at Pecan Grove. The winners were Gerald and Cheryl Crowley (with Earl and Sandy Evens) aboard Ri Ra and Stacey and Bob Taylor aboard the M/V Pelican. The other wet, but undaunted participants included George and Mary Duffie on Merry Mary,
Gordon Keller on Ali Cat, Art and Elise Tierney aboard Quixotic with two guests, Will and Nancy Huff (with Fred and Nancy Karl aboard Godspeed), Joe and Paula Valinoti on Il Gato, Doug and Lew Carmichael aboard Whisper, Carl and Penny Monnel on Take Five, the committee boat, Tenacity, with Gordon and Ann Kellogg and Ron and Jayne Demers aboard, Dick and Donna Mannion on Wind Melody, George and Judy Smith aboard Windbag, Richard and Gerda Lampe on Blue Norther. Several participants left early for a variety of reasons including engine problems. A few other SCOO registrants informed us that they were experiencing mechanical problems that would prevent them from participating. That is why it is called a "shakedown cruise."
Thanks to the hard work of Bev Mott and other members of the social committee, we all enjoyed a relaxing social and potluck dinner on the porch of Pecan Grove.
Cruise Captains: Gordon & Ann Kellogg, Ron & Jayne Demers

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Dec 13 - Spirit of Christmas - SCOO Commodores

If you missed the Spirit of Christmas parade, you missed a golden opportunity to see what teamwork can do! For the first time anyone can remember, SCOO entered a float in Oriental's Spirit of Christmas parade (not be confused with SCOO's unforgettable Fourth of July float in 2003!).
In early November the SCOO board (Dick Mannion in particular) called to see if we would consider putting together a Sailing Club of Oriental float for Spirit of Christmas parade. Sounded like a fun idea and we started planning. Our first step was to decide how the float would represent SCOO -- that was the easy part -- then the real challenge, how to put it all together...that's where teamwork comes in...Catherine gets the ideas and I have to figure out how to make them work. I did some sketching and decided to build benches (in the shape of the bow of a boat, of course) in the center of the float, adding burgees, lights, etc. Several emails later our plan began to take a definite shape -- Larry Jones provided a flatbed trailer, Stu Ackerman had the perfect size American flag, Will Huff offered his signal flags, Ed Braun located the SCOO sail and burgees, George Duffie repaired the trailer lights and hooked up the inverter, Karen vanGamper designed and hand lettered the signs, I built the benches, painted the names of all the commodores and their year of service on the inside of the signs , provided the lighting and put all the pieces together. The final results were amazing!!!
On December 6, the SCOO float was hooked up to George Duffie's truck with Jerry Crowley at the helm and his wife Cheryl Crowley as his first mate. With SCOO's current commodore Larry Jones out of town, Vice Commodore Earl Evens gallantly stepped in and wearing the unique SCOO Commodore Hat, sat at the bow of the float. PHIL HECKHAUS 1988, GINGER HOWE 1989, STEWART ACKERMAN 1993, DON KRAUS 1995, ART TIERNEY 1996, GEORGE SCHENCK 1999, WILL HUFF 2000, CALEB MARSH 2001, CARL BAXLEY 2003, DOUG SLIGH 2005, GEORGE DUFFIE 2006, and ED BRAUN 2007 were seated to Earl's port and starboard looking mighty fine in their white captain hats, white shirts, red bowties, khaki pants and blue blazers.
Many great comments have been heard about the float from participants and spectators. Picture have been submitted to the SCOO website for you to enjoy.
My admiral and I thank everyone who helped make the Spirit of Christmas SCOO float a success.
Carl Baxley
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Oct 2 - Commodore's Cup (posted 10/5/08)

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Sept 10 - Regretta (posted 10/30/08)

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July 7 - Cape Lookout alternate (posted 7/26/08)

Due to forecasted weather conditions of high winds, seas of 4-6 ft. and thunderstorms the cruise to Cape Lookout was canceled. As it turned out the decision was a good one because that is exactly what we had - high winds, rough seas and thunderstorms. It is no fun to be out there with high winds and thunder and lighting all around.
All was not lost however. We enjoyed a potluck at the home of Jay and Karen Parker. After dinner Karen entertained us by playing the accordion and piano. Hearing some of the old tunes was especially enjoyable. In addition, Earl brought along oyster shell and seed oysters to demonstrate how oyster restoration is done on a small scale. The canal behind the Parkers house is now the home of a few oysters, placed there to help clean up the water. Due to pollution concerns the Dept. of Marine Fisheries has prohibited the harvest of shellfish from this area.
Maggie Arndt suggested and has agreed to captain a Cape Lookout cruise in August at a time when a good weather window is forecasted. Preparations will consist of an e-mail announcement to the membership - no exercise of preparing appetizers, pot luck dishes etc. Call your friends and we'll meet at Cape Lookout and do whatever - shell collecting, beachcombing etc.,etc.,etc.
Attendees: Tom and Ellie Finta, Dick and Gerda Lampe, Richard and Renee Dumont, Gerry and Cheryl Crowley, Will and Nancy Huff, Bill and Maggie Arndt, Andy and Mary Anton, Jay and Karen Parker, Earl and Sandy Evens.

June 30 - Gone with the Wind (posted 7/24/08) (photos added 8/5/08)

Attached are a few selected pictures of the above-captioned cruise; twenty-four club member couples attended, as well as a number of invited guests. Although 24 boats had planned on attending, only 12 were able to cruise to the event due to low water at their departure points. The Harbor Club at River Dunes was beautiful with afternoon swimming and socializing; the evening included a Rhett Butler, Scarlett O'Hara look-a-like contest and a short trivia contest about the production of the classic movie. The Harbor Club provided a breakfast to all that docked overnight. The facilities at River Dunes were outstanding with several boats topping off their tanks at their fuel dock. All had a wonderful time and many thanks to JC Cappelmann, Harbor Club Manager, who rolled out the "red carpet" for our land-based activities.
Durl & Debbie Evans, Cruise Captains
Click on this link to view photos 1
Click on this link to view photos 2
Click on this link to view participants

June 20-21 - Broad Creek Picnic / Summer Soltice Race (posted 6/24/08)

Friday, June 20th, 2008, fifteen boats voyaged to lower Broad Creek for the annual SCOO Summer Solstice Cruise. Fourteen boats were docked at either the Lind's dock or the adjacent neighbor's dock, greeted by the host all decked in yellow, the fifteenth anchored in the creek. Wind Melody had to sail into the creek where Carl Monell was able to fix his starter motor. Thanks, Tom F. for ferrying Carl to the disabled boat! Later, while playing horseshoes, we discovered there was a ringer amongst us (Gordon Kellogg played in college).
Friday, over 40 people gathered on the Lind's deck for a potluck and BBQ. Skippers and crew representing the vessels Full Tilt, Take 5, Pressandro, Spindrift, Miranda, Miss El, Dutchess of Oz, Fancy Tramp, Symmetry, Merry Mary, Topsy II, Wind Melody, Renee, Walkabout, and Blue Norther had a great time. Included were prospective members Seth and Sue Hiller, Diane and Michael Paling and Tomas and Susan Omanski.
On Saturday, most vessels competed in the Whortonsville Yacht and Tractor Club Race, in the rain, out on the Pamlico Sound. Rumor has it that the race was slightly delayed due to one member snagging the start line. Another dragged a crab pot, slowing his sail, of course! The weather cleared up in time for the evening potluck dinner.
Sunday, the remaining fleet sailed home on what turned out to be a sunny day.
ERIC LIND
Click on this link to view photos.pdf

July 18 - Summer Moonbeam (posted 7/23/08)

Click on this link to view report & photos