Scuttlebutt Winter 2011 Page 1 Scuttlebutt · 2019. 4. 30. · Scuttlebutt. Once again it will be held on the grounds of the North-west Creek Marina in New Bern NC, on Saturday May

Scuttlebutt Winter 2011 Page 1

Scuttlebutt Vol. 25 No. 1

Waterway Radio and Cruising Club ‘Serving Radio Amateurs Afloat Since 1963’

If this were a State of the Union ad-dress, I might begin by saying the state of the WRCC remains strong. All officer and staff positions are filled, there are volunteers for all net positions each month, our finances are in good order, and we are conducting business in ac-

cordance with post-9/11 regulations as a registered Section 501(c) (7) social club. (By the way, we’re not a charity, so contributions aren’t tax deductible.)

To all officers, staff and net volunteers, my sincere thanks for jobs well done. Some of our members deserve special recognition. In no particular order: Ron N1GYX, Chuck ND7K, and Phil K4TPT for con-ducting ham exams at various places during the year; Bill N4UMS for keeping our excellent website up to date; Earl WD0ETL for a superb job of coordi-nating our weather reporting; Karen Quick for her professional quality work on Scuttlebutt; Art KC0TPG for taming the MAROB monster; Tom K4WJC for be-ing safety officer, manning our table at SSCA and filling in on the Net whenever needed; Paul KM4MA for coordinating boat watches and other information with the Coast Guard and other nets; Ned W4KS for organizing the annual picnic; Ed KC4JKW for manag-ing our database of position reports; Jeanie N4WFM for everything she does regarding our member data-base, finances and roster; Debbie KD4GRR for spreading Sunshine; and Terry K1LCH for the daily simulcast of the net on CQ100. I’m sure I may have omitted someone, for which I apologize. Having writ-ten this paragraph, and looking for the first time in one place at almost everything WRCC does, I’m very impressed with everything you all are doing. VERY impressed. Not bad for a bunch of amateur radio operators on boats.

That said, there is always room for more people to become active. Please contact me if you would like to become a participant in the daily Waterway Net. Don’t be shy; being a relay, net control, weather

From Your Commodore — Peter Colket K3PKC

reader or daily fleet captain is a great way to get on the air. You don’t need a land station with a big amplifier; 100 watts from a reliable rig ashore or afloat can work fine, depending on your location and propagation. And please don’t assume the net volunteers you hear every week represent some sort of closed society; if you want to get in the game, we’ll find a place for you.

Finally, as this year goes along I hope members will step up to lead the club in 2012. All of your three cur-rent officers ran unopposed in the last election. I won’t run for re-election, and there’s no guarantee VC Earl and RC Ed will want to move up; in fact, our club does-n’t operate on the assumption that they will. Jeanie’s column this quarter is devoted largely to a description of the officers’ duties; I hope you’ll examine it and real-ize that rather than being difficult or terribly time-consuming, the officer positions are a great way to be of service to the radio and boating community and an opportunity to make lasting friendships.

Best wishes to all for a healthy, happy and prosperous New Year!

73 – Peter K3PKC

Second Annual Carolinas Rendezvous — Earl Quick –WD0ETL

Mark your calendars now for another Carolina Rendez-vous of the WRCC. Details will follow in the Spring Scuttlebutt.

Once again it will be held on the grounds of the North-west Creek Marina in New Bern NC, on Saturday May 14, 2011. The Marina has excellent facilities. Tran-sient slips are available at a dollar a foot and includes electricity; an anchorage is just around the corner in Upper Broad Creek, plenty of room to park your cars, campground nearby (New Bern KOA), motels in New Bern, NC just 8 miles away and a fine restaurant on the grounds.

Here is a link to the facilities: http://northwestcreekmarina.com/

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Scuttlebutt Winter 2011

The Vice Commodore shall assist the Commodore as requested, and shall perform all the duties of Commo-dore in the absence of the Commodore. Occasionally the Vice Commodore has been assigned to handle a job such as Weather Coordinator or Fleet Captain, but that is just an overlap in assignments. It is not re-quired. If you ask anyone who has ever been in this position, you will find that you are just asked to moni-tor the net occasionally, and give input should the offi-cers need to vote on something. It’s that simple.

The Rear Commodore shall assist the Commodore and Vice Commodore as requested, and shall perform all the duties of Commodore in the absence of both the Commodore and Vice Commodore. Same as for Vice Commodore, this position might also include Weather Coordinator or Fleet Captain. And like the Vice Com-modore position, you vote and occasionally monitor the net if both of the other officers are not available. Again, simple.

The Secretary/Treasurer maintains the WRCC Roster database; formats, prints and mails the yearly Roster of Members; prints and mails the newsletters to mem-bers who do not want to receive it via email; emails the newsletters to those members who want it digitally; collects dues; coordinates elections and counts ballots when necessary; processes new member applications and sends out New Member Packets; sells burgees and pins; basically does whatever needs doing to help keep the club running smoothly.

The Fleet Captain is responsible for obtaining and re-cording Float Plans and Position Reports. Priority is given to those on Float Plans, then to those actually underway and finally to anyone on a boat anywhere. The Fleet Captain is responsible for organizing the vol-unteers who make up the Fleet Captains for the Day for the month, and passing those assignments on to the Commodore for inclusion in the monthly volunteer calendar. A database of position reports is maintained and available to the officers and any member who re-quests it.

Fleet Captains for the Day are assigned to a particular morning of the week for a month at a time to support the Fleet Captain. All position and float plan contacts are logged and transmitted to the Fleet Captain as part of the permanent record.

The Weather Coordinator is responsible for organizing the volunteer assignments for those members who are Weather Reporters. This schedule is forwarded to the Commodore so it is reflected in the monthly volunteer calendar.

(Continued on page 3)

Happy New Year to all of you! At the Annual Picnic in Melbourne in November 2010, I was talking to some members, trying to promote some interest in running for the club officer positions in the up-coming year. One question got my attention. It was “How much is

involved in each position?” Well, that’s a good ques-tion, and one that should be passed around. Some people do not want to run because they think the job is too hard. It is not. None of them are. We also have no requirement that you ‘move up’ from Rear to Vice to Commodore. If you want to run, we would love to have you, but you do not have to accept a nomination thinking that you have just committed yourself to a 3 year term. I have included descriptions of pretty much every po-sition within the Waterway Radio and Cruising Club, whether it is an election position or not. Look them over, and please consider getting involved. We need everyone. This is a SUPER club, and I am personally very proud to be an active member. All the best in the New Year. – Jeanie, N4WFM Description of Positions in WRCC Commodore and Net Manager Excerpted from the By-Laws: The Commodore shall serve as the Net Manager and shall supervise the op-eration of the net. The Commodore shall appoint a Secretary, a Treasurer (or a combined Secretary/Treasurer), a Fleet Captain, a Fleet Surgeon, Net Con-trollers, and such other positions, as the Commodore may require from time to time. They shall serve at the pleasure of the Commodore. Basically, the Commo-dore needs to either listen to the net each day to make sure it is running smoothly, or have a substitute available in his/her absence. The monthly volunteer assignment calendar is also published by the Commo-dore. Except for the calendar, this is a fairly simple job and no one should be afraid to run for this office.

Secretary / Treasurer’s Report — Jeanie Schreiber, N4WFM


Historians maintain back issues of all Rosters and Scuttlebutts as well as any other historical paperwork deemed worth keeping. The Fleet Surgeon makes himself available to assist members with medical questions that they need an-swered while they are traveling. He also occasionally writes an informative column for the newsletter.

Weather Reporters are a vital element of the Net’s basic purpose, “…to encourage amateur radio commu-nications to and from boats with emphasis on safety and weather information.” (By Laws, Article II) Reliable computer access to the internet is essential. The Weather Coordinator provides a ‘script’ to follow with all of the appropriate hyperlinks for each section to make the reporting go smoothly.

The Net Control Station (NCS) is responsible for run-ning the daily net using the format and preamble sup-plied by the Net Manager. It is also the NCS’ responsi-bility to see that the Net starts on time, that check-ins follow the Net format, and that the appropriate traffic is efficiently passed within each segment of the for-mat. A good signal and a good ear are essential, but anyone can do it. The key word here is “control.”

Designated Relay It is the responsibility of a designated relay to assist the NCS when and as requested to do so. The pur-pose is to give stations with weak signals or those out-side of NCS’ propagation a chance to call their traffic and to repeat any announcements or calls in to areas that cannot hear Net Control.

The Scuttlebutt Editor collects all of the regular col-umns plus any articles that members wish to submit and magically transform them in to an interesting quarterly reading. This publication is sent via email to the Webmaster and the Secretary for dissemination to the membership.

The Webmaster is responsible for all of the design and updating of our wonderful website www.waterwayradio.net .

The Sunshine Lady is responsible for making sure our members who are ill receive a little ‘sunshine’ from the club in the way of cards or flowers. We also send condolences to the families of those members who have passed away. Funds come from donations that the members have given over the years ear-marked for the Sunshine Fund.

The Exam Coordinator, as the name implies, sched-ules the exams that we give annually at the time of the annual picnic in Melbourne. Occasionally other exams are set up when requested (like for MTOA in April 2010).The USCG Liaison coordinates with the US Coast Guard to help in the location of missing vessels. Emergency boat watches are broadcast throughout the net when necessary to locate a vessel of interest.

The Safety Officer keeps the membership advised of problems like ICW shoaling areas.

(Continued from page 2)

Why do Offshore Weather Reporting?

-Art Howard, KC0TPG

Why do the Fleet Captains keep asking for the offshore weather when boats at sea give their position report? The answer is the WRCC (Waterway Radio and Cruising Club) is participating in an experimental program with the National Weather Service. The following is a quote from the National Weather Service: The MAROB Program is an experimental voluntary ma-rine observation program of the National Weather Ser-vice in the early stages of development. It seeks the participation of all mariners, both commercial and rec-reational, which are not part of the more in-depth Vol-untary Observing Ship (VOS) program. It is the goal of the program to collect as many marine observations as practicable, to improve the accuracy of coastal, off-shore and high seas forecasts, by taking advantage of technological advancements in marine communica-tions and the proliferation of the Internet. (This quote is from http://www.nws.noaa.gov/om/marine/panemailhelp.pdf) Now that you know why the Fleet Captains ask for this information from boaters underway and offshore you are probably wondering how this information gets to the National Weather Service. This is where my respon-sibilities come into play with the WRCC net. Let me introduce myself. I am Art Howard, KC0TPG, and am living full time on my sailboat, Samana, a Challenger 35 Ketch. I check into the WRCC net on 7.268 MHz LSB most mornings. When Peter Colket, our Commo-dore, asked for someone to help with the weather re-porting during one of the morning nets, I volunteered. Thus, when boats offshore provide weather reports, I collect them and put them into a software program called YOTREPS Reporter (pronounced Yacht Reps). YOTREPS Reporter formats the weather information correctly for the National Weather Service. I copy this formatted information into an Airmail Message and

(Continued on page 4)

Page 4


Florida Boaters Can Take Free Boating Safety Course at Home

BoatUS Foundation Online Boating Safety Course Ap-proved by Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Com-mission

TALLAHASSEE, Fl. December 13, 2010 - A law put into effect earlier this year now requires boaters in Florida born after January 1, 1988 and operating a vessel pow-ered by an engine with 10 or more horsepower to have successfully completed a boater safety course, carry a boater safety identification card and photo ID. However, some Sunshine State boaters could find it challenging locating a nearby boater safety course that's both con-venient and fits their budget. However, the new Online Boating Safety Course pro-vided by the BoatUS Foundation for Boating Safety and Clean Water is now approved by Florida Fish and Wild-life Conservation Commission (FWC), which allows the state's boaters to take the course at no cost in the com-fort of their own home. For boaters over 22 years old, taking the course could also earn a discount on your boat insurance. The online course and exam is also approved by the

-submitted by Jeanie Schreiber, N4WFM

send it to [email protected] where it is converted to the MAROB format and forwarded to the National Weather Service by Pangolin Software. All this sounds a bit technical but believe me it works very well. I use my laptop computer, Pactor Modem, and HF SSB to send the airmail shortly after the morning net. If I can-not hear the offshore reports on the radio, the Fleet Captain sends me an e-mail with the information so I can do my part. If I have most of the information and only missed a couple of items I ask for the missing in-formation after Position Reports. Otherwise, I contact the Fleet Captain and let them know I have the infor-mation and no e-mail is needed. Now those of you who provide offshore weather infor-mation, those that collect it, and the readers of this article have a better picture of why our club partici-pates in, and how it performs for the National Weather Service. All of us boaters appreciate the work of the National Weather Service and use their forecasts so we may boat safer when it comes to the weather.

(Continued from page 3) Why do Offshore Weather Reporting

National Association of State Boating Law Administra-tors and recognized by the US Coast Guard as exceed-ing the minimum requirements for the National Rec-reational Boating Safety Program.

"We've loaded the course with interactive animations, videos and photos to give boaters an education that goes well beyond the basics of boating," said BoatUS Foundation Director of Boating Safety Chris Edmon-ston. "It includes videos that demonstrate important safety devices such as visual distress signals, how to get help in an emergency, how to prevent and extin-guish fires aboard your boat, and the best way to fit a life jacket to a child so they will not slip out," he added. "The best part of all is the course is free and can be taken at home, and it's designed so that you can stop and then continue at any time. I will guarantee you that everyone will learn something new," said Edmonston.

Upon successful completion of the course, boaters print out their own certificate of completion and for-ward to FWC which issues the boater safety identifica-tion card. To take the course go to www.BoatUS.org. For more information about Florida boater education, go to www.myfwc.com/recreation/boat_index.htm.

Thank you, WRCC from Dave Skolnick, KO4MI

I'd like to convey my thanks to the Waterway Net for your support during my recent delivery from Chesa-peake Bay to BVI. In addition to providing weather in-formation, the Net, Bill Trayfors, in particular, was an important conduit of information regarding the hospi-talization and ultimate passing of a dear, elderly family member. While I certainly would have liked to be home, it was a great comfort to know what was going on. For those that suffered through the daily traffic be-tween Bill and me, you may be interested to know that "Golf Golf Foxtrot" is/was GGF, the nickname we gave John B Moore, a proud great-grandfather. GGF was 94 years old and entirely self-sufficient when he fell and broke his leg a couple of weeks ago. Unfortunately he never recovered from the travail of surgery. While not a ham, he was a very technical person who spent much of his life in naval architecture and ship con-struction. He took great pleasure in following my trav-els by boat. His apartment overlooked the marina that is home to Auspicious and he kept a weather eye on the boat (and me). We will miss him very much. Dave, s/v Auspicious


Roster Updates New or Changed E-Mail Addresses

Since 10/1/2010

N1 CGJ [email protected] KB2 CUZ [email protected] VA3 DBW [email protected] VE0 DCC [email protected] KC2 ELK [email protected] WB3 FNO [email protected] KB3 FZY [email protected] AA1 GJ [email protected] KC2 GJZ [email protected] KD4 HM [email protected] N4 JET [email protected] W4 JN [email protected] KB1 KRS [email protected] KI4 LOL [email protected] KN4 MB [email protected] AA1 MQ [email protected] KF4 OIP [email protected] KB4 PNU [email protected] KG4 QIV [email protected] N4 RVK [email protected] WA2 RWB [email protected] KJ4 SME [email protected] W9 TAO [email protected] N4 UAU [email protected] N2 UCH [email protected] W4 WNR [email protected]

New Callsigns and Upgrades

K3 AAR E Al Robbert Old Call: KJ4ZER

KG4 SCZ T Diane Smith

New Members Since 10/1/2010

VA6SJB (-) Killdeer Bellingham, Sheena 38' wooden ketch 1939 5 Ivorwood Crescent Toronto ON [email protected] M1R 2X5 [email protected] ~~~ ... ~~~ ... ~~~

NC3F (E) Cherry, Norman 505 SW 10th Place (239) 458-0973 Cape Coral FL [email protected] 33991-4404 [email protected] ~~~ ... ~~~ ... ~~~ KD4DFO (G) Pogo Heath, Michael Allied Mistress 39.5 281 Stoney Creek Ln (828) 837-5140 Murphy NC [email protected] 28906-9334 ~~~ ... ~~~ ... ~~~ W5GUA (G) Paradise Hoisington, William & Glenda Hunter 27 4706 Young Rd (850) 682-7745 Crestview FL [email protected] 32539-8348 ~~~ ... ~~~ ... ~~~ KD8FHX (G) Windchaser Mahoney, Brian & Jan Beneteau Oceanis 40 32818 Walker Rd #116 (440) 465-9533 Avon Lake OH [email protected] 44012-1473 ~~~ ... ~~~ ... ~~~ KI4NNA (E) Kathryn R. Messer, Edward & Joyce Pacific Seacraft 34’ cutter 1131 Indian Oaks Dr. (321) 768-7651 Melbourne FL [email protected] 32901-8169 [email protected] ~~~ ... ~~~ ... ~~~ K3AAR (G) Corianna Robbert, Al Tartan 4300 43' sloop 913 26th Street S (703) 298-8937 Arlington VA [email protected] 22202-2405 ~~~ ... ~~~ ... ~~~ N1TMH (T) Madison's Trace Towle, Howard & Elaine MacGregor 26X, 26' sloop 443 Fuller Rd (207) 949-9811 Hermon ME [email protected] 04401-0401 ~~~ ... ~~~ ... ~~~ KJ4IJQ (E) At last Vonderheide, Chris Catalina 44 509 S Banana River Dr. #203 (321) 403-1904 Merritt Island FL [email protected] 32952-2647 ~~~ ... ~~~ ... ~~~

W4SZZ (E) New Hope Watson, Edward Whitby 42 ketch PO Box 522605 (305) 360-6957 Marathon FL [email protected] 33052-2605

2011 Rosters A new roster for 2011will be printed and distributed soon. If you’d prefer to receive the digital (PDF) version of the roster send an email to Jeanie, your WRCC secretary at: [email protected]

Scuttlebutt is published quarterly to inform members about Waterway Net news, activities and items of inter-est. Email your material to the Editor for possible sub-mission. What to Send Your Editor is always looking for articles and photos News from gatherings and luncheons Human interest stories, humorous, hair-raising and

“Don’t worry honey, . . .” Bahamas and Island news CW and Land Cruiser’s news Technical topics

Safety & navigation notices Letters to the editor Poetry Boating/Ham events Sea Chest: items wanted or for sale Use your imagination and send it in Send Silent Key and obituary notices to our Sunshine Lady. Address changes should be sent to our Club’s secretary. Deadline for Spring 2011 issue articles: March 31.

Interested in Contributing to Scuttlebutt?

Life Quotes It is very difficult to teach naviga-tion theory to someone who clings to the shore. -- Carol Bly Books are the compasses and telescopes and sextants and charts which other men have pre-pared to help us navigate the dan-gerous seas of human life. -- Jesse Lee Bennet

Page 6


Fibromyalgia is a pestilence to a signifi-cant number of people, perhaps not so much to you active boaters but likely to some of your friends. It is prevalent enough, and resistant enough to man-agement that “remedies” are advertised on television. It is a mysterious illness (I’ll avoid the word ‘disease’) which de-

serves some discussion. Fibromyalgia is a complex disorder consisting of a mixture of symptoms. These include multiple body aches and muscle tenderness, lethargy, muscle stiffness, sleep disorders, sometimes irritable bowel syndrome, and varying degrees of de-pression mental and chronic fatigue. In some ways it is closely akin to “chronic fatigue syndrome”. Fibromyalgia mostly affects women in the age group from 30 to 50 and beyond. It is rare in teenagers; and in adults it affects women 9 times more often than men. Fibromyalgia is poorly appreciated by many doc-tors so has been called a “wastebasket illness,” that which is left over when all other illnesses have been ruled out, or an “It’s all in your head disease,” but in recent years it is better diagnosed and treated than before. It does exist, and its victims do suffer. Present thinking is that the illness results from an ab-normal response to stressful challenges during child-hood, but its more complex than that. It occurs due to at least three general broad factors. These are: 1) A person’s genetic vulnerability and a poor adaptation to stress, especially the “stress-pain” combination; 2) Personal emotional problems; and 3) The sociologic environment in which a person lives. Why am I going in to all this? Well, because those who suffer from fibromyalgia, do suffer, often for long years, with inadequate diagnosis, and with poor medi-cal management. They often miss out on the joys of boating with family and friends. They often become addicted to sedatives and narcotics due to their des-peration, and the desperation of their doctors. I’d like to help these things not to happen. Anyone who suffers, or thinks they suffer, from fi-bromyalgia should be seen by a rheumatologist or, if not, by a doctor who is well educated in the disease. Since the illness has psychological, physical, and diag-nostic features the patient may well need to see vari-ous consultants under the direction of the rheumatolo-gist.

Comments from Sickbay — Dr. Jim Hirschman ,K4TCV

A host of medications are available and do offer some help. A recent article in the New England Journal of Medicine reports that adoption of a Tai-Chi exercise program has provided considerable benefit to fi-bromyalgia patients (Reference: New York Times and New England Journal of Medicine, Dr. Daniel Solo-mon). This makes sense because the illness is truly a” mind-body” illness. Google it! DON’T get started on addictive muscle relaxants or narcotics like Tylenol-codeine or Oxycontin® or Vi-codin® They won’t cure you and only make the man-agement more complex. If already hooked ask your doctor to get you off of these. Under a wise doctor’s guidance consider duloxatine or gabapentine (Neurontin®), and/or antidepressants, and the like. My thrust here is not to suggest any specific medica-tion but rather to protect you from the wrong medi-cines. Finally, I will focus on medication addiction. Yes, we all have pains. Yes, we all sometimes have severe pain. What to take ? What to give the patient in pain? The answer is: for acute pain, like a kidney stone or a heart attack, get under a doctor’s care and let him/her man-age your pain. For chronic pain do not start out on nar-cotics. You’ll get hooked and have a nearly impossible time getting off. Use the NSAIDS, ibuprofen, naproxen, celecoxib (Celebrex), indomethacin, ketorolac, etc. Also, in patients with fibromyalgia, liniments and anal-gesic balms are often very helpful, especially when accompanied by gentle massage. Refer questions to: Fleet Surgeon, Jim C. Hirschman, MD, K4TCV For an overview article on fibromyalgia by John Buck-ner Winfield, MD, UNC Medical School , Google the search term “fibromyalgia emedicine” Wang C et al. A randomized trial of tai chi for fi-bromyalgia. N Engl J Med 2010 Aug 19; 363:743. [Medline® Abstract] Yeh GY et al. Prescribing tai chi for fibromyalgia — Are we there yet? N Engl J Med 2010 Aug 19; 363:783. [Medline® Abstract]


Piping Plover 5 year Winter Survey in the Bahamas

Piping plovers are small shorebirds that have a taste for nesting on the best beches in eastern North Amer-ica. Unfortunately the best beaches are also the most used for recreation so this bird is now on the endan-gered species list. Piping plovers also have the best taste in winter and choose the many sand flats in the Bahamas for their winter habitat. Many of these areas are inaccessible for researchers so visiting yachtsmen cruising the Ba-hamas are asked to look out for these shorebirds and report sightings. Piping plovers are fairly easily identi-fied beside most other shorebirds except other light colored birds such as sanderlings and snowy plovers.

To be an acceptable sighting, the bird(s) must be iden-tified by at least 2 people who can positively identify the birds, or better, take photographs of the birds, so carry a camera and binoculars when walking the beaches. Some of the likely beaches occur in the Ragged Island chain, Andros, Exuma and any good wide sandy beach or tidal flats where they feed on wet sand at low tide. Good spots are often where there's good bonefishing when the tide is high. At high tide the birds can also be found roosting in the "rack" at the top of the beach. Many birds have been banded and flagged, the flag is on one upper leg, there will be 2 color bands on each lower leg, see photo. If you can get close enough,

— Carolyn Wardle, C6AGG

please record which colors are on which leg, upper and lower color, this positively identifies the bird and can tell researchers where and when the bird was banded. Report back to me ([email protected]) the follow-ing information: Name(s) of observers Date, location, latitude and longitude Number of birds (estimated or positively counted) Details of any banded birds Weather conditions and state of tide

Silent Key — Submitted by Chuck Grey, ND7K

Britton Chance, W2IBK SK 1913-2010—Brit, W2IBK, put in many position re-ports from his sail boats on Florida Bay and Barnegat Bay, NJ. He also was ac-tive in the CW Net for at least 17 years. Brit’s quiet voice or short CW bug trans-missions did not hint at the giant of a man he was. Brit had been a ham since before WW II, an E scow champion and won a Gold Medal in the 1962 Olym-pics, Helsinki 5.5 Meter class (which had just replaced the R boats). Brit earned two PHDs (U of PA and Cam-bridge). Before the war he had invented a ship’s auto-pilot and during the WW II he was a member of the RadLab at MIT where he helped improve Radar and the Norton bombsight. One of his circuits is still used in some radars. After the war he had a long and fa-mous career as a research scientist at the University of Pennsylvania where a research building is named after him. Good sailing Brit, we will miss you. A more detailed obituary can be found at the NY Times. Brit passed away Nov 16, 2010. Brit’s older brother, Henry W3UC, active on the CW net, passed away earlier this year. Brit’s son Brit Jr is a well-known yacht designer.)

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The 2010 Melbourne Picnic — Ned Buck, W4KS

abundance of dishes of all kinds served up by Lona, KN4RB, Nancy, KI4HQE, Danny, N4KLO, and Diane Buck. Our commodore, Peter, K3PKC, kept everyone enter-tained with his guitar and folk songs as well as serv-ing as MC. We also celebrated the 94th birthday of Mac, N2FCP, and the large birthday cake was enjoyed by all. The photos show the people and activities that made this picnic a memorable event. We look forward to seeing everyone again in 2011.

Perfect Florida fall weather greeted the WRCC mem-bers and guests attending the 2010 edition of the Mel-bourne Picnic on November 14. The picnic was held in Wickham Park as it has been for the past several years. Many long time members were with us again this year and there were many first timers in the crowd. A number of cruisers anchored in the Indian River for the SSCA GAM were provided transportation to the pic-nic courtesy of our committee consisting of Gerry, N4DFO, Alan, AD4HE and Lenny, KN4TB. The day began with an active marine flea market offer-ing many bargains. The registration table, ably staffed by Claire, KC4LBZ, Dolores, KA2QOG, and Trish, KD4LGZ, logged in 96 attendees, an almost 15 percent increase from 2009. Our secretary-treasurer, Jeanie, N4WFM, did a brisk business with membership renew-als and burgees. Later the pot luck lunch provided an

A good crowd arrived for the picnic

Tom KE3JO and Julie KE4OIM

The Singing Commodore!

A Birthday Celebration for Mac N2FPC


Sunshine

October Ted Gimble N1XVR surgery November Marvin Whatley AA4YW hospitalized Barry Kipnis W4BSK death in the family

Be sure to send any Get Well or Silent Key requests or notices to Debbie at Debbie Lerner KD4GRR

Sunshine Fund Chairman sunshine @ waterwayradio.net

Where the WRCC

Meets to Eat

Bahamas, Nassau - Lunch December-May, every

Thursday, 12:30 Green Parrot Restaurant

C6AGG—Carolyn Bahamas, George Town, -

Lunch Weekly Jan-Mar Details on the Net

FL, Marathon—Lunch Wednesdays @ 11:30 November to May Marathon Yacht Club $14 ND7K-Chuck Grey

FL, Melbourne – Lunch Dragons Lunch 2nd Wednes-day 11:30, Conch Key Grill, US Rt 1 North of Melbourne. Contact W4KS or KN4RB

Melbourne, Wickham Park November 14, 2010

General gathering and picnic

FL, Pensacola Beach—Lunch 2nd Tues every month — Hemmingway’s on the Beach Contact Chuck Cook—KE4KEA (850) 380-4217

FL, St. Petersburg - Lunch 2nd Sat 1230 MIDTOWN Sun-dries, 200 1st Av S Ken Cowan KC4OSZ (727) 821-5383

NC, Oriental - Breakfast - Last Sat 0900 @ Village Restaurant -(Repeater 147.210+ tone 151.4) Listen to the Net for details: 7.268 MHz at approximately 0800 ET. Please contact the Editor with any changes to this list.

Tim Rulon, WA2KQD browses the flea market

Everyone heads for the chow line, especially for dessert

Nice line up at the food table!

Emcee/Commodore

Page 10


The SEA CHEST

The new CW Net manager for 2011 is John N6ANQ, now/MM. Thank you, John, for taking the job and thanks also to the retiring manager Barry VE3BZW. The CW net is rolling along averaging more than 15 check ins every day 7AM Eastern time (and before) 7.047 Mhz. A new CW Net Roster with other info will be out in January and sent to regulars and also avail-able on the WRCC web site. Come and join us.

Dick, W4AKE/C6AKE and Sue Long; Lona Bell, KN4RB; and Ned Buck, W4KS

Past Commodores, still active after all these years. Peter Colket, K3PKC; Ron Knaggs, N1GYX;

Jeanie Schreiber, N4WFM; Lona Bell, KN4RB; Bill Boyle, N4UMS; Tom Rader, K4WJC

CW Net

—Chuck Grey, ND7K

Be sure to submit your items for sale or trade to your Scuttlebutt Editor. Submissions for the Spring issue must be in by March 31. Courtesy Flags for Sale: 12X18 in nylon. Never used. Grenada: $14; Dominica: $19. Will ship at no cost. Contact Ellen at [email protected] or 941-575-9235.

2010 Melbourne Picnic Photos

Flea Market Treasures

I don't know how the WRCC found out Marvin, AA4YW,was in the hospital, but we really appreciated the lovely flowers.

Marvin had a massive stroke on November 7. I was finally able to bring him home on December 16. The doctors, nurses, and therapists at Pitt Memorial Hospi-tal in Greenville, NC are amazed at his recovery to date. The entire right side of the brain was initially in-volved. He could not move or feel his left arm and leg. However, we are extremely fortunate because his mind was not affected and he speaks fairly clearly. He does have a slight sag to his left cheek and can't feel anything on the left side of his mouth. However, he can now move both the left arm and left leg but still does not feel on that side of his body. That makes for balance problems, but he is rapidly learning to stand and walk with a 4-legged cane. He will be taking physi-cal therapy 3 times a week for quite some time.

Again, thanks to the WRCC for the flowers and well wishes. - Susan

Thank you, WRCC - Susan Whatley, KN4KD


Around The Waterways — Peter Colket, K3PKC

There have been at least two reports of “aggressive law enforcement” in Volusia County, FL, near New Smyrna. One incident involved drawn weapons, but there’s some controversy as to the reasons. One law enforcement officer was quoted as saying he does nothing for three months each spring and fall but stop boats for toilet inspections. The two widely reported cases suggest it’s hard to avoid a $250 fine if you are stopped; they will find something wrong. Our choices are (1) observe the letter of the law strictly and hope for the best, or (2) make a 200-mile run offshore from Ft. Pierce to St. Augustine. By the way, shoaling has been reported in the St. Augustine inlet channel.

The most popular grounding spots in the ICW this year are Matanzas Inlet (M 792) and Cumberland Dividings (M 704). Do not trust your chartplotter in these areas -- the channels and some of the marks have been moved – and pay no attention to the ma-genta line! You can update your information regard-ing these and other areas at several websites. My favorites are activecaptain.com; cruisersnet.net; skipperbob.net; and waterwayguide.com.

Many bridge channels from Titusville to Miami are sched-uled for dredging during the next six months. This will cause some partial obstruction and occasional delayed openings. You may want to call ahead.

The St. Augustine mooring fields are open, and they’re very good. The marina manager explained to me how they were designed with the best technology in equipment and installation, and large swinging radii so that boats having dissimilar swing character-istics can’t collide. One word of caution: The open-ing to the South field (below Bridge of Lions) is only on the north side, between the marina fuel dock and the nearest red daymark (I think it’s #8). If you try to enter the field from the east or south, you will go aground. Also, some of the moorings are a long, long way from the docks, so you could be in for a wet dinghy ride in rough weather.

Okeechobee Waterway is in good shape, plenty of water in the lake and all locks operating. I have used only the Lake Route. The Coast Guard says the Rim Route is “open” whatever that means, but I wouldn’t take a big boat there. The Ft. Denaud swing bridge is now on restricted opening; it will not

open from 7-9 AM and 4-6 PM. Indiantown Marina now carries gas and diesel fuel. Moore Haven town docks have been refurbished, charge $1/ft with electric. Be sure to observe the no wake zone near the fuel dock west of Franklin Lock; as I was pass-ing, the owner called the Coast Guard to report a motor yacht delivery captain who ignored it. Much discussion ensued.

If you’ve been listening to the net lately, you know there’s a flap about the length of cruising permits in the Bahamas. As of this writing it’s unclear whether there’s a new policy, a change in interpretation of an old policy, or just an increase in capriciousness. De-pending on where you clear customs you may be given anything from 30 days to 180 days. Port Lu-caya and Chub Cay have been liberal with time, gen-erally 180 days granted. Bimini and Spanish Cay have been giving 30 days. Earl Quick, WD0ETL, and Dick Giddings of the Cruiseheimers Net have col-laborated on a list of Port of Entries and the number of days each gives. You can request a copy of the list from Earl by dropping an email request to [email protected]. Spanish Cay and Port Lucaya have been liberal with time granted. Bimini and Green Turtle have been inconsistent.

The best information we have is that US citizens can sometimes get their time extended for to up to 6 months by going to the Head Office of Immigration in Nassau (not customs) before the permit’s expiration date. The Head Office is the tall building at the top of a street known as Hawkins Hill in the middle of town. The street up the hill is actually called Mount Royal Avenue, south from Shirley Street, with Immi-gration HO clearly visible and labeled at the top of the hill on the right.

Boat U.S. membership with our group discount

is only $12.50 per year. Sign up using our

GROUP ID: #GA84618B

Waterway Radio and Cruising Club

Scuttlebutt is published quarterly to inform membership about Waterway Net news, activities and items of interest. Club Officers and Staff: Commodore: Peter Colket K3PKC

Vice Commodore: Earl Quick WD0ETL

Rear Commodore: Ed Napoleon KC4JKW

Sec/Treas: Jeanie Schreiber N4WFM Send Roster Updates & Address Changes to: [email protected]

Fleet Capt: Ed Napoleon KC4JKW

Safety Off: Tom Rader K4WJC

Scuttlebutt Editor: Karen Quick [email protected] or [email protected]

Exam. Coordinator: Ron Knaggs N1GYX

Fleet Surgeon: Jim Hirschman K4TCV

Sunshine Fund: Debbie Lerner KD4GRR Requests: sunshine @ waterwayradio.net

Weather Coord.: Earl Quick WD0ETL

Historians: Tom Elliot KE3JO Carol Elliott N3EGM

Webmaster: Bill Boyle N4UMS

Contributions Please send to: Jeanie Schreiber N4WFM

Membership Application may be downloaded from the WRCC web-site: www.waterwayradio.net

Inside This Issue

Commodore’s Message ....................... 1 Carolina Rendezvous ........................... 1 Secretary/Treasurer’s Report ............... 2 Why Do Offshore WX Reporting?......... 3 BoatUS Safety Course ......................... 4 Roster Updates .................................... 5 Comments From Sickbay ..................... 6 Piping Plover Bahamas Survey ............ 7 Silent Key ............................................. 7 2010 Melbourne Picnic ......................... 8 Sunshine .............................................. 9 Luncheon Schedule .............................. 9 CW Net .............................................. 10 Sea Chest........................................... 10 Around the Waterways ....................... 11

Scuttlebutt Waterway Radio and Cruising Club 27 Cheyenne Ct. Palm Coast, FL 32137-8966

Your help is needed to make this newsletter a good read. Tell me what you’d like to see in here. Please share your news, stories, photos items of interest and suggestions. Forward questions or ideas to me at [email protected] or [email protected].

Mystery Photo—We’re not doing so well the Mystery photos. No one guessed the vessel name, the Caribe III. It makes nearly daily deliveries to many ports in the Abacos, Tom Nolan, W3EX, correctly named this par-ticular port-of-call, Hopetown, Abaco. Kudos to Tom.

Can you correctly identify the skyline in this photo? Hint - it’s south of the Mason-Dixon line, it’s even south of Charleston, but north of Miami.

Vol. 25 No. 1, Winter 2011

Scuttlebutt Winter 2011 Page 1 Scuttlebutt · 2019. 4. 30. · Scuttlebutt. Once again it will be held on the grounds of the North-west Creek Marina in New Bern NC, on Saturday May

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