Commodore
By Michael Lewis, C42, Wind Raven
Happy Holidays to everyone!
I will be appointing a Nominating Committee to recommend Officers for the next year. The elections will be held at the April Meeting. The committee will be recommending the people that will be leading the club over the next year. I know that out of the 66 member boats we have now, that we have a great of deal of leadership and experience to continue Columbia River Catalina’s success.
The Portland Boat Show is January 5-13, 2002 and we will have a booth again this year. Check out Bill Simon’s article on the Boat Show and see how you can help. It should be a good show, Sailboats of Oregon will have at least three Catalina's in their booth.
Holiday Cheer and Camaraderie
By Dale MackDecember 9. This was Laura and my first trip to the Rose City Yacht Club. Located off Marine Drive, the clubhouse actually floats on the water. During a break in the rain, we enjoyed the view of the boats in the marina. The water was like glass, and the holiday lights set against the black of night, made for a very peaceful scene topped off by the crispness of the night air.
Inside the RCYC clubhouse, CRACA volunteers had done a great job pulling everything together. From the decked tree to the decorated tables, there was much to help put you in the holiday mood. Special thanks goes to those who organized, set up, and eventually cleaned up. Their efforts produced a very enjoyable night out for many couples.
Everyone who attended dropped off a food bank donation, and deposited their white elephant gift on the head table. The potluck dinner started off with CRACA provided beverages, and membership provided appetizers. By 5:30 pm the main dishes were put out.
There were lots to eat and drink, thanks to the generosity of those attending. All Catalina potlucks are becoming famous for the variety of their offerings and the holiday party added to that reputation. From meats and cheeses, and home cooking favorites to dishes from around the world, there was a little something for everyone.
As dessert was served from a selection of delicious pies, we all settled down for the evening's finale, the white elephant gift exchange. Centered around nautical themed gifts, we all turned our chairs to the head table as numbers were read aloud and as participants either opened a new gift or choose to steal a previously opened gift.
Many gifts were incredibly useful, others were whimsical, and still others are candidates for future white elephant gift exchanges. Whether or not you took home anything useful, the fun was in watching the exchanges as folks stole gifts, or tired to sell the merits of why their gift should be stolen.
Laura and I want to thank everyone for a wonderful night out.
CRACA Helps the Oregon Food Bank
By Dave Thomas, C30, SunchaserThanks to all who contributed to the Oregon Food Bank at our Holiday Party. We collected 87 pounds which were warmly accepted by the Food Bank staff. They are experiencing a heavy draw on their resources this year, so every donation helps.
Thanks again, Dave & Julie Thomas
Secretary/Treasurer
By Kathleen Lewis, C42, Wind RavenHAPPY HOLIDAYS TO ALL OF YOU!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Anyone receiving IACA renewals for the “Mainsheet” magazine should check with me since all subscriptions are now ordered through CRACA unless you are a member of a One Design group.Our membership list has grown to 66 member boats. Please welcome the latest members to our group.
Douglas Foster and Diane Burns of Portland, ORBe sure and notify me of any changes in your roster listing. We try to email changes monthly.Tom Grant and Kathy Fieldstad of Lake Oswego, OR
- Quiet Storm, C30, 1988, Portland Yacht Club
Steve Shanklin and Sherry Robinson of Beaverton, OR
- C36, 1993, Hayden Bay – D16
David and Chris Sinner of Beaverton, OR
- Velveteen Rabbit, C36, 1998, Rose City Yacht Club
Jim Turner and Rhonda Caldwell of Vancouver, WA
- Seaflower, C30, 1995, Tomahawk Island
- Fat Cat, C30, 1996, Steamboat Landing C15
Thanks much for helping to keep the listing up-to-date.
Portland Boat Show
By Dale MackJanuary 5-13. CRACA will once again have a booth at the Portland Boat Show in 2002. The purpose of the booth is to attractive Catalina owners and prospective Catalina owners into joining the Columbia River All Catalina Association. To that end, the booth will be outfitted with membership brochures, the association's scrapbook, posters of events, and manned full-time during the show.
This is your chance to help out and receive free admission to the show. Please help!!! Call or email Bill Simon 503-246-1877 / wfsimon@earthlink.net and volunteer. If you have already committed to a time slot, feel free to sign up again.
Seattle Boat Shows
By Pam Evans, C320, Dream CatcherJanuary 19-20. "Come one - come all" . . . We're very happy to report that Amtrak has gotten so-o-o-o busy that they're encouraging the public to buy more boats. How are they doing this you may ask??? By offering a special round trip, Portland to Seattle fare. The only catch is the tickets must be purchased on the Internet. Simply go to www.amtrak.com and get your reservations now!!!
Why take Amtrak to Seattle in January? Because that's where the annual Seattle Boat Show, and Lake Union Boats Afloat Show will be held January 11-20.
The Crowne Plaza Hotel, which is in downtown Seattle at 1113 6th Avenue, (206-464-1980), has a room rate during those dates of $99 plus tax with a 21 day advance purchase. The Marriott courtyard at 925 Westlake Ave, North (206-213-0100) is $89 per night (no view) and $99 per night (with view).
The Marriott Residence Inn is $99 per night (no view) and $119 per night (with view), and is located at 800 Fairview Avenue, North (206-624-6000). The price includes a breakfast buffet. We stayed there last year for the boat show and really enjoyed it because we were directly across the street from the "in the water" part of the boat show -- nice view and we could walk back for a snack or nap whenever we felt like it. The Residence Inn has an indoor pool and spa as well. And don't forget to ask for AARP rates if you are a member! And, if making reservations over the net, you need you be sure and go through the "$39 Winter Specials Come Out and Play" promo screen. Otherwise, you'll see a higher rate when you try to make your reservations. When we had the one bedroom last year, it included a mini-kitchen with range top, fridge and microwave (they even had complimentary popcorn in the room for nuking)--a nice room--with the bedroom separate from the living room and kitchen. And the free breakfast in the lobby every morning included cereal, pastries, juice, coffee, fruit, eggs, and make-yourself-waffles. As Tom Peterson says "Free Is a VERY Good Price."
As to restaurants -- Seattle is filled with them, everything from The Metropolitan downtown, to McRory's near the location of the old Kingdome, to Hiram's up by the Ballard Locks. Of course, that doesn't even take the seafood restaurants into account. There is a great seafood place right there overlooking the boats across from the Marriott Courtyard called Chandler's. My personal favorite is The Met but probably too spendy for us right after the holidays. We think McRory's has the best clamchowder and prime rib ever! And the fact they have a HUGE selection of scotch doesn't hurt their reputation in my eyes. As for Hooter's at Chandler's Cove (site of the Boats Afloat Show), I think you'd need to discuss that one with Don--not me--but we stopped in there for a drink last year and it was so loud we couldn't hear each other speak, plus service was lousy so we got up and walked out. We went back over to the Chandler's and had a great time. Cucina-Cucina is also across the street from the hotel as well as Daniel's which is a spendy steakhouse. These are just ideas to toss around.
Pacific Sail Expo
By Glenn Johnson, SeaQuelApril 17-21. We are trying to put together a trip to the Pacific Sail Expo, April 17-21, 2002. You may want to buy some of those big ticket items before this summer. Great seminars and many good ideas to gain even if you don’t buy a thing.
The idea is to take Amtrak down in the afternoon, arrive in the morning, stay overnight and return the following night. That would give us two days to visit the Sail Expo and other things you might like to do. Train round trip is about $296 per couple plus hotel, meals, tickets, etc. The Commodore and Secretary/Treasurer are going to go on the 19th in the afternoon and return on the 21st.
Please contact Glenn Johnson at 503.289.1436 to discuss and express your interest. You need to get your reservations in early.
January's General Meeting
By Michael Lewis, CommodoreJanuary 23. The next meeting will be on Wednesday, January 23, 2002 with an educational speaker.
We will have survived the Portland and Seattle Boat Show.
Several excellent speakers have been identified and we expect to have one of them confirmed shortly.
Cruising
Thanksgiving Cruise to River Place Marina
November 24-25. OK, so it might not have been the biggest turn out for CRACA, but who's counting. It was fun. Attendees included the Jaeckel's, s/v "Mistress II", the Evan's s/v "Dream Catcher", the Simon's (land arrivals) and the Meyer's, s/v "Shekinah".
Once again, the weather cooperated with some automatic boat washing for us, the bridges opened as desired and Jerry Olsen, harbormaster at River Place Marina was as accommodating as ever. The primary activities were individual - Xmas tree Lighting, Xmas shopping, etc. Some good ol' Southern hospitality was enjoyed on s/v "Dream Catcher" Saturday evening.
Holiday weekends may not be the best time to schedule CRACA cruises but River Place Marina should be on everyone's list as a great "non-sailing" get-away with their boat. The comfort and convenience of a city center location for variety and things to do is hard to beat.
Local Sailing Associations
- SailPDX (hosted by Oregon Corinthian Sailing Association, OCSA)
- Small Yacht Sailing Club of Oregon (SYSCO)
- Oregon Women’s Sailing Association (OWSA)
- Portland Yacht Club (PYC)
- Rose City Yacht Club (RCYC)
The Columbia River All Catalina Association newsletter is published online once a month. Articles are the opinions of the authors and don’t necessarily represent the consensus of the Association.
