August Cruise - Newport Beach

Attending boats and Members:

David and Monique on Reel Nauti Too; Christie and Chip Threlkeld on Panacea; Tom Rasulo and multiple guests on Genty Lee; Dell and Barb on Patina; Mike and Sherry on Sandbar along with Future  Members Rod and Tammi on (a fabulous Cat) and Kevin and Linda on Hail Yeah!

Given the Covid restrictions our raft-up permit was revoked (very nicely).  In further conversations with the Harbor Master, he said we could anchor up with two boats on one anchor (“its allowed  but not encouraged”).  As cruise captains, Genty Lee and Reel Nauti Too created the smallest raft-up in WCYC Newport Beach Raft-Up history – two boats!

Onto the cruise – Barb and Dell where our scouts arriving at the anchorage on Thursday and reporting it was “wide open”! Genty Lee was at anchor when Reel Nauti Too arrived and was piloted by  the young, aspiring Captain RJ. The rest of our fleet arrived Friday afternoon and evening.  Some anchored nearby, others a little ways off but within hailing distance!

Friday Evening:

Friday evening’s “pot-luck” consisted of delicious appetizers served on Reel Nauti Too and accompanied by beverages of choice. The music was played at a very circumspect level (NOT) – it was  a good time for everyone to get together and catch up without catching anything!

Saturday:

On Saturday morning we noshed on bagels with a range of cream cheese schmears, various muffins and freshly cut fruit – all serviced with champagne and mimosa’s on the host boats. Chip made a great galley chef by managing the multiple toasters.  Full relaxation  commenced with all of the toys in the water (a Yoga Board -  4X6 floating dock – the floating Relaxation Station but the big hit of the cruise was the new BOTE Aero Chairs nd if I had brought with me 10 more they would have all been sold – everyone wanted one! They fit on the swim deck or on the floating  docks!

In the afternoon, the troops rallied for a very enjoyable dinghy cruise down the backwaters of Newport Island with only a few minor nautical infractions. (Kevin spinning out the Commodores dinghy into the bridge!).

Saturday night was “Movie Night” on Reel Nauti Too with excellent Pizza from “Gina’s, popcorn and retro-candy complete with a newly commission movie screen on the swim deck! It worked really well with standing room only for the “Pirates of the Caribbean”! Definitely  an event for future cruises as everyone really enjoyed it!

Sunday:

Sunday morning all (14) went over to the Lighthouse Café for Brunch.  Despite being told there was a 2 to 3 hour wait,  our guest Kevin pulled some magic and we were sat immediately (definitely improving Kevin’s chances of becoming a new member!).

I provided the Commodore’s cruise report for the breakfast group with call outs to our guest’s attending the cruise; Kevin and Linda (first event), Rod and Tammi (second event), Cami and Martin – Monique’s sister and boyfriend and Lauren, Zack and Joseph from  the Sandler’s clan. We celebrated the August birthdays including George, Gina, Crezlun, Suzanne and Maggie. There were no past commodores in attendance this time.

Sawhorses:

We had a couple of Sawhorse nominations with one being awarded to Chip for being towed home on his dinghy because his electric motor battery was dead.  However, it transpired in the morning that the reason for the power failure was the key to the motor was  not engaged!!

We added two other categories for awards.  First, MOB – failure to negotiate swim decks and floating docks plus staying in dinghy’s – we had multiple winners who ended up with unplanned swimming with wallets, keys and phones.  The second was Floating Dock Dancing  – again an unintentional event caused by the unexpected lack of stability on the floating dock – Rod was a clear winner with multiple other “worthy mentions”! (Improving his chances of becoming a new member!) 

We did have a major nautical event.  A 100ft yacht Argonaut (Eggplant purple) in the anchorage decided on a cruise around the harbor. On re-entering the anchorage, they lost their bow thrusters and decided to kiss Sandbar’s bow – frantic work on Argonaut’s  and Sandbar’s crew using their huge fenders to avoid damaging both boats. We definitely witnessed questionable seamanship by their captain (a huge sawhorse contender) as he could not maneuver his yacht either to miss the collision but then disengage himself!   Damage we believe was limited to the WCYC Flag Pennant Rail Mount which was bent!  Mike Sandler left his hand prints on the bow of Argonaut to remind them of their error!    

A second event was with Kevin and Linda on Hail Yeah (which they have owned a matter of weeks).  Their Fire suppression unit was deployed after their gas-powered generator caught fire in their engine compartment! The fire suppression system did its job however  their steering and transmission had issues, so they were towed home!  

Many of the cruisers stayed late enjoying the Sunday afternoon and all had a safe and enjoyable cruise home.

Thanks to all for the participation, great food and great company!