| The 2009 Rendezvous is History! |
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| Written by Administrator | ||
| Jul 08, 2009 at 02:21 PM | ||
The Precision Sailboat Rendezvous was held from June 25 through 30th... ...well, the Rendezvous has come and gone. By all accounts, everyone who attended had a terrific time and enjoyed the sailing, racing, and commraderie. Click here for pictures of the Rendezvous The trip down to Saint Michael's was a bit slow with light winds. Many of us motored on the way to make sure we had plenty of time to eat and stroll around a bit. The Crab Claw has excellent seafood, and some folks ate at the Crab and Steak House at Saint Michael's marina, also an excellent restaurant. 
That night, some thunderstorms threatened, and the National Weather Service isssued a storm warning, but it was canceled by 10:00PM. The next day sailors left at various times for the trip back to Rock Hall, and some of us went through the drawbridge at the Kent Narrows together after having a terrific sail from the Miles River and up the Eastern Bay. The sail from the Narrows out the mouth of the Chester and on to the Chesapeake was nice and lively. The winds built considerably, and the tide and chop increased to the point where we were not making enough time to be back in Rock Hall for Dinner. AFter dropping jibs but leaving mains up, the group motored into Rock Hall in time for dinner at the Waterman's Crab house. The next day, was race day, and we assembled for a skipper's meeting to cover the course coordinates, select a VHF channel, and brief everyone racing on the rules. We did two races, the second being a bit better as the winds built a bit and offered beam reaches both ways. Some skippers sailed on after the race in the freshened wind. 
That night, we ate at the Waterman's Crab House, after having a "Happy Hour" at the pool. Russell Doctor generously provided the refreshments which was greatly appreciated by all. Then it was back to the Waterman's Crab house for our final Dinner and lively conversation. Later that night, we all went our separate ways, but some of us ended up on the chair dock, and enjoyed more of Russell's hospitality and good conversation as the night wore on. Most folks left on Monday, some having to trailor a considerable distance, some needing to return charters and catch planes. What we heard universally was that everyone had a great time, the sailing was terrific, and the venue served our needs quite well. The folks at the Sailing Emporium were very accommodating and were truly glad to have our business. Everyone enjoyed the considerable expanse of the Chesapeake, which truly was majestic especially for those of us who are used to sailing on smaller inland lakes. We did learn a few things about planning and executing these events. The major issue is that if we're going to sail 24 nautical miles to get somewhere, we should stay there long enough to enjoy the place. Once in Saint Michael's, we had dinner, then were back on the boats and sailing back the next day. We really should have planned an extra day in Saint Michael's. That way, folks who wanted to stay could have explored the town, and those who preferred to could have sailed back to Rock Hall. 
The other thing that we learned is that in order to get any kind of interest from Precision, we'd need to improve attendance (not the other way around). We simply did not have enough boats to justify any kind of sponsorship from them. This was really not the main focus of the event, but it would be nice to have Precision participate in some way, though certainly not essential to the enjoyment of the participants. Additionally, it would be helpful to have more local knowledge and support regardless of the venue. We know there are more Precision sailors on the Chesapeake than attended the Rendezvous, but we just did not get to them. Would we do it again? Without question. Would we do it again in the same place? Yes. The venue was great and now we have experience with the area. Does this mean we'd never consider another venue? Absolutely not, but the effort required to do this is considerable. Having "regional rendezvous" is certainly an option that would afford folks a venue closer to home, and perhaps allow others to charter and get some "bigger boat" or at least "different boat" experience. 
Many folks have expressed their disappointment in not being able to attend the Rendezvous, so for that reason alone, it's worth doing it again. Hope to see you at the next Rendezvous! Click here for pictures of the Rendezvous
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| Last Updated ( Dec 16, 2009 at 03:46 PM ) | ||