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September 2009 - Marina E-Newsletter

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From Your Sunroad Resort Marina Team
Thanks to our tenants who were able to attend our guest appreciation party!

Were you there? Over 200 Sunroad tenants and guests enjoyed the annual Sunroad tenant appreciation party last Saturday, and a good time was had by all.

Great food and beverages, special awards, personal thank-you words by Sunroad principals Rick Vann and Dan Feldman, plus great camaraderie topped off the evening.

Just in case you missed the party, Click Here to see some pictures of the event. And if you were there, look for yourself in the candids.

Special Recognition for Sunroad Tenant Tenure
At the party, several long term marina guests were recognized and received gifts for belonging to the Sunroad family for multiple years. These are truly special people and we thank you for all your years of patronage:

Guests Over 20 Years:
Brian Deede - "Never Say Never"
William Nowell - plendida
Robert Stewart - J&B
William Williams - Cupid
Jan Wallden - Cori
James Broening - Miss Trial III
Donald Veach - Charisma III
Tim Swanson - Kokopelli

Guests Over 15 Years:
Ken & Peggy Terrill - Raconteur
David Phillips - Second Curve
William Jeffery III - Almost Even
William Dennis Jr. - California Blues
Jim Richardson - Udder Pleasure
William Smith - Oz Sea
Ron & Bev Coalson - French Bred
Carl Thurow - Carlynda
Richard Perry - Compulsive

Guests Over 10 Years:
Charles & Janet Deering - Summerwind
Ralph Koerner - Second Wind
Robin Anglin - Sea Quest
Ymelda Patrick - Sea Cell
Alan Williamson - Madison
Janice Kiefer - Bobcat
Joseph Davis -Good Grief
Drew Pitts - Dos Tacos
John Mohn III - General J
Ted Martinez - Alfin
William & Jean Boyd - Dream Warrior
Mark Wyatt - Axoloti
Barry King - Penny Jo
Dennis Connor - Siren
Steve Lawrence - Above Par
Terry Linderoth - Crazy Horse
Jon Petrescu - Privilege
Stephen Wittle - Diva
David Weimer - Just Deserts
Dr. Arvid Larson & Nicole Sours - Burgundy:

Sunroad Sponsors International Yellowtail Derby
There's another article in this issue about the big International Yellowtail Derby starting on September 26th, and our marina is a sponsor - If you're interested in joining a team in the Derby, let us know at the office.

Jewelery On Display at the Pavilion Tomorrow
We have another fine Jewelry Show put on by our marina tenant Sharon Friendly! Come up to our pavilion to check out some great stuff this Saturday, from 9-4PM!

Sea Tec Marine is New Sunroad Tenant
Welcome aboard to Sea Tec Marine in Suite 120 - Come on up to say hello - they can take care of all your mechanical needs.

Practice! Practice! Practice! - That's What I'm Talkin' About!
- By Frank and Martha Mowry
With apologies to Alan Iverson, there are boating skills which require practice, practice, and more practice to keep boat and crew out of harm's way.

Think about it - What's required to own and drive a many thousand pound water vehicle? Adequate finances and the ability to make your mark! No testing required, reading or licensing. Just take 'er out and give 'er hell!

This is a niche in the nanny culture which requires personal responsibility!

In addition to acquiring and learning how to use flares, personal flotation devices and other gear, the responsible boater will acquaint himself/herself with and practice anchoring, rules of the road, setting a whisker pole or spinnaker (unless you're a power boater), docking and undocking, picking up a buoy, and especially man-overboard drills. And trust me, the time to become acquainted with a man-overboard drill is not when your mate goes head first over the lee rail!

If you'd like to test this hypothesis, next time you're sailing to weather in a 20 knot wind, abruptly and without warning toss a yellow horse-shoe buoy overboard, yell "Man Overboard", and watch the crew react. If you've not practiced MOB procedures, one buck will get you five it will be 20 minutes or longer before "ol yeller" is back on board. There are several MOB techniques, both under sail and power, and they are clearly described in many sailing books. Pick one out, learn it, and practice it - and may you never need to use it!

Editor's Note: Frank and Martha Mowry have enjoyed cruising southern California waters for 10 years aboard their 42' Island Packet sloop. Click Here to send Frank and Martha an e-mail with your sea stories or questions.

Celebrating the 10th Anniversary, YachtFest San Diego Announces a Stellar Yacht Line-up
Recognized as the West Coast's premier boutique yacht show, YachtFest 2009 will open the international yacht show season at San Diego's Shelter Island from Thursday, September 17th to Sunday, September 20th. YachtFest San Diego presented by San Diego Marine Exchange, offers what larger shows don't - a close glimpse inside some of the world's most luxurious floating vessels. Some of this year's yachts on display for sale and charter include:

Who Knows Where You Are???
- By Richard Benscoter
A few weeks ago a close friend of mine sent me an e-mail and excitedly attached the contents of a blog about the latest fishing happenings about 60 miles south of San Diego.

His message in the body of the e-mail was a short and sweet "Bye Bye". Translation - he was going fishing.

I talked to him just before he left, and he told me the general vicinity where he would be fishing but it kind of went in one ear and out the other. This was on Wednesday, and that Friday we found out his wife was admitted to a local hospital. - Nothing life threatening, but she was still in the hospital. She asked me if I could get a message to him and let him know about the situation.

I knew the 25 watt VHF on our boat doesn't have the power or antenna height to reach 60 miles south, so I gave a call to the Coast Guard. "Was it a life or death situation?" It wasn't, so the standard procedure was that they would do their best to hail him on the radio. I provided them with the boat name, make, color, length, and his estimated location.

Well - my friend never got the message. Later I found out that his radio was off; his cell phone was out of range; and he had turned his satellite phone off.

I'm happy to report that he did get home and all is well, but there's a moral to the story that we should all heed.

You never know when somebody might really need to get in touch with you when you're out there on the blue. You probably paid a pretty penny for all of your fancy electronics, so why not leave your VHF radio on. I know channel 16 can be irrigating at times, but when you are being hailed you will not get the message if it's turned off.

If you have a satellite phone on board, make sure people have the number and leave it on. It too is useless if nobody knows the number or it's in the off position.

Most importantly, leave a copy of your intended boating plan with your family, your marina, your yacht club, or a friend; if the need arises they will have a written plan and not have to rely on a past conversation.

Float plan forms can be downloaded from the Coast Guard Auxiliary's web site and many other boating organizations. Also, many vessel towing services offer a float plan watch program where you leave them your plan and if you don't call them to say you arrived on schedule, they start calling you. This is a great safety net. If you have a towing service, ask them if they have a float plan watch.

A good float plan needs to include a description of your boat, who is on board, a description of the safety equipment you are carrying, where you expect to be, and when you expect to be there. Instruct the person holding the float plan to notify the Coast Guard or other appropriate agency if you do not return within a reasonable time after your scheduled arrival (taking into account weather, etc.).

When you arrive at your destination, or if your plans change, notify the person holding your float plan to avoid unnecessary worry and possible waste of search and rescue resources.

One final note - the Coast Guard will not accept float plans, but they will lead the effort to find you if necessary, and if somebody does have your float plan, it will greatly aid them in their search for you!

It's like everything else in life - if you file a float plan, you probably won't need it; if you don't - you might. Why take the chance?

See you on the water!

Editor's Note: Richard Benscoter is a long time avid sailor. He's a member of the Silver Gate Yacht Club and owner of the Mariners Woodshop. If you have a sailing question for Richard, send e-mail to richard@BlueSkyNews.com.

An Invitation to Hear About Living the Mariner's Fantasy
Fantasy is the apt word - A Southern ocean circumnavigation: eight months, three continents, five islands, hundreds of icebergs, scores of Royal Albatross, 28,000 miles, two people, one boat - the whole world gone round.

That's exactly what Captain Stephen Mann and Kathleen Torres did. They departed San Diego on October 20, 2008 and returned on June 26th 2009. No journey to paradise, no palm trees, no warmth - this was a voyage of grand experience framed against a part of our world few people have ever seen

Where others might choose the tropical route around the world, they chose to go below Cape Horn, only climbing out of the roaring forties for Tristan Da Cunha, Cape Town and then, finally, to come home.

"Aboard Tawodi, a 39 foot fiberglass performance sloop we shoveled our way through the immensity of water, cold and wind that punctuates the bottom of our world. A place where birds have an average wingspan of 9 feet , 10 mile chunks of ice float along and your average day has wind blowing over 40 knots. A place where ordinary is cold, massive and almost incomprehensibly powerful."

Captain Stephen Mann and Kathleen Torres invite you to join them for a conversation about their around the world adventure. See the photos and learn about their worst moments, their best, what it's like to live in one small room with another person, the horror of condensation as well as rafts of information about equipment, safety, provisioning and how to keep laughing when the water's 35 degrees, the air's 40 degrees and it's blowing over 50 knots.

The presentation will be on Saturday, September 12th, 2009, at 7:00 pm at the Outboard Motor Club on Shelter Island (OBCSD.org) which is located at the head of the boat ramp on San Diego's Shelter Island. - A $10.00 fundraising donation per person is requested - Seating is limited - r.s.v.p. to Sparky at JCallow77@aol.com.

San Diego's International Yellowtail Derby Skippers Meeting Set
The International Yellowtail Derby Seminar and Skipper's meeting is scheduled for Thursday, September 24th, at 6:30 pm at the Bali Hai Restaurant in the outside longhouse.

All participants are invited - team captains, open party boat captains, charter boat captains, all should attend.

Selected captains or crew will talk about yellowtail tactics. Invitations will be sent out to Unified Port of San Diego commissioners and all sponsors.

This will also be a Final sign up for the Derby. To attend the meeting, please r.s.v.p. to derby coordinator John Campbell at johncinsd@cox.net.

The 8-day Derby starts on Saturday, September 26th and runs through Saturday, October 3rd, and is expected to draw 1,500 - 2,000 entrants. Anglers will include individuals on open party sportboats and private boats and teams of 2 to 6 members. IGFA rules will apply for all anglers.

According John Campbell, "This is an El Nino year, and the last time we had an El Nino year, over 400,000 yellowtail were caught, so we're very excited about the competition."

For individuals, open party fleet boats will depart from H&M Landing, Point Loma Sportfishing, and Fisherman's Landing.

The Derby is being supported by the Unified Port of San Diego, Fisherman's Landing Tackle, San Diego Port Tenants Assoc., The Maritime Institute, Sea-Tow Services, Arizona Boating & Watersports, the Island Palms Hotel, San Diego Marine Exchange, Sunroad Resort Marina, and the Bay Club Hotel & Marina.

For more information including entry fees or to sign up to enter the Derby, visit the International Yellowtail Derby web-site or call 619-991-5480 or send an e-mail to John Campbell at johncinsd@cox.net.

PC Tip of the Month -
The F11 Key
This one is really cool! On most browsers including Internet Explorer and Firefox, you can hit the F11 key, and it will get rid of all those pesky toolbars and give you a nice full screen view of the web page you're looking at.

This is especially good for smaller screens, but it really adds to the enjoyment of viewing web sites in general.

To return to your standard screen, just hit the F11 key again. Try it! You'll like it!

20th Annual Make-a-Wish Tuna Challenge
Kona Kai Anglers and Silver Gate Yacht Club are hosting their annual Make-a-Wish Tuna Challenge on Sunday, September 13th, 2009, beginning at 10 AM.

This annual tuna tournament and fundraiser is the largest tuna fishing tournament of its kind in the continental United States, with 100% of its proceeds going directly to the Make-A-Wish Foundation of San Diego.

The Make-A-Wish Foundation grants the wishes of children with life-threatening medical conditions to enrich the human experience with hope, strength, and joy. It is the largest wish-granting charity in the world, with 77 chapters in the United States and its territories and 27 international affiliates on five continents.

Click Here to learn more about attending this worthwhile event. The event features activities for fishing and non-fishing enthusiasts. Entrance is free but banquet tickets are $15 per person. Enjoy live and silent auctions, raffles, and good food.

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Tel: 619-233-2007 - Fax: 619-233-2008
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