TELL TALES (Jan. 7, 2009)

· THIS EDITION of your newsletter is dated Jan. 7 to be consistent with our normal Wednesday publication date, but it is coming to you on Monday because your editor (Jabbo) is going to San Diego and will not be back until Jan. 14. So the next “Tell Tales” after this one may be late.

· HAPPY BIRTHDAY congratulations go to RWB skipper Stephan VerHulst who turns 12 today (Wednesday) and to Green Fleeter Blake Erquiaga who will become 14 on Jan. 13.

· SCHEDULE: 

Jan. 10 – Winter Series race 5

Jan. 12 – Possible optional sailing, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Jan. 17– Sailing practice here and a high school points race at Coconut Grove

Jan. 19 – Possible optional sailing, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Jan. 24 – Winter Series race 7 (24-25 – Boomerang Regatta, Fort Lauderdale)

· COACH ROBERT will not be here Saturday, but Michelle Thomas will coach the Green Fleet.  Capt. John Thomas will work with the RWB Fleet and the Portsmouth Division as usual.

· NEXT OPPORTUNITY for optional sailing will be Monday, Jan. 12 because it is a school professional day, which means no classes. A sign-up sheet is posted for sailing that day from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., but there must be a minimum of six to justify having a coach here.

· NO SERIES RACE will be held Jan. 17 because of the high school regatta at Coconut Grove that day. The VYBA board decided not to have series races for any of our three groups when there was a high school regatta. Although participants received regatta points, there were too many sailors missing to make a series race competitive. So we will have only practice those days.

· AN ERROR occurred when we said there would be Winter Series race 6 on Jan. 17 in last week’s edition.  We also said Coach Robert had gone to Arizona recently. He actually went to Texas.

·  SERIES STANDINGS: Here are the Winter Series standings and points after four races.

1. Green Fleet –1, Samantha Wood, 8; 2, Lucas Galarza, 14.7; 3, Toussaint Thomas, 18; 4, Carla Johnson, 20;  5, Scott Trecartin, 20; 6, Lizzie Karras, 21; 7, Mariah Miller, 26; 8, Shaun Gallagher, 28; 9, Alex Soodak, 29; 10, T.C. Liming, 32; 11, Blake Erquiaga, 33; 12, Brad Arnold, 38.

2. RWB Fleet – 1, Cara Patete, 4; 2, Alicia Muscato, 7; 3, Garrett Lawlor, 13.3; 4, Stefan Johnson, 17; 5, Evan Langer, 18.7; 6, Ashlyn Weed, 20; 7, Aubrey Khachetoorian, 25; 8, Stephan VerHulst, 28.

3. Portsmouth Division managed another series race Saturday to give them two – 1, Michelle Thomas, 2; 2, Sami Tornese, 6; 3, Paul Kreider, 6; 4, Bryan White, 6; 5,  Chloe Dietrich, 10; 6, Andrew Sosa, 11; 7 (tie) Katie Paolillo and Sarah Vogelsong, 14; 9 (tie) Evan Dacey and Tyler Thorpe, 15.

· OUR POLICY on boat ownership is this: VYBA has 24 Optimists, two Lasers and a Sunfish for sailors, and they are assigned to certain people. However, a skipper can own his or her own boat if they feel so inclined. You don’t have to own your own boat to sail with us, although some clubs require that, and yet, you don’t have to use a club boat if you would prefer your own.

· VYBA’S team took third (close to second) in the team racing regatta at Tampa’s Davis Island Yacht Club last weekend. It was rough the first day but it tapered off the next two days.