Winter is upon us
Hope everyone had a great holiday season. Winter is upon us. As many of us continue to deal with ice and snow, the Smyrna Yacht Club in Florida is gearing up for a fantastic mid-winter race on February 28th. Followed three days later by a fresh-water race in Lake Placid, FL. Sign-ups should be on the website shortly. It would be a well-deserved break from the cold at very nice venues for those who can get away. Race organizers are working to finalize other race dates. Here is what the schedule looks like so far:
The CCWBRA moved to a single membership-renewal period last year to eliminate confusion and to simplify tracking of membership dues. The membership fee remains $25 for 2015, and this lasts for the entire calendar year. Dues should be paid no later than March 31st for the current year to maintain your CCR race number.
The CCWBRA is working to establish a workshop for members where they could receive on-land and in-water instruction on safety, engines and propellers, and other topics. More to come as this concept matures. If you have comments to offer or skills/experience/knowledge to share, please email me, talk to me or other officers at races, or provide via our Forum.
Updates to our Racing Handbook are underway with a publishing goal of mid-February. Proposed changes are evaluated with safety and fair competition as the primary objectives.
- One important change is the adoption of the Engines Committee recommendation to segregate Classic outboards into two categories, listed below, to group comparable engines together for the existing weight classes (Mixed, Women, Heavyweight)
- Classic – Pre 1976 6 HP (1975 and older OMC, Evinrude, or Johnson stock engines (2-cycle)
- Classic – 1976-1979 6 HP (1976-1979 OMC, Evinrude, or Johnson stock engines (2-cycle))
- Another change requires that the “kill” switch be located in the vicinity of the starboard or port-side coaming, toward the bow end of the cockpit. The switch location shall be considered carefully so interference between the “kill” switch lanyard and any steering components or other hull-structure will be avoided. This was a recommended modification in 2014.
- Rule changes, described here, were approved by the Executive Committee and will be incorporated into the 2015 rules.
If there are any topics you would like considered, please forward them to me and/or the appropriate committee chair.
-Grand Poobah, Rich Faulkner
