Sunday School

I got a chance to get out on the water this last Sunday with a bunch of new club members. It is way cool to see our PSC members ranging from High Schoolers up to septegenerians all here for the same reason - to get our on the water and learn more about the never-ending school of sailing.

The weather was warm enough to make you break a sweat rigging up, and we spent a fair amount of time doing just that. I still hadn't rigged our new vanguards by myself, so I took my time with my crewman and newest member Roy to go through all the nuances and knots necessary to make her seaworthy. After the last couple hints from Commodore Troy, we were ready to go.

Chris was our most patient teacher today, rigging two boats and sailing with the Schroeder family. He taught Anna and her friend to rig the Laser with care.

Navigating out of the marina was again a challenge in light wind, a common problem on sunny days. Once we all got out beyond the breakwater, the wind filled our sails and we were off! We pursued our junior sailors to figure out which is faster, the Vanguard, or the Laser? We're still not sure though. Once I chased them down I was greeted with the call of a wild sea lion. I looked around momentary, but after I heard Anna's laugh realized that her crew was the source of the wild animal noises. Kids...<facepalm>.

Eventually Roy had his turn on the tiller, which freed me up to take some more pictures. I snapped this timely shot right as Troy and Russ overtook us and Chris in the C-Lark. It is apparent that Troy needs to get some racing out of his system.

Inevitably on these super nice sunny days the wind leaves us. It left abruptly while we still a ways from the Marina. I also made the rookie mistake of forgetting to bring a paddle, so we just waited it out and sailed in on what few puffs of wind we could find.

Overall, it was a great day with an excellent turn out. I think our newest members are all making clear progress towards becoming upstanding skippers in the Peninsula Sailing Club. Hope to see you out there!

Dirty Boat Day 2016

This year, with the recent addition of two Vanguards that were already relatively clean, it didn't take long to get the four hulls on the dock washed down. A little pressure washing and some soap does the trick quite well.

Once we got that out of the way, it was time to work on our new Vanguard cradle that was prefabricated the day before. The idea is to use a strap to reduce stress on the hull while it is on the dock.

Here you can see the old cradle in the foreground

Here is the new cradle

I don't have a picture yet, but we removed the roller on the deck edge and added a simple outdoor carpet for hauling out the Vanguards. This is another measure we hope will reduce the stress put on the hulls as they get splashed or hauled out.

We of course had a little bit of time to try out one of our new Vanguards. We also tried to show off for (what we think was) a Kitsap Sun photographer that was covering Kitsap activities for their outdoor guide.

Welcome Vanguards

Peninsula Sailing Club has just acquired two new (used) Vanguard 15s from Silverdale Community sailing  program/Central Kitsap HS sailing. I would like give a tremendous thanks to Troy Hunter and Steve Trunkey for making the connection and keeping the gears moving on this club acquisition.

Steve arrived Saturday morning with a trailer full of boats, two of which were about to become part of our fleet. We carefully unloaded and rigged them at the top of the boat ramps.


It was great to have Steve show us all the little rigging tricks that they've engineered over the years while competitively sailing these boats. My first impression is that these boats will be much more efficient to rig and it appears more though has been put into it. I can't wait to try them out... well, I can probably wait a few months for warmer weather, but you get what I mean ;)



Troy set out on the maiden voyage from the ramp to the fuel dock about 300 meters away. I gave him a little shove on the boom to get him off the dock and nearly sent him for a swim. In my defense, I did ask him if he was ready. He made it over to the fuel dock while we got the second boat rigged.

We had to do a little bit of shuffling, but both Vanguards are now at the dock ready to rock and roll. I hope that this will give the club a little shot in the arm excitement it needs to have a really great year in 2016. Keep your eyes on the calendar for upcoming events you might be interested in.

View from an El Toro

It has been a looong time since I've gotten to post about a sailing event on our blog. Summers in the PNW have a way of becoming very busy when the weather gets nice. Time to do house projects, BBQs, family get-togethers, etc. So it was nice to finally carve out a little time for some sailing with the club. I'm sure they missed me ;)

We had a great showing of about seven people. We initially floated the idea to have lunch in Illahee (a public dock just south of us), but quickly realized the light wind would never get us there an back. We splashed 3 C-Larks and I took the El Toro. I was anxious to see how it did in the open water.

With the super light wind it took us nearly an hour just to get outside of the Marina. Some took to paddling, but I skulled myself out in search of wind.

The light wind is always a great opportunity for me to snap a few extra pics and try out my artistic side of photography.

Troy was kind enough to pack an entire cooler full of beverages for his loyal club sailors, but the duty of bartender was given to Richard. One of the reasons our club exists is to further the skills of our sailors, and I gotta say that being a floating bartender is quite a unique skill. In light wind it is fairly easy, but passing a beverage in 8-10mph wind definitely takes some skill.

The wind eventually came and we beat up wind towards Bainbridge Island's Battle Point for a bit. I swapped boats with Richard and played bartender for a bit while he played in the El Toro. He seemed to enjoy it mostly, but since he's been redoing some flooring in his house, the kneeling part seemed to take its toll on his knees. I personally found that standing in the El Toro was the best way to sail it. It feels a bit like surfing and riding a horse at the same time.

 A few of us decided to head back towards the marina while the getting was good. I think I got a little too much sun today... but that's a good thing.

Class time!

Troy has been sharpening our group by teaching us special topics during our monthly meetings.

Last month he showed us how to inspect and replace the impeller on our small outboard that we use for the safety boat.

It actually turned out to be a lot more complex than I thought it would be, but you really can't beat these visual aides when you are standing there seeing it done firsthand.

This month he taught us about Laser rudder, tiller, and tiller extensions. It was interesting to find out some of the rules guiding rudder/tiller design for racing and how people have modified them to gain a tactical edge.

It was neat to see several different styles of tiller extensions. I personally like the carbon fiber tiller, I think every boat needs more carbon fiber and titianium ;)

Thanks Troy! You are a great teacher, commodore, and friend to us all.

Kitsap Peninsula Water Trails Festival

The Port of Brownsville broke some BAD news to us earlier this year and said there would be no Brownsville Appreciation Days (BAD) which has been a tradition for many years. It was a time when the Port gave something back to the community and our club supported the port by giving free sailboat rides to anyone willing to trust us.
Without BAD happening there was obviously a void to be filled and Kitsap Peninsula Water Trails Festival is a great start. You can learn more about Water Trails and how the Port of Brownsville is taking part by following the link.
Washington Water Trails Association (Brownsville)
Again our club supported the Port by offering free sailboat rides and it was a fun time. The timing of this festival is a nice way to kick off our boating season early on and remind people about our awesome affordable little club.

First Social Sail of 2015

April 19^th was our first official Social Sail event of 2015! It was a glorious day.

We had a good turnout – Sandy, Chris, Jack, Troy, and the two of us newbies.

Don and Jessica

Don and I joined the club at the beginning of the year but it’s been about six years since we’ve been on a sailboat and we’ve never been on a C-Lark before. Lucky for me, Don has loads of general boating experience and he understands the fundamentals of sailing quite well so we had a successful first day. The wind did pick up at one point and Don lost the tiller while wrangling with the mainsail. We spun in a circle and I squealed with anxiety but he quickly recovered and all was well. 

Chris and Jack

We also didn’t have our jib rigged properly at first so the other boats were skipping past us on the water. Don kept grumbling about how much faster they were. Chris and Jack passed us closely and Jack pointed out our mistake with the jib. Once corrected, we picked up speed - to Don’s delight. :)

Lots of boats on the water that day.

Our three boats caught the attention of another boater who came to ask about membership after the group called it quits for the day. We hope to welcome him and his wife as new members soon.

Anyone interested in sailing is encouraged to stop by and talk to us any time. You do not have to be experienced to join. We do not have formal lessons currently but we do have very experienced members who can teach you one-on-one and with whom you can sail until you are comfortable and competent to sail independently. For more membership information, visit our website. 

Our next Social Sail is coming up this Saturday, May 2^nd. Hopefully the weather will be warm and bright again. :)

~ Jessica, PSC Treasurer