Welcome to Fall at the Eagle Creek Sailing Club!  This is one of my favorite times of year here at the club - it's time to get out your sweaters and sail! I love the changing leaves and  crisp fall winds and the sunsets have been particularly amazing of late. Thank you to all of the members who came out to sail in the Indy 200 Regatta.  This was one of the largest regattas we have had on the lake in some time!  I would especially like to thank the new members who participated.  We had a great turnout last weekend for the Governor's Cup as well.  It was a single-handed race, which was somewhat of a challenge to those of us who regularly depend on our crew to make us go fast. Finally, due to uncertainty regarding the Final Bash, the Board is putting together a plan to have our Annual Meeting here at the club on October 10th at 6:30pm. We will have a ballot box available for those who want to vote in person for the incoming Board and we are hoping to have a food truck and musical entertainment.  Social distancing measures will still be in place, but hopefully you will feel comfortable coming out and  catching up with other members you haven't seen all year.  Stay tuned for more details of this event to be announced soon. Happy Sailing! Nan Wishart Commodore

Dear ECSC Members: Well, it is still a strange year. I am sorry to say that I may go down in history as the first Commodore that some of you have never met. Hopefully, we can rectify that situation before the year ends. I am happy to see more boats on the water lately and appreciate those people who are wearing masks when appropriate. Jan and I have been out sailing in both Honor Series races and as often as possible just for the sheer joy of it, so I have had a chance to see the die-hard sailors. I know there are many of you that are unable to come out, and you are most definitely missed! Because we are leasing city park property, the bureaucracy involved in our capital improvements feels like jogging through molasses, but we are still committed to the improvements to the ramp, electric gate, and gin pole. Chuck Goff, next year’s Commodore, will continue to work with the Board and the Park towards that end. Our Board elections will be held in November, and we are currently accepting nominations for open board seats for next year. The only requirement to be nominated is to be a member of the club in good standing, so even if you are new to the Club, we invite you to consider this opportunity. The Board meets once a month, at a date and time designated by the Commodore, and we usually take a couple of months off during the summer. The list of Board members is in your directory (also located on our website here), along with our contact information, so if you have any questions or interest in this opportunity then please feel free to reach out to one of us. Be safe and stay well! If you see Dutch Mob or Reckoning on the water, sail by and say hi! Nan Wishart Commodore

Greetings to everyone!  Well, here we are, still in the middle of the Covid-19 Pandemic of 2020.  This is definitely not what we bargained for this sailing season! The circumstances we find ourselves in are unprecedented in my lifetime. Our social and racing events are still on hiatus; I would like to ask for everyone's consideration as the Board and the Committee Chairs work through this.  It is one thing to make a personal decision about your own health and safety, but it is an entirely different matter when you are making decisions that affect your fellow club members, friends, and families.  We don't know everyone's circumstances and what reasons they have for the choices they make.  What I do know is life is tenuous - yesterday someone lost their life on our lake - today someone did die from Covid-19.  Does that mean we just lay down in the fetal position and refuse to come out of our houses? No. But it does mean that we, as the leadership of the club, have a duty to all of the members to make the best decisions we can for the good of the club. I don't expect that everyone will agree with these decisions, but I do ask that everyone respect them and the board members making them.  And if you feel strongly, there are board positions available for the upcoming season. Fortunately, our club is still open and we welcome you to come out and enjoy it.  Masks aren't required outdoors, but if you aren't wearing one, then please be kind and keep your distance. We are racing on Wednesdays and Sundays - it's just a little different.  Jan and I ask ourselves daily - what is really important?  Our love for each other and our friends and the joy we get when we are on the water.  The rest is icing on the cake. Update on the Ramp Project - One step forward, one step back:  We obtained all of the necessary permits for the construction, our vendor and pricing for the ramp are in place, and when we received the pricing for the coffer dam to drain the water for construction it blew our budget.  Our former Commodore Geoff Endris is working on possible solutions for this - and we are still planning on moving forward, we just don't have a specific time as of yet.  Nothing will commence before the end of the year, so it will not have an effect on our season. But this is still a priority for the club. Thanks for your patience and understanding.  See you on the water! Nan

Dear ECSC Members: What an odd year to be the Commodore! Global pandemic and social unrest  were not  listed in the job description that I received.  I'd like to extend my thanks  to former Commodore Geoff Endris, our secretary Rich Fox,  Grounds committee chairman Chuck Goff, and Harbor Master Kenny Chapman for all of their extraordinary efforts this year. I would also like to thank the members who have been out to the club and have been observing our stated guidelines. Our board will be meeting in the coming week to make some decisions about the continuing opening of our club. Hopefully we will begin to see the official start of racing; a few of the diehards have gotten a head start with honors racing on Wednesdays and Sundays. We also hope to start planning social activities now that the social distancing restrictions are being eased. Please stay tuned to our Facebook and email apply for continuing updates. See you on the water! Nan Wishart Commodore

Hello fellow sailors! It finally looks like we will be getting the club open later this month. Decisions are being made about how and what that will look like – and as we move in this direction, please know that our number one priority is the safety and welfare of our members. We will continue to follow the directives of our state and local officials in how we ease back into our social club setting, and we appreciate your patience and cooperation as we move forward. We will continue to communicate to the membership through our website, Facebook page and email, so stay tuned! THANK YOU TO OUR HEALTH CARE WORKERS! The leadership of the club would like to thank our ECSC members who are in the trenches working in the healthcare field during these unprecedented times. We are fortunate to have many nurses, doctors, and other medical professionals among our membership. We thank you for your hard work over the last several months. A special shout-out goes to Scott Douglas, John Koehne and Vicki Greenough for sharing their knowledge with the ECSC board and providing guidance to keep the club safe. Stay safe! Nan (Schulze) Wishart, Commodore

Well, this is the month that we would normally be getting the club open, the marks set on the lake, and launching boats in the water for the beginning of another wonderful sailing season. Instead, we are in the midst of an unprecedented time of uncertainty due to Covid-19 and the club is still not officially open. Boats are slowly getting into the water, but instead of the normal camaraderie and gathering at the race shed to shake off the winter blues, we are asking members to restrict their interactions. Sailing can be a socially distant activity, but it is advised that you only sail with those people who are sharing your quarantine space. The board is continuing to monitor the advisories and at this time have postponed our normal spring social and racing events. We are communicating through this newsletter, email and our Facebook page. If you know someone who does not have access to these electronic communication efforts, please reach out to them and share what we are doing. In the meanwhile, please take care of yourselves and each other. This too shall pass, and as the resilient sailors that I know we are, we will make up for it in no time. Be well and see you on the water – sometime soon! Nan (Schulze) Wishart Commodore

Well, with the weather today, it appears that we should all be at the lake sailing! In fact, I saw a post on the Eagle Creek Sailing Club this past weekend and a few hearty souls were out testing the waters! We also have several members who have been sailing in warmer climates over this past winter and posting their adventures online. If you haven't found that page yet, it is worth venturing onto Facebook to keep up with all of the shenanigans! Our Former Commodore Geoff Endris is continuing to monitor the progress on the boat ramp replacement scheduled before the official opening of the Club. As more information and a start date is determined we will keep you informed. Thank you, Geoff, for all of your efforts on this project. I am also happy to announce that Ron Anderson, our club maintenance person has been rehired for the 2020 season. He did a great job of taking care of the club and assisting our members in a variety of projects last year and I want to welcome him back aboard. The Ladies Sailing Association will be back this year with more of the great events that we enjoyed last year. The Dock-Walks were great fun and I hope we can expand on those events this year. It's a great opportunity to get to know your dock-mates and check out the great boats we have at the lake. Both the Tell-Tales and the Facebook page will be announcing these events, so stay tuned! I have also been informed that the Radio Controlled (RC) boats and skippers will be back again. I understand that Santa delivered a number of these boats over the winter. Rich Fox is working on putting together a racing program for the RC Sailors, so again, stay tuned! If you haven't seen these boats in action please come out and catch some of the fun! Personally, I am waiting for the day that one of the dock fingers submerges because there are too many RC skippers standing on the end. Well, that wraps up my news for the month. Thank you for being a part of this great sailing club and be sure to read below for news from your Board Committee-Persons. See you on the water! Nan Schulze, Commodore