Publicity   Hello ECSC Members and Friends,   Planning for a great 2017 is underway.  Please check out all of the articles in this and next months Telltales to learn more.  Geoff Endris has some exciting changes in store for the racing program. The Social events promise to be even better than last year. Kenny and Dennis have plans to keep our club looking and running smoothly. It promises to be a great year. Your board of Directors has put a new Grounds Committee in place to oversee the maintenance and care of our grounds.  Their responsibility is to oversee the many duties that our caretaker was responsible for. They will contract the needed lawn care, trash service, porta potties, dumpsters, plantings and much much more. This committee includes the Vice Commodore as its chair (Mark Walker), the Harbor Master (Kenny) and the Treasurer (Tom Moore). As publicity chair I am excited to see our club continue to move into the digital age. Several years back we began publishing our newsletter, The Telltales, only in an electronic format.  It has recently moved to a published blog format. ECSC Trivia fact #1- Our newsletter was originally published in 1972 under the name Telltails. The following year it was changed to Telltales. Prior to 1972 it was a sporadic mailing entitled ECSC News. Our membership and all communications (excepting dues statements and payments) have become electronic.  We are looking at the possibility of moving or dues and payments to electronic format also.  We maintain both an ECSC Facebook page, and a website.   ECSC Trivia fact #2  our inlet off of the Reservoir was known as "Shoal Creek Inlet" on early maps. Click here to see Full blog article for Picture   What makes our club tick? The following is a reprinted answer from the May 1972, Volume 1, issue no.1 of The ECSC Telltails,  Tom Heirmonimus - Editor

NEW PRIORITIES ESTABLISHED

MEMBERS URGED TO GET INVOLVED

Anytime there is a large organization there are complaints. Why are they doing that?  They should be doing more! Can't we get better ------. Well, the answer doesn't lie in the above statements; it lies in your involvement.

The club is run by a relatively small segment of the membership. It is not run that way by choice. It is because all of the committees depend on volunteers. In order to have a better club YOU must participate. This is not the time to be bashful. Ask yourself, "what can I do to help". You don't have to be a professional. Just be willing to pitch in. Call any of the committee chairman listed on page two and volunteer your service. We can make this a very exciting and fun filled club if we all do what we can.

Very true words that were written 45 years ago!  Seems to this current Telltales editor that these words apply not only to our lovely Sailing Club, but to many aspects of life... So, the only change I would make to the previous  text is to bring it into the 21st century and suggest that you email your committee chairs if you can find the time to volunteer. Visit the Racing Page and sign up for Race committee duty. Come to the Race Meetings and Learn how to help the racing program. Email Kenny and volunteer for our many work projects  and work parties planned for 2017. Contact our Social Chair and take on chairing a social event. These activities are not only fun, but you earn valuable work credits to apply to next years dues.

While we are a private sailing club, we have always accepted all comers regardless of race, gender, sexual orientation or even sailing ability. Follow a few of our basic rules, help out when you are able  and you are welcome to enjoy the hidden gem that we call our oasis - Eagle Creek Sailing Club.   Rick Graef Publicity

Hello ECSC Members,   January is definitely a quiet month for us sailing types. While most of us sit at work, we day dream about warm breezes and the sounds of water rushing past the hulls of our sailboats or the organized chaos that is a yacht racing starting line.  Many of our members are lucky enough to head south for a week or two or twelve. I doubt that I am the only one at ECSC that actually misses their boat during these cold winter months. [caption id="attachment_2327" align="aligncenter" width="300"] Tony and Jake Hubbard, Cam Borkowski, Rick Graef and Cristina DeProspero on Mac Island after competing in the 206 Port Huron to Mackinac Race.[/caption] As for publicity, I would like to start a member article section in the coming months issues of our beloved newsletter "The Tell-tales". If you are interested, just write an article and send it along to me at publicity@ecsail.org . Write about anything sailing related; your favorite cruising spot, a regatta you attended, your favorite ECSC memories, why cruisers are more fun than racers, why racers are more fun than cruisers, your own stupid boat tricks, how you managed to ground your boat on the point....Anything sailing. Or even just a regatta report as I have done below. [caption id="attachment_2331" align="aligncenter" width="300"] Racing Lasers in Biscayne Bay[/caption] Between Christmas and New Years I was lucky enough to be able to attend the Open Orange Bowl Regatta in Miami Florida.  For years our club has sent juniors down to compete against the worlds best youth in the Junior Orange Bowl Regatta, so I have attended this event many times with my kids and other ECSC Juniors.  This year I was able to take my Ex-Junior son, Austin Graef  along for some racing.  He and I competed in four days of very competitive and challenging Laser racing.  Coconut Grove Sailing Club hosts an adult Laser regatta in conjunction with the junior event that also occurs during this time. Conditions ranged from one day of postponement (light winds) to steady 18 gusting to mid 20's.  While the fleet was small (17 entrants), it was chock full of laser olympic hopefuls, former laser Masters world champions, Star mid-winters champions, and even a former Snipe world Champion. Having not been in a Laser in almost a year for both of us, the learning curve was steep.  After the first day of racing (three races) I was able to hold a solid mid-fleet position slightly ahead of Austin. I guess the old man does still have some tricks up his sleeve. Day 2 was a great day for Austin as he moved up in the standings....ahead of me (I knew it was inevitable). His best finish of the day was a 3rd!!  (beating several world class sailors) Day 3 was a sit and wait day with light and variable winds.  The 4th day brought a cold front and winds sustained near 20 knots with higher gusts.  With Austin only a few points ahead of me, I saw my chance to show him I could handle the heavy air and regain my place ahead of him. . . . After leading him around the upwind mark I thought my sail looked a little dry, so I capsized and watched him (and another boat) shoot past me.  So much for race 1 in the heavy air.  Raced 2 was looking equally as promising for me... until I decided to practice my death-rolling skills...twice. Needles to say, Austin handled the heavy air in a much better fashion and had some nice finishes. In the final race that day, I chased Austin around the course and just couldn't quite get him....until the last mark when the death-roll bug hit him during the final gybe not 500 yards from the finish. [caption id="attachment_2332" align="aligncenter" width="167"] ECSCs new coach boat??? Actually the Melges coach boat modeled after a Melges 24[/caption] After finishing nine races in 4 days Austin finished with a solid 6th overall, beating me by a solid four points ( I was7th place overall).  Not that I like being beaten, but it is a proud day when a junior sailor (who is also your kid) who you have trained and coached all of his life not only beats you but competes solidly against some of the worlds best racing talent. Congrats on a great regatta to Austin. I hope you all stay warm. Start making lists of all those spring boat projects. I will see you on the water in a few short months.   Rick Graef Publicity Chair