NMHF’s November Broadsides!
Welcome everyone! It’s been quite a year for us here at NMHF
and this newsletter reflects that. Our reach
this year was significantly increased from the last, both in numbers of
students & customers served, and in the number of volunteers who dedicated
their time to DC Sail, American Spirit, Spirit in
Schools, High School Sailing, and Kids Set Sail.
Although this has been a
busy year, winter gives us a chance to reflect on our progress and the
contributions everyone has made to get us to where we are. Our location at Gangplank Marina has proved
very beneficial, and our community partnerships have brought forth new friends
and old.
This issue of Broadsides
reviews our programs, gives you a short “novelette” version of the great
Chesapeake Bay Schooner Race, announces some upcoming events, and hopefully
will get you interested in rejoining or joining our organization. As we say, “more fun to come!”
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Click play to watch the video! |
Table of Contents
Upcoming
Events
Parade of Lights,
December 2, 2006
Join Us for the Royal
Clipper Cruise! February 4-11, 2007
News
Schooner American
Spirit completes another successful season
Haunted History Cruises
led by Lee Rogers this Fall
Membership drive on the
horizon
DC Sail’s VIP
Instructors of 2006
Update: The
Keeping NMHF Afloat,
Got Grants?!
“Spirit” Completes a
ten school summer visit schedule
American Spirit places
9th in class in Great
NMHF Staff Member to
Take Seven Day Sailing Voyage to
Upcoming
Events
Parade of Lights
With the
Basically,
there are two parts to this exercise:
- Decorating “American Spirit”
- 1p-3p at the boat,
- Tree Lighting and
o
5p,
Lighting of the Southwest Christmas tree w/vocal performances and tree
decorations from local children.
o
5:45p
o
6-7p
Parade in the Washington Channel w/ long underwear and high spirits
o
7:-?
Light pillaging and rampant merrymaking.
So, there
is the schedule. If you have some time and would like to get into the
holiday spirit, RSVP and we’ll save you a spot! I’d love to see you
again.
Join Us for the Royal Clipper Cruise!
Sign on now
for this eight-day cruise around the Caribbean, departing from and returning to
The Royal Clipper has the proud distinction
of being the largest and only five-masted sailing
ship built since her predecessor, Preussen, was launched at the beginning of the last century.
With her complement of 42 sails, Royal
Clipper is a sight to behold. Although you might think that she is an
apparition from the grand age of sail, Royal
Clipper also has state-of-the art navigation systems and modern comforts.
For connoisseurs of sail cruising, the 439 foot Royal Clipper offers the ultimate sea-going experience, balancing
the grandeur, adventure and tradition of sailing with superb service, amenities
and accommodations of the finest modern yachts.
Royal Clipper
carries just 227 guests in luxurious style. Find your secret hideaway on one of
the hidden balconies on either side of the bow, or climb the mast (with safety
harnesses provided) to one of the passenger lookout “crows’ nests.” Royal Clipper’s interior spaces are
dazzling. They include a 3-deck atrium that funnels sunlight into the elegantly
appointed, 3-level dining room, which features open-seating dining, deliciously
prepared cuisine, and a no-tie dress code. A convenient marina platform lowers
from the stern for water sports and diving. The one-of-a kind Captain Nemo Lounge, is the site of the spa
and health club with underwater glass portholes. Don’t miss this wonderful
opportunity to sail the seas.
For More Information And To Reserve
A Cabin For This Trip, You May Contact:
Florynce Bronstein
Events Around the World, Inc.
212-462-4970
eventsaroundtheworld@earthlink.net
News
Schooner American Spirit completes another successful season
Well, 117 trips, 59 volunteer
crewmembers, four captains, and over 3,000 students and charterers
during our summer season –? When I heard that, I didn’t believe it.
No wonder we were feeling pretty exhausted at the close of our season!
The efforts put out by the crew, sponsors, kids and guests this summer was
truly awesome. To our captains, Jochen, Dave,
& Doug, our volunteer crew, and everyone who gave so much, thank you
all. American Spirit will sail once more this season, for the Parade of
Lights on Saturday, Dec. 2. If you can make it, we’d love to see you!
Haunted History Cruises led by Lee Rogers this Fall
This fall,
historian Lee Rogers led three cruises on the
Membership drive on the horizon
As winter approaches, so does the
time for us to renew our memberships in National Maritime Heritage Foundation
(NMHF). With your help and support, we
were able to reach out to over 4,000 people this year: students, adults,
charter customers, and local organizations.
The bonds we have made and steps we have taken will serve us in good
stead as we gear up for spring.
Your
financial support has been critical for DC Sail, Kids Set Sail,
Spirit-in-Schools, and American Spirit, as well as supporting our long-term
goal of building the “Spirit of Enterprize,” a tall
ship for our nation’s capital. When you
see the materials for our membership drive arrive, please take a moment to show
your support and Join us!
DC Sail’s VIP Instructors of 2006
After
thirty weeks of on-the-water programming, DC Sail shut down its facility for
the winter on the fourth of November. The staff at NMHF is grateful for all of the
hard work that DC Sail’s group of volunteer instructors invested into the
Learn-to-Sail program this year. From early April until the end of October,
fifty volunteers contributed over 573 hours of their time. That’s well over
twenty-three days worth of volunteer hours! Several of our volunteers have gone
above and beyond the call of duty. Tony Domenico put
in thirty-nine volunteer hours while Allison Barker and Norm Arkwright both
spent thirty-three hours of their time instructing for the program. Thanks for
all of your hard work!
Update: The
Keeping NMHF Afloat, Got Grants?!
As the 2006
season is winding down, NMHF has a multitude of accomplishments upon which we
can look back and be proud. 2006 was a great year for grantmaking
at NMHF, with support from grantors like AWC, Clarke-Winchcole
Foundation, Tiger Woods Foundation, and Starbucks Foundation, ect. With the success of this past
year as inspiration, I am now embarking upon the grant-seeking process for
2007. But no man, or woman for that matter, is an island. And I welcome any
suggestions that you, our dear members and friends, may have. We can always use
extra hands 
on deck!
Congratulations Dale Dugdale
This summer
we have had a young crewmember who has put in almost
as many hours on American Spirit and at DC Sail as Ollie and I combined. Every day, when I would arrive at American
Spirit, there would be Dale, sitting on the cabin top ready to go sailing and
lend a hand wherever he could. Dale and
I have been on some pretty crazy and fun trips, including a great cruise with
his parents, Melanie & Chuck, from DC to
Dale’s mom,
Malanie and Chuck Dugdale
were married one year and seven months ago.
Just last week, Dale was adopted by Chuck Dugdale
to be his son. This completes a family
of kind and fun people who have been wonderful supporters of our programs and
have become fast friends.
Congratulations Dale!
“Sprit” completes a 10 school summer visit schedule compliments
of DC Youth Investment Trust Corporation
This
summer, DC youth and Children’s Investment Trust, awarded a grant to NMHF to
take our 16’ mini tall ship, “Spirit,” to elementary aged children throughout
wards 6, 7 & 8. “Spirit,” with a crew of 3-4 volunteers, traveled to
summer locations in our area bringing maritime education, sea shanties, and fun
to students. Our sincere thanks to DCYIT Peter Guttmacher
for guiding us through this process and recommending us .|
A Finnish Photographer Aboard
Spirit
For two of
these weeks the “Spirit” crew was joined by Jan Erik Ullman
from
Below are
some of his photos (Click thumbnail for a larger version of picture):
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American Spirit places 9th in class in Great
Repositioning cruises offer adventure and a change of pace for
crews
As with
everything, our participation in the Great Chesapeake Bay Schooner Race (GCBSR)
began months before the actual race. A stamp was placed on an
application-filled envelope, and thus the saga began. Participation in
the race actually requires a total of 4 legs: a repositioning cruise from DC to
Prelude:
After much angst over logistics,
menus, and schedules, crewmembers clamber aboard to load their gear into the
boat, get watch assignments, top off fuel and water, and finally cast off
lines. By the time we pass under the new, higher, Wilson Bridge, the
adventure is on, watch rotations have begun and we settle into 1-hour shifts
through the night and into the next day as we dodge fish traps, rip rap, purse seiners, freighters, unlit buoys and phantom
lights. As night approaches, the air cools; we dress warmly, collars up,
and attend to some sort of warm meal.
On American
Spirit, duties are equally shared, so crewmembers may find themselves cooking,
cleaning up, tending the helm or sails or sleeping on their off-hours.
It’s a chance to get away from our day-to-day lives and be outside with
friends, new and old, on a mission that’s bigger and more immediate than our
usual experience. At times, weary with lack of sleep, standing at the
helm, squinting into the blackness, one longs for
hearth and home. Yet, there is no place else we’d rather be than here,
now.
This year
we ran into a combination of wild, stressful, blinding storms; glorious
sunrises & sunsets; quiet evenings on the hook, and exciting 8-knot broad
reaches when; rail under and sun out; with the cooler skidding against its
restraining lines; we danced through the wash across the decks, laughed and 
marveled that we had this day - here
and now.
With an
intrepid crew of 9 and a night of carousing at the Latin Club in Fells Point,
American
Sprit was delayed in her departure by an audition. Lisa Finney, aka
“Cookie,” had an audition for an upcoming episode of “Hauntings,”
a Discovery Channel show.
The
Start:
Great winds sped us toward the
starting line, and with a borrowed, shocking pink spinnaker tugging us along,
we made it in time to see the class “A” boats break the line and sprint for the
Thimble Shoals finish line off
Amid
lightening airs and a tide going foul, four hours later we found ourselves off
Bloody Point being swept up
The Ride:
Throughout the night, radio calls
came across of boats dropping out, breakage, a missing
person (not in the race) up the Patapsco River.
All the time, the crew, lashed down and their lifejackets
ground on, braving gybes, straining fittings and
groaning hardware. About 3am, I was shaken awake and, making my way
forward in 30k winds saw, dangling from the top of the foremast, our gaff,
dangling limply, straight down, broken from its fitting by the force of an
unexpected gybe.
We had
doused the mainsail hours before, and were making 8 knots across the bottom
under foresail and jib alone. Loss of ½ of the foresail was a problem,
but we were still making great time even if we did look pretty beaten up.
With nothing else to do, I went back to bed, only to be awakened ½ hour later
to an ominous sight. The jib sheet lead, attached to the traveler at the bow,
has torn its weld apart and the boom and sail were flogging ahead of the boat,
banging on the forestay, threatening to take down the mast if not recovered
immediately.
The force
of a flogging jib is nothing to trifle with, and with each slam against the
forestay, the repercussions were felt throughout the boat. It was time to
act, and quickly at that. Life harnesses were put on and I shinnied out
the bowsprit to try and recover the flogging sheet. This proved
impossible. Retreating back to the relative safety of the deck, we
managed to snag the end of the jib sheet and lead it around our anchor
windlass, with which, we pulled the loose lines tight and managed to draw the
jib and boom back on deck. The crew sprang to the halyards and clawed the
sail down, passing sail ties around it as waves washed across the deck.
Now, down
to ½ of one sail, American Spirit
still strained toward our goal as
dawn cracked across a wild and raucous seascape. With the wind astern at
25k all we could do was to hold on and drive down the rollers passing under our
stern. The boat would rise, pause, and then surge forward with a roller
coaster, twisting motion, making the helm difficult at best, spinning us around
to wind from time to time.
As the day
progressed, and we neared our destination, the winds eased, and we made out high
flying jets on maneuvers flying from
Thanks
to all who helped on delivery legs and the race.
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Leg 1, DC to David Goodman Sonja Mitchell Erik Lang Jochen Hoffman |
Leg 2 Diane Hurlbert Dave LaMay San Luisa Barnes Evie Banda |
Great Lisa Finney Kevin Traver Phil Weeks Ray Work Oliver Whitney Marshall Griffin |
Leg 4 Dave LaMay Tai Phan Jack Lamay Lisa Finney Katherine Lenard |
NMHF Staff Member to Take Seven Day Sailing Voyage to
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Ollie at the helm |
Last week,
I got to catch up with Oliver Whitney, NMHF’s
director of small boat programs. After Thanksgiving, he will be taking a seven-day
sailing adventure to deliver The Donnybrook,
a 72-foot offshore racing yacht, from
BS: What
sparked your interest to take part in this experience?
OW:
I had a great time aboard the American Spirit during the
Great Chesapeake Bay Schooner Race this year with other NMHF members. We were under sail
for about seventeen hours in a whole variety of conditions and I loved every
minute of it.
BS: How did you land yourself aboard
the Donnybrook for this trip?
OW: I asked the NMHF staff if there
were any sailing opportunities that I could take part in over the winter. Rich
O’Brien, a director on NMHF’s board, pointed me in
the direction of the Donnybrook, which is owned by Jim Muldoon, former
President of the US Sailing Organization and also member of NMHF’s
board. I got in touch with Mr. Muldoon, and the rest is history! Many thanks go
out to Mr. Muldoon & Mr. O’Brien.
BS: What will the trip be like? How many other people will participate?
OW: It is tentatively scheduled that
there will be one captain, one first mate and six
crew members, which includes me. Shifts are normally two on deck, one driving
for two hours then two hours as stand-by (on watch, adjusting sails for the
driver). Shifts will run twenty-four hours per day. The off time will be
determined by the number of crew on board. That
is if there are no unforeseen problems while we are under sail.
BS: What could possibly go wrong?
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The Donnybrook |
OW: Strong winds can definitely cause
problems. From my experience sailing on the Flying Scots in gusty conditions at
DC Sail and aboard the American Spirit at the Schooner Race, strong
winds are very exciting and lots of fun because they can propel your sailboat
to its maximum speed. Once past this speed, however, gusts can cause important
parts of the boat to pop off, shatter or otherwise explode unexpectedly, which
is not good. We also need to keep our eyes open for whales and the massive
shipping containers that are abundant off the Atlantic coast. If a crew member
neglects his job at watch, a collision into one of these objects could sink the
Donnybrook in a matter of minutes. Lightning is also a consideration… abduction
by aliens… the list goes on and on and on. One thing is certain, I’ll make sure
we do not go too far into the Bermuda Triangle.
BS: What are you most looking forward
to on this trip?
OW: I don’t have any set expectations considering
that this will be the first time I’ll be sailing aboard a boat continuously for
such a long period of time. That is what will make the trip so exciting. I’m
still looking forward to distancing myself from my cell phone and email for the
time I am on the voyage. If I’m not worn out from a lack of sleep aboard the
boat, I hope to read a few good books while I’m on the trip too. I think
the most exciting part of the trip will be when we get our first view of