Petaluma YC does an outstanding job of hosting an event. For this weekend several groups, totaling over 50 boats were invited and sandwiched into the basin. Club events were practiced and assigned - complete with a three page list of who had what duty when. it was a Pirate theme and they did it well. Friday evening was the on-board (rum) Cocktail contest where the Judges (PYC Commodore Diane Parker, "Hoop" Hooper, and Kieth Jones - dressed in the perfect outfit) stalked the dock sampling a concoction from each vessel that participated. Low and behold when the tasting was done, none other than our own Smokey Stover was declared a winner with his Essence of Evanescence, butterschotch-like smoothie. Check carefully in the pictures to find the recipe!!!

Land yacht arrivals Don & Barb Henderson, and Art & Betsy Fowler strolled the docks greeting all and getting their fair share of cocktail samples along the way.

With libations taken care of, the fine folks at PYC invited us to bring our Friday Night Potluck right up onto their club deck. Protected from the 30 knot gusts by their plexiglass, we tucked in and had a great spread - washed down with fine spirits from their bar.

Saturday morning was lazy - unless you were into Treasure Hunts. the I-36 super women's team of Pat Salvo, Judy Bush, Laurie Stover & Sandy Van Mell set out on the trail of clues in the blocks surrounding the Basin. Cleverly, the Petaluma YC Treasure Hunt team of Diana Holmes, and Marilyn & George Fricke set out 12 clues inboutique stores around town. You had to find each one to get to the next. The shop owners were into the game too and had great fun with the teams. Our Islanders managed to find all 12 - and thought they would be sure winners. But, alas, the clever PYC people figured there would be a number of teams that found those 12, and had a 13th hunt ready to go on Sunday which was a puzzle. Since we Islanders were leaving at 1330 Sunday, our team was not there for the final question. But they did themselves proud along the way!

The other "major event" of Saturday morning was the tide - as in LOW TIDE. At a minus 1.5 feet, it looked like there was no way our boats could be afloat. Where the picture from the night before looked like a typical mooring scene, now there was linterally no water 5 feet in front of our bows. With 6' 2" draft - how in the blazes did we even get in here??!!!!! Pictures tell the tale. The Petaluma River flows down under the wooden arached foot bridge which marks the end of navigable water. It scours out a deep trench against the shore where the dock is positioned, but sediments from the early spring flooding quickly filled in the north side of the channel. Vice Commodore Tom Corbet had walked the long dock sounding as he went and marked the depth on each cleat - about every 10 - 15'. Where the Islanders are tied, there was about 11-15' at zero tide, but as low as 4' right infront of the clubhouse! Once we were in, WE WERE IN!!!

Mike, Daphne & Eleanor Dickson stopped by to say hello, and Eleanor was quickly abord the boats - even making frineds with Smokey & Laurie's skeleton "crew member" who was slumped on the cockpit seat.

There was a Saturday cocktail hour aboard Vanishing Animal followed by PYC's Pirates' Dinner and Show. Dinner was served "aboard" the "Black Pearl". Seen in pictures below, "Black Pearl" was the brain child of Rear Commodore Don Roberts and she was equally fierce as a fighting ship with ABS cannon, and host with her "gun ports" open to serve buffet style!

Then the grand event of the weekend - the Pirate's Performance! Dressed to the nines, Pirates & Wenches strutted and sang their stuff to a packed audience that overflowed onto the outside deck and into the clubhouse. Dancing was, if not quite precise or erotic, energetic, happy, fun and absolutely enjoyable. A little flirtation along the way made it all the better. the pictures show the great costumes and even better attitude of all involved. Commodore Parker wrapped it up with a big Thank You to all who helped put it together, including overall designer Diana Holmes and Pat Fitzgerald who painted the scenery that filled the clubhouse. After the many round of applause died, everyone slept soundly Saturday night.

Sunday was out departure day - but with another minus tide, we weren't going anywhere until about 1330. To while away the morning hours Dennis Bush recruited a bunch of guys to help re-lead his main and jib halyards. It seems he was feeding a new main halyard when the join parted and now there was no line inside the mast. At the same time, the jib halyard has gotten a twist above the furler retainer and would not go up or down. that left, fortunately, just the spinnaker halyard to get Dennis up to attempt the difficult. How many Islander men does it take to do this job? Just count in the pictures, and you'll get six, plus a photographer makes seven. That's Dennis, John Melton (chief grinder), Gary Salvo, Harry Farrell, Steve Kent, Ron Damsen, plus Rick Van Mell taking pictures and lending tools!

The jib halyard was easily put right, just be getting a kink out of the wire. The main was trickier. After hauling Dennis to the top of the mast, the new halyard was hoisted to the top of the mast and held while tape was put exactly where the exit box was located. Then Dennis taped a metal nut to the end and slowly pushed the end into the top of the mast, letting it fall inside as he pushed. When the tape was at the top of the mast, the nut should be inside the spar, just at the exit box.

Gary Salvo had a "magnet on a stick" to try to fish it out. Several tries, including a flashlight failed to pull it through the opening. A bent, stiff metal wire finally pulled the halyard to the inside edge of the box, and some wiggling up and down by Dennis aloft finally did the trick.

Here is a teaser: Quite by accident, Rick's digital camera got turned to "movie" when trying to get a picture of Gary's moment of triumph fishing the new main halyard out the exit box of Natural High's spar. Unfortunately, the camera was held in a vertical position, so it looks weird, but here is the first video clip on the Islander web site: A moment of triumph.

There were great celebrations - and we had chewed up all the time waiting for enough water to depart. We peeled off in reverse order, sending Pacific High out first. We knew there was no water in front of the raft, and each Islander had to pass outside of the 42' powerboat to the east of us. We practically walked each boat under their pulpit to stay in deep water. Only Freedom Won briefly got stuck in the muck when another power boat started to come out of the raft and forced John to the mud. But two bridge opens later, all of the Islander were away down the river.

John Melton got some great pictures of the fleet going down the river and out into San Pablo Bay. So enjoy them and remember to come along on an islander cruise. It doesn't get much better with good friends, good times and good winds.

Clear Sailing.

Pictures by John Melton & Rick Van Mell. Click on images to enlarge, click "Back" to return.