Joint Sailing Club and Sports Club Raft Up Party on August 24th

This year the Sailing Club organizes the Pontoon Raft Up Party together with the Lake Auman Sports Club.  The Pontoon Raft Up Party is a unique BYOB event on the water where you will bring small food plates to pass and bring your own drinks for a party on pontoon boats! Deck boats are welcome too. We will tie all boats together and we will have a very special party on the lake! 
This party requires planning. We need to know who is participating with a pontoon boat and who would like to participate but has no boat. With that information we will try to put people without a boat on a participating boat. Please let me, Paul Kirst, (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.) know by August 17th, if you plan to intend the raft up with your pontoon boat or need a ride. Also, let me know if you have room on your boats for a few more. We will then try to make sure that everyone who wants to attend has a ride.

Let’s make this party on the lake a big event on August 24th!

Paul Kirst, Commodore

On behalf of the sailing club I would like to thank pirate queen Mary Anne Fewkes and her worker wenches Gail Deal, Sue Keenan and Alice  Dropper for all the work they did to organize and conduct the catered  picnic. It was a great success and the weather could not have been better.

Commodore Paul

The Seven Lakes Sailing Club is looking for members to volunteer for one of the Board officer functions or to nominate someone for officer for 2020. The Board is composed of the following officers: Commodore, Vice Commodore, Secretary and Treasurer.
If you are interested or if you know someone who is interested, please, contact me at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or 910-603-6841.

Paul Kirst

(Reservations due by November 1st)

All members of the Seven Lakes Sailing Club are invited to the Sailing Club's Annual Awards and Recognition Banquet which will be held in the Great Room of the Community Center on Saturday evening November 9th. The purpose of the evening will be a gathering of friends for conversation and dinner followed by recognition of the work of our volunteers supporting our races and social events and of handing out the awards for the 2019 sailing program.

The event will start at 5:30 PM with drinks (beers and wines) and appetizers.

At 6.00 PM a catered dinner will be served at the tables by Ashten’s Restaurant of Southern Pines:
• Fall Beet & Arugula Salad with apples, pecans, goat cheese and choice of dressing,
• Choice of
       o Pan Roasted Verlasso Salmon with Tamari Brown Butter, or
       o Beef Tenderloin with Horseradish Cream
• Buttered Green Beans,
• Chefs special fingerling Potatoes, and
• Dinner rolls & butter
Dessert: Banana cream pie
Dinner includes beer, wine and coffee.

Dinner will be followed by a recognitions and awards ceremony.

The cost for the evening is $35.00 per person all-inclusive. Reservations are due by November 1st. Payment is by check made out to the Seven Lakes Sailing Club in the amount of $35 per dinner serving. Write on the check: Banquet and your choice of Salmon or Tenderloin. Checks should be given or mailed to Nancy Workman, 3420 Seven Lakes West, or to be dropped off at the administration desk of Community Center.

I am looking forward to seeing you all at the Banquet of the Sailing Club!

Paul Kirst
Commodore

Ahoy all,

This is the last call for participating in the boating poker game on Saturday June 22nd.

So far, no one has signed up!!  If you want to play, please send me an email at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. and let me know so I know how many cards to distribute. Cards will be attached face down to several buoys marking the ski area. You will pick up your poker hand consisting of 5 or 7 cards (TBD) any time during the day on that Saturday using any non powered boat (i.e. sail, kayak, canoe, paddle board…). When I know who is playing I will send you an email on Friday June 21st identifying which buoys will have cards and how many cards to collect – one from each buoy. Good luck and no cheating.

Then Saturday evening there will be a BYOB at Johnson Point at 5 pm. Bring your cards and we will compare hands and declare a poker winner and enjoy some pizza. 

The weather forecast is good for all day Saturday.

Commodore Paul

On Saturday May 25th, Ben Benjamin took out a group of kayakers on the lake. They had a great time! The Sailing Club is thanking Ben Benjamin for leading this kayak tour!

Ahoy all,

It was good to see so many people at the BYOB Saturday.

Several items of business:

• Bill Eisel reported that someone accidentally picked up their black shoulder bag cooler on Saturday evening after the BYOB which contained two ice bricks, some empty bottles and a very sentimental church key. Hopefully it will be recovered. Please call Bill Eisel 910-400-3094 if you found the bag.
• The kayak tour on Saturday May 25th will begin at 10 AM from Johnson Point, led by Ben Benjamin. It ends when you get tired and head home.
• We will make up the first sailing boat race on Sat. May 25th at 1 PM. The course layout will be posted on the website.
• If you would like to participate in the boating poker game on Saturday June 22nd please sign up by return email so I can anticipate how many cards I will need. The rules are: 1) you may use any non power boat with any number of people on board (in most cases that will be one). 2) you may gather your poker hand at any time during the day Saturday June 22nd. 3) bring your cards to the BYOB/Pizza party at 5 PM that evening at Johnson Point. When I know how many players to expect, I will send out a notice telling you how many cards to collect and which buoys they will be attached to.
• If you (or someone you know) is planning to take the Learn To Sail Course starting June 17th please send me your/their name and contact information by return email. So far I don't know exactly who plans to attend. Please help me with this. I have three people on an alternate list that we will go to if we actually don't have the 10 students who earlier said they would take the course.

Thanks,

Commodore Paul

This is a reminder for the first BYOB at Johnson's Point on Saturday. The event will start at 5 PM. Bring an appetizer to share with 5-7 persons and your favorite beverage. Have a great time with your friends in the Sailing Club. See you all at the social!  

Paul Kirst, Commodore

Our own Yvonne and Steve Short just returned from Florida where they participated with their Hunter 22 in the 66th annual Mug Race at the Rudder Club of Jacksonville. The Mug Race is the world’s longest river race. They finished in about 7 hrs. Based on corrected time, they won the "Archie Markland Trophy First Monohull Cruiser To Finish" and also won the "First Cruiser-Spinnaker To Finish". They were participating with about 25 multihulls and 60 mono-hulls. A fantastic performance of our club members!

The weekend before the Mug Race they also sailed the Lake Norman Hospice Regatta. They took a 1st and a 3rd place and one no finish. 

A big kudo to Yvonne and Steve!

Ahoy,

Here is a summary of the skippers and support crew meeting held on May 4th:

• All races will start at 1 PM. All kayak and small boat events will start at 10 AM. Notices will be sent out before each such event with pertinent details for participants.
• We have verbal commitments that fill all slots for sailing school. There will be a waiting list in case of drop-outs.
• To encourage more race participation among new sailors, each race will have a race within a race. First, everyone competes against everyone  else as in regular races. In addition, all skippers who have never won a race will also be competing against only each other for awards.
• There will be one single start for all boats. The starting line will be lengthened to be less intimidating. Help remind the novices of the rules on the course as needed if it seems necessary.
• We need a few more volunteers for safety boat operators and crew. Contact Bob Fewkes to sign up.
• The boating poker game for non-power boats (sail, kayak, canoes) on June 22th will be open to the first 10 participants to sign up. Each player will collect five cards and bring that poker hand to the BYOB/Pizza party at Johnson Pt. that evening. More on that later.
• The Pontoon Raft Up party will be held jointly with the Lake Auman Sport's Club on Aug 24th. We will anchor near the Fewkes' residence since they have graciously offered us the use of a bathroom.
• Because we changed the picnic date to Sep 14th, we have added a BYOB after the Commodore's Cup Race on Oct 5th so that we have a social at least once per month.
• There is only one cup race this year because of the scarcity of big boats likely to participate and to hold the race early in October when water is still warm enough for small boats.
• Those on the race committee boat should meet at noon so that they can be anchored on station by 12:30.

The first race is May 18th.  As Yvonne says: You bought the boat, sail it!

Paul Kirst, Commodore