JUNE 2006

Commodore's Column

Commodore's Cruise to Alaska

The Commodore's Cruise to Alaska was truly more than just a cruise! After almost a year in planning, your fellow Corinthians sailed on the beautiful Island Princess. Our ports of call began in Vancouver, then up the Inside Passage to the sleepy fishing town of Ketchikan, then off to Alaska's state capital city of Juneau followed by a stop in the gold rush town of Skagway. The last two days at sea included cruising the incredible Glacier Bay National Park where the glacier Margerie groaned, moaned and calved right in front of our eyes! It was absolutely magnificent. The final day at sea featured a cruise through College Fjord where you can visit Wellesley, Smith, Harvard, and Yale all within an hour. The glaciers on the left were named after women's colleges and on the right were the men's. Prince William Sound was a sight to behold! By the time we arrived in Whittier (total distance traveled 1583 nautical miles) we had viewed much of nature's pristine mountains, bays, forests and wildlife. Alaska is truly the land of the midnight sun. The memories we made will last forever. During the week we had traveled by trains, jets, automobiles, ferries, float planes, taxis, trolleys, Hummers, rafts, and by foot. Cruises like this, whether it is the Commodore's cruise or our monthly cruise-outs, renew old friendships and create new ones. Visit our CYC website to enjoy the fun pictures.

Our trip began when we gathered in the international city of Vancouver on Saturday, May 27^th. We were privileged to enjoy a private luncheon at the Royal Vancouver Yacht Club the following day. It is a historic and beautiful club with over 5,000 members and seven outpost stations. Following the lunch and an informative presentation, we exchanged gifts from each club, presented our burgee and toured their fabulous club. During our stay in Vancouver, would you believe we saw one of our own yacht club's boats in the harbor? Raptor Dance owned by Bill Finkelstein was tied up on the waterfront near our hotel. It's such a small world.

In command of the Island Princess was Captain Andrea Poggi. Thanks to Fred Mayo and Cindi Marques we were invited on a private tour of the Bridge. WOW! First Officer Fabrizio Delenga (eye candy for the ladies) was open, charming and obviously very knowledgeable. He answered all our questions and we got up close and personal with the electronics and sophisticated instrumentation of the ship. Interesting to note they still keep a paper chart and plot their course manually. We were all so very proud when Captain Poggi gave the command to hoist the CYC burgee. It was such a thrill to see our burgee flying along with the Alaska flag and the Princess flag!

The Island Princess is only two years new and a spectacular ship. As with many cruise ships, one of the main highlights is the never ending dining choices. Total passenger capacity is 1970. Normal crew complement is 810. Its propulsion is by two synchronous electric motors (20,000 KW each) and powered by either two diesel engines (16,200 KW each) and/or by a GE gas turbine (25,000 KW). Maneuvering is done by three bow thrusters and three stern thrusters. With all this power, we cruised at a comfortable and very quiet 22.0 kts. You can view their cruise cam anytime at www.princess.com.

There were so many highlights and they are best shared in person. The next time you're at the club, make it a point to talk to our travelers. They included: Fred and Cindi, Michael Moradzadeh and Noelle Leca, Jan and Barbro Borjeson, Rich Lauman and Deborah Newton, Peter and Jytte Birnbaum, Richard and Virginia Brenner, Marshall Miller and Linda Applewhite, Kim and Allyn Shafer, Fred and Joyce Schmietow, Julian and Debby Cohen, John and Sharon. They will each give you their perspective and share some stories about their trip. Ask Kim Shafer what she did with all her 1^st place winnings from the Blackjack tournament.

Sharon and I would like to thank all those who chose to take time out of their busy lives to join our Commodore's cruise. We will never forget this marvelous adventure. Debby and Julian Cohen take the prize for the longest distance traveled in that they joined us from their new residence in Florida. It was great to see them again in person. I would especially like to thank Fred and Cindi for all their hard work making things happen seamlessly…the two cocktail parties at the Wheel House, the Bridge tour, dinner at Sabatini's and other special behind the scenes happenings. The Royal Vancouver Yacht Club was such a memorable visit thanks to Ingo and his coordination with their staff.

It was a fun time had by all!

West Marine Pacific Cup

Please join me in wishing two of our members well as they race across the Pacific Ocean in July heading for Kaneohe Bay. It's called the “The Fun Race to Hawaii” with 2070 miles of shear delight! Jan Borjeson campaigns his boat Basic Instinct and Michael Moradzadeh his boat Cayenne. This will be Jan's first Pac Cup. Michael has completed the race three prior times and will make this voyage his fourth! (2000, 2002, 2004 and 2006) God Speed! Be safe! Have fun!

You can follow Basic Instinct and Cayenne by logging on to www.pacificcup.org. Their racing strategy and course can be seen daily by viewing charts and position reports.