Sailing on the STAR CLIPPER

By Sally Huse

We did it again for the 6th time in April2006. For this cruise Hans Roeben and I were aboard the 360 foot, 170-passenger STAR CLIPPER out of Saint Martin. Actually we stayed on the Dutch side so it was Sint Maarten. Traveling with us were Staff Commodore Greg Quilici, his wife Deb, and our neighbors and prospective members Peggy and Richard Winn. The first day on board we met Hazel and Curtis Morton, new CYC members who live in Sacramento. The highlight of this 9 day sailing trip was the two days spent in Antigua at the Classic Yacht Regatta. What a boat show at the docks and on the water. Two of the most beautiful were the 136 foot Eleonora, launched in 2000, and the new 138 foot Ranger, built in 2003 as a replica of the J-Class sloop Ranger. What a show!!!

The highlight of our stay on Sint Maarten before we boarded was match racing on 12 meter yachts. The Quilici's and Roeben's managed the running back stays. We were told our yacht was the slower one, but our New Zealand skipper managed the wild tacking maneuvers in 20 + knot winds with our tourist crew with great expertise, like an orchestra conductor. We out sailed True North One and won the race. On some of the tacks, we were within three feet of the other yacht's stern and visa versa. We were on True North IV, or if you are in the know she is called "IVY." The winners received rum drinks with ice when we returned and the losers (there is no second place) received the same drinks but without ice. It was awesome. We highly recommend this adventure.

We are already thinking about our next trip on the STAR CLIPPER or ROYAL CLIPPER or both for Dec./Jan 2007. Anyone want to join us? Should it be the next Commodore's Cruise?

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The TELLTALE needs help

Many of us think the TELLTALE ought to come out every month just like most other yacht clubs. To do this we need two more people who can collect the articles and do the page layout. This requires knowing programs like MS Publisher, Pagemaker, Quark, etc. To volunteer call Harry Blake at 435-6285.