Wishing you a great holiday season and year ahead of boating. We really appreciate your enthusiasm and look forward to seeing you at our activities, both social and educational.
Mike Snyder
Commander
This weekend’s TSPS Pool and Beach BBQ held at Acao Beach, just 15 minutes by taxi from Atami Station, was well-attended by almost 30 TSPS members, family, and friends.
After arriving in the afternoon, folks changed into their pool and party outfits and began to enjoy a friendly game of frisbee in the pool, drinks on the pool deck, and general conversation in the cool ocean breeze that came across the bay. As you can see in the photos below, the view from the pool was stunning, and there was easy access to the beach just down a small set of stairs. The party really kicked off once the plates of BBQ arrived, the grilling started, and everyone refilled their drink cups! Delicious wagyu, pork, and seasoned sausage sizzled on the grill, along with mounds of fresh king trumpet mushrooms （エリンギ）, carrots, green peppers, and other vegetables.
As evening started to set in, some folks grabbed a change of clothes for a trip to the local onsen, while Bill and others got a campfire going for everyone to enjoy. Many tales of sailing and powerboating were shared…while the details of other stories seemed to grow more heroic and daring as more cool refreshments were imbibed! After the fire died down, all retired to their tents and “glamping tents” for some much needed rest.
Folks that decided to stay were in for an incredible sunrise around 4:30am the next morning followed by more swimming and beach activities.
A return to Acao Beach is definitely on the TSPS calendar for next year! Thanks again Sveta for organizing such an incredible experience.
By Aoise Ryan
TSPS inaugural ladies sail training day took place yesterday, lead by Sveta. This was a trial run to ensure an all ladies beginner crew could manage the rope pulling and commanding so often left to the men. (The ladies don’t usually highlight this deviousness but you are all now in the know)! Sveta’s additional crew were 4 beginners and 1 experienced sailor. Predicted conditions were ideal and sailing until after 1400h proved magnificent, with lots of trust building through individual helming practice, a few drills, great breeze, controlled keeling and a firm decision that ‘ladies at the helm’ is the way to go!
At 1430h someone commented on the apocalyptic sky approaching from Enoshima. Another double checked weather apps but predicted conditions were unchanged. The two did not tally!
Seconds later thunder rolled and the sparkling day turned very dark. The wind immediately went from a lulling 10 knots to a constant 25-30 knots, with hail, thunder, lightening, manic black waves and zero visibility. 2 crew raced to remove the jib as a third started the engine and commandeered the main sail down. A swirling wind added to complexities for a while.
Two thirds of the crew were beginners, meaning instructions had to be concise and constantly monitored; most crucially that locking a cleat didn’t mean releasing it; that someone falling beneath a lowering boom (talking and unhurt) did not require as critical attention as getting the sail fully down; that flapping sheets did not need pulling and that donning waterproofs was low on the action list for immediate survival. Absolute teamwork ensured success.
With sails down, visibility was still zero and direction was tough to control, even under motor.
This outstanding crew proved highly dynamic and showed that calm decisions and directions can accomplish rough and unpredicted situations, even with beginners, as long as they trust the person in charge.
Thunder was still pounding as the boat approached port. Within the hour, the day returned to its earlier demeanor and all doubted their recent experience. A final flash of lightningput to bed any doubts that the storm had been imagined. Adrenalin was sky high by the end of the day and these ladies bonded for life.
Happy to report – no injuries, no loss of confidence, no boat damage but someone saw rods flying through the sky at one point and wondered what they were? Oh! That would be the four (yes, all four) battens flying to the heavens in their glorious bid farewell. A minor tip from this adventure…. The Yamaha 30 battens are not designed to stay in flapping sails. They need to design a safety mechanism such as a folded or angled pocket, velcro or a piece of string. Anyone who is sensitive to having ever lost a Hayama batten – it’s a design fault!
These 4 beginner sailors come highly recommended as quick learners, practical people and great company. Hoping they don’t expect too much further excitement on their next sail!
Go Team Sveta!
(Sveta, Aoise, Juliana, Elvira, Jenine and Tracey)
Photos taken by Elvira Belyaeva
The TSPS Bridge has announced the cruising schedule for 2022 here: https://tspsjapandev.wpengine.com/our-events/boating-events/
If you are interested in joining any of these cruises, please contact our Cruising Coordinator for further information.
Due to the continued Coronavirus pandemic, the Change of Watch this year was held last night, March 9th, via Zoom. In total, 24 TSPS members attended.
Following the outgoing Bridge officers reports and a brief question time, Commander Rick Pawell relieved the outgoing Bridge of their duties.
Secretary Timothy Langley cast a unanimous ballot for the following 2022 Bridge positions:
2022 Bridge Officers
The vote was cast with no other nominations and was unanimously passed with a “Yea” from the TSPS members present, in addition to the 26 “Yea” votes and 2 “Nay” votes received by email (50 total “Yea” votes and 2 “Nay” votes).
Rick Pawell invited the newly elected officers to take the Oath of Office which duly followed, then turned over the meeting to the New Commander David Edwards.
Following a virtual “Toast to the New Bridge” the Change of Watch closed at 20.00 hours.
2022 Members-at-Large
Richard (“Dick”) W. Schultz, an active member of TSPS for many years and former TSPS Commander, sadly passed away on Friday, October 22 following a fall near his home. He was 71 years old. His wake and funeral were held at the Machiya Funeral Hall in Arakawa-ku on October 27-28 and were well-attended by family and friends alike.
Dick was a lifelong lover of all types of boating, and he was a skilled small boat sail racer who won many trophies in the U.S. By the age of 15, Dick had even taught himself how to use a sextant. One of his favorite ways of showing visitors the beauty of Tokyo was by boat on the old canals that run through the center of the city, especially during cherry blossom season. He also enjoyed participating in powerboating events on lakes near the Tokyo area, and even was known to try wakeboarding! One of Dick’s last boating trips was to Lake Biwa with his friends.
Dick will be sorely missed by all of his friends at TSPS, and he will be forever in our hearts. Rest in peace.
Due to the Coronavirus pandemic, the Change of Watch this year was held last night, March 17th, via Zoom. In total, 33 TSPS members attended.
Following the outgoing Bridge officers reports and a brief question time, Commander David Edwards relieved the outgoing Bridge of their duties.
Secretary David Sutton-Kirkby cast a unanimous ballot for the following 2021 Bridge positions:
2021 Bridge Officers
The vote was cast with no other nominations and was unanimously passed with a “Yea” from the TSPS members present, in addition to the 17 “Yea” votes received by email (50 total “Yea” votes).
Chris Pitts invited the newly elected officers to take the Oath of Office which duly followed, then turned over the meeting to the New Commander Rick Pawell.
Following a virtual “Toast to the New Bridge” the Change of Watch closed at 20.00 hours.
2021 Members-at-Large
The closing 2020 TSPS Cruise took place on the week-end of Nov. 7-8 to Hota. Four TSPS boats took part: Adzenjili II, Taihei, Anais and Distant Dreamer. Fourteen members were aboard for the ride. The weather began with low wind but once past the two small islands at the entrance to Tokyo Bay, the wind kicked in at 20-24 knots SW and 1.5 meter waves. All boats made it safely to Hota. In Hota we enjoyed its well-known Banya restaurant and bath, as well as conviviality on board the boats. The following day was beautiful with fair winds and calm seas as the fleet returned to Yokohama and Tokyo.
Hopefully, 2021 will be a better year for cruises, as 2020 was all about the COVID and we had to cut down on these events. As it was, we did get in two cruises for the year. Hope to see more 2020 TSPS members aboard next year!
The rain stopped and the weather cleared in time for the first class of TSPS’s second Sailing 102 course of 2020 with instructor Rick Pawell on the Yamaha 30S sailboats from Hayama Marina on Sunday October 18. After having completed Sailing 101, students Bernard Languillier, Peter Knight, Timothy Langley, Svetlana Ilyushechkina and Alex Khadanovich will be practicing using the spinnaker, sailing wing and wing, tacking, gybing, anchoring and lots of docking and undocking. This will be the last sailing class this year, but we hope to get started with new classes in 2021. Hope to see more members out there next year!
(Photos courtesy of Alex)
After 3 months of delay due to the coronavirus and rainy season weather, the Sailing 101 class (the green boat) got out for their first sail on Sunday July 12 with the Yamaha 30S boats at Hayama. Out on the water was another boat (the pink boat) rented from Hayama Marina by TSPS member Alex Dzangirov and his crew.
There was pretty good wind (8-12 knots) and only partly cloudy skies all day, and we were able to do a lot of tacking and jibing. It was fun to have the other boat out to provide some “competition.”
