Number 39 January 2015 IT’S A NEW YEAR! COMING SOON: 2015 CRUISE IN/DRIVE IN – MARCH 7 Just as welcoming the New Year at Petaluma (see story below) has become a SFBANTA tradition, so has starting the year in San Francisco with tuggers arriving by land or by sea. Set aside Saturday, March 7 for dinner at South Beach Yacht Club, a venue always popular and known for great food. If you’re planning to come by sea, slips at South Beach Marina can be reserved by individuals up to 60 days in advance. Call the Harbormaster at (415) 495-4911. Coming by land? Parking is available for $10 (a bargain in San Francisco) or try BART or the ferry. Look for a flyer coming soon and get your reservation in. Space might be limited. Renew friendships and learn about cruising plans for 2015. (Note: March 7 is the correct date; an earlier date in February had to be changed.) SAVE THE DATE: 2015 RENDEZVOUS ON MAY 28-31 We had so much fun in Rio Vista last year, that we thought we’d do it again. Your Rendezvous committee is already hard at work with imaginations churning to make this year’s event even better (if that is possible). Note the date is not the usual weekend before Memorial Day, but the weekend AFTER Memorial Day. Mark your calendars and look for more information at the Cruise-In/Drive-In. ADVENTURES IN PETALUMA Cruising in late December might tease the wind gods, and it doesn’t stop the fun. Twelve boats made it to Petaluma for our annual New Year’s cruise, and five more were represented by land travelers. Extreme winds on Dec. 30 (gusts up to 40 knots) produced excitement and a few cancellations but all arrived safely, by land or by sea. By Day 2 the gods were appeased and a delicious R&BBBB (Richard & Bud’s Boiled Bag Breakfast) on the dock enjoyed by all. Dinner at Cucina Paradiso was excellent. Welcoming the new year by sea were Encore, Tugzilla, Doxology, Testudo, Three Jeans, Buoy Toy, Emiko, Eternity, Riley ,Coda, Winsome Lass and Zingara. Joining by land were those from Luna Sea III, Loki, Sea Bear, Skylark and Snug Tug. Boats in both the Delta group and the Bay group who left on Day 3 (January 1st) experienced challenges on the return home, but all is well. The remaining six boats (3 from the Delta and 3 from the Bay) who left the next day found calm seas and experienced an uneventful cruise home. ABOUT THOSE CHALLENGES... A burst fuel hose offers more adventure than most wish. To find out more about preventing hose chafing on the Cummins 6BT, go to www.irscott.net/fuel_hose_failure. - 2- FACTORY NEWS The January, 2015, NENTOA (Northeast Nordic Tug Owners Association) newsletter included these comments from Cory Gracey at the Nordic Tugs Factory: “As 2014 drew to a close, Nordic Tugs celebrated an incredible year in boat building and wished all Nordic Tugs owners Happy Holidays. Our production schedule was very robust as orders increased 300% over the prior year. Our workforce doubled and the market continues to improve. We are excited to now be a part of the boat show circuit internationally and will continue to support our regional Nordic Tugs owner's associations.” Lenard Lee at Ballena Bay Yachts plans to have a NT 54 at the San Francisco Boat Show Jan. 22-25 at McCovey Cove. Check out his new website, www.trawlers.com. WE NEED YOU... We always hold our annual meeting and elections during the Rendezvous and this year it looks like we’ll be electing a new President. We always welcome new board members, too, and offers to help with a cruise. KEEP UP WITH THE LATEST NEWS & DATES Look for cruise announcements and news at www.sfbanta.org. It’s informative and entertaining, and includes safety tips, maintenance experiences, cruising stories and, of course, the latest calendar. SAVE THE DATE March 7, 2015 May 28-31 Cruise In/Drive In at South Beach 2015 Rendezvous at Rio Vista NEXT SFBANTA BOARD MEETING: Tuesday, February 10, 2015, at Ballena Bay. All are welcome. Please contact any board member if you’d like to attend. BOARD OF DIRECTORS Richard Smith, President Bob Lee, Membership Activities Chair Bud Sheble, Immediate Past President Alice Bauman and John Ferandin, At Large Pat Borison, MMM Editor Pat Borison Secretary Irwin “Scotty” Scott, Treasurer John Muff, PICYA Delegate Svend Schjoerring, Official Event Photographer Lenard Lee, Nordic Tug Liaison Steve Cuff, Director Emeritus -3-