Commodore’s Message Mid April found the Sloop Shed doors open, most of the painted and bright surfaces sanded, and a short section of garboard seam re-caulked. Accompanying the hermit thrushes in the woods of Raymond Maine was a sawsall, being surgically maneuvered around a “soft” spot in side of the cabin house. Believe it or not, the 22 year old William M. Rand is starting to need some special treatment each year to keep her (him ?) going. I stopped in Rockland in early May and visited with our new Harbormaster Chad DeLima. Chad is all set for our arrival and reported that there would be three new 10’x 60′ floats extending north of the existing docks. The new space should accommodate the Committee Boat and their support vessels in seaward positions, leaving plenty of room for long ended sloops. The Maine Lobster Festival has stepped up to the plate and arranged for (and paid for) our tent to be set up on Monday July 21. We will be down the hill from the Trade Winds at Buoy Park and will have plenty of space and a great view of the harbor. Vice Commodore Burnham The Elder is honing his grill lighting skills and will have the cookout fires glowing by 5:00 p.m. on Monday, Tuesday and Thursday night. We plan to have our Wednesday night spaghetti dinner serenaded by French Horn Duets thanks to Carolyn Kanicki (wife of Don Kanicki of Rockland Share the Pride) and her students. There will be time after dinner for our own musicians to play for us, a fine evening in the making. The Race Committee has been busy planning the race portion of our big event, and I understand they may have a new twist on Sloop racing to keep us all fresh. The Rand, with any luck, will be rounding inside of Fullers Rock on Sunday July 20 around noon and heading east for a night somewhere in Muscongus Bay. We’ll be keeping on eye on the horizon and an ear on channel 9 & 68 for any company. Until then, feel free to contact me at jbr@prexar.com or 207-655-4277. I look forward to seeing you all in Rockland! All Is In Readiness for Rockland By David W. Graham, Race Committee Chairman Here we are in mid-June, after an “old fashioned” New England winter, plus a very wet and boat-delaying spring – – – perfect conditions for the Race Committee to have conducted its many off-season meetings in preparation for the 2003 Homecoming Regatta at Rockland. During the countless hours of enjoyable committee meetings and reporting sessions at no less than three meetings of the Executive Committee, your Sailing Instructions have at last been completed. I point all this out, as a means of letting everyone know that “it doesn’t just happen”. No matter how successful a previous year’s set of “SIs” may have been, there are always several reasons why they are in need of revision and updating for a coming season. In my fourteen years of being the chairman of one race committee or another, I have yet to see where one set of SIs could simply be applied to the next year – – – and so it is for 2003. This year, in addition to the Class “A” Rum Line trophy, your Race Committee has been considering an “Anchor Start” for all sloops during one of the Rockland races. As currently planned, this start would involve the flying of code flag “A” from the committee boat Seven Girls at the starting line, with more than adequate announcement via the assigned VHF radio channel of the day. All participating sloops must be anchored in an area aft of Messing About, with the full crew in the cockpit and aft of the mast if the cockpit becomes filled with personnel. Sails are to be furled. For the start of the race, a single red shape, accompa- nied by a gun, shall occur on a whole five-minute interval on the very accurately set Race Committee clock. Following the red shape and gun, the sloops shall be rigged and the posted course sailed in the customary manner. The standard handicapping method will be applied to the race. Speaking of handicaps reminds me of measurements. If your sloop’s measurement form is out-of-date, you must provide Race Committee member and official measurer, Dick Salter, with a revised form – – – even if the numbers remain as before. Simply put, Dick must be able to work with current numbers and the rules of the Society are such that he must be given an update every five years. It is the responsibility of each skipper to know when that task needs to be accomplished, to avoid the applica- tion of scoring penalties to a sloop in violation of the measure- ment rule. A word to the wise – – – you are urged to check you measurement data and date as part of your preparation for the (Continued to Page 2) Volume 15 Summer 2003 Issue 2 Friendships Newsletter of the Friendship Sloop Society

Marblehead 2003 By David W. Graham With the approach of summer, thoughts always seem to turn toward races at Southwest Harbor, New London Rockland and Marblehead. As the first two venues are happily in good hands, my focus is brought to Rockland and Marblehead, the latter of which I have been paying attention for a very long time. On one occasion, I recall observing eighteen wonderful Friendship Sloops crossing the starting line at Marblehead. Back in those days, I had full control over the situation if for no other reason than I was the sponsoring yacht club’s Race Committee Chair- man. Last year, as the event chair for Corinthian, less than one third of that grand number showed up. This is causing raised eyebrows with the higher-ups who are faced with ever-increasing costs plus stiff competition from many sailing organizations for available and non-available racing time. I’ve been preaching this theme for the past few years but it is coming down to the wire when I say to you that we must take advantage of the regatta that is being offered for us – – – or the simple fact will be that we will lose it. I can only preach the gospel for the Marblehead regatta. Retaining it is entirely in the hands of the skippers and crew of the Friendship Sloop Society. This year will mark the fortieth continuous year of racing Friendship Sloops at Marblehead, a noteworthy milestone for any regatta. If you want to see it remain a valid gathering as an extension to what is done at Rockland, it will have to be used. In addition to good quality racing, this year’s guest speaker for the Saturday evening dinner will be our very own Bob Monk, Jr., who is planning to tell us about the recent developments at the Peabody and Essex Museum, where Bob serves as the Plant- Facilities manager. It will be a thrilling evening you should not miss. All Is In Readiness for Rockland (Continued from Page 1) season’s commissioning. If you have any question on your sloop’s measurement, please contact Dick at 1-978/526-1004, prior to the Rockland races. A lot of effort has been put forth toward making your race program at Rockland an enjoyable three days for you and your crew. We sincerely hope you will participate in the regatta for 2003. Dues Reminder If you haven’t mailed your annual dues in for 2003, please send them to: Caroline Phillips, Society Secretary 164 Sturbridge Road Charlton, MA 01507 Plans Set for Southwest Harbor By Miff Lauriat The first race of the Maine season will be held 19 July, the weekend before Rockland Sloop Daze. Once again, a loose circumnavigation of Greenings’ Island, Southwest Harbor is being planned by the loosely organized race chairman. Miff Lauriat was quoted “we’re the biggest event of the year, save for Rockland, so I don’t want to mess with success! Entrants may number in the double digits again if we can attract the usual number of “Westerners.” Locally, #106 Hold Tight, Jarvis Newman’s third Pemaquid, has a new owner, Ed Gray, who will be racing. Jarvis himself offered that Tradition would be in the water this year. Around the harbor, Endeavor and Freedom are already in and going. The Salatia is at present at an undisclosed suburban location where she is being desic- cated. Captain Lauriat is always concerned about osmosis compromising the laminates of his plastic/fantastic rocketship. He explained that his usual procedure is to let the boat dry thoroughly for the first three weeks of summer, to ensure maximum tensile strength. Regrettably, Tad Beck has reported that 2003 will not be a summer when he will be campaigning his Phoenix. So—- all you sloopers who want a crack at the best the East has to offer, sans the perennial champ, “Come on down!” This could be your lucky year! A gathering will be at Miff and Marge’s house Saturday after the race. Please call 207-244-4313 or e-mail jvestal@acadia.net for any questions, or just to let us know you’d like to make it! Unfinished Hull for Sale John Rand received the following e-mail: Dear Commodore John, I am the owner of a Half finished Friendship wooden planked hull. Unfortunately I am in an area where there are no knowl- edgeable shiprights or anyone who knows about wooden ship construction. I am now 67 years old and do not believe I have enough time, resources, ability, etc. etc., to finish said hull let alone be able to sail it after its done. Perhaps you could assist me in finding an appropriate home for this beautiful piece of wood. It should go to someone who has the ability to lovingly finish and sail her. You may reach me at 1-406-883-5690 or on the net at kurz@in-tch.com. Thank you in advance for your time and consideration. G. J. “Jerry” Kurzenbaum Polson, Montana on beautiful Flathead Lake! Racing Numbers The Race Committee is asking skippers to use sloop numbers for racing. Numbers do not have to be permanently attached to sails, they can be attached to shrouds. Numbers should be large enough to be read from a reasonable distance. – 2 –

2003 Schedule of Events Chesapeake Bay Rendezvous June 28th & 29th New London Regatta July 12th & 13th Southwest Harbor Rendezvous July 19th Homecoming Rendezvous & Races at Rockland July 21st – 24th Friendship Days July 25th & 26th Marblehead Regatta August 9th – 10th Gloucester Schooner Festival August 30th & 31st Annual Meeting November 15th Best Western Merry Manor Inn 700 Main Street South Portland, ME Rockland Schedule of Events Monday:Sloops Arriving – Barbecue (bring your own food) under the tent Possible Scavenger Hunt Tuesday 9:00 Skippers’ Meeting 11:30 Start of Race 1 4:30 Rowboat Races off Town Dock Everyone is invited 5:00 BYO Barbecue Under the Tent Wednesday 9:00 Skippers’ Meeting 10:30 Parade of Sloops 12:00 Start of Race 2 4:00 Public Viewing and Tours of Sloops at Dockside 6:00 Spaghetti Supper Under the Tent 8:00 Music by Society Members Thursday: 9:00 Skippers’ Meeting 11:00 Start of Race 3 4:00 Awards Ceremony 6:00 BYO Barbecue under the Tent Friday: Sloops Depart Rockland for Friendship Days Chandlery News The chandlery will be open for business as usual at the Rockland Homecoming. Remember, all proceeds from the sale of FSS articles go into the general fund to support the Society. The new 2003 t-shirt has arrrived and looks great. There are many new items in the Chandlery this year. If you have any questions, please contact: Kathy & Bill Whitney 75 Kingsbury Street Needham, MA 02192 781-449-2063 Support Our Supporters Our yearbook is made possible not only through the efforts of our members, but also through the businesses that place ads in our book. When you read the articles in this year’s yearbook, take some time to notice the advertising. Then, when you stop in the store or restaurant, make a point of telling the waitress, manager, or anyone that will listen, that you saw their ad in the Friendship Sloop Society publication. Please help us keep the yearbook afloat by supporting our supporters. 18th Annual New London Windezvous Saturday and Sunday, July 12th and 13th are the dates for the 18th annual Friendship Sloop Society Windezvous to be held on the Thames River in New London, Connecticut. There will be a new venue for 2003 for this event, the pier at the historic Customs House. It all started in downtown New London 18 years ago and the city has again invited the Society to return to our roots in downtown New London and be a visible part of Sailfest. The weekend will feature entertainment and fireworks along the magnificent new waterfront. Information regarding the 2003 Sailfest activities can be found at WWW.SAILFEST.ORG. Arrangements have been made for visiting Friendship sloops to raft up on the south side of the custom house pier right along the downtown waterfront Friday evening July 11th through Sunday, July 13th. The staging area for the Grucci fireworks extrava- ganza will be at the end of the pier on Saturday night. The north side of the pier will be for visiting larger craft. Skippers meetings and the end-of-race finale will take place in the nearby Customs House. The Custom House now has a new bathhouse where skippers and crew can enjoy a shower. The races will start at 1100 on Saturday and Sunday in the Thames River off New London and Fort Trumbull. The races on Saturday will be adjusted so we can end the days activities before 1700. For further information and / or to register, please contact Greg Roth at 1-800-845-3156 (please leave a message), or e-mail Greg at scuppers-@worldnet.att.net. – 3 –