From The Commodoren my last article, I highlighted theBoard’s overall agenda, to seek waysto improve member performance and

enjoyment during racing events. In thisregard, our discussions have debated theattributes of education and training, andhow that might be affected.

A Rules Committee with DennisDwyer (chair), Bob Montanari, andErnie Peterson helped circle the wagonson this topic (thanks guys). In short, theyhave offered that we do not need tofurther document Racing Rules in ourclub rules. Rather, we will reference“The Racing Rules of Sailing” as thesource guide for respective rules. At thisjuncture, RDs are encouraged (notmandatory) to speak to a rule at theSkipper’s meeting to emphasize rules ingeneral. However, emphasis of the “OneMinute Rule” (described elsewhere inthis newsletter) is to be given each week.

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I also presented in my last article, theBoard’s intention to update the Clubrules (Constitution, Bylaws andPermanent Rules). This has begun byseparating the “member’s information”from the Handbook into a one pagelisting available from the Secretary onrequest. Secondly, as you read this,voting is underway to approve changes

to Article 7.1 and By-Law 11.1concerning the voting process to changeclub documents.

Other administrative changes, toinclude a “Guide for Race Directors,”are being finalized. See you at the lake!

Steve

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Issue #05-3, May, 2005

Space Coast Model Sailing ClubBoard Of Directors Meeting Minutes

May 16, 2005

The Board Meeting of SCMSC was heldon Monday, May 16th at the home of theCommodore, Steve Rutz. Othermembers present were, Dennis Dwyer,Adam Rottmann, Steve Spatenga, BobComstock and Betty Rottmann. Meetingcalled to order at 7:00 PM

Minutes of the February meeting wereread and accepted.Treasurer’s Report: Balance in theaccount if $ 781.93. Accepted bySteve Spatenga.

Old Business:

1. A lengthy discussion with regard tovarious rules of sailing. Should RDmake reminders at start of races, shouldthey be discussed at Skipper’s Meetings?It has been difficult to do this duringraces. One possible suggestion was,since Don Bryant gets the weeklyresults, some rules that became andissue, could be explained then on theweb site. Issue was tabled pending moreinput from members. However, it wasdecided to issue the official “One MinuteRule”, copy attached.

2. The various suggested changes to theclubs documents were discussed. Aballot will be distributed with regard toArticle 7.1 and By Laws 11.1. Thesechanges address the process for formallychanging documents regulations andrules of the club. Other possible changesto documents will be distributed at alater date, for membership vote.

3. Awards Banquet will be held onNovember 19th at Jack Baker’s inCocoa. Menu selection will bedistributed at a later date. Cost will be$17.00 per.

4, Dock Line. The bio for this issue willbe Steve Spatenga.

New Business

1. Memorial Day Regatta of May 21discussed. Steve Spatenga has arrangedto have Maryland Fried Chicken forlunch and expects 20 sailors and guests. Regatta should be over by 2:00PM.John Bluhm and Dana and Peggy Jonesare helping with refreshments. All pastdeceased members will be honored thatday. Secretary, with help of others, willkeep a running list of those whohave passed and amend as necessary.

2. Independence Day Regatta: Since theevent was not entered in the AMYAmagazine, we will change it to aninvitational regatta, inviting those clubsin Region 3. Flyer and registration willbe distributed. Dennis Dwyerwill serve at Chairman. Cost to be$20.00 for one boat, $10.00 for anyadditional boats. Guest fee $ 5.00

Motion to adjourn at 9:40 PM.

Respectfully SubmittedBetty Rottmann

Memorial DayRegatta

Race Director’s Report

aturday May 21, 2005 was anotherterrific Florida day. The wind atWickham park started out light to

moderate. It picked up a little and shiftedaround some as the day progressed, butit was mostly out of the south west.We started the day with a little

ceremony lead by Ernie Brown inmemory of our club's deceasedmembers. Ernie also plotted the day’scourses.The initial course, was really long. It

took the US 1 meters 15 minutes tocircumnavigate it and the Solings ofcourse took even longer. After firstshortening it a little, it was decided thatmore weather leg work was needed, so itwas changed again. For this finalversion, Ernie used the west end of thepond and set up a shorter course sailedtwice around. A lot of time is used upwhenever a course is changed becausethe skippers have to remember whichbuoys are used and in what order.However, once the final course wasfirmly implanted in their memory banks,the skippers were really pleased, so westayed with it for the rest of the day.Bernie Kantor had to drop out due to a

boat malfunction, to bad Bernie. TheUS1 meter heats were dominated by, nosurprise, Dennis Dwyer and AdamRottmann. Don Bryant was close behindand had them worried once or twice.Soling heats were dominated by JohnBluhm and Bob Comstock.Because the racing was taking a little

longer than expected we kept sailingthrough lunch . This made the lunch gosmother and saved about an hour oftime.After completion of the racing our

perpetual trophy for the US1 meter andthe Soling were given out.

Dennis came in first with Adam closebehind in the US1 meter class.

Bob edged out John in the Soling class.The complete scores are posted on theweb site with photos.

Good Sailing SkippersYour R. D. Steve Spatenga

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Rule of the Month(From The Racing Rules Of Sailing, 2005 – 2008)

30.1 Round – an – End Rule

If any part of a boat’s hull or equipment ison the course side or the starting line orits extensions during the minute beforeher starting signal, she shall thereafter sailfrom the course side across an extensionto the pre-start side before starting.

 Rule interpretation By Denis Dwyer

If you are on the course line or its extension one minutebefore the starting signal, you must return behind the lineby going around one end of the line or the other, at somepoint, before starting correctly.You do not have to wait until the starting signal ismade.

Notice: While doing this, you must stay clear of allother boats

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Profile of the MonthSteve Spatenga

n the 18th of October, 1933, Iwas born at the home where Igrew up, 4 Dean Street,

Lynbrook, NY.After earning an Associate in AppliedSciences from NYU in 1955, I startedout in the marine business working for aJohnson outboard dealer.After 10 years, in 1965, I boughtHampton Marine Center, East HamptonNY, The gas crises of 1973 forced me tosell out and go to work for a dredgingcompany. as engineer.In 1976, I went to work for OMCJohnson Outboards where I eventuallyretired in March of 1990,Along the way I married Marion. Wehave two children, a daughter and a son,both married. They have 4 childrenbetween them all boys.Our son, Stephen, is still in NY, ownerof Baldwin Harbor Marine Center, and

living at the old homestead, 4 DeanStreet, Lynbrook.Our daughter, Lori, has now made herhome close by in Melbourne Florida.Having retired, and having enough ofsmoke pots, I took up Model R/C sailingat Eisenhower Park MYC where I waselected Commodore 1991.Marion and I moved to Florida inNovember of 1992, where we built ourpresent home in Indialantic. I missedR/C sailing so much I started SCMSCwith the help of Charles Graves onMarch 15, 1993. We had 15 membersthen and the club has been growing eversince. In the beginning, I was Secretary,Treasurer and Commodore. I remainedCommodore for 3 years. The rest, Iguess you know.

Steve

The One Minute RuleIf you drop a cookie, it is OK toeat it as long as you pick it up offthe floor before it has been therefor more than one minute.

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IRONS!The following article originally appearedin the April 1997 issue of The Dock Line.It was written by one of the membersthat our Memorial Regatta now honors.Although Herman wrote this over eightyears ago, I am sure that you will findhis advice as good and as appropriatetoday as it was back then.

Editor

n almost any given day at thepond, it is possible to see boatscaught in irons. Being "caught in

irons" refers to a boat sitting at, or verynearly at, head to wind, with sails luffingand no forward motion. Left alone, anyboat will eventually drift out of irons,with a 50-50 chance of coming out on adesired tack. Unfortunately, it iscommon to see a skipper inadvertentlyholding a boat in an in-irons conditionthrough his attempts to get out of irons.

The scenario is as follows:

(1) The boat starts to tack and getscaught in irons.

(2) The skipper holds the rudder overtrying to force the boat through theeye of the wind.

(3) The boat starts to back down fallingoff the wind onto the original tack.

(4) When the boat has turned sufficientlyfor the sails to fill and the boat startsmoving forward.

(5) The skipper continues to hold therudder over to tack as originallyplanned.

(6) The boat starts to round up and goesback into irons.

(7) This sequence repeats ad-infinitumuntil the skipper stops trying tocomplete the maneuver and releasesthe rudder allowing the boat to sailforward and gain sufficient speed tosuccessfully complete the tack.

Herman Krause

With a bit of common sense andapplication of basic sailing theory, it ispossible to for a skipper to bring a boatout of irons on the first attempt and onthe desired tack.

There are a number of situations that cancause a boat to go into irons. The mostcommon of these, is a failure tocomplete a tacking maneuver. (Otherpotential situations are pinching toohard, attempting to luff another boat,responding to a luff by another boat,broaching, etc.) As a boat nears head-to -wind, its sails start to luff, and the boatslows. The slower the boat speed the lesseffective its rudder becomes and the lessdirectional control the skipper has. Whenin-irons, fully luffing sails play a "Jekylland Hyde" roll. Fully luffing sailsgenerate a tremendous amount ofaerodynamic drag, which rapidly slowsand stops the boat. This same dragcauses the boat to drift downwind (aft)and eventual1y out of irons.

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To bring a boat out of irons undercontrol it is necessary to examine theeffect of the rudder. A rudder generatessteering forces by virtue of the flow ofwater along its surfaces in the samemanner that lift forces are generated bythe airflow across sail surfaces (Yes. it ispossible for a rudder to stall if deflectedtoo far and/or too suddenly) To have anydirectional control of a boat water mustbe flowing past the rudder surfaces. Thedirection of this flow is immaterial.When a boat is moving forward thewater flow is from the bow. Counter-clockwise rotations of the rudder willcause the stern to swing to port. The hullpivots around its center of lateralresistance moving the bow to starboard,and the boat enters a turn to starboard.Now consider what would happen if theflow direction is from the stern (the boatis moving aft). This same counter-clockwise rotation of the rudder willnow cause the stern to swing tostarboard, the bow to swing to port andthe boat backs into a turn to starboard.Thus, irrespective of whether the boat ismoving forward or af t , acounterclockwise rudder movement will

cause the boat to enter a turn to starboardin its direction of travel. Similarly, aclockwise rotation of the rudder causes aturn to port.

In practice, if you are caught inirons and want to recover on astarboard tack simply hold therudder control for a normal turn tostarboard. Wait until the boatstarts moving aft, and the boat willback onto a starboard tack. Tocome out on a port tack hold therudder control for a normal turn toport and WAIT. This action mustbe coordinated with the action ofthe sails. Once direction withrespect to the wind changessufficiently for the sails to fill theboat will begin moving forward lfno further rudder action is taken atthis time, the forward moving boatwill turn into the wind and backinto irons. Therefore, whencoming out of irons, it is vital thatthe rudder be returned to neutral(or turned in the opposite directionto bear off) as soon as the sails filland the boat starts movingforward. (See illustration, next page)

Go to the pond and practice thistechnique by intentionally going intoirons and getting out, first on one tackand then on the other. Continuepracticing until this maneuver becomes areflex action and you will spend muchless of your time in irons.

It is virtually impossible to avoidgetting caught in irons so when ithappens don't feel as though someonehas it in for you, just grit your teeth, setyour rudder and wait for the boat to startmoving aft, then do it your way'

Submitted by Herman KrausThe Dock Line

April 1997

Editors ViewsBy Don Bryant

Why Indeed….hat am I doing and why? Doyou ever ask yourself thatquestion? Of course you do,

and it is probably at a time when you arejust a little bit frustrated because thingsare not going quite as you expect themto. Many times, this is because ofunrealistic expectations, whichsometimes grow like weeds, wrappingaround you without notice.

Case in point, my latest dilemmainvolved getting out this newsletter.Now there are no hard and fast rules thattie me down to any specific dates, butthere are a couple of general groundrules that I have used for seriousguidance. The club bylaws suggest anissue after each major club meetingand/or major regatta and the BODmembers would like an issue bi-monthly. To date, I have tried to complywith these self imposed and, sometimeconflicting, priorities. This month, theysort of ganged up on me, the result beingthat I felt that I had to get this bi-monthly issue out after the MemorialRegatta and before the end of the month.Waiting for various inputs to arrive, soyou can start to tie them all together,slowly builds the frustration level.Obviously, it all worked out OK, but thatold “and why” still lingers on.

Why indeed…

Being editor, so to speak, of both theclub’s “publications”, official The DockLine and the, to date, unofficial website,

I have a plan to eliminate my frustrationswithout increasing those of anyone else.

A n d…. here is the plan:First, from this point on, I will ignore

all existing guidance. It was allformulated either before existence of theweb site or with total disregard of its’existence and none of it is mandatory.

Next, I will simplify The Dock Line.The slimmed down version will consistof:

1. Commodores Message.2. Meeting Minutes.3. Board member Profile.4. Rule of the month.

I will no longer irritate anyone bysoliciting his or her inputs. I will simplyrespond when required. The board cansimply supply the required data after ameeting or whenever else they desire.(All inputs, after all, are from Boardmembers.) I, in return, will guaranteepublication of a new Dock Line on theweb within 10 days or less of receivingthe final input. Content will not belimited to the subjects listed. Anyadditional information the board choosesto provide for any issue will also beincluded. I, of course, reserve the right toadd editorial comments when and if Ifeel they are appropriate.

It should be noted that a significantportion of the functions that The DockLine was originally intended to providehas already been absorbed into the website. Where do you go to check out thelatest series scores or who is going to beRD next week? Regatta and series racescores are provided within hours of theevent. For regattas, pictures of the eventand a list of its winners are provided.Why do we still tie our newsletterreleases to these events? Conversely,why would we want to issue a Dock Line

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when there is nothing significant toreport?In order to insure that nothing that weare presently reporting falls through thecrack, I plan to:

1 . Beef up the web siteBuilding Corner to include tipsprovided by members.

2. Add an Opinions section,sort of like letters to the editor,where any member can voicetheir point of view or concernsand have them publishedvirtually immediately.

This looks like a win-win solution tome, so I intend to put this plan into effectimmediately. I welcome your commentsand criticism. Please e-mail me atbryant4@infionline.net. I promise topublish and answer your input on theweb.

Thanks for reading

Don

Radio TipContributed by John Bluhm

Have you ever had a servo react to your transmitter commands with a slowjerky response, then, subsequently traced the cause back to your receiver?If so, don’t throw that receiver away yet. First, open it up and gently pushdown on the servo connection pins, one at a time. I found that the solder thatconnects these pins to the board tends to come loose. While everythinglooks good, you may find that you can push one or more pins right throughthe board. If you do, correctly reposition the errant pin(s), add a drop ofsolder and you are back in business.