DOCKTALK
The Chesapeake Sailing Yacht Symposium Is Back
Craft a Canoe, It’s up to You Now through the spring, bring your family and friends and build a 16-foot wooden canoe and paddles at the Patuxent Small Craft Center at the Calvert Marine Museum in Solomons. Pick any two consecutive Saturdays that fit your schedule and plan to spend the day, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. You will use simple hand tools and get guidance from experienced instructors. The fees of $600 for museum members and $650 for non-members include all materials. Kids age 10 years and up are welcome, accompanied by an adult. The museum also offers a similar class in building a 12-foot rowing skiff ($950 for members and $1000 for non-members); make that a sailing skiff for an additional $800. Financial assistance is available to qualified applicants from the Melvin Conant Memorial Youth Fund. (410) 586-2700, gsurgent@comcast.net, calvertmarinemuseum.com
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f you think a “hull sandwich joint” sounds like the deli down the street, then the 19th Chesapeake Sailing Yacht Symposium (CSYS) March 20-21 might be a little too techie for you. Held biannually, the event is the premier international forum for technical research concerning the design, construction, and operation of sailing yachts. Starting with a breakfast at 8 a.m. on Friday, March 20, CSYS will unfold in the Francis Key Scott Auditorium of St. John’s College in historic Annapolis. For two full days, distinguished authors and sailing experts will deliver papers on subjects such as “Upwind Sail Performance Prediction Including ‘Flying Shape’ Analysis,” “Photogrammetric Investigation of the Flying Shape of Spinnakers in a Twisted Flow Wind Tunnel,” and “Full Scale Measurements on a Hydrofoil International Moth.” Registration is $90 for members of sponsoring organizations (U.S. Sailing, Severn SA, the Chesapeake Bay YRA, the Society of Naval Architects and Marine Engineers, and the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics) and $100 for non-members. Catered luncheon is $20, and a Saturday night cocktail party at SSA is included in the registration fee. Walk-ins and late registrants will pay a $25 late fee. To register, visit csysonline.com.
PlungaPalooza 2009!
Photo by Butch Garren
18 March 2009 SpinSheet
Chances are, right now, more than 11,000 people have just gotten over a case of the sniffles, thanks to the Maryland State Police (MSP) Polar Bear Plunge for Special Olympics Maryland (SOMD) this past January 24. The icy waters and frosty air at Sandy Point State Park near Annapolis did not deter plungers and more than 30,000 spectators from making this the biggest charity polar bear plunge in the world, raising at least $2.5 million for SOMD athletes. The funds will be used to provide yearround sports training and competition free-of-charge to more than 10,000 people with intellectual disabilities. The Plunge was part of Aerotek “Plungapalooza ‘09,” a fun-filled, family festival, full of food, music, sand sculptures, vendors, crowning achievements, and more. To learn more, volunteer, or make a donation, visit plungemd.org. Photo courtesy of MSP’s PlungaPalooza
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