Happy New Year! The GMSC Board and I are looking forward to a fantastic 2024 filled with fun sailing and social events as well as completing several large projects to enhance the club infrastructure.

There are events planned over the next few months – including racing, social events, and first aid/CPR training. Please visit our new, beautiful website and mark your calendar and join in on the fun. 

Keelboat racing is currently going on.  Even if you are not racing, you can still be a part of the fun and contribute to the races by joining the race committee. This is a great opportunity to get involved and make a difference. The next race is January 21. After the race, we will have a social gathering at the club house with snacks and appetizers!  

During 2024, we are excited to continue our focus on maintaining and improving our club infrastructure. Last year, we established a capital planning committee led by our vice commodore, Sherri Jo McLemore. This committee developed a multi-year roadmap to ensure we have a thriving club for future generations. The plan identified needed infrastructure repairs and upgrades, as well as projects aimed at making our club safer, more functional and enjoyable for all members. 

 

One of the projects included purchasing a new safety boat for the race committee. A primary objective of GMSC is having a vibrant, year-round racing program and having two well-functioning safety boats support safe and efficient races. I am pleased to share that we took delivery of our new Weld-Craft safety boat earlier this month and it is being outfitted for race committee. A big thank you to Jeremy Shapley and Max Mehlburger for all of their help in selecting, procuring and outfitting this boat!  We will celebrate this addition to our fleet in late February - details to come! 

In addition, we are planning for a major project to repair the seawall surrounding our crane - the area affectionately known as Kiko's corner. Over the years, the seawall has significantly degraded and washed out, creating structural issues for the crane and surrounding area. To address this, we engaged Foundation Specialties, who will install a new seawall comprised of a segmented rock retaining wall system. The project will take 5-10 days and is scheduled to start at the beginning of February, while the lake is low. We are confident that this long-term, robust solution will secure our crane and the surrounding area while also enhancing the beauty of the area. I would like to thank David Nigus and our club engineers Joe Hilliard, Mark Barton, and Jeff Rodgers for their extensive research and expert help in making this project possible.

 

We need your help to prepare for the Kiko's Corner project. We are planning a work day on January 20th to clean up Kiko's Corner. Our goal is to move nearby boats out of the way, remove all items from the crane area, install a silt fence to prevent runoff into the lake, and do a general shoreline clean-up. This is a big task, and we need as many volunteers as possible to make it a success. It will be a great opportunity to get involved, socialize with other members, and make a positive impact on our club. The more people we have, the more we can accomplish!

We welcome new associate members Chet & Shiva Fischer along with their children Payton and Samira.  

We welcome back Heather Metzler rejoining as a regular member with a Sunfish.

We say farewell to associate members Jean-Noel Willk and Christina Harter.

 

Unfortunately we had a fire on B Dock on November 14th. Luckily no one was injured but Barney Taylor's boat burned to the water line and 2 other boats were severely damaged.  As a reminder every boat should have a fire extinguisher on board. Coast Guard requirements state if a boat is less than 26’ and has permanently-installed fuel tanks it should have at least 1 5-B fire extinguisher.  If it is over 26’ but less than 40’ feet it is required to have at least 2 5-B fire extinguishers. A 10-B does not count as 2 5-B’s.  If you are under 26’ and you do not have fuel on board the boat it is still a good idea to have at least one. Electrical can & does cause fires.  Outboards with internal tanks can burn. You can also have the boat next to you burn & if you have one on board your boat you can at least keep the fire from spreading. It is also best practice to not leave extension cords plugged in running appliances when you are not there.

 

Recently we became aware of a smaller extinguisher that could work well on sailboats.  Info can be found at this link https://elementfire.com/products/element-e50

In case of fire call 911 and then call fellow member Jeremy Shapley (214) 435-9388. He is a fireman and lives minutes from the club. 

We have a lot of boats out racing this season.  Low water is impacting several boats but we are doing our best.  The wind has generally not been substantial but we have hung in there and on most days the wind has come in later in the day. The weather has been beautiful.  You cannot beat sailing on Lake Maumelle on a sunny chilly fall weekend.

B Fleet racers include:  Mark Lyons, Jeremy Brooks, Barney Taylor, Bud Smith, Mark Barton, Kirt Simmons, James Corriveau, and Hannah McFarland.  Want to crew?  We always need crew members.  Contact fleet captain James Corriveau

 

A Fleet racers include:   Nicole Moore, John Thomas, Chet Hight, Drew Daugherty, Werner Schwarz, Tim Schwarz, Tracy Sykes, Rich Freeman, Jeremy Shapley, & Kevin McKee.  For crewing opportunities contact Tracy Sykes.

THANK YOU to our race committee volunteers so far this season:

Ben Guise, Sherri Jo McLemore, Greg Hamilton, Jon Claas, Jeremy Brooks, Bud & Laurie Smith, Chet Hight, Tom Genz, Jeff Rogers, J Plunkett, Mark Barton, Drew Daughtery, Phillip Buck, Jeremy Shapley, Hannah McFarland, Tom Davis, Barney Taylor's team, & Tyler Bayles. I apologize if I have missed someone. 

 

Don't forget to use the volunteer signup area to help us keep track of everyone. 

We have a new method to volunteer. Please see details on volunteering at this link Volunteering details

 

Please use and spread the word to non-club members that might like to help!   We always need volunteers to assist the race committee and free up skippers to race.

Please sign-up for specific dates using this link Volunteering and join the fun and support our racing program.
For more information on the race committee, please see the Race Committee page of our website.

You can also now quickly get to the link by clicking "Vounteering" on the "Volunteer" tab on the home page of our website. 

 

You need a login to access the members only section of the website.  Members who forget their password can enter their email address and first name into a special dialog, allowing the system to generate and send them a temporary username and password.

 

Once logged in you can access contact information for the membership.  You can also update your contact information. We will also display a more streamlined mobile version of our website when logged in.  We are displaying the items that we think you want quick access to.  Also once logged in, registering for events and RC duty is very easy.  

Give it a try.

 

Need help - contact our webmaster Neil Jones or membership chair Tracy Sykes.

 

January 20 - Clean-up --  We Need Your Help! 

January 21 - Keelboat Race - Social Event at Club House Following Races

 

February 4 - Keelboat Race

February 18 - Keelboat Race

February 25 - Chili Cook-off and New Safety Boat Launch

February 25 - AED, First Aid and CPR Class -  12-4

 

March 3 - Keelboat Race

March 17 - Keelboat Race

 

April 7 - Keelboat Race

April 8 - Eclipse Watch Party

April 20-21 - Spring Regatta