SFBA Safety Day 8/20 @ Coyote

[pthorner]

San Francisco Boardsailing Association

Safety Day – August 20th at Coyote Point Yacht Club

SFBA’s Safety Day presentation will be at the Coyote Point Yacht Club on Sunday, August 20th from 10:30 a.m. (thanks to the generosity of Coyote Point Yacht Club). A raffle will be held with prizes from sponsors West Marine, ASD Windsurfing/Kitesurfing and Helm of Sun Valley. The prizes include two Icom VHF M72 radios (submersible plus rated) and 2 Firefly strobes donated by West Marine. The event will include a general safety presentation followed by working groups on windsurf self rescue, kitesurf safety, and VHF radio use. A top communications expert from the Coast Guard Auxiliary will be on hand to give advice and information on carrying a VHF radio for emergency use. Please encourage people to attend. Coffee and bagels/donuts will be provided.

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(2) Jay Runge Memorial

The effort to raise money to memorialize Jay has raised nearly $5,000 from about 100 donors. A committee has been working to sort through various ideas and has begun work on two projects and will continue to work on other ideas. The first project is to install durable modern memorial benches at the Third Avenue launch. They will be located together to create a gathering place to encourage socializing and community. One of the benches will include a memorial plaque with Jays picture. The second project underway is to recreate the bench that Jay built using an old windsurf board. Many boards were offered up as donations for this project and Jay’s brother Paul has brought down logs to serve as the legs under the bench, so it will closely resemble the original that Jay constructed for the Third Avenue launch. Cimeron Morrisey has also met with Foster City officials and the Foster City Fire Department in an effort to identify safety initiatives and other site improvements that night be pursued. Our thanks go out to Cimeron and the other committee members – Chris Moore, Rick Cavallaro, Gerry Mountain, and Mark Tischler.

(3) Exploratorium Camera

The Exploratorium has purchased the new camera and equipment and is working on getting the new camera up and running. Because the old mount is connected to rotted wood, the new mounting requires some carpentry and creativity. We have let the guru at the Exploratorium know how anxious we are to see the new camera up and running soon. Once it is up and running, SFBA will work on having the camera regularly shoot pre set views of locations like the Crissy Field parking lot, Anita Rock, North Tower, etc.

Our thanks go out the following people who made the new camera a reality:

Super Donors ($1,000 or more)
Kevin Stone, MD – The Stone Clinic
Bill Plautz, MD & Kathleen Welsh, MD

Donors
Gary Berger
Ed Coyne
Paul Erlicht
Ryan Lange
Travis Lester
George Linke
Joe Marenda
Tim Martin
David Nelson
Chad Nichols
Rick Paillon
Diane Portnoy
Nils Reuter
Richard Rhodes
Michael & Susan Samols
Phil Shaw
Chopper John
Peter Thorner
Brian Tjaden
Paul VanderMarck
Richard Voss

(4) Name & Phone Number on Your Gear

There have been lots of reports lately of lost kites and kite boards that were lost on the water. Please take the time to mark your gear (windsurfing or kitesurfing) with your name and phone number. Firstly, you might have a better chance of getting your gear back whether it is lost on the water or left at the launch. Secondly, you can reduce the chance that the Coast Guard launches a full search and rescue operation after a piece of gear is found on the Bay without a sailor to go with it. If they don’t know what happened to the owner, they will often assume the worst rather than risk leaving someone out on the open water.

(5) Coast Guard Security Teams

In addition to saving lives and property, the Coast Guard is tasked with law enforcement and homeland security missions. They have established security zones around bridges, ports and even certain ships such as cruise ships and oil tankers. When you see a ship cruise ship, oil tanker, or any ship escorted by Coast Guard boats, you should steer well clear. While a windsurfer or kitesurfer may not seem like a serious threat, your presence close to the ship may serve as a distraction to the Coast Guard crews and you might prevent them from focusing on or moving toward a boat that could be a threat (or firing at… yes those are machine guns on some of the escort boats). While the Coast Guard has not taken formal action in any cases involving kitesurfers or windsurfers, a violation of the 100 yard security zone around “high interest vessels” can carry a fine of $250,000 or up to six years in prison.

[Sandman510]

Cool!
And I thought the big safety meeting was on 4/20 not 8/20!