T-10 Fleet to Host North American Championship Regatta

By Christopher Moll, Fleet Captain

The Milwaukee Bay T-10 fleet and SSYC have officially been awarded the 2011 T-10 North American Championship Regatta. We are very excited to host this prestigious event once again at our yacht club. The regatta will be held August 11-14, 2011 and we plan to have 30+ boats here competing for this exciting national championship.  This will mark the 4^th time that this event has been hosted by the Milwaukee Bay T-10 Fleet & SSYC since its inception in 1978.

Several committees have been formed and much planning is under way for this event.  We have assembled a race management team and have posted the notice of race on the SSYC web site. We have created a website which can be found on the SSYC.org page. We have also planned much of the food, beverage, entertainment, trophies, and much more.

Please contact me if you are interested in getting involved with the planning and organization of this regatta.  In addition, I would be happy to help interested parties get involved in this event either as crew or skipper of a boat.  We would love to have you join us. (BluemoonT10@aol.com).

From The Helm

It’s the first week of January, even though the temperature is struggling to reach 20 degrees we can soon start counting the days until boat work begins.  In the meantime we’ve plenty of activities here at the club to occupy our time.

The Fall and Winter events have been very successful, Packers Sundays are nearly always ‘standing room only’, the Christmas Day Tom and Jerry party saw a packed house, New Year's Eve set a record with 104 dinners and a well behaved mob danced into the new year to the music of Hat Trick.  Now with Green Bay in the playoffs we’ll hopefully have a couple more Sundays to celebrate on the way to the Powerboaters Super Bowl party.

This morning is the annual clean-up day and more than 30 volunteers are taking down the Christmas decorations and sprucing up the clubhouse.  This day, like so many of our ‘work parties’ is what makes membership unique here at SSYC, member involvement and a free lunch.  If it’s been a while since you’ve had the fun of spending time giving back to SSYC, make it a point to be at our Spring grounds turn-over work party.

Also this morning I’ve had the pleasure of welcoming a new member to SSYC, Gerald and Gwen Dahl.  The Dahls presently live in Iowa but Jerry’s retirement project was to build his own boat, a 53 foot motor sailor, that completed, they want to call Milwaukee their home port.  With regard to membership, we, like virtually all clubs are not up to full membership.  Along those lines the Membership Committee is manning a booth at the Milwaukee Boat Show later this month.  The committee has created an attractive plan to recruit new members; touting the affordability, year round activities and benefits of SSYC membership.  This is also an appeal to all of you to ‘talk-up’ SSYC membership to your crew members and friends.  As an incentive we will be awarding a $100 food and beverage certificate to any new member joining during January, February and March.

On down side, last week we experienced a failure of the pumps in our sanitation lift station.  Emergency plumbing service restored one of the two pumps to keep us in operation.  The pumps, check valves and related plumbing are all nearly two decades old and are either inoperative or about to be.  The bottom line is that this could be a major expense.  We will be getting a complete appraisal from our plumbing contractor soon and will have to make decisions on repair/replacement at that time.  You certainly will be kept informed of the status of this development.

In 2013 we will be celebrating the 100^th anniversary of our original incorporation.  I’d like to start the planning for the events to mark that milestone by having an organizational committee meeting at 7:00 PM on January 20^th.

On a closing note I want congratulate General Manager, Pat Nora on the first anniversary of his being part of the SSYC family.

Entertainment Committee News

The Holiday season has come and gone and once again the membership of SSYC along with their friends and family contributed to making the season one of warmth and celebration!  I would be remiss if I did not thank the many volunteers and Club Staff who assisted with the decorations, parties, and overall festive atmosphere that surrounded the club throughout the season.

As winter sets in the Entertainment Committee will be embarking upon some events that will hopefully raise your Vitamin D levels (or other levels!).  On January 22^nd the club will be holding are annual “Chili Dump”.  Please bring a quart of your finest chili to share and stick around to enjoy the music of………your fellow club members.  This year’s entertainment for the event will be Karaoke.  I am confident that the show will contain some of the finest vocals heard at the club in years! 

While the fine musical stylings of your fellow club members will be first rolled out at the Chili Dump the plan is to make this a monthly event. (Unless a significant amount of glass is broken on the first go round!)  Not all of the events at SSYC need to be large in scale.  If you have an idea for entertainment that can be done on a frequent basis please contact me.

Thank you all for your continued support of SSYC!

Wednesday Evening Programs

By: Helen "Cookie" Mueller

Wednesday evening programs will be held at South Shore Yacht Club throughout the winter months.  All programs begin at 7:00 pm in the upstairs dining room.  If you have any questions or suggestions for future programs, please contact Cookie Mueller at cookiemueller@wi.rr.com

2011 Schedule

January 26th – “Lake Michigan’s New Invader: Quagga Mussel”
Dr. Russell Cuhel from the Great Lakes Water Institute will present a program describing how the Quagga Mussel has changed the way Lake Michigan works.  His program will include a visual tour of the bottom of Lake Michigan.

A Junior Spaghetti Dinner fundraiser will be served from 5:00 – 6:30.  $7 for all you can eat spaghetti.  Join us and help support the Juniors.

February 23rd – “Wind Point Lighthouse”
Ken & Barb Wardius will do a presentation about the 125 year old North Point Lighthouse located in Racine.  It’s past, present and future.

March 30th – “Civilians Aboard Aircraft Carriers”
Mike Larson and Tryg Jacobson will present a program about two civilians that spent 24 hours aboard the aircraft carriers the USS Abraham Lincoln and the USS Nimitz.

 

House Committee Update

I hope everyone’s holidays were as good a mine.  We have been doing some house cleaning at the club and have come up with a few things that need to go.  If you have items in the club house that are not being used, we would like you to take them home.  We have little storage room and have to rent space to hold all the items we need.  Please pick up any items that belong to you.

We've added extra storage at the bar.  Mike Erstad has built a cabinet to go where presently there is a shelf on the South side of the bar area.  He has very generously donated his time and skill to build this cabinet.

The sign over the front entrance is in need of refinishing.  We think routing out and painting the letters would look good.  So that is on the list to do and will be done by one of our members.  Also the lettering and the ship’s wheel on the lakeside of the building need refinishing.

There had been talk of using the old office in the lounge area as a library. The idea was discussed at the last House Committee meeting where it was decided that a library would be better placed in the conference room. The old office will be used for office supply storage.

One of the basement coolers does not meet the standard for storing food items (the walls, etc. are not considered washable for food storage), so we will be looking to reline or replace it by summer when it will be needed.

The southeast dining room window cracked once again (it was replaced about 6 years ago). The glass repair company that we had come in to replace it said it was due mostly to poor installation. We had it repaired again at our cost because it would not be worth the cost to go after the first company.

The day before Christmas one of the two sewage pumps that pump waste up to street level from the club failed.  It is in the process of being replaced.  The one that is still operational might need to be reconditioned. The equipment in the system is 15+ years old and has operated well through the years but age has caught up with it.  There are some other problems with the shutoff valves and check valves that will need to be corrected to bring the waste system back to being fully operational.  We are waiting for an estimate to come in to find out where we stand on this.  These items will need to be attended to in order to ensure that the club will be able to operate without interruption.

A new menu for the dining room is in effect.  The food items in the salad bar and buffet will be labeled in the future.

I've noticed lately that some members have been leaving their drink glasses and food dishes on the tables in the lakeside lounge when they leave.  It has been customary at the club to return the glasses to the bar and put garbage in the garbage containers.  This leaves the table ready for the next person to use.

Don’t forget the Wednesday night programs at the club.  Please check the calendar for information.

The House Committee is always looking for volunteers with skills or the means to help the club keep its costs and dues down.  If someone is interested in helping, contact me or the Club Manager, Pat or one of the other Committee Chairpersons.

MCSC Sailor's Ball

Bob Bitchin named Sailor of the Year by Milwaukee Community Sailing Center

At its annual Sailors Ball to be held on February 26, 2011, the Milwaukee Community Sailing Center will present its Sailor of the Year award to Bob Bitchin. This prestigious award recognizes individuals whose achievements, contributions and love of sailing provide inspiration to sailors everywhere. Bob is an adventurist, world cruiser, and popular sailing editor. With nearly 30 years spent living aboard sailboats and cruising most of the Pacific and Central America, Bob is a highly regarded sailing enthusiast and editor of Latitudes and Attitudes Magazine, one of the largest publications in the world with over 70,000 readers. He is among many prominent previous winners including Buddy Melges, Gary Jobson, Peter and Olaf Harken, and Sally Barkow.

“Bob isn’t your typical sailor, having spent many years of his life motorcycling cross-country and serving as a bodyguard to Evil Knieval.  His passion for sailing the seas paired with his unique life experience is admired by sailors everywhere. “Many think of him as the Jimmy Buffet of the sailing world,” said Margaret Jaberg, Co-chair of the MCSC’s Sailors Ball. In addition to publishing and editing his magazine, Bob has also authored six books and manages a podcast and TV show reaching over 40 million homes. He is a notable speaker at conventions and seminars throughout the country and his website has over 150,000 monthly visitors.

Noah’s Ark is the theme set for this year’s Sailors Ball which will be held at the Italian Community Center on Saturday, February 26, 2011. The big secret is that despite the stuffy-sounding "Ball" name, MCSC prefers to combine fund-raising with a big dose of FUN-raising!  So be prepared to meet friends, eat terrific food & drink, be entertained by Bob Bitchin and compete in a costume contest. Dress as your favorite furry critter to set sail on this venerable old “Ark” with all kinds of other party animals. This is a guaranteed fun night for all. Each year, the themed Sailor’s Ball raises thousands of dollars to provide community outreach programs for local at-risk and disadvantaged youth and those with special needs.  MCSC has introduced thousands of adults and children to sailing, with many becoming life-long sailors and boat owners. To reserve a spot at this annual event, the public can contact MCSC at 414.277.9094 or visit wwwsailorsball.info for more information.

About the Milwaukee Community Sailing Center: The Milwaukee Community Sailing center provides meaningful programs to experience Lake Michigan sailing that engage all members of the community regardless of their age, cultural or racial background, or financial status.  Programs are tailored to meet the needs and interest of a diverse population – adults, youth and persons with disabilities, with a focus on innovative and character-building learning experiences.  Participants will discover hidden abilities to broaden their life skills and self-development including self-reliance, teamwork, problem-solving and leadership skill.  For more information visit www.sailingcenter.org or call (414) 277-9094.

Power Boat Fleet News

Hope all of your boats are put to sleep, as we go into winter and early Spring activities.  The Super Bowl is coming up on Sunday, February 6th, which is being hosted by Doug, Pam and Mike.  There will be food available.  Please bring a dish to pass.  Games of chance may occur.  This is one of our better parties. Check the internet for further details as we get closer to the date.  As we start to thaw, Saturday, March 19th is the gambler's overnight get-away.  This is always a great time, and we have actually had winners. See the Dziubeks or Tucholkas for information. Registration forms can be found at the office.  The space is limited, so sign up early.  There will be a planning meeting for the rest of power boater's events in February.  Watch for an email blast for the date of that planning meeting.  Happy New Year to all.

Short Bights

By Bruce Nason

A windmill for Jones Island?  Thursday January 13, Bay View’s Alderman Tony Zielinski will hold a community meeting at the South Shore Park Pavilion starting at 6:00 PM for neighborhood input regarding a proposal to erect a 150 foot tall windmill either near the Port of Milwaukee Office or at the Lake Express complex.  The windmill is expected to provide electricity to the operations of the port.  If the proposal is approved by the city, construction would begin this Spring.  The windmill would be the first of its kind along Lake Michigan’s shore.

Speaking of Lake Michigan’s shore our ‘beach’ has returned.  With the low winter water level the sandbar along the break wall in front of the club has surfaced again.  When it's not covered with ice, birds soak up the afternoon sun on the sandy stretch of silt.  In some respects we’ve been fortunate for the low lake level.  If the lake level would have been at its highest, the big blow last month probably would have wreaked havoc on our docks like the storm in the ‘80s.  Check the photos I shot back then.

 

Some tricky window work accomplished a few Saturdays ago.  One of the 8 foot thermo-pane windows in the Commodores Cove developed a stress crack (again) and needed to be replaced before additional breakage or damage occurred.  The window repair crew had to perform the replacement on the day the dining room was scheduled for a wedding reception.  The repair was accomplished in plenty of time without disturbing the dining room decorations.

Why not skip the driving and parking hassle and let Southwind Marine do the driving?  Again this year, Brian has a charter bus offering pick-up at SSYC on Saturday January 29 at 8:15 AM for $25 per person and that includes coffee, juice, cinnamon rolls, breakfast burritos and bloody marys.  You can also purchase show tickets at a deeply discounted price.  Call Southwind at 414-769-0000 or go to info@southwindmarine.com.

A final note; we reached another first this year; Barbara Drake has become the first woman to achieve Life membership status.  Barb, along with her late husband Jim, has been involved in club and sailing events since the 1970s.  Congratulations Barb!

Auxiliary News

Happy New Year to all!  The Auxiliary would like to extend an invitation to any members or spouses of members to join our membership.  The beginning of the year is a good time to join and get in on a year of fun, camaraderie and worthwhile causes that benefit our yacht club and the larger community.   We will start the year off with a Board meeting on January 11^th.  This meeting will set the agenda for the year.  We will report to the membership at the first regular meeting in February which is February first!

All of the Auxiliary meetings are held the first Tuesday of the month.  Meetings generally start at 7 pm  When we have dinner our meetings start at 6 pm with a meet and greet.  February, March, April, August, September and November are regular meetings with a start time of 7 pm.  We bring food and have coffee and tea set out so that before the meetings we have a bit of social time.  Our hostesses Carolyn Blackwood, Joyce Sabinash and Past President Bonnie Merryfield really know how to roll out the welcome mat for us!

Our dinner meeting months are the first Tuesday in May, June, October and December.  These dates are open to members only.  We start to gather at 6 pm.  The May dinner is to recognize our Life Members and Past Presidents.  June is our picnic dinner meeting.  October is our Shipmates night when we invite our spouses or significant others to join us for a meal and program.  December is our holiday dinner.  A reservation is required for these dinner meetings and there is a fee for the dinner.  The Auxiliary does not have meetings in January or July as many of our members are cruising or enjoying warmer climates.

Our business meetings are kept short and sweet, covering topics such as the fundraisers we do to benefit a club project and other involvement we have in the community around South Shore Yacht Club.  We have many committed members that devote a great deal of time and talent to our organization.  We always welcome new members or old members that find they may have a bit more time to get involved in any way they feel comfortable.  Please feel comfortable to call me or any board member for more information on joining or volunteering in any capacity.

Our entertainment chairperson is Sue Ring-Wagner.  She does a wonderful job of setting up interesting speakers or musicians to entertain us.  She has begun to put together the line up for this year.  She would like to work with another member so if there is someone who would be interested in assisting with entertainment please give Sue or myself a call.  We will know more about what is in store for this year at the February meeting.

I hope this answers some of the questions about the Auxiliary and encourages new and old to join us.  I look forward to welcoming all on February 1 at 7 pm in the upstairs dining room of South Shore.  If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to call me or any of our board members.  On the outside chance that we might experience extreme winter weather on our meeting date, I will inform the club office of meeting cancellation by 3 pm.  See you at 7 pm on February first!

Grounds Committee Update

The winter is moving fast and our members will soon need to apply for Dry Sail and Dingy storage. If you want to renew your storage the application form must be at the club office no later than April 30, 2011. After May 15, 2011, the Committee will start re-assigning open stalls.

Last year we encountered a few problems with the Dry Sail Storage. Some of the problems that we identified were that some of the boats in the Dry Sail storage were too long for the spots they were in. There was incorrect information on the total length of the boat. This year the members need to be aware that when applying for a storage spot the total length of the boat with trailer must be placed on the application. If masts are hanging off the front or back of the boat this must also be included in the total length.

Our goal this year is to place the correct length boat in the proper stall.

If you have any questions about Dry Sail Storage please contact me at any time.

Helping Hands

By Carolyn Nason

Here are a few helpful hints:

Now that the holidays are over, it’s once again time to turn our thoughts to…boating. What else?! Ken Dziubek (Summertime) sent in a great link. Check it out at http://www.boatinfoworld.com . It’s a great resource for boats big and small. Thanks Kenny!

Do you miss driving your boat with the wind in your hair, the spray in your face? While this isn’t the real thing, you can try any of a number of free online boating games. Try “Black Sails” at http://www.freegames14.com/tag/Boat/1.html and you, too, can be a pirate - Arrrrr!.

How about a little winter refresher. Fluff up your down-filled jacket by tossing two tennis balls into the dryer with your coat. Works great with pillows too!

A delicious chocolate twist. For an extra special treat, make brownies as directed. Melt Andes Mints in a double broiler and pour over warm brownies. Yummy!

Did you know that residents of Wisconsin age 60 and over can audit classes at UW Milwaukee for free? Yes, that’s right. For more information, contact UWM’s Office of Adult and Returning Student Services at 414-299-5932. Or, if you’re not quite up for all those young co-eds, read on…

Are you over 50 and love learning? The Osher Lifelong Learning Institute at UWM is just for you. For an annual fee of $40 per person you can enjoy short courses of three-to-six week sessions covering changing topics in the arts, literature, ethics, law, politics, religion and history. The Go Explore excursions are docent-led outings to places of interest in the Milwaukee area such as museums, theaters and planetariums.  (Members incur a nominal fee for each course in which they enroll.) Special Interest Groups (French, German, Italian and Spanish, computers, history, ecology, reading books, and reading mysteries) meet regularly for study and discussion. There are several social activities and special events throughout the year. For more information call 414-227-3366 or check out their website: http://www4.uwm.edu/SCE/osher_programs.cfm

For those of you heading out of the country, don’t forget your passport! Check out www.epassportphot.com for free passport photos. You upload a photo and this site will help you crop the image to the correct US passport regulations. Print it on photo paper and send it off with your application.

Martha Stewart’s cure for headaches: take a lime, cut it in half and rub it on your forehead. The throbbing will go away. 

SSYC’s PC Bob Aring’s (Bacchus) cure for headaches: take a lime, mix it with tequila,

chill and drink! All your pains go away!

 

As always, keep your hints coming.

Fall turns to Winter

From the Manager

Happy New Year to everyone!  SSYC had a great Holiday Season and I would like to take this opportunity to thank our staff for a job well done.

2011 will be a great year for the club, but we need your participation in the many events we have planned for the year.  Make a resolution to join your fellow members who already enjoy the club. Make a second resolution to introduce a potential new member to the club.  If 10% of the membership recruits a new member we will once again be at a full membership.  Let’s make that our #1 goal for 2011.

Check out these upcoming events:

January 8, Club Clean Up Party & Junior Lock-In

January 9, GO PACK! 3:30 Kickoff Party

January 22, Slip Change & Move Day & Annual Chili Dump

January 26, Junior Spaghetti Dinner & Wednesday Night Program Series

Watch for information on Pizza & Beer and Pasta Thursdays Coming Soon

See you at the club!

Pat

Milwaukee Bay Women's Sailing Organization

By Rebecca Archibald and Phyllis McDonald

The Milwaukee Bay Women's Sailing Organization (MBWSO) season ended with our consistent winners trading places again. Debbie Bruesewitz in T-10, Straight Jacket, bested Lisa Alberte in Laser 28, Veloce, by only two points to become this year's winner. Debbie also won the 2010 Lady of the Wind Trophy by finishing first, second and third in the three SSYC sponsored races.  MBWSO division two was topped by Cindy Krause - F-Stop; Whitney Kent - Rafiki, and Micki Reinardy - Irie. The Fleet grew by several boats in 2010 but rumor has it, Veloce has been sold. What will Lisa bring to the starting line in 2011?

 

Congratulations to MBWSO skipper, Whitney Kent, and her crew on Rafiki who were voted the Corinthian Yacht of the Year by the PHRF fleet. Whitney raced Rafiki in the weekend races as well as Monday nights. And just before deadline, we learned that MBWSO skippers voted Whitney Kent as the winner of our Sportsmanship Trophy presented January 8th at the MYC awards dinner. This trophy is awarded in recognition of qualities such as courtesy, determination, perseverance, and willingness to lead by example and share sailing knowledge with newer, less experienced women sailors. These are all the non-quantitative skills and actions that are touched upon by our bylaws mission statement. “The object of the organization is to encourage and promote women in the sport of yachting and create a spirit of good fellowship among members and fellow yachters. And to encourage women to become more actively involved in the sport of sailing by developing and improving their skills and confidence in the sport.” Congratulations and thank you Whitney!

 

At our spring MBWSO meeting, Cookie Mueller challenged our membership to work in conjunction with the Milwaukee Community Sailing Center (MCSC) to come up with a new event...and the result of many people working quietly and steadily is The Midwest Women’s Sailing Conference.  With ideas inspired from similar successful conferences on the salt coasts, a committee of volunteers headed by Cookie Mueller, past commodore (PC) of SSYC and past president of MCSC, has been hard at work since last spring to bring this event to life on the fresh coast.

Dawn Riley (http://www.dawnriley.com/) will be the keynote speaker and a presenter for the day long event. The focus of the full day of workshops is women sailors mentoring women sailors on topics of seamanship from the basics to racing sail trim. Save May 14, 2011 for a full day of 'how-to' and 'hands-on' workshops in the Milwaukee Community Sailing Center's new building.  A slew of women from MBWSO and MCSC have volunteered their time and efforts in organizing the groundwork and there are still plenty of ways to get involved. Please contact Cookie  cookiemueller@wi.rr.com to get on board. More information and registration materials will be available at MBWSO.org.

Janice Shoman will be hosting he infamous MBWSO midwinter party on February 19th at her home, 2909 S. Mabbett Ave. The fun will begin at 6:30 p.m. Who do you know that can get you an invite?

If you're planning to attend this year's Strictly Sail show January 27-30 at Navy Pier in Chicago, stop in for MBWSO skipper, Wendy Olson's presentation, "Sailing Italia." She'll present unique ideas for sailing trips to Italy on the Northern Lakes based on her 15 years experience living and sailing there.

Decorating the Docks for Christmas

On Board - Boating Tips

By Gerry Hussin

Getting fresh air in your boat

Keep the air moving and water out.  There are two things necessary to keep a fresh smelling boat during the winter months.  Mildew occurs when there is dampness and dead air space.  Mold as well as fungus forms and spreads by spores – if you deny them what they want, then they can’t grow.

Keep the water out.  Not enough air and too much moisture are the requirements for a damp smelling boat interior.  All it takes is for a single leak to allow moisture to creep into a dead air space and the spores start growing.  Check your boat interior often.  On sail boats, leaking deck hardware is often the culprit.  These leaking conditions can cause an even more severe problem, water leaking into the deck core causes rot.  Check your drains.  Leaves and debris can get through coverings and clog the deck drains.  Clogged cockpit scuppers are another source of water leakage.  In our snowy area, water and freezing can open small areas and then leakage occurs.

Keep air moving!  Mold loves a closed boat. Air trapped inside tends to hold moisture, which mold thrives on.  Condensation is another form of moisture penetration, which moving air may alleviate.  Powered ventilation is a good cure, but opening up the boat’s interior is another solution.  Lockers should be open for air circulation.  Another way to solve the humidity problem is with chemical humidifiers, which use calcium chloride to absorb moisture and direct it to holding containers.

"Something you can do when you visit your boat is to open it up on a sunny day and let fresh air in while you are doing an inspection.   Go and have lunch at our wonderful yacht club then return and close it up.  If you haven’t done so, all bedding, mattresses, clothing, towels and other items that can attract moisture should be taken home, since they can be ruined by mold."

Above excerpted from Boat US

Breakfast with Santa

Wisconsin Marine Historical Society

Wisconsin Marine Historical Society’s 52nd annual meeting and dinner to be held at SSYC “Lighthouses and the Maritime History of Door County” will be the special program for the Wisconsin Marine Historical Society’s Annual Meeting which will be held at the SSYC on Saturday, January 29, 2011. Bob Desch, Director of the Door County Maritime Museum is the featured speaker and will share tales of the Door County lighthouses, the keepers that kept the lights burning brightly and the brave seamen that depended on them.   A Silent Auction will preceded the dinner and program.   Also, volunteer quilters associated with the Society have created a beautiful quilt which is being raffled off that night.  For more information or to purchase raffle tickets, call 414-286-3074.

Publications and Public Relations

When we began publishing The Compass online six months ago, advertisers acquired a unique new promotional benefit. No one has used it though, until now. This current issue contains at least three digital ads that click through to business websites. I won't tell you which ones they are. See if you can find them.

How does it work? Pretty simple really. We embed a hyperlink in the ad. The user clicks on the ad to go directly to the company website. This is a better way both for users and advertisers. For advertisers, the ad becomes a doorway to a full online presentation of their products and services. "Click-thrus," as marketing people call these things, in addition are fully trackable, allowing the advertiser to much more accurately gauge an ad's effectiveness.

Users, by virtue of having access to that full online presentation, are better prepared to make a purchase decision. They will glean far more information than can ever be conveyed in the limited space of one ad. Further, the website address can be bookmarked (saved) in your web browser for fast and easy future reference.

To my knowledge The Compass is the only yacht club newsletter in our area to offer this unique capability. Many members operate business websites or work for companies which have one. They especially need to be aware of what the new technology enables.

This isn't to say that our conventional ads have diminished in value. They actually have increased in value because we post The Compass publicly on the club website; and past editions live on archivally. The Publications Committee also is exploring taking digital advertising to the next level.

One possibility is to sell sponsorship ads on the website itself. Such ads are very common in the big outside world; in going about it we would have to be a little careful due to our not-for-profit status. I'd be interested to hear your thoughts.

Advertising in the Compass already was a good deal. Recently the deal got even better. Please consider advertising as a great way to promote your business and and at the same time support South Shore Yacht Club. If you are interested in advertising in the Compass Newsletter contact us at publications@ssyc.org for more information.