Greetings everyone,

 

Email is supposed to be the instant messenger so why does it take me so long to reply?  I haven't any excuses, though going through a major computer crash the other day didn't help.  

 

All of you have been overly kind and generous with your thanks to Tom and me for organizing yet another wonderful rally experience.  Frankly, I don't really feel like I did that much.  Putting together the rally is not the hard work it used to be. These days, everyone contributes tremendously to the planning and organizing, which helps lessen the load considerably.  So again it has been an enjoyable experience--that is once we got past the Killbear reservations hurdle. This year especially I want to offer my personal thanks and praise to quite a number of others who who contributed greatly to making this rally very special.

 

I want to begin by recognizing the important contribution that several of our favorite racing members made in bringing in some wonderful new faces and increasing our numbers. Were it not for Tony Krauss, Mary Abel, and Lori Beehler enthusiastically sharing their fun-filled rally experiences with fellow racers at the Midwinters, Rock Hall and North Bay regattas, and maybe other racing events as well, we probably wouldn't have gotten to enjoy the delightful company of Carol and David Hansman, Andrew Haill, Joan Mallett, or Andy Douma--most of whom were new participants.  Tony, Mary and Lori have have continued to do an outstanding job of encouraging others outside of our regular cruising circle to give the rally a try.  It was wonderful and exciting to me to get to meet so many newcomers this year.  I am also confident that we'll be seeing many of them again.  So here's three cheers for the fantastic contributions of our racing brethren!  Hip! Hip! Hooray!     

 

Wonderful surprises are a constant! After seven years of organizing these Wayfarer camping/cruising get-togethers, you begin to think you know what to expect.  But that's not how it goes.  I can truly attest that each rally has taken on its own unique personality and has been quite different from any of the previous ones.  It amazes me.  In the heat of the all the planning and doing, I forget about this facet.  Finally, one day, there I am at the rally with new people as well as old and - surprise, surprise - unique things happen.  David and Carol's invitation for all to attend a "Black Tie" cocktail party at their campsite Monday evening was a brilliant stroke of genius.  How we prevailed without them in previous years, I have no idea.  We love you two!  Please stick around.  But that was only Act One.  There was a big, secret none of us had any inkling existed.  A "performance" that had been in the making (i.e., hatched!) via email (I think it could have been a hundred of them!) by four of our gorgeous lady Wayfarer sailors. Appearing "on stage", at Killbear Park campsite 1304, in costume we had the beautiful, talented "Bruise Sisters"! Here I nominate lovely "Bruise Sisters": "The Charming Come-about Carol"; "Juicy Jibing Joanie"; "Luscious Luffing Lori" and "Magnificent Mainsheet Mary" for a special Wayfarer spirit award.  You wonderful ladies really made the Rally super fine this year.  We thank you from the bottom of our hearts.

 

Sincerely...................DICK