This year’s Sailpast was even more special even than usual. In addition to the Caribbean theme, steel band, cocktails, special menu and everyone getting leis, we were blessed with the donation of a C&C27, Sesiya, from Bill James, for our Sail Training programs. Here is an email from Bill about his experience in our NSC family that day with lots of photos and video at the end :
Ahoy all,
For an extraordinary gracious weekend, unforgettable in fact, Juliet and I drove 500km last Friday to the remarkable Nepean Sailing Club in Ottawa, guests of the club for their annual sail-past. We were treated right-royally and these few photos help preserve warm memories of that wonderful day. Everyone should occasionally be made to feel so honoured, undeserving as we were.
The club set up a Caribbean holiday atmosphere, w loud live steel-band music, food and dress-up; boats sail out into the lake, then upwind to line up, stretched out over what seemed like several nautical miles, drift downwind to round an inflated yellow marker, then luff upwind to “salute” (shoot water pistols at) the commodore’s party (me) in his boat (“Blue Zulu”).
My sequence of three YouTube clips show (1, 29 secs) my former boat Sesiya (now gifted to their sail training and charity programme) sailing up to the line, (2, 19 secs) a general pan across a fraction of the line, and (3, 49 secs) Sesiya rounding the marker, luffing up and greeting the Commodore.
Here are a few selected stills:
Juliet+me
Commodore Michael and First Mate Rosalind
NSC docks (500)
Our friends, Rosalind, Michael, Hugh, Sharon, us two and Michele (right).
Team Sesiya
From Sesiya’s masthead (Zhanna‘s photo)
And then 500km back again Sunday PM. Ask for more details (I dare you)!
With love etc., and still COVID-free thankfully,
-Bill
Lyn would have approved, been delighted in fact.