Re: T&T: Yacht Club Membership on the Great Loop

[Seasalt007--- via Trawlers-and-Trawlering]

I found that Yachting Club of America (ycaoldotcom) worked well for me all
along the east coast except Florida. I was a member of the New Orleans
Yacht Club at the time and it was a member of Yachting Club of America which
allowed the reciprocity.

I have been a member of a Florida Yacht club and the association is called
the Florida Council of Yacht Clubs and you are right...no go for non
members.
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[Randy Pickelmann via Trawlers-and-Trawlering]

We dropped our yacht club membership in 2006 when we left to go cruising. Haven't needed it.
I think most clubs will allow you in if you are from out of town and have membership in a YCA-recognized club. Lauderdale YC, NYYC, St. Francis in San Francisco don't. The benefit with Florida Council clubs is billing reciprocity. Your charges are billed to your home club. At Clearwater YC we regularly had snowbirds stop and we welcomed them at our docks if we had room. But they had to pay with cash or CC. So there was really no benefit to staying at the YC.

Regards,
Randy Pickelmann
Morning Star

Sent from my iPad

[Chester Brummett via Trawlers-and-Trawlering]

a bit late on this thread:

Yacht Club policy varies by the Yacht Club; they are all private clubs thus free to set their policy.

My boat is docked at the Halifax River YC (HRYC) in Daytona Beach, a member of the Fl council of YC’s.

HRYC policy: anyone who is a member of a recognized YC, listed in Yacht Club’s Of America, is welcome.

HRYC hosted the MTOA final dinner from their southern rendezvous, last night. I was surprised to learn that MTOA has “registered” with Yacht Clubs of America, thus member boats would be welcomed at HRYC. We even welcome members of the Marsh Harbour YC (Bahamas).

Just south of us, Smyrna YC (New Smyrna Beach), also a member of the FL council of YC’s, different policy—will only admit members of FL council YC’s.

Call ahead to learn the specific YC policy. Most YC’s have limited transit dockage, so always a good idea to call ahead to inquire and/or reserve a slip. I remember that Eau Gallie YC (Melbourne, FL, also a Fl council member) has a policy requiring 24 hours advance notice for a slip reservation, they don’t want you to just “show up”.

Chet
Defever 49 CPMY, Cygnet
Daytona Beach, FL

[Seasalt007--- via Trawlers-and-Trawlering]

Chet said...

"a bit late on this thread:

Yacht Club policy varies by the Yacht Club; they are all private clubs
thus free to set their policy.

My boat is docked at the Halifax River YC (HRYC) in Daytona Beach, a
member of the Fl council of YC’s.

HRYC policy: anyone who is a member of a recognized YC, listed in Yacht
Club’s Of America, is welcome."

I respond...

HRYC must have changed it's policy in light of the economic times. I
stopped in Daytona Beach several years ago and we walked over to the HRYC and
the door attendant let us in with our YCOA card. We got to the bar and ordered
a drink and had just started to sip it when a bullfrog of a maitre d'
walked over and told us to finish our drinks and leave because we did not
belong to a FCYC club. Very rude treatment.

Later I joined a FCYC club but never had a chance to go tell the bullfrog
what I thought of him.

*************************************************


In a message dated 4/17/2015 4:28:45 P.M. Eastern Daylight Time,

[Jim Healy via Trawlers-and-Trawlering]

Seasalt wrote, but did not sign his post, as follows: "HRYC must

have changed it's policy in light of the economic times. I stopped
in Daytona Beach several years ago and we walked over to the
HRYC and the door attendant let us in with our YCOA card. We
got to the bar and ordered a drink and had just started to sip it
when a bullfrog of a maitre d' walked over and told us to finish
our drinks and leave because we did not belong to a FCYC club.
Very rude treatment."

Very rude treatment indeed, but that most emphatically has not been our experience at HRYC. Sanctuary and crew have been hosted by HRYC many times over many years. As transient guests, we consider HRYC to be one of our favorite and most enjoyable stops. We have been welcomed by many Commodores and Bridge Offices while sitting in their bar area for dinner. Members come to our boat and offer to take us shopping. They are absolutely the most friendly and welcoming club on the US East Coast. The nearest to them in the "welcoming and friendliness" scale is the Hampton Yacht Club at Hampton, VA. We have also stayed at Smyrna Yacht Club. They do accept transients outside of FCYC - somewhat grudgingly - but we are from an out-of-state (Maryland) club, not a Florida club. SYC is not at all welcoming, and as a result we have chosen to pass them by. We do enjoy the free docks at New Smyrna Beach, 1000 yards up the river from SYC. SYC is a lot like Annapolis Yacht Club and the Point Independence Yacht Club; those folks are very proud of themselves. Just the difference of the human personalities and local club leadership attitudes involved.

Over the years, Halifax River Yacht Club has helped us out of a bind more than once. I am grateful they are there, and I recommend them without reservation. Indeed, I'm embarrassed to say, HRYC could teach my home club a thing or two about being welcoming and friendly!

Jim

Peg and Jim Healy aboard Sanctuary, currently at Daytona Beach, FL
http://gilwellbear.wordpress.com <http://gilwellbear.wordpress.com/>
Monk 36 Hull #132
MMSI #367042570
AGLCA #3767
MTOA #3436

[Seasalt007--- via Trawlers-and-Trawlering]

Jim,

I am glad that HRYC is now more accepting of non members. Sounds like a
nice place to visit.

As I mentioned in a previous post, I later joined FCYC club. I also had
the privilege of serving on it's board. FCYC clubs are different in several
ways form other clubs. First and foremost they must be 100% member owned.
Florida yacht clubs that (usually for financial reasons) sell to individuals
or corporations are no longer eligible for FCYC membership. Treasure
Island YC is an example of a former FCYC club. Royal Palm YC, although a
different circumstance, is another example.

My FCYC club does not take credit cards for payment by non members. They
rely on reciprocity with other FCYC clubs for payment by visiting FCYC
boaters. Occasionally the club is used as a venue for regattas where the general
public participates. Tickets are sold for cash and redeemed at the bar.
The reason for the cash and no credit card policy was stated by our financial
officer was that it might affect our status as a non profit corporation.
This opinion was never questioned to the point of actually checking with the
IRS so I don't know.

Then, there is the exclusivity issue of belonging to a private club. Some
folks think this is the most important reason to join one. I can go there
but you cant.

Doc

[Henry J. Dennig via Trawlers-and-Trawlering]

Chester,
Is there a card or sticker needed to identify you as a member of MTOA / Yacht Club to present for privileges?
We are new to MTOA and are cruising the east coast this summer.
Henry Dennig
MTOA # 4910
<snip>

-----Original Message-----
From: Trawlers-and-Trawlering [mailto:trawlers...@lists.trawlering.com] On Behalf Of Chester Brummett via Trawlers-and-Trawlering
Sent: Friday, April 17, 2015 3:04 PM
To: traw...@lists.trawlering.com
Subject: Re: T&T: Yacht Club Membership on the Great Loop

HRYC hosted the MTOA final dinner from their southern rendezvous, last night. I was surprised to learn that MTOA has “registered” with Yacht Clubs of America, thus member boats would be welcomed at HRYC. We even welcome members of the Marsh Harbour YC (Bahamas).

<snip>

[Jim Healy via Trawlers-and-Trawlering]

The "rules" here must vary from FCYC club-to-club. I have stayed at FCYC clubs that take credit cards. Especially those that allow transients. I have also stayed at clubs that took my credit card for dockage, but not in the dining room. That caused a huge hullabaloo for us at Eu Gallee. Inter-club billing is not the norm outside FCYC. So, one time when we stayed at Eu Gallee, we ate in their restaurant, and they would only bill the check through our home yacht club. I told them at the time-of-service that my club would not know how to handle it, and they did not, but that's the way Eu Gallee wanted it handled. So the bill went from Eu Gallee to Maryland. Several months later (maybe 6 months), I got a "dear deadbeat" call from Eu Gallee's Vice. I explained the problem and what we had done at the time-of-visit, and offered to immediately send him a check. He immediately accepted. Would have been much easier if they had done that to begin with. Oh, well...

The not-for-profit thing has to do with income derived from sales to non-members. Not-for-profits can sell to non-members, up to 15% of gross sales. That's not generally an issue for clubs unless they also do outside parties (like weddings) and/or sell fuel to the public (large outside revenue streams). My home club got into it with the IRS on that issue, and we had to pay a fine. We change around what we did, with the IRS' blessing. With outside parties, we now include a one-year "social membership" (a non-voting membership category we have that allows pool and dining room use) to the family paying for a wedding. Now, they're a member and it's not an outside sale. We also created a "fuel membership." The IRS allows it. But, we do allow transients (although these days, way too pricey for the region, and unlikely to attract any).

Anyway, HRYC is a great club and a great group of people.

Jim

> On Apr 18, 2015, at 09:35, Seasa...@aol.com wrote:
>
> My FCYC club does not take credit cards for payment by non members.

Peg and Jim Healy aboard Sanctuary, currently at Charlotte Harbor, Punta Gorda, FL

http://gilwellbear.wordpress.com <http://gilwellbear.wordpress.com/>
Monk 36 Hull #132
MMSI #367042570
AGLCA #3767
MTOA #3436

[Randy Pickelmann via Trawlers-and-Trawlering]

Let me start out by saying that after many years of membership, we resigned from our yacht club in 2006 when we left to go cruising. Prior to that we were quite active in our club and I served on the BoD for several years.

Our club was quite busy hosting sailing regattas for both big boats and one-design dinghies. At some point some wise person or persons wrote into the club bylaws the provision for "Regatta memberships". This allowed us to do business with visiting boaters who were not members of another yacht club. Turns out that the real, underlying reason for this is the State liquor laws. The club's liquor license is specifically limited to PRIVATE, members-only service...no retail sales of liquor are allowed. The Regatta Membership was the loop hole needed to be a good host. Different clubs have different work-arounds...some choose to do nothing and and remain "exclusive".

But we have strayed off topic. The original poster asked if it was worth belonging to a YC to do the Loop. I don't think that, on the face of it, it is worth it. There are plenty of commercial marinas available and it unlikely that you will get free slips at YCs as you travel the Loop.

That's the way I see it from the cheap seats!

But, to get BAC

Regards,
Randy Pickelmann
Morning Star

lying Amelia Island Yacht Harbor

Sent from my iPad

[Fred Sorensen via Trawlers-and-Trawlering]

The answer to your question is yes. You should get a membership card from MTOA annually. If not or you lose it you can print one off the website.

Fred Sorensen
OA 43
MTOA 3571

Sent from my iPad which is responsible for all grammar errors.

[Sean Welsh via Trawlers-and-Trawlering]

On 04/19/2015 08:26 AM, Fred Sorensen via Trawlers-and-Trawlering wrote:
> The answer to your question is yes. You should get a membership card from MTOA annually.

This is not precisely correct, although it may have been in the past.
In the three years or so we've been members, cards are only issued when
you first join, and after that your "renewal" card is electronic and
must be printed from the web site. As Fred says, you can also print one
at any time should you lose it or otherwise be without it.

BTW, we've used our MTOA card to access several yacht clubs in the YCOA
portfolio and consider it one of the principal benefits of keeping an
MTOA membership. That said, the reciprocity rules are all over the map,
so you really have to call each club in advance and ask what they
offer. BTW, if they push back about MTOA not being a "Yacht Club" or
that you need to have a "home club" with "facilities" to get
reciprocity, you can just tell them you belong to the Lodge Creek Yacht
club, which provides the underlying facilities for MTOA's reciprocal
benefits. The LCYC is at Olverson's Marina on Lodge Creek off the
Potomac and does offer dockage and other reciprocal benefits to YCOA
participant clubs.

-Sean
m/y Vector
lying Big Farmers Cay, Exuma, BS
http://OurOdyssey.BlogSpot.com

[Chester Brummett via Trawlers-and-Trawlering]

I notice that most on-line news services now include automatic video when opened (i. e. CNN, Fox, etc)

when traveling by boat, some RF access points (WiFi or cellular) may have limited bandwidth; or a total data byte limit.

Most extreme, consider Bahamas Exuma parks. At North Wardwick wells (from memory) you pay $10 for daily access to their WiFi, 100 megabyte limit or 24 hrs whichever first; and they have a low speed satellite link to the network.

Thus, anything which chews up excess bandwidth or data download is bad.

I have been unable to determine how to turn off this function. Not sure if it is a browser function; or a function of the web site that I am looking at.

Running explorer 11 on Windows 7

Any advice?

Thanks

Chet
Defever 49 CPMY, Cygnet
Daytona Beach, FL

[John Sikora via Trawlers-and-Trawlering]

If you query "how to turn off automatic play of videos" you'll get a number of links. There is one from PC World from Jan. that lists all the browsers. Bottom line it looks like IE is the worst approach and seems to work on a site by site basis. Really cumbersome.

Sent from my iPhone

[Tom Raynor via Trawlers-and-Trawlering]

Even at home, I'd rather read a news story than watch a talking head read it to me.

I've found I can make a huge dent in the problem by using the Chrome browser and two free plug-ins; Flash Control and AdBlock Plus.

Do NOT use FlashBlock! It was a great product but was taken over by another organization and turned into adware. The icon for Flash Control is a red circle with a power plug in it. AdBlock Plus is a red stop sign icon with the letters "ABP" in it.

With Flash Control on, I have to click on a Flash video or it won't play. With ABP there are vastly fewer video ads on the page.

There are browser controls that allow you to turn off all graphics. The will make many pages look odd, but if you're paying for bandwidth it might be a good idea.

On 4/19/2015 11:59 PM, trawlers...@lists.trawlering.com wrote:
> From: "Chester Brummett"<brum...@bellsouth.net>

>
> I notice that most on-line news services now include automatic video when opened (i. e. CNN, Fox, etc)

> ...

> I have been unable to determine how to turn off this function. Not sure if it is a browser function; or a function of the web site that I am looking at.
>
> Running explorer 11 on Windows 7

[Robert Phillips via Trawlers-and-Trawlering]

When we lived in Florida we belonged to a Florida Council of Yacht Clubs' club, and used that membership in a number of other clubs through-out the state and US. Upon moving to paradise, the BVI, twenty some years ago, we dropped our Florida club membership to join the Royal BVI Yacht Club, which membership we have used everywhere we travel in the world, including the US and Canada.

The RBVIYC has an overseas membership which is very reasonable and 100% of membership fees, not to mention almost all other income, goes into our youth sailing program, which is hosted by Nanny Cay Marina & Resort. At present we have fifty-one young sailors enjoying water sports from the beautiful beach at Nanny Cay, with a number of them competing through-out the year in events around the world. Over the years I have watched a number of our young sailors mature and move into the marine industry, including my daughters, one of whom is somewhere between here and the Azores on an eighty-five foot cat and the other is working with her husband in their yacht management business.

Delivering my own boat from Nova Scotia I was able to make use of the considerable resources of the Royal Nova Scotia Yacht Squadron for a six week refit and find dockage at the height of season in early December at Lauderdale Yacht Club.

If you are joining a club for use when traveling and would also like to support youth development please consider royalbviyc.org and enjoy the benefits of membership in a royal YC; no accent required : > ).


Robert Phillips, Another Asylum
Tortola, BVI
b...@doylecaribbean.com
Mobile 284-541-2206
Office 284-494-2569

[Sean Welsh via Trawlers-and-Trawlering]

On 04/20/2015 06:16 AM, Tom Raynor via Trawlers-and-Trawlering wrote:
> ... I've found I can make a huge dent in the problem by using the

> Chrome browser and two free plug-ins; Flash Control and AdBlock Plus.

I will second this. We've lived on metered bandwidth for over a decade
now, and stopping unwanted inbound traffic becomes paramount. Every
browser out there has add-ons to do this, though I have found over the
years that Chrome (and its progenitor, Chromium) and Firefox attract the
widest range and best-of-breed for add-ons. Ad Block Plus is available
for both, and not only saves you precious bandwidth, but also speeds up
your browsing and page load times and, IMO, reduces the annoyance factor
of constant bombardment by advertising. You can white-list specific
sites if you feel the need to support them via advertising, or if they
are clever enough to restrict access to ad blocking users.

Flash blocking will stop most annoying autoload videos, and, as Tom
noted, you can elect to play the ones you really want to see by clicking
on them. I, too, like Flash Control for Chrome for this purpose.

Also for Chrome I recommend the extension called Ghostery. This is a
tracker-blocker, which is really designed to enhance your privacy by
controlling what beacons and trackers are reporting back to their
creators; the amount of direct bandwidth it saves is minimal (trackers
send only a few bytes) but not zero, however it will reduce unsolicited
junk delivered by means of search engines and even email.

On the email front, you can and should set your email client to download
only messages below a certain size, typically a few kilobytes, or at
least set it not to download attachments automatically. You'll still
see the headers and the names of any attachments, but you can elect to
defer loading larger messages or downloading attachments until you are
someplace with unlimited or less expensive bandwidth.

On that same subject, setting your email client not to display embedded
graphics unless told to do so will also save bandwidth. Many small
emails can use up tons of bandwidth if they are full of embedded links
to high-resolution graphic pages. Many list servers, from which you get
those bulk emails that are sometimes annoying but sometimes useful, have
settings to receive mail in text-only format, and you can save some
bandwidth, possibly at the expense of readability, by changing to that
setting.

Even if you do all the above, beware of background tasks and
auto-synchronizing services than can eat through limited bandwidth in a
heartbeat. We're in the Bahamas right now on very expensive
pay-by-the-kilobyte cellular bandwidth, and we need to be careful before
connecting to shut down Dropbox, software auto-updates, and myriad
data-synching apps on two cell phones, two tablets, and three PCs.
Whenever we find free WiFi we turn some of it back on and let things
catch up. Modern cell phones, in particular, incorporate the notion
that cellular data might be expensive, but WiFi is always free and
unlimited, so you can easily be surprised by how much data a rogue cell
phone left on-line can blow through in just a few minutes. You need to
deliberately change settings to turn all those updates off.

Hope that helps.

-Sean

lying Big Farmers Cay, Exuma, BS
http://OurOdyssey.BlogSpot.com