Category Archives: News

October Update

October Update

We had a little hiccup posting the September 24th Fall Series race results, but here they are"
 In Spinnaker Class: Warrior takes #1 for the day, Cakewalk is 2nd and Tack Tic #3
Cruising Class: 1st place Legacy, 2nd Desiderata and 3rd Cayennitta III.
You can review the complete results on the SPSA website.
A big thanks goes out to our Race Committee for the day, Garth Reynolds and crew on Koinonia II.
Cactus, skippered by Ian Sanders is King of the Bay for September. Congratulations Ian.
Tuesday October 4 is our monthly SPSA Board meeting held at the Sailing Center. All members are welcome to attend, we encourage it. Please let me know if you are planning to come commodore@spsa.us.
The Full Moon Pursuit is scheduled for Saturday, Oct. 8. Please remember to sign-up on the website. First boat start time will be 19:30. The October weather so far is grand! Just imagine sailing along under a full moon in cool breezes. A definite reward for enduring the hot summer months.
Other racing opportunities on Saturday, Oct 8 is the SPYC Ted Irwin Memorial Fall Bay Race. Go to Yacht Scoring to sign-up
October 15th is the next Fall Series Race. We need a R/ace Committee for this race. Please volunteer. If you have never done Race Committee we can provide assistance. Contact me at commodore@spsa.us for volunteering. The post race event details are forthcoming.
If you haven’t renewed your membership to SPSA it’s not too late. Just go to the website click the membership tab then Join/Renew.

See you out on the Bay!

Penny Simone
SPSA Commodore

September update!

Thanks to all who attended last Friday’s SPSA Annual Meeting/Awards Dinner. We had a great turnout and a fun time. 
 
  • This Saturday September 25th is the kick-off race for the 2022 Fall Season Races. Series Races 1 & 2. Race 1 start time is 11:00am. Garth Reynolds on Koinonia II will be our Race Committee. Remember to register for the Fall Season Races on our website spsa.us. Post race meet-up will be at Courigin’s Irish Pub.
    • A memorial is also being held on Saturday for Rainer Blomberg who lost his life in a diving accident earlier this year. Rainer served SPSA as Commodore in 2000-2001. Family and Friends will be gathering at Little J for the memorial. Race 1 will have Little J as one of the marks so we too can take a moment to remember a fellow sailor as we round the mark.
  • You have 13 more days left this month to take a run at the KOB. Report your time to commodore@spsa.us you could be the next boat to fly the King of the Bay flag!
  • If you haven’t renewed your membership to SPSA it’s not too late. Just go to the website click the membership tab then Join/Renew.
  • Our next Board of Directors meeting is Tuesday October 4 at 6:00PM at the St. Pete Sailing Center. All members are invited to attend.
See you all out on the bay this Saturday! Think wind, no rain.
 
Best
Penny Simone
Commodore.

SPSA Update Early August 2022

Hey Sailor,

 
Here’s a few things to tantalize your sailing dreams while waiting for cooler and thunderstorm free weather to return.
 
  • Bumbugo takes the King of the Bay Trophy for the month of July.  Her corrected time of 1:12:34 was the uncontested winner.  Bumbugo now holds 5 KoB monthly flags.  You can’t win unless you run the course.
  • We have all been invited to the 6th Anniversary celebration of Women Who Sail Tampa Bay.  This is a coed event – all are welcome to attend on 3 to 6 PM Saturday August 13th on the grounds of Tampa Bay Watch at 3000 Pinellas Byway S, Tierra Verde, FL.  Snacks provided and BYOB.  Captains for Clean Water will be presenting their progress cleaning up Lake Okeechobee and dealing with red tide.
  • If you haven’t yet renewed your SPSA membership, today is a good day to do so.  Thanks to every one who has committed to another great year with SPSA.  
  • RSVPs are needed for our Annual Meeting and Awards Banquet on September 16th.
  • We are still looking for members to handle 3 of our 9 officer positions for our 2022-23 season:  Vice Commodore, Rear Commodore and Race Chair.   Let me know if you are willing to help keep our sailing club going.  TreinenRich@aol.com 
 
Let’s Go Sailing!
 

Rich Treinen

SPSA Commodore
 

 

SPSA Renewal Notice and other stuff 12 July 2022

Hey Sailors,

Here’s your reminder to take care of a bit of club business as well as information on our upcoming events and other interesting stuff.
  • The SPSA fiscal year runs from July 1st through June 30th.  It’s time to renew.  A few of our members have already renewed and a few joined late in the year. Those members are free to skip to the next dot point.  If you need to renew you can do so on our SPSA web page.  http://spsa.us/  Under  MEMBERSHIP  on the blue bar, click on the JOIN / RENEW line.  Thanks for staying with us, we have another great year ahead.
  • Our first event is the Classic Regatta on September 10th.  This event is in it’s 13th year and is a benefit regatta for Meals on Wheels.  Initially started by SPSA, we have joined up with the St Petersburg Yacht Club to capitalize on the facilities the yacht club offers.  The Classic Committee is composed of sailors that are members of both SPSA and SPYC and Neighborly, the parent organization of the Pinellas County Meals on Wheels program.  If your boat is 20 years or more young, she is eligible.   There are many ways to support this charity and our local senior citizens. Here’s the link to the regatta page.  https://neighborly.org/st-petersburg-classic-regatta/ 
  • Our Annual Meeting and Awards Banquet is scheduled for Friday September 16th.  This annual event will be held in the Yacht Club.  You will need to RSVP.  Watch for additional details.
  • Here’s the current slate of SPSA Officers for 2022-23:  Commodore Penny Simone, Secretary Suzzane Hooper, Treasurer Richard Boler, Rating Chair Charles Archer, Membership Chair Brian Conlin and Marketing and Mass Media Chair Raúl Calzada.  We are still looking for commitments for Vice Commodore, Rear Commodore and Race Chair.  Please consider stepping up, we have a good thing going.  This is a good group to work with. Let me know if you can help TreinenRich@aol.com 
  • The SPSA Series kicks off on September 24th. This is a 8 race day event that runs until April with two sub seasons, Fall and Spring.  Two races are scheduled per race day.
  • June’s King of the Bay winner is Back Off skippered by Tony Barrett.  Her corrected time was 45 minutes and 41seconds which is a good time but not fast enough to break into the all time top 10.  She’s in 11th.  Next time you see Back Off out on the water wave to her grinning new owner, Brian Conlin.  You’ll find the current King of the Bay report on the SPSA web site.
  • The entire SPSA Event Calendar for 2022-23 will be posted soon.  We have one race date with a conflict we need to resolve.
  • We are looking for members wishing to kick in a little extra to the SPSA.  Buy a half page in our Members Handbook.  Any message, with bounds, acceptable.  Please act quickly, contact our Treasurer Richard Boler soon.  You can email me too  TreinenRich@aol.com 
  • SPSA is rocking it in the Twilight Series.  Tack Tick, Cakewalk and Gimme Shelter are holding down the top three sots in Spinnaker A while Cayennita III, Moonshine and Last Tango are in a close battle for the top in the Cruising Class.  We have 18 SPSA boats running in this all summer long event.


Rich Treinen
SPSA Commodore


King of Bay Update, some good stuff and boring stuff

Hey Sailor,
Here’s an exciting update on the King of the Bay for May 2022. You’ll find complete details on your SPSA Web page. Click the RACING tab on the Home MENU BAR and select KING OF THE BAY – RESULTS. • For a good run around the KoB course you’d like NW winds with some velocity. Those were the conditions when the top ten boats KoB records were set. Lots of boat speed and no tacking. On May 20th those were not the conditions. The conditions were SSW and 12 to 14. Two boats were out that day. Last Tango had started first at the S Mark headed toward G1. Bumbugo followed a few minutes later on the same course. It was a good opportunity to adjust sail trim to see what helped and what hurt. Bumbugo stayed close even though Last Tango should have walked away. • Bumbugo’s corrected 42:35 time took the May KoB honors while Last Tango’s 45:07, was not good enough but still an awfully good time. • The amazing thing, both runs placed in the Top 10 of all time. Bumbugo takes the 4th fastest and Last Tango captured the 9th. So much for that NW wind theory. • Unfortunately there’s only room for 10 boats in the Top 10. Now currently occupying positions 11 and 12 is Cayennita III. Something tells me not having a top ten time will not be Cayennita’s fate for long. • The King of the Bay runs every day of every month all year long. Give it a try. You’ll find information of the SPSA Web page.
Some good stuff. • The Twilight Series is running every Friday evening. Contact Brian if you are looking for crew or a spot on an SPSA boat Membership.Chair@spsa.us • The Sailing Center is hosting an Adaptive Sailing Day for area disadvantaged sailors. June 29th, 10:30 to noon. This a chance to these fine folks to get out on the water and is one of those events that makes you feel good all the way home. If you are able to help send the Sailing Center a message offering to help sailingcenter@spyc.org Dana or Min Min will get back to you. • Our next SPSA event is run in conjunction with the Yacht Club, the Classic Regatta scheduled for September 10th. The event is a fund raiser for Meals on Wheels. If you’d like to host a cash paying donor looking for a ride on a racing boat please let us know. BTW Meals on Wheels keeps the cash and you play a big part in helping this event raise a boat load of cash. Last year – $55,000 for our needy senior citizens. Watch for registration announcements. TreinenRich@aol.com
Sadly here’s the boring stuff. It’s not really – read it and decide. The last bit is bit sad. • We have a Board Meeting on Tuesday June 7th at 6 PM in the Sailing Center. This meeting is open to all members. • The Officer Nominating Committee has been appointed. Brian Conlin, Penny Simone and Richard Boler. This committee is still looking for a couple more members to help run the SPSA. It’s a great group of people and you will enjoy it. • We now have 93 members on the SPSA Members Group Facebook page. This is a closed group. You need to apply for membership. Search for the SPSA Members Group. It’s been mostly good stuff posted so far. Please be nice! • Your SPSA 2022-23 year renewal will need to be paid soon. No change in price – still $49/yr. Watch for an email with instructions. • The Annual Meeting and Awards Banquette is scheduled for Sept 16th we and are needing to jack that cost up. But just a little. Think along the lines of $45 for a dress up and sit down dinner at the St Petersburg Yacht Club. Well worth it. Instructions to RSVP will be with your membership renewal notice. • Surge has been sold and is soon moving up the East Coast and eventually may take a trip to London.