By Wilma Cheong

The scouts are in contact with each other for meetings and events by email.

Scouts, please ask your parents for their email addresses. This way they can also get a copy of the newsletter.

Friends, we need your email address too.

Check out the Website for the latest information on cruises, upcoming events, and check the calendar for meeting and event dates.

By Loren

Our first stop was Port Sonoma, which was really only about an hour away. The real challenge was anchoring. We didn't stay in the Marina, but anchored just outside of it. For most of us, it was our first time anchoring; and it was quite an experience. The Cal-20 was married up to the Orion, which is where I slept. All night we had hour-long night watches. These were to ensure that everything was safe and secure and that we didn't wake up batter on the shore.

We woke the next day, and, if we though anchoring was hard, pulling them out was worse. The bow anchor came out with a relative amount of ease as compared to the stern anchor, which seemed as though it would never budge. Of course our work wasn't done when they finally came out of the water because, as you know, they had spent a long night in thick, slimy mud. Derek and Amanda graciously cleaned our encrusted anchors and we were finally ready to depart.

By Keenan

On the first full day of summer cruise we crossed San Pablo Bay and docked at the Vallejo Marina. The bay was very rough, although we had a following sea most of the way. Unfortunately, due to the adverse conditions, the tiller and rudder assembly on the Cal 20 ripped off and flew away in the wind. Disaster was averted by the quick actions of the crew, and Nick was able to guide the sailboat in to the marina successfully, where it was left for the remainder of summer cruise. While at Vallejo, three crew members left and had a great time at Marine World. The rest of us stayed behind and took showers and rested up. We were having problems with our "genset", but those were fixed for the time being by Nick and Mr. Sterling. Everyone was thankful for the good night's sleep after a full night of standing watch while we were at anchor.

By Jenny

West Gate was really fun. We were there for 3 Days. The Compass Rose was there also, so we had fun getting to know them better. We went windsurfing and swimming and worked on completing some requirements for rank advancement. Nick, Adam, Derrick, Keenan, Doug, Nate and Eric all did the mile swim. All in all we had a really great time!

by Amanda

What was the best and worst part about Martinez, well, it was where we spent the last part of our cruise. After arriving late on the afternoon of the 17^th the crew spent a very relaxed evening just "monkeying" around. After using up their considerable energies the crew went to bed excited with the prospect of taking a shower without worrying whether or not the water was going to turn off while they still had soap in their har. The next morning we awoke with the expectation of an early departure. Instead we had the joiy of turning the boat around several times while waiting for the Canadian boat to leave the fueling dock. Rather inconsiderate of them to tie up there, eh? Despite the delay quite a few of us had a great time feeding the ducks and we even named a few though it was difficult to tell which one was which after the fact.

By Eric

During our stay at Westgate, all sea scouts were required to give a presentation on a topic to benefit the crew's knowledge of boating safety, checklists, knots, and navigation. All presentations were done in the morning. Afterwards a test was given before we could go on liberty. Everyone passed with it least an eighty percent. All of the presentations were required to be twenty minutes long. Three people presented each day at Westgate. Evan taught us how to take fixes, Derek showed us aids to navigation, Nick did engineering checklist, Steve did the deck crew checklist, Nate did knots, and Lauren and Amanda did safety procedures. Other presentations were done by Adam, Keenan, and myself. All the presentations were well done. I feel that we all learned a lot.

Thank you all who helped sort and organize the Moreland Avenue storage site August 25. We all "fell to with a right good will" and moved important equipment from the trailers and outdoor storage into the enclosed storage. We also set up a work bench and covered work area which are so necessary for boat repair and maintenance. This day made it possible for us to hold occasional meetings at Moreland. A night of sanding and painting is always good for a change of pace.

Randy Roe, from Santa Rosa Hardware, asked that we please drive slowly when driving through their parking lot to/from the Moreland Storage area. Some of our drivers were seen driving so quickly through, that they didn't see people coming out of the side door of the business.

We don't want an accident to happen, so please, let's do our part and stick to the speed limit and keep our eyes open.

Thank you to all the crew who worked to deep clean and repair the Orion after summer cruise. Our crew now knows what it means to "clean the limber holes." Just ask anyone why latex gloves are necessary! It is certainly nice to be able to step aboard the boat and find things clean and ready for the next cruise.

September 2-3 many of our Scouts volunteered for an extra work day helping Mr. Steve Phillips lay railroad track at his Pengrove Power and Implement Museum. Mr. Phillips rebuilt Orion's engines and transmissions, so it is only fair that we help with another form of transportation - a narrow gauge switch engine that will circle the entire museum yard. What an experience! Now we all have some empathy with our country's rail builders. We even occasionally broke into a verse or two of "I've Been Working on the Railroad". Good job, and we may help again later in the fall.

By Eric

On Saturday September 8th, Nick, Derek, Eric and Adam, along with Mr. and Mrs. Sterling, took the Orion to go see the Bay Model in Sausalito. The 1.25 acre Bay Model had water running through it when we visited. It can imitate the tides, which is highly impressive. Although the horizontal and vertical scales don't match exactly, you would be very impressed at the near accuracy of the model. The Marin Ship exhibits were equally impressive and interesting. We returned to Petaluma on Sunday, September, 9th. From there we went to pick up a donated sailboat which we then dropped off at Moreland Avenue storage. It was a very enjoyable cruise. Next time I hope there will be more people joining us to enjoy the wonderful experience.

Wednesday evening all Scouts are required to attend the American Legion Youth Appreciation Night dinner in their dress blues. It was be held at the Santa Rosa Veterans' Building. This annual dinner is served to our Scouts by the American Legion Post #21 to show appreciation and support of our fine young people. We also supplied the Color Guard for the evening. We thank the American Legion for making our program possible.

October 5-7 we will cruise to San Francisco Bay. We will spend the night of October 5 on the Orion and leave early the morning of the 6th. That evening we will moor alongside the Chaser. Ah, Ha! Another new experience! Reservations for this trip must be finalized September 26; cost is $15.

by Steven (Boatswains Mate)

Let me start by saying that not only does each location that SEAL has a program offer a very different experience, but each individual participant has a unique and perhaps life-altering experience. I found my SEAL experience to be a once in a lifetime opportunity to explore one of the most difficult to learn and perhaps impossible to master skill of leadership. I came into Sea Scouts thinking to myself that it would be similar to my experience in boy scouts, adults running things, no real responsibility, and leadership... well, my exposure to that topic among the boy scouts was less than promising. However, in Sea Scouts I learned quickly that skills mean everything and leaders actually existed amongst the crews. However, even with the skills and experiences, having leadership qualities and knowing leadership skills is far different from actually being able to effectively lead a group and put all those skills and experiences to use. SEAL taught exactly that.

The curriculum is the same from SEAL to SEAL cruise. It's the emotional and mental angle that changes. One of SEAL's lessons was "Planning." We learned what goes into a trip and what needs to be expected, prepared for, and in case of complete failure, how to recover from a plan that didn't proceeded as planned. "Planning," "Preparing," and "Implementing." Three words that every SEAL participant has and will have forever etched into their brain.

One lesson that everyone shuddered at was "Counseling". Of course, most people think that counseling is always bad. It's not. Words of praise are also "Counseling." Of course, when things get bad and a scout is not performing well or has a bad attitude, then counseling is a very tricky deal. It is one that is never easy to deal with and seldomly sought by any leader.

Another lesson was "Training". Training can be very difficult and even those who have devoted their lives to teaching, may not have mastered it. Some scouts can relate to this; I've have a teacher or two who makes me wonder "How on the winding road to a career did this person get so lost they found their way to a teaching position, 'cause this person can't teach."

An experience that is acquired throughout the course is teamwork. In my SEAL unit, the scouts bonded, literally instantly, we are all still good friends and keep in contact through e-mail since our unit is scattered around the world. When a group is dedicated to the completion of something, everything goes a lot smoother. The 10 days with the same 6 people, under loads of stress from assignments to actually being in the ocean, and relying heavily on people who you've met only a few days ago. Quite thrilling.

Yes, I did say earlier that experience is important, that's why every scout on SEAL was entrusted with one full 24-hour day in which they were in complete control. That person was boatswain for that day; they assigned watches, schedules, everything. The only thing the did not have control over was, destination. However, departure time was essentially up to them. This day is a time to exercise the new knowledge obtained from classes, other crew members, and the skipper. A constant learning experience even when you're not huddled around the trainer being taught an actual lesson.

After all the stress and all the pain, there was always time for fun. We swam off Catalina Island, we got to tour Avalon, the central city of Catalina Island, got to watch Dolphins play, Sea Rays, Otters, Seals (not us, but actual animals), and Sea Lions.

I've been asked about the failure rate of SEAL, and personally I don't think anyone could possibly go to this training without obtaining a plethora of knowledge. Sure it's great to walk away with the SEAL pin and certificate, but the real reward is the experience that will help you throughout life. And watching your skipper cry when the cruise is over. But that's another story for another time.

I highly encourage scouts to apply, however, the utmost dedication and effort must be applied. As the program says, this is not a pleasure cruise, it is a fast paced training program designed to make good scouts, even better. I'll cover more of the assignments and explanation on what makes SEAL such a mentally and physically demanding course in an upcoming newsletter.

Meeting opened at 7:10 AM

Attendees: Katherine Sterling, Ed Rogers, Nick Rogers, and Wilma Cheong

No minutes from previous meeting.

No treasurer's report.

Bosun's Report: Summer Cruise 11 days of fun. Felt sometimes like SEAL II. Long cruise to Sacramento.

25^th of August was a work day at Moreland. Mandatory day for the September cruise. Six scouts and three parents. Next day was work day on Orion. We cleaned bilges and took out the generator. We moved the generator down to Moreland so it could be repaired.

Next weekend, September 1 & 2, we went to Steve Phillips for Community Service project to work on the railroad. The first day we had four people, the second day five. We assembled about half the track and laid bed for more track.

September 7-9 we had a short cruise. Had four scouts. We are disappointed in the lack of participation by our scouts. The next cruise we need more people so the cruise will run smoothly and everyone can rotate through shifts. Need 8 people minimum.

The next upcoming event is to arrange the Bridge and Party for October. Things are going slowly. We are working on getting a location. More information will be given out at the weekly scout meeting.

NEEDED FOR BOAT: Two Binoculars, new charts of the "Inland Waterways for the San Francisco Bay Area (available at West Marine), parent volunteers for boat repairs, new hinges for focsile hatch on Orion, staff on bow for Union Jack, a Union Jack, and RF filters for radios.

Skippers Report:

We had our last two weekly meetings at Moreland. This works out well as long as there is light. We can have our meeting and then do some work on the boats at the same time. We will try this a few more times before the rains start.

The next cruise is scheduled for October 5 - 7 to San Francisco Bay. Specifics to be discussed at our weekly meetings.

Safety Training Weekend is October 19 - 21. The scouts have a lot of fun and learn a lot. Details to follow soon.

New business: Pasta Feed is November 16 at the Veteran's Building in Santa Rosa. We need every scout to sell a minimum of 25 tickets. This is a major fund raiser for us.

Meeting Adjourned at 7:25 PM

Respectfully Submitted by Wilma Cheong

September, 2001

Newsletter Editor

4703 Hillsboro Circle

Santa Rosa, CA 95405-8776