The Vancouver Fleet of 2015 held their regular meeting on the 24th of March. The topics covered included:
- Seamanship – anchors and anchoring by Fleet member Alex Brydon.
- Handling heavy weather with Fleet member Ken Roberson.
- Types of windvanes presented by Will and Sarah Curry of Hydrovane.

Seamanship: Sailors practice furling the main top sail aboard USS Constitution [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons
There were two extra meetings in March dealing with rigging maintenance and splicing held first at the Scottish Cultural Centre then at the Pro-Tech shop in North Vancouver.
Looking back at February we met on the 24th with BCA member Guy Druce.
Guy’s presentation was titled “Electronics – High Tech / Low Tech”. He compared his experience as navigator in last year’s Vic Maui race on a fairly high-tech boat in contrast to his circumnavigation in a low-tech one. He discussed the electronics and how they worked (and what failed) in the context of racing and what is needed for long distance cruising.
The topic for the April meeting on the 28th will be about the cruising life, presented by a psychologist. The focus is not just being on the water, but the process of getting ready and getting off the dock.
If you have made a last minute decision to leave for offshore this year it would be worthwhile joining the Fleet for the last meetings. In that case just show up at one of the regular meetings or contact Cameron. The dues are $50 per boat and include all members of the crew.
However, if you are not leaving until 2016 or later, wait until the first meeting of the Fleet of 2016, which will be held at the Scottish Cultural Centre on September 22nd.
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