Dec - Portland Yacht Club

the 

PORTLAND YACHT CLUB MONTHLY 

December 2006 

Vol. 56 No. 12 

Witches’ Ball

PAGE 2 | The Portlight | 12.06 

COMMODORE’S COMMENTS 

Join the Merry Olde Mix in 

December….. 

D 

i a n e 

and I 

would like to 

thank everyone 

for the honor of 

being your Commodore 

and First 

Lady for 2006! When I became your 2006 

Commodore, my main objective was to 

make Portland Yacht Club healthier and 

stronger. As the year draws to a close, I 

honestly believe the Club is better today 

than a year ago. We’ve built on our heritage, 

increased our membership, and had 

lots of fun!! Throughout the year, our committees 

and Club staff were very dedicated, 

creating and organizing a wide mixture of 

activities for all our members throughout 

the year. Besides just having more members, 

many of our new members bring innovative 

vitality and thoughts that will propel PYC 

far ahead into the future. With an increase 

the PORTLIGHT 

published monthly by the 

PORTLAND YACHT CLUB 

1241 NE Marine Drive 

Portland, Oregon 97211 

P: 503.285.1922 | F: 503.283.4960 

Email: office@portlandyc.com 

EDITORS 

Skip and Mary Ann Nitchie 

PHOTOGRAPHERS 

Stan Borys 

Frank Tillman 

OFFICERS AND TRUSTEES 

Commodore 

Vice Commodore 

Secretary/Treasurer 

Rear Commodore 

Trustee Year 2 





Doug Foster (sail) 

Heather Adams (power) 

Berkeley Smith (sail) 

Bill Chevalier (power) 

Walt Witchard (sail) 

Eric Gazow (power) 

Tom Brusco (sail) 

Mike Stansell (power) 

Roger Jorgensen (power) 

in membership, the Club will be able to 

pursue new activities and expand opportunities 

for all our members. 2007 will be 

another phenomenal year at PYC! 

We are in the process of installing new 

entry gates and security system at the 

Club and N row gate that will record who 

and when someone enters. Once the system 

is operational, new entry devices will 

be made available to our members. The 

Board is also considering several improvements/processes 

to better provide a safer 

environment for all. Security should always 

be every member’s concern so please 

do your share by not propping a gate open 

or loaning your access device to non members. 

A bit of inconvenience will go a long 

way towards making the Club grounds secure. 

A sub-group of this year’s and next year’s 

House and Grounds Committee worked 

together on a recommendation for the 

long awaited renovation of the bar area. 

The House and Grounds Committee recommended 

and the Board approved the 

design. In addition to rotating the Bar and 

opening up the area, a new seating area is 

proposed that will utilize the North end of 

the existing Ballroom. Hopefully you will 

start seeing progress soon, in and around 

the Club’s bar. 

Witches, Goblins, and a wide variety of 

other scary creatures graced the Club for 

the ‘Witches Ball’ hosted by the Entertainment 

Committee. The decorations 

were incredible, the band perfect, and the 

evening very enjoyable. 

Looking ahead at December’s Mix: 

• Two Cookouts are planned this month – 

a movie night (December 1st) and an Ornament 

Exchange Cookout (December 

15th). Ideally everyone brings a wrapped 

ornament and during the cookout, we will 

have an exchange. Typically it’s a vastly 

entertaining evening as members will have 

opportunities to change which ornament 

they finally have in their possession at the 

end. Also that night, the Christmas Ships 

will pass in front of the Club. 

• The Ladies’ Holiday Dinner - Christmas 

Memories Dinner (December 6th) 

will be a special evening for all our Ladies. 

The Clubhouse will be decorated for the 

Holidays and the evening dinner, Holiday 

festivities, and seasonal entertainment will 

greatly enhance everyone’s Holiday spirit. 

• PYC’s Annual Children’s Christmas Party 

(December 10th) always is tremendous 

fun for all children, grandchildren, and the 

child in all of us. 

• Hopefully this year we will not have snow 

for PYC’s Member Only Open House (December 

17th). This is a Club funded event 

and usually one of the largest turnouts of 

members throughout the year. Customary 

Dress for this event is coat and tie for men 

and cocktail or festive dress for the ladies. 

• PYC typically throws a spectacular New 

Year’s Eve party and this next one is no exception! 

Plan on being at the Club for all 

the festivities that will go long into 2007! 

• Men’s golf continues each Wednesday for 

the real devoted. Our Bridge Club meets 

on the 21st and each Friday Happy Hour 

starts at 3 PM. 

On behalf of Diane, and myself I’d like to 

close by thanking everyone who has made 

2006 outstanding – all the committee 

chairs and members, the Club’s 2006 Officers 

and Trustees, the Club Staff, and all 

our members! Our memories of this special 

year and the countless hours of everyone’s 

efforts to make the year unique will last our 

lifetimes – 

Thanks to everyone for Joining the 

Mix in 2006. 

Fair Winds and Following Seas! 

Doug Foster 

Commodore 

SV Monkey Bar


COMMODORE’S REMINDERS 

December 1, 8, 15, 22 and 29 


December 6, 13, 20 and12 27 










December (every Saturday in December) 

January 1 

January 3, 10, 17, 24 and 31 

January 6 through 14 

January 10 

January 11 

January 12 

January 12 

January 17 

January 18 

January 20 

January 26 through February 4 

January 26 

January (every Saturday except 20th) 

MAKE YOUR RESERVATIONS EARLY! 

24-Hour Event Reservation Line 503.735.0632 

Online Reservations www.portlandyc.com 

Happy Hours 

Movie & Cookout 

Men’s Golf 

Ladies’ Holiday Dinner 

Children’s Christmas Party 

Portlight Deadline 

Cookout—Ornament Exchange 

Holiday Open House 

Board Meeting 

Bridge Club 

Christmas—Club House Closed 

New Year’s Eve Party 

Lunch 

New Year’s Day 

Men’s Golf 

Portland Boat Show 


Second Thursday Lunch (New) 

Happy Hour with Music (New) 

Cookout 

Board Meeting 


Commodore’s Ball 

Seattle Boat Show 

Cookout and Movie 

Lunch 

MANAGER’S REPORT 

T 

he Holiday season is 

upon us again. Time 

is moving at an ever-increasing 

rate it seems. I can remember 

just writing about the start of 

the boating season. This December 

we will be busy with 

the Holidays as usual. The clubhouse will be 

decorated on Sunday December 3rd. The ladies’ 

Holiday dinner will be on Wednesday the 

6th, the Children’s Christmas Party Sunday the 

10th, ornament exchange cookout plus Christmas 

Ships on Friday the 15th, our Holiday 

Open House on Sunday the 17th and of course 

our New Year’s Eve Party on Sunday the 31st. I 

hope that you will be able to spend some time 

during the holidays at the Club. It is always a 

special time of the year for us. 

We have had some exceptional weather in November 

as I write this column. It is always a 

good idea to check and recheck your mooring 

lines and boathouse chains to ensure that you 

are ready to withstand extreme weather. Make 

sure that you are not running small extension 

cords with heaters that can cause a potential 

fire. 

HISTORIAN’S CORNER 

T 

he Centennial is just a few months 

away and the Club is getting ready 

for this historic event. Just think, in a century, 

we have gone from 13 members and a 9 by 12 

float to 365 members and a 12,000 square foot 

clubhouse. 

We, the History Committee (Carol Smith, Larry 

Snyder and me) would like to hear anecdotes 

about the Club. To accomplish this, we will be 

available during Saturday’s lunches. You can talk 

and we will take your verbal history and add it 

to PYC’s. 

The most important man in Club’s history is 

our first Commodore George B. Kelly who 

founded the Club and then purchased the land 

where our Club and moorage is located. We 

would like to honor him by a trophy or something 

else at our Centennial. PLEASE GIVE 

US YOUR SUGGESTIONS ON HOW TO 

HONOR HIM. 

Also, let us know of the oldest boats in the Club 

so that they can be honored at the Centennial. 

Walter A. Witschard 

PYC Historian 

NEW MEMBERS 

T 

meeting: 

he following new members were approved 

by the Board at the October 

Charles V. “Van” Mason is a Portland resident. 

He is a retirement/estate planner with the 

Householder Group in Beaverton. Charles has 

a Nordic Tug 42, the Mare Chiaro. 

Mark and Debbie Hall are also Portland residents. 

Mark is the owner of Hollywood Insurance/Eagle 

Root. The Halls have a Chris Craft 

37, the Northstar. 

At this time I would like to thank all of the volunteers 

who have put in time during the year 

to help us to have the best Yacht Club on the 

river. Doug Foster and all of his committees 

have worked very hard to make your experiences 

here special. I couldn’t do it without their 

help. Have a great Holiday season. 

Fred 

George & Marcia Brown are from Portland and 

sail a Martin 241 named Skookum Too. 

Douglas Larson & Janet Cline are from Vancouver 

and own a 43’ Cooper Prowler named 

Snow Hawke. 

Welcome aboard all! 

The New Members Committee: 

Larry and Lee Ann Snyder 

Peter and Lynda Hirst


MORE WITCHES’ BALL


BOO 

HIGH SCHOOL SAILING IN PORTLAND 

T 

he Witches’ Ball was where it was 

happening! Witches’ cauldrons 

were brewing, ghosts were howling and the 

evening was just plain spooky! Witches, 

warlocks, pirates and other scary characters 

roamed the dance floor as the music of 

“Pressure Point” filled the air. Tom Brusco, 

dressed as Merlin, caught everyone’s 

attention as he cast off demons with fiery 

magic. A fantastic dinner was served by 

Jim Hinkley and featured Witches’ ribs, 

Vampire repelling garlic mashed potatoes, 

squash medley, and Devil’s food cake. Diane 

Burns, Julie Hinkley, Barbara Peterson, 

Chase Brusco, Marianne Brusco, and Sharon 

Burns decorated the clubhouse in style. 

When the evening came to an end, all had 

enjoyed a great time dining and dancing 

through another great PYC event! 

Julie & Jim Hinkley 

BOAT SHOW AND PROSPECTIVE MEMBERSHIP 

W 

e are looking for teams of member 

volunteers to represent the 

Club at the 2007 Portland Boat Show, promoting 

the benefits of Club membership 

and introducing prospective members to 

join. We have an exciting activity program 

and will have fun in the process. Save the 

following dates: 

January 6 – January 14, 2007 

Portland Expo Center 

2060 N Marine Drive 

Portland, OR 97217 

Look for the sign-up sheet in the Flag 

Room. We would like to have two or three 

couples per day to fill the appropriate time 

slots. Please sign up early to secure your 

preferred day and time preference. 

High School Interscholastic Competitive Sailing alive in Portland! 

H 

igh School Interscholastic Competitive 

Sailing alive in Portland! 

Through the dedicated efforts of high 

school students and parents, a high school 

team racing program is now getting started. 

Please share this news throughout the 

Portland sailing community. 

The objective of the High School Sailing 

Program is to provide opportunities for 

high school students to compete in regional 

interscholastic racing events. In addition 

to promoting a life-long interest in 

sailing, the program teaches teamwork and 

the spirit of sportsmanship. Students new 

to sailing are welcome; a strong learn-tosail 

curriculum is an important part of the 

High School Sailing Program. 

The program is under the auspices of 

the national Interscholastic Sailing Association. 

Meets are held throughout the 

For those who venture to the Seattle Boat 

show, those dates are: 

Seattle Boat Show 

January 26 – February 4, 2007 

Seahawks Stadium & 

Exhibition Center 

1000 Occidental Ave S 

Seattle, WA 97134 

As a follow-up to our membership recruitment, 

please make note of the following 

events: 

• Prospective Member Open House 

February 18, 2007 

• Prospective Member Flotilla to 

Outstation March 10, 2007 

Northwest and now they will be coming to 

Portland also. The Willamette Sailing Club 

has graciously agreed to host this program 

providing boats and facilities. Outstanding 

coaches have signed on. 

For more information go to: 

www.willamettesailingclub.com/highschool/index.html 

or contact Rose Burris 

at highschool@willamettesailingclub.com 

Registration for the spring semester has 

started. Openings are limited this first year 

to 30 students but the number of openings 

is scheduled to increase to 40 in future 

years. 

Please support this important addition to 

the Portland sailing community. 

Mark McCuddy 

Sailing Chairman 

For our PYC members, who have assisted 

at the boat show in the past, plan to join 

us again this coming year. For our newer 

members, who have yet to experience the 

“selling” of our Club to the boating public, 

please consider signing up. Booth time assignments 

are generally three hours long. 

Members are compensated by admissions 

to the Show; however, parking is on your 

own. Be sure to check the board in the Flag 

Room for further details. 

Thank you for your interest, support and 

enthusiasm… 

Berkeley Smith (503) 543-8135 or 

Bob Bishop (503) 632-434 

GRAN PROMERIGGIO DIVERTIMENTO 

A 

slightly rainy Sunday afternoon 

proved to be a perfect backdrop 

to November’s scheduled Tour of Italian 

Wines held this year at the Club. Italian 

wine expert, Ken Buck, shared his 

experiences and knowledge of the Italian 

wine regions and the fabulous products of 

the centuries old vineyards. The 50 plus 

members and guests enjoyed tasting a wide 

selection of some of the finest Italian wines 

produced. Deanne Jones, one of PYC’s 

very dedicated Clubhouse Crew, prepared 

an extensive variety of exceptional Italian 

hor’s doerves that included fresh basil 

from her own garden. With Ken’s superb 

knowledge many members found the perfect 

wine to accompany their upcoming 

planned Holiday evenings. Viva Italia!! 

Doug Foster


COMMODORE’S ROAST

NOVEMBER 10 COOKOUT 

PAGE 7 | The Portlight | 12.06


Children’s Christmas 

Party 

December 10th, 2006 

From 1:30 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. 

Entertainment by “Penny the Puppeteer” 

and a special visit from Santa Claus 

$5.00 per person 

Make reservations soon at 503-735-0632 or www.portlandyc.com 

PYC Ladies Dinner 

Christmas Memories 

December 6, 2006 

Featuring 

Terry Brock and Colly Van Stiphout 

Presenting Premier Dance Troup 

Cocktails at 6:30 pm Dinner at 7:30 pm $23.00 per person 

Reservations Deadline Monday December 2th 

503-735-0632 or www.portlandyc.com


SUDDENLY ALONE 

S 

uddenly Alone is a course for 

cruising sailors, particularly for 

shorthanded cruising sailors, and most 

acutely for the less experienced member 

of a crew. The prospect of being suddenly 

alone is a daunting fear. 

Suppose, through injury, illness, or crew 

overboard, you were to find yourself suddenly 

alone. What would you do How 

would you handle it 

The Suddenly Alone curriculum, created 

under the auspices of the Bonnell 

Cove Foundation of the Cruising Club of 

America, is designed to give you the tools 

to prepare yourself to be suddenly alone. 

PYC 

BRIDGE 

After implementing the plans and going 

through the exercises taught at the seminar 

you will be prepared and “know you can 

handle it.” 

You’ll learn how to assess the situation, you 

will know your response options and priorities, 

and you will know how to implement 

your response. You will also learn preventive 

techniques to reduce the chances that 

you will ever be suddenly alone. 

The Suddenly Alone seminar is the first 

phase in completing the program. Each 

participant will leave the Suddenly Alone 

seminar with a course workbook which 

include a series of exercises necessary to 

NEW CALENDAR 

complete the course and build the skills 

and confidence to respond properly if Suddenly 

Alone. 

The North Sails loft is trying to gauge interest 

hosting the Suddenly Alone seminar 

created by North U. The course would be 

taught at the North sail loft or at PYC. 

If interested in the class contact me or Amy 

Poe at(amy@northsailsoregon.com) or call 

her at 503-282-4282. 

Mark McCuddy 

Sailing Captain 

Portland PYC Yacht Club 

Come have fun. 

Everyone is Welcome! 

Bring your lunch – Men Invited 


The Ballroom @ 10 am 

3PM to 7PM Every Friday 

N 

2 0 0 7 C a l e n d a r 

ancy Kirk has done it again. We 

have a new calendar with striking 

pictures of PYC life. It will be hard to get 

along without one. They will be handed 

out at the Members Annual Meeting and 

at the Holiday Open House, free. 

Extra calendars may be purchased at that 

time or later in the Ship’s Store. 

Like the roster, they will not be mailed due 

to mailing costs . 

Skip Nitchie 

Light Hors d’oeuvres 

You need to go to 

Happy Hour


Win Prizes for the Best Decorated 

Boat or Boathouse in your Row 

PYC is always a very festive place during the Holidays. The 

Holiday Magic is even greater when our Boats and Boathouses are 

illuminated by ‘Christmas Lights’! 

Diane and I will be decorating our boat with strings of colorful 

outdoor lights over the Thanksgiving weekend. So please join the 

fun by decorating your boat or boathouse!! 

We’d like all the boats and boathouses lit up by December 5th 

as the first Parade of Christmas Ships on the Columbia will be 

Thursday December 7th. This year we will give prizes to the Best 

Decorated Boat or Boathouse by Row – Judging to be in early 

December (weather dependent). 

We’d also like to light up each row at night by putting lights on the 

row’s handrail via a photocell or timer. If you have outdoor light 

sets you’d like to contribute to the effort, please drop them off at 

the club (C7s or C9s). If you’d like to donate some electricity to 

your row’s festivities or help staple the light strings, please let the 

office or me know. 

Let’s Light Up the River for PYC!! 

Doug Foster 

Commodore 

Light Up PYC for the Holidays 

Make Your New Year’s Eve 

A Stairway to Heaven in 2007 

Bring Your Friends and Celebrate 

New Year’s Eve at PYC! 

Dinner Catered by 

The Monarch 

• Seafood Sauté 

(Lobster, scallops, etc.) 

• Prime Rib 

• Chicken Monarch & 

all the trimmings 

New Year’s Day 

9am to Noon 

• Continental Breakfast 

• Libations & Leftovers 

• Football 

• Flu Remedies 

Live Music: Sandpoint 

Dress: 

• Casual 

• Semi-Formal 

• Formal 

Your Choice! 

New Year’s Eve 

7:00 Bar Opens 

7:30 Butlered Hors D’oerves 

8:30 Gourmet Buffet Dinner 

12:00 Midnight Champagne 

$60/person – Reservations by 12/26 

Commodore’s Ball 

Saturday, January 20, 2007 

Celebrating 99 Years of 

PYC Tradition! 

Bar Opens 6pm ~ Dinner @ 7pm 

Dancing to: 

Ron Ruedi & the Hurricanes! 

‘tis the Season for 

Portland Yacht Club’s Annual 

Holiday Open House 

Members Only—No Guests 

3 to 6 Sunday December 17 

Hors d’oeuvres and Champagne 

Business or Holiday Attire 

There is no charge for this event, but reservations 

must be made by noon, Friday, December 15. 

Reservations By: 1/16/07 

24-Hour Reservation Line 503-735-0632


COMING EVENTS 

SUNDAY MONDAY TUESDAY WEDNESDAY THURSDAY FRIDAY SATURDAY 

26 27 28 29 30 

Annual Meeting 

Leftover Cruise 

All Members 

Dec 

1 2 

Men’s Golf 

Cookout – Movie 

Lunch 

Happy Hour 

3 4 5 6 7 8 9 

Ladies Dinner 

Men’s Golf 

Happy Hour 

Lunch 

10 11 12 13 14 15 16 

Children’s Christmas 

Cookout and 

Party 


Men’s Golf 

Ornament Exchange 

Happy Hour 

Lunch 

17 18 19 20 21 22 23 

Holiday Open 

Board Meeting 

House 


Happy Hour 

Lunch 

Men’s Golf 

24 25 26 27 28 29 30 

Christmas Day 

Clubhouse Closed 

Men’s Golf 

Happy Hour 

Lunch 

Jan 

31 1 2 3 4 5 6 

New Year’s Eve 

Men’s Golf Happy Hour Lunch 

Party 

December 1st 

Enjoy the cookout with friends and family 

and then join us for the movie. 

The show starts at 8:15pm. It runs about an 

hour and a half. Get some popcorn, your 

favorite drink and enjoy the show. 

Niagara 

Marilyn Monroe is a shameless hussy who 

wears skin-tight sweaters and flirts with anybody 

in long pants. Joseph Cotton is her 

long-suffering husband who, nonetheless, 

remains obsessed with her. On a vacation 

trip to Niagara Falls, everything unravels; 

Marilyn and her lover plot to kill Cotton 

by flinging him over the falls, but their plan 

goes awry in this fine noirish thriller. This 

time around, Marilyn even … sings! 

This is the last movie for 2006. Let us 

know what you would like to see. Do you 

have a favorite film that fits our format 

Cliff and I are reviewing films for showing 

at the club. We are watching lots of 

movies. 

Our format: 

1. Not much longer than 90 min. 

2. Features boating, cruising on the 

water, cruise ship, sailing, pirates… 

Just about anything on the water. 

3. Upbeat and fun. Classics. 

4. Musical Comedy is a plus. 

5. Singing welcomed 

6. Nostalgia encouraged. 

7. Goes with popcorn, milk duds and 

your favorite beverage. 

8. Multiple short subjects are great. 

Steve Callihan 

Cliff Swan 

Email your suggestions: 

dreamgardenstudio@mac.com 

popopopopopopop 

Christmas Ships Cookout 


This will also be an 

Ornament Exchange Party 

So bring one to trade 

Bar opens at 3:00 

Food at 6:00 

Ships at about 7:30 

This cookout will be popular so get your 

reservation in early 

503-635-0632 

b 

Note: 

The Christmas Ships will also be by 

December 8th but no party is planned 

except the usual Happy Hour 

popopopopopopop

More 

New Members 

2005 - 2006 

David & Susan Wisdom 

Mark & Debbie Hall 

Tom & Sheila Winslow 

Pat Green 

At the Witches’ Ball 

Melvin Ostwalt & Christina Fletcher 

“What other luxury dealerships try to be” 

Special Discounts to 

Portland Yacht Club Members! 

633 NE Twelfth Avenue, Portland • Mon-Fri 8-7, Sat 9-6, Sun 11-6 

1-877-802-0091 www.vicalfonso.com 

anders@andersprinting.com 

 

 

 

 

 

www.andersprinting.com 503.232.5842 

Printed on 100% post consumer paper.

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