It's not palm trees and Pina Coladas at CCB...What do we do in the winter?

You wouldn't believe how many times I have been asked the question... "what do you do full time or in  the winter?" While most people scrape off their cars, shovel their walks, put on their duck boots and trudge their way to work every day, dreaming of sunlit beaches, glistening waves and soft westerly breezes, I do not.

While I don't have a daily grind, a clock to punch or a boss to hover, (yes I do have one of the best jobs in the world)  I also dont sit idly by all winter readying my PFD for the first fleck of spring time.

As any sailing pro will tell you winter is often one of the busiest times of the year. Oh sure some bleach blond, jet set types scurry off to Saint Somewhere with the snow birds and others take to the slopes to carve up the winter days, I do not, and can not, for there is way too much going on.

1rst up, Swimming for a $1- yes that's right , just a $1. With our partner The Shehan Center in Bridgeport, we're committed to driving down the 80% of kids that don't know how to swim in the Cities of Connecticut. Just yesterday we found out that child deaths by drowning are the lowest they have been in decades. We'd like to think that that is because we are just so darn good at our jobs, but that probably isn't true.

Odd's are, numbers are down now, NOT because more kids know how to swim, but rather more kids dont have any place to access the water and instead spend their days in front of TV's, PCs, Wii's, X-box's, I-Pads, and all the other sedentary devices that occupy the youthful minds and times these days resulting in the highest rates of childhood obesity ever.

 Every Wednesday, we hit the pool, with dozens of kids from across the region and give them  a safe, affordable, fun way to learn about water safety and exercise while learning a important life skill. That comes with a whole bunch of costs, work and time that we sure would rather be using to sun ourselves in the BVIs, but then who would do what we do if we did?

Next of course, Beach Clean Up 2012! Ok so the ground is frozen and the winds whipping, who wants to be on a beach in New England right now, right? Well not us either- its cold. But that doesn't mean that in two months time, the weather wont warm and the millions of migratory birds, fish and people will not come back to Connecticut to once again enjoy the great spring weather we have and bountiful estuaries that these species come back to each year to procreate and populate. But before they do, we have to get in their and clean the beaches.

The State DEP, local conservation organizations and local governments restrict access to many of our estuaries, islands and beaches after April 15. The reason: we have to protect the birds. Beach cleaners would run the risk of crushing newly laid eggs and hatchlings if we waited until the weather was balmy and beautiful to get in and clean the beaches. Besides that, grasses grow so fast in late April (probably why birds decided to lay eggs there and why we cant see them) that plastics, paper and other trash that collects on the beaches over the rest of the year, becoming impossible to reach, collect and sequester.

 If we dont hit the beaches by March 15 and finish by April 15, we often lose the chance to catch the trash before it winds up in the water column and makes it way to open sea to kill the very birds that come to Connecticut to mate- ironic huh? And cold and uncomfortable, but important.

We use the winter months to engage volunteers, fundraise, get permissions, create great relationships like the one we have with Fairfield U who dispatch at least 250 volunteers each year to clean beaches and much much more. You try to clean 100 miles of beaches starting March 15 with no prep, no insurance, no permission and no help- Winter is busy busy busy- and when we're done, we get to enjoy cleaner waters to sail, paddle, motor, swim and fish in come summer- makes sense huh?

And then there's the summer- We plan great things to do every summer from our Maritime Explorers Program, to our Sailing For Adults Classes to our new Adult Racing League to our Membership Program that allows you to access our fleet and Sound anytime you want 24-7-365. To do that we're in negotiations with The City of Bridgeport, The University of Connecticut, The DEP and The City of Groton to put in docks, gain access to the water, come up with agreements on fees, permissions and insurance. That's a full time job in itself and once May 1 hits, you expect to hit the waves dont you? You dont want to hear, sorry we're waiting on this person to give us permission or that organization to give us the ok, or build the docks, ready the fleet, launch the moorings .yadda yadda yadda- it all has to be done by May 1 or it's game over for the season. That's why we work all winter.

So when when the clock strikes 12 on New Years Eve's we better be well on our way for March 15, April 15, May 1, June 30 and all the other spring deadlines we have hit each year or we have some very unhappy kids, adults, birds, fish, boaters, swimmers, fisherman, kayakers and all the other people we aim to serve each year and why we need your help in winter to keep the lights on, keep the ball rolling and keep the dollars coming in.

Remember, on these days when winter seems so robust and Spring so far off, CCB is not dormant. We have not headed South with the Plovers. We're not sleeping in, watching you clean off your car, sipping coffee or pulling the covers up over our heads- The hard working staff, board and volunteers at CCB are working together as a community to build a better Connecticut for everyone. So please donate today and help us better serve you when the sun shines this Spring.

Adult Racing League and CCB in 2012- Become a Member today!

BECOME A MEMBER TODAY!

The New Year is here and though it is cold and the winter is just now starting to ramp up, spring is only two and half short months away and we have some major plans at CCB. Of course I hope you caught the blog yesterday about our 2012 Month long Beach Clean Up in March where we hope to rid as many as 100 miles of Connecticut Coastline of Plastics that would otherwise work their way into the world's  five oceanic garbage patches. And to motivate the not-so-environmentally conscious, I hope you saw the Video we posted to Youtube- (if you missed it, it's up above)- where we talk about the need and why we do what we do at CCB.

Just last month we posted another video about Membership to our Youtube Channel and now we are working on a program that will hopefully bring the boating public to CCB in a big way finally solving the age old problems- where do I learn to race? and How do get good crew to race my boat?

As boaters we have known all to well both sides of this problem and as a public access program we are in a unique place to fix it!

Here is a write up our own Taylor Walker, of Team Chance and I put together describing the concept and the  mission of the CCB Adult Racing League- think of it as Thursday Night Softball meets sailing for the 25-40 adult age group. Here is it for your perusal:

" Connecticut Community Boating Adult Racing League

Objective: To share the sport of sailing through race training and friendly competition on board STEALTH,  an Evelyn 26.

Notes:

1)      The Adult Racing League will be sharing STEALTH with the kids of Team Chance racing. This team (kids or adults?) which races very competitively on Wednesday nights in the Mystic River Mudheads Association has shown great promise for the future. With their basic sailing on Monday evenings and race training on Wednesday nights the team will continue to develop during the summer.


2)      As a Sponsor of the Adult Racing League, Focus 421 and OMAX Ultra Pure Omega 3 will provide all team members with a team long sleeve tech shirt and one month of either eye or heart product. (outstanding!!!)

CONCEPT: This will be a pilot program starting this Spring where we gather a group of 8-10 adults to join in a model of shared learning centered around adult big boat racing. With success it will be our aim to expand to as many as three teams in 2012 and beyond for 2013. Ideally we would have multiple teams in a geographic region so that the team may elect to spar against each other to improve the over all skill of the teams and sailors involved

Plan:

                Phase 1: An organizational meeting for the first Adult Racing League Team based in Eastern CT will take place in late winter and we will begin in the early spring with shared learning by covering the basics of a boat campaign. With the assistance of Taylor Walker, Patrick Murphy, Kyle Fast and Jay Greenfield the team of young and old professionals from the CT Shoreline will develop a work list and budget for prep work for the season. They will also work developing a practice schedule one night a week. Coached by a prequalified safety officer the team will depart with the vessel and practice everything from tacking to complex spinnaker sets and douses. The team will learn how communication, team work and delegation are the keys to success in big boat racing. Arriving back at the dock the team will enjoy a small BBQ and a few beers to wrap up the evening with a chalk talk.

                Phase 2: Once the safety officers agree that the team is ready, they will be given the opportunity to compete in weekend events. Team members will pitch in the cash necessary for the entrance fee and begin racing in the eastern Long Island Sound weekend events. These events are complimented with a casual cocktail party and everyone has a great time.

                Phase 3: Each individual sailor will, once demonstrated proficiency has been achieved,be recommended to a privately owned boat and crew near them which they may chose to join and race on in Wednesday nights to further  their development as a sailor. Results: Our goal would be to develop skilled big boat adult sailors to satisfy the ongoing need for crew by privately owned vessels while at the same time satisfying the interests of adults ages 18-40 who might otherwise not be afforded the chance to expand and grown their knowledge of sailing and racing. This will help to garner the support of big boat owners and grass roots adults at the same time and raise membership numbers and dollars to continue to fund youth boating, swimming and sailing initiatives as well as public access to the Long Island Sound, a mission that is core to the cause of CCB.

Cost: 

The cost to members of the league is simple. Be an active paying member of CCB, the low cost of $35/month is easy and affordable. All League Participants are required to be annual sustaining members to Connecticut Community Boating and take a Sailing For Adults Course with a CCB Instructor prior to being recommended to service on private vessels. . Additional costs such as boat improvements above the basic  requirements of operation, entry fees,  food and beverage  and any and all other fees associated with the Adult Racing League will be incurred by the team based upon the schedule and cost of seasonal maintenance.o 

Connecticut Community Boating Beach Clean Up 2012

Connecticut Community Boating has long since proven our commitment to waterfront access, our belief that no child should be denied access to the water and that everyone deserves the right to enjoy a day on the water. But our local efforts do play into a larger picture and this spring, it is our aim to bring that the larger aspects of what we do to light. 

There are five gyres in each of the five Oceans of the world that now each play host to an island roughly the size of Texas and bigger, some 90 feet deep, made purely of trash and plastics. When you have cleaned as many beaches as we have at CCB, you realize, that that is not some far off problem that bears no impact on me and has nothing to do with me. As a State is it is "WE" that have caused the problem. Our Oceans team with trash that comes from local streets, local sewers and local trash cans. Connecticut's shores are choked with plastics, styrofoam, straws, bags, cups, tires and all sorts of disgusting nasty things that every day work there way into the watershed and find their way to the world Oceans. Check out a Video we prepared about this very important issue.

Think of the scene when Tom Hanks finds a porta pottie shell in the 2000 movie "Cast Away" and uses it as a spinnaker to make his way home.  Although it saves him and reminds him of "Bakersfield!!!", how do you suppose that giant chunk of plastic made it from America to the South Pacific? And what do you think happens to that straw that washes off the beaches of the Great Salt Marsh at Stratford into the Sound, out the East River, into the Gulf Stream, along the coast of Africa down around Cape of Good Hope and into the South Pacific where a small fish, bird or turtle consumes it on its way back north. Now multiply that times 7 Million and you can understand why this needs our attention. 

CCB is all about trying to make our local shores a nicer place to play, more affordable for all and revive the asset that we as a State enjoy. But how can we begin to want to enjoy it when it is filled with trash and pollution that is killing the world's ecology? So that is why, we start each year with help from Fairfield U, local churches, schools and many other community partners by cleaning the beaches. Sure it would be nicer to do it in the warm weather, but you cant do it in the fall or summer. The grass grows over the trash and the birds come in to nest. So we do it every spring in the hopes to raise awareness of the problem and do our part to stem the flow of trash into the Sea. 

But it cant be done without insurance, phones, volunteers, bags, gloves, gas, boats, and about a hundred other things that cost money. We need dollars from everyone to make this herculean effort happen. Please donate today and mark your calendar for March because Beach Cleanup Month 2012 is coming. Thank you. 

Hometown Hero- Not so sure about that one

I received a call yesterday from News 12 telling me that I have been nominated as a "Hometown Hero". Of course I was honored, and a little shocked. I have been fighting for CCB for the last four years with little fanfare and even less income. Not that I started out needing the former or expecting the latter.  But just now, when I have started embarking on other ventures in distant waters to keep myself afloat, having found living aboard in a landfill for the last four years less than romantic, I get a heart warming call from the local news telling me someone has noticed and called me a hero.

I am no hero. Heros save lives, champion lost causes and either die or win, stand on the decks of a rolling battleship and say things like, "Damn the torpedoes, full speed ahead". I just want to make my my home state a better place to live, work and play.

 I've never been shot at, directly (although there were a couple of near misses in the landfill from duck hunters and the occasional target shooter). I have not been successful in my cause, CCB is far from done. And my charging call is "No child left ashore", doesn't have the grit of a seasoned old fighting sailor does it? I don't even have a tatoo!! No sir I am no hero.

But I AM for my home, my state and my waters. And I will not quit until we are successful. And maybe just maybe someday, I'll get paid to do what I love: build docks, teach kids and sail boats. That may not be too heroic and I wasn't sure I would keep flogging this pony much longer having hit the wall too many times. But when one of your neighbors thinks enough to call the local TV station and say "You gotta meet this boating guy" and they come out listen to you opine about how great it could be if we just had few more dollars. That's the good stuff. And it gets even better when one of your kids says, "That's MY Coach" and another person says "Great Job Chris, You deserve it".

For the first time in my life I had over 22 likes and 10 comments on a Facebook Post I wrote. When I saw that number I felt like some kind of rock star tweeting about my breakfast and everybody loving it, only it was my post saying I am Hometown Hero. For that one moment I felt like I could have been Brad Pitt, without money, fame or good looks.

So maybe I am not a hero, but it's nice to be treated like one. And when you can look at yourself in the mirror  and say, I am doing this thing because it needs to be done and my neighbors deserve it, you know your on the right path.

So thank you to whomever nominated me, and thank you to everyone who wished me well, congratulated me and otherwise treated me nice today. Thank you to News 12 for telling my story and giving CCB a leg up. And thank you for taking the time to look at the story- that I think shows one thing if nothing else, I need to lose 10 pounds before next summer. Cheers!

P.S.
Here is the story if you missed it.

The Master Plan- just in time for fall sailing

You may have asked yourself this week on one of these  beautiful pristine summer days, "What happened to CCB?" Well I'll tell you. Despite an apparent summer hiatus, CCB has been going strong this summer with a new board of directors, new programs at Mystic River Yacht Club and at the Shehan Center, the addition of Team Chance and now, after much ado, at the start of the fall season, approval from the City of Bridgeport to begin work on the downtown waterfront so that we may begin to restore public access to the waters of Long Island Sound. 

The Master Plan- It may seem ambitious but this is
master plan for the future of CCB 

There is much to do this season, when we hope to raise the funds to move "Jumbo" downtown, move the Fairfield U Sailing Stags to a new home for the 2011 Fall season, teach hundreds of kids to swim for $1 a lesson and restart the maritime explorers program at the Cardinal Shehan Center, build an open space complete with kayaks, row boats and moorings for public use, have the largest clean up at the Stewart B. McKinney Wildlife Refuge ever and much much more.

To reach these goals, we're doing something we've never done before- offering two for one memberships- when you support CCB with a individual, discount or family membership this fall. we'll extend you all the benefits it offers until January 2013. That's free sailing aboard any of our boats (still in service and with more to come soon we hope), discounts on classes, and of course the knowledge that you are helping to rebuild the waterfront of Bridgeport, so that everyone gets a chance to enjoy our greatest natural resource.

So for the balance of the year after labor day, open sailing will be serve-yourself at the CCB Boat ramp and with luck, downtown as the facility comes online. We'll be hosting classes aboard our 34' flagship on Thursdays from 530- sunset and Saturdays 9 til Noon. We'll also be running a chase boat for racing in the FJ's for anyone wishing to participate on Saturdays from 12-4.

On Saturday September 10th we will host a rigging day at the CCB Boat Ramp to get the boats in order for a big Fall Season. Please mark the date on your calendar and come on down and lend a hand and put the "community" in Community Boating.

For now that's all- we've got big plans ahead so help us set sail by donating or becoming a member today! Thanks!

Get your membership here

Fish Stories

Lucky Fisherman wishes to remain mum on world record catch

It's not often that a sea monster is pulled from Long Island Sound. When I was a boy in Stratford,  all the papers were abuzz when a 12-foot shark was pulled in off Milford. Years later, I had fears that my boat killed a 1000-pound leatherback turtle that washed up on Stratford Point. Last year a manatee played for days in Milford Harbor. And just this past winter I tracked a harbor seal that was sighted for weeks playing off the beaches of Fairfield County.

We know there are sea monsters out there in Long Island Sound. But it's not often that one so rare, so important to the local economy, so important to the health of our greatest natural resource and such a success story that heads across the country are turning. That is of course if the lucky fisherman would see it that way. Alas he does not.

Here's what we think we know- Sometime between 9 and 10 PM last night off Westbrook, CT, one Greg Meyerson hooked into a fish that would change the way we look at Connecticut and Long Island Sound. When daylight broke this morning and Jack's Shoreline Bait and Tackle opened, Mr. Myerson walked in with a 81.88 LB Atlantic Striped Bass to register and weigh the leviathan. That's what we think we know. Then things got crazy.

Greg Myerson displays his 81.88 LB Striper after weigh in this morning

The internet became wild with the news that the biggest striped bass since Al McReynolds caught his 77LB Striper off New Jersey in September 1982 was caught in Connecticut of all places. The name "Al Stromski" and photos of a man with a huge striped bass sitting in the bed of his truck began floating around. This was great news.

The local media sparked interest and the search for the fish and the fisherman began.

Now it seems the smoke is clearing and the truth is now coming out. "Al Stromski" is in fact Greg Myerson. The fish, yet to be certified as a world record holder, appears to be the largest ever caught. And Mr. Myerson would rather keep the great news to himself.

But this isn't about a man and his privacy. Or for that matter even the biggest and best fish ever caught. Some might say, if he didn't want the world to know he should have just thrown it back. Well maybe so. But then Connecticut would have been robbed of some of the best news to come out of the Sound in generations.

Long Island Sound is Connecticut's greatest natural resource. It is the reason we flourished as an industrial economy for the last 150 years and it is the reason we will flourish in the next 150 years. Not because of manufacturing or shipping, but because Long Island Sound is becoming one of the best kept environmental secrets in the country. It is a boaters paradise. From sailing to water skiing, paddling to fishing, the Sound abounds with delights for everyone and everyone deserves the right to enjoy it.

This fish shows the amazing return of the striped bass to our local waters- at one time, you were not allowed to keep a striper for fear that the population had collapsed. Now fisheman regularly pull 30 and 40 pound lunkers from the surf. And with the grand daddy of them all coming ashore today, we can be very certain that the population is not just back, but back to levels not seen since the 60's. Lunker bass were once so common, folks didn't even flinch when an 60-pounder came ashore. Now they are back and if it does pull the record into Connecticut's waters, we can be sure that this will get world attention.

Mr. Myerson may not wish to be a fishing celeb and really who could blame him. But the fish is what's important. Connecticut is fast becoming a birder's dream. And with seals returning, we can be sure sea life is on the rebound too. But when the world's largest fish is pulled from our waters that puts us in line with places like the Great Barrier Reef, George's Banks and the Gulf of Mexico. And fisherman and boaters alike will come from the world over to try and land a world record holder at a time when we need people to come to Connecticut in a big way.

So even if the fisherman may not want to be known, the news of the world's largest fish being caught in Long Island Sound must be heralded from the rafters. Because it is a sign that we're doing something right with our waters, have something great to offer the world and proof that Long Island Sound can benefit every Connecticut, New York and Rhode Island resident.

Congrats Greg- thats a heck of a fish!

The Biggest Fish I ever caught- also a potential world record holder that wasn't- a 239 Big Eye Tuna- mishandled and ineligible for the record 

The Summer is in full swing, but soon enough...

Buxton  now enjoys a short wade in her pool 

A small child sits on a dirty curb in 90-degree heat. The smile on their face belies the heat, humidity and dust. All those young eyes see at this moment is the chilly drip slowly making it's way past their tiny fingers before it strikes the dirt below; to be feverishly devoured by the panting pup at their feet who now stares at this child with ultimate commitment to both his safety and that of the strawberry ice cream in his hand.

This is a scene played over and over during these hot dog days of summer. And one that we relish every winter when the drifts of snow build cold against the window. But summer is here now so forget about the cold winds ahead and pour yourself another ice tea and enjoy the heat.

Because in the coming weeks, those ice cream cones will vanish and the smell of freshly sharpened pencils mixed with the stale smell of school bus fumes will take the place of that smiling child on the curb. That's at least what I plan to do.

You see this summer for me, was the first one in a very long time, when I got to be that little boy once again, with a dog by my side, eating a strawberry cone on the curb. Thankfully Buxton, who digs Strawberries as much as I do, didn't complain at the meager share she was offered as it seems now that I am grown, I can manage the drips a whole lot better than I could when I was 8.

But back to my point- I got to enjoy summer this year in way I haven't for too many years. I got my beach week at the Atlantic, I got my garden time, I got my swim in the lake and I got my lemonade in the shade in 90-degree heat.

My past years since starting CCB, I have had my fun. Seeing smiling faces at the helm of a boat for their very first time is incredibly rewarding. But the work and effort it took to get them afloat is a seven day a week venture and leaves little time for summer dreaming. Who's gonna pay the staff, how do we get them bussed to the water, where is the next insurance payment and did I return that call to the donor? All that worry left little time to relax under a shade tree- even if we did have a shade tree in the landfill which we really didn't.

Now I am not saying, I didn't love every minute sharing the sport of boating with a whole bunch of wonderful people. I am just saying, all that sharing left little time for me. And while I missed the kids, I missed the water and I missed the fun we all had together last year for Pirate Day, Dead Puppet Theater and Capture the Schroeder, I didnt miss the work and the worry.

Well now it's time to go back to work. There are thousands of  kids across Connecticut who deserve a chance to hit the waves. Thousands of family's who've never had the opportunity to quality family time afloat. And there are beaches everywhere that need a mess of  enthusiastic volunteers.

Now that the summer has reached it's zenith and the powers that be have given us go ahead sign, we're kicking into gear at CCB and starting work on a major plan to build a community facility in Bridgeport, and hopefully Groton and who knows where else in Connecticut. We'll build boating facilities everywhere so that every man, woman and child gets the chance to harness the wind and enjoy our greatest natural resource. I envision public boat fleets across Connecticut, as common as public pools and baseball diamonds. Community boating is the future for waterfront recreation and there is no reason why every community can't enjoy a fleet eliminating the burden of personal ownership and providing the shared enjoyment for all.

I apologize if you missed CCB and boating in the summer of 2011. But I ask for your support for the summers ahead. I ask you to think about the kids who stand on a beach and look out and yearn for exploration and adventure. I ask for you to think about what Long Island Sound means to you the next time your enjoying a frozen treat by the sea. I ask for you to join our effort, help create facilities for children and families everywhere and help share our message. The Cause of Connecticut Community Boating may have been on summer vacation, but now that we're back, we hope you'll join our cause.

Thanks!

PS- Big thanks to the good folks at Higgin's Crab House in OC, Maryland- My first crab feast with the family in over 20 years was wonderful!