“SOLENT SCC – A ROYAL REUNION” – A Joint Cruise between SCC and the Royal Lymington Yacht Club
How do you show 23 British guests from the Royal Lymington Yacht Club how to cruise on the Chesapeake Bay? Try this! A five-boat raft party with great hors d’oeuvres, a beach party complete with line dancing, a traditional cookout (with grilled hamburgers, corn on the cob, and tomatoes), a yacht club dinner with a Bluegrass band, a talk about how spices fit into Baltimore’s history, and a closing reception at the Gibson Island boathouse. And of course, we showed them how we cruise with strong winds (and without wind). These were some of the experiences the ten-day “Solent to SCC, A Royal Reunion” cruise offered. The cruise was the fifth sailing exchange between the two Clubs.
What does it take to plan and carry out such an event? Co-Cruise leaders P/C Joe Jackins and Julie Neaderthal and their team spent 18 months crafting the itinerary and assembling a team of 13 host boats, eight Port Captains with spouses helping, and five project coordinators, all of whom excelled at their events and tasks to make this one of the most successful joint cruises in its ten-year history. In addition, thirteen non-host boats attended the cruise. Who were our host boats?
Allure – Myra and Don Frick
Atsa – Leslie Johnstone and Hartley Gardner
Dayenu – Teena Grodner and Steve Horvath
Doc Holiday – Julie and Bob Neaderthal
Enterprise – Mark Baumel
Kolohe – Bill Coney and P/C Al Schreitmueller
Liberty – Joy and P/C Bob Young
Mi Sueno – Eileen and Rob Sutherland
Moonlight Sail – Susan and Marshall Steele
Myla – Julie and John King
Snow Dance – Karen and Jim Taneyhill
Starlight Express – Diane and P/C Joe Jackins
Syrena – DeSales and Fred Lohr
Day 1 – Welcome Dinner at the Annapolis Yacht Club – Petra Johnson, Port Captain A total of 95 Members and guests, including AYC’s Commodore Chris Bell, enjoyed cocktails and an excellent dinner at the Annapolis Yacht Club. During cocktail hour, we had a running slide show of cruises held in 2015, 2017, 2019, and 2023. P/C Jackins provided a history of how the relationship between the two clubs began. Then, Julie Neaderthal discussed her experience of hosting strangers who then turn into friends and her hope that hosts and guests would have the same experience on this cruise.
Derek Tilley, the RLymYC coordinator of this cruising event, presented each SCC host boat with a special rally flag for this event. These flags were flown at every anchorage and marina during the cruise. P/C Jackins presented a copy of Fred Hallet’s book, The Second Revolution (a book about the War of 1812), to both Peter Bell and Derek Tilley.
Day 2 – Tour of the Naval Academy – Cindy Hartman, Port Captain Unfortunately, the tour was cancelled when the Academy closed its gates to visitors due to an incident on campus. This was extremely disappointing. Port Captain Cindy Hartman had worked hard to credential 23 foreign nationals’ access to the yard.
Day 3 – Grays Inn Creek, Chester River – Julie King, Port Captain A traditional SCC “Big Boat Raft Party” was the highlight of this event. After the raft party, host boats rafted with non-host boats for dinner and a British/ American sailing trivia quiz.
Day 4 – Rock Hall – Beach Party – Bill Coney, Port Captain The next day, we traveled to Haven Harbor South in Rock Hall for an afternoon of live music, line dancing, a potluck dinner, and a group photo. Because the sunset that evening was so stunning, no one left the party until it was completely dark.
We also celebrated the 50th anniversary of British guests Peter and Mary Bell.
Day 5 – Race Day – Fairlee Creek – Jim and Karen Taneyhill, Port Captains – Hosts, Fred and DeSales Lohr An old-fashioned cookout at Fred and DeSales Lohr’s house provided our guests with a taste of the Eastern Shore. The menu included burgers, freshly picked corn on the cob, tomatoes, watermelon, and s’mores. Thanks to Linda and Rob Leigh, who assisted in purchasing the freshest Eastern Shore produce.
We also had a race enroute. Winners included: Starbird (1st), Moonlight Sail (2nd), and Relentless (3rd).
Day 6 – Baltimore Yacht Club – Teena Grodner, Port Captain Gusty winds made for a fast trip to the Baltimore Yacht Club (BYC). That evening, we enjoyed a happy hour and dinner, followed by a fabulous three-piece Bluegrass Band concert. SCC and the RLymYC exchanged burgees with the BYC Commodore.
Days 7 and 8 – Baltimore Harbor East Marina Small craft advisories did not prevent our boats from traveling the next day to Baltimore’s Harbor East Marina in the sportiest sail of the week. Upon arrival, SCC member Dan Kastor, a food scientist for McCormick Spices, spoke about the link between sailing and the spice trade. His discussion included McCormick’s famous Old Bay seasoning and the fact that McCormick sells their spices to the UK under a different brand name. Who knew? He also provided tastings of Sagamore Rye and other spirits seasoned with Old Bay. The next day, our UK guests had a lay day in Baltimore to explore as they wished, while the hosts had a well-earned rest.
Day 9 – Gibson Island Boathouse – P/C Patmore and P/C Jackins, Port Captains The cruisers made their way to Gibson Island for the closing reception. During closing comments, P/C Jackins declared that we met all three goals for the cruise:
-
To strengthen the relationship between our two clubs
-
To expose our British guests to activities that they would not normally experience on the Solent
-
To have lots of fun and lots of laughter while cruising the Chesapeake Bay.
Julie Neaderthal noted that the cruise exceeded her expectations. She also stated that the planning and execution by all involved was excellent. RLymYC’s Peter Bell and Derek Tilley thanked the SCC for an outstanding week and looked forward to our next shared adventure.
Thanks to everyone who helped make this cruise a huge success. In addition to the Port Captains and the members who hosted our British guests, many others performed duties behind the scenes (or in front, such as our greeters Nancy Shaffer, Laura Matien, and Julie King). Special thanks to P/C Steve Sharkey for IT coordination, John Murray for docking coordination and cruise book editing, Joan Williams for the welcome bags, Kent Shaffer for the Welcome Dinner slide show, Dan Kastor for the spice presentation, and P/C Al Schreitmueller for photographing our adventures. We could not have done it without you!
P/C Joe Jackins Julie Neaderthal Co-Cruise Chairs