December Newsletter

RISAA December newsletter is now online. Read it here.

For Sale – Puma Avanti II $845,538 us

This Volvo Open 70, “Puma Avanti II” (Puma training boat)  is an ideal training boat for your future campaign, or for corporate work. She comes complete with a full VOR 70 sail inventory and containerized workshop. She gained the longest distance run in 24 hours by a monohull clocking 563 nautical miles, an average of 23.4 knots of speed! She is currently at the Newport Shipyard. Full Listing

Flying Santa

capecodtoday.com – NEWPORT, R.I.- Crew members and family at USCG Station Castle Hill in Newport, R.I., gathered during a visit from Friends of Flying Santa Saturday, Dec. 6, 2009. Photo courtesy of Brian Tague. More

Friends of Flying Santa is a nonprofit entity made up entirely of volunteers who will deliver more than 600 toys by helicopter to children of Coast Guard families from more than 50 units in six states this holiday season.

Diver sucked into powerful whirlpool off Maine

seacoastonline.com – EASTPORT, Maine (AP) – The U.S. Coast Guard says a recreational scuba diver was exhausted but unharmed after being sucked into a large whirlpool in the ocean waters that straddle the Maine-Canada boundary.

A Coast Guard official in Eastport says 34-year-old Kevin Steeves of New Brunswick was diving Monday morning with a friend off the New Brunswick shore when he drifted into the whirlpool known as Old Sow. Story

Tiverton mooring fee hike for late payers

heraldnews.com – A proposed plan would increase mooring fees in town if payments are received late.

According to Harbormaster David Vannier, the current plan calls for a flat $50 annual rate. The Harbor Commission would like to institute a $100 fee if payment is received after May 1.

“We are trying to make it more appealing if they pay early,” said Vannier. More

Jamestown Council opposes LNG

jamestownpress.com – In its first full meeting, the new Town Council this week tackled myriad subjects ranging from routine business to major issues. The council’s response to the proposed liquefied natural gas terminal, and long-term concerns about municipal funding, were among the more substantial topics on the table.

Council member Ellen Winsor, who has launched a working group of local professionals opposed to the LNG proposal, presented an overview of the group and urged the council to start drafting a resolution against the proposal as quickly as possible. More

Newport Council City opposes LNG

newport-now.com – NEWPORT, R.I. – The Newport City Council has renewed its opposition to a proposal that would bring liquefied natural gas (LNG) shipments into Narragansett Bay.

In a unanimous vote on Wednesday, the council approved a resolution introduced by Councilor Steven C. Waluk that expresses concerns over a plan by Weaver’s Cove Energy, LLC to construct an off-shore LNG terminal in the middle of Mount Hope Bay. Read on

Cape Cod Turtle hospital needs $200K amid strandings

capecodonline.com – BUZZARDS BAY – Work has slowed to a turtle’s pace on a new hospital at the National Marine Life Center.

Just as the cold-stunning season for sea turtles has reached a feverish pitch, with a dozen more Kemp’s ridleys sent to Boston in the past two days from Cape beaches on top of the record 24 earlier this week, work has come to a halt at the center. Story

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LNG Petition

Save The Bay’s online petition opposing the Hess LNG project is taking off. They’ve collected over 700 signatures in the first three days. The petition is online and takes only a few seconds to complete.

Find out more about the proposal and the possible boating restrictions here.

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Ship Spotting

Want to know what ships are arriving in Narragansett Bay?

narragansettbayshipping.com keeps track of them for you. Virtually 100% of all ship traffic in Narragansett Bay is documented on this site. When you read the log you will see the ship’s name and IMO #’s as clickable links. By clicking on either of them you will see either the actual ship mentioned on the log coming or going on the date noted.

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New submarine Missouri has R.I. at its core

projo.com – GROTON, Conn. – Rebecca W. Gates climbed to a platform next to the steel sail of the nuclear submarine SSN-780, wielding a bottle of champagne on a rain-soaked afternoon Saturday.

“In the name of the United States,” she proclaimed, “I christen thee Missouri. May God bless her and all who sail in her.”
Then Gates, wife of U.S. Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates, smashed the bottle against the sail. As champagne rained down on her, a ship’s horn blasted and the Navy band struck up “Anchors Aweigh.”

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Fairhaven firm buys Brownell Trailers

pbn.com – FAIRHAVEN – Brownell Trailers, a half-century-old Mattapoisett, Mass., company that pioneered the hydraulic boat trailer, has been bought by Integrated Machine LLC and relocated here. Financial terms were not disclosed.

Brownell was founded in 1954 as Brownell Boat Works Inc. and describes itself as the world’s largest manufacturer of boat stands. More.

Shopping? Get the 2010 J Class Calendar

Capture some of the J Class magic, both original 1930s and the new projects in the new desktop J Class calendar for 2010.

Each of the twelve pages features one of the yachts, offering a comprehensive view of the J Class fleet and the rebirth of the Class. Get you’re here.

Lifesaving station museum in Westport to open

heraldnews.com – One of the last stations built in the late 1800s by the Massachusetts Humane Society to aid shipwrecked sailors, the Horseneck Point Lifesaving Station will soon open to the public, reborn as a museum and visitor center.

The station’s use as a lifesaving station was short-lived. In the decades since it was decommissioned as such a station in 1913, it has served as a restaurant, summer home, ice cream stand and clam shack. The Westport Fishermen’s Association, which has leased the building from the state, has spent the last few years raising money and renovating part of it into a museum, with a borrowed surf boat, and part of it into a visitor center.

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Bermuda Race Survey Shows Satisfaction High

bermudarace.com – Now there’s another, more detailed survey of sailors that tells us more about who they are, what they like and don’t like, and the influence that the Newport Bermuda Race has on its two shore sites, Newport and Bermuda. This new survey was conducted in September 2009 by a Bermuda-based market research outfit, Research.bm, for the race’s co-organizers, the Royal Bermuda Yacht Club and the Cruising Club of America.

Three conclusions can be drawn from the 2008 Race survey. First, most sailors are very happy with the race, with satisfaction rates in the 90% range. Second, improvements can always be made. And third, the Newport Bermuda Race is an extremely large and consequential event for its two hosts, Newport and Bermuda. Full report.