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SFBA August Newsletter
Salt Ponds | Membership
Response | Northbay News | 3rd Ave News
Salt Ponds Convert to Sailing Sites
From the San Jose Mercury News, 7/1/95
A new breed of winged creatures, windsurfers. will join the list of visitors to the mineral evaporation ponds in Union City, CA, in addition to several species of migratory birds. Martin Fisher, a spokesman for the ailing Pacific Salt Company, has announced that the salt ponds will open their gates to windsurfers as a measure to re- cover some of the company's operating costs. 'The ponds have been profitable until the mid eighties' says Fisher. 'But environmental regulations have progressively made them costlier to maintain, and we are now below the breakeven point. Without the windsurfers, we would have to return the ponds to the County.' But the County does not want them. A large number of birds rely on the ponds for feeding on their migratory route. The increased salinity of a pond's water supports a dense population of brine shrimp and other mollusks and insects, on which the birds feast. According to Larry Falk, a researcher at the University of Santa Clara, converting the ponds back to marshlands would have a serious negative impact on the bird population. 'We are talking about an ecological disaster of the proportions of Mono Lake' states Walk. 'The birds flew through here long before the settlers came. Thanks to the ponds, they have been scarcely affected by the loss of habitat. If we take the ponds away, they will perish by the millions.' Credit for the idea is to be given to a San Francisco windsurfer, Jerome LaBlatte. He initially contacted Pacific Salt to obtain permission to use the ponds as a speed site, in his quest to break the current sailing speed record. 'The ponds are great for speed sailing' says LaBlatte. 'The water is shallow and flat, and the increased buoyancy allows for a smaller board. I think it's great that Pacific Salt is doing this. It's good for everybody. Beginners will enjoy the safety and the shallow water. Experts will enjoy the speed. Even with production components they will be able to reach 35-40 mph on a good day. I am completely thrilled.'
Pacific Salt will charge fee for parking, for equipment rental, and for shower use. 'The shower is a necessity, unless it's Halloween and you plan on looking like a ghost for the rest of the day,' says Martin Fisher.
Membership Response Outstanding
Thanks to everyone who responded so quickly to our latest membership appeal. The response was really great, and we appreciate your support. Kristin has been depositing checks madly and Dave has been working to update the database with everyone's renewal status. To confirm your dues status, look at the mailing label on your newsletter. (We tried it In the last issue but the mailing house omitted that line on our labels. So, we'll try again this newsletter.) Your comments were very much appreciated. We sent copies of all the comments submitted on ballots and membership renewals to all of the SFBA board members. We hear you!! and we'll be doing our best to provide better service to the membership. (Hey, the last newsletter was on time!)
Kelly Wee
Northbay News!
The winds have been infrequent in the Northbay; however, it has been excellent for the beginning board sailors. Larkspur is the spot for you and your friends who are beginners. Please be conscious of the Golden Gate Ferry; each weekend for the past months, at least once a day, someone sails into the path of the ferry. This problem has been discussed many times over the past few years in this newsletter and at the beach. We who frequent Larkspur tell everyone in sight to stay out of the channel and the turning basin. A serious injury could cause our loss of access. PL£ASE !!! Watch out for the ferry. The best time for beginners to learn their basics is from 9:00 a.m. to noon. Come down and enjoy the light winds in the morning.
The afternoon hours have preduced a few great 4.0 - 5.0 days. Most of the regulars have been heading to the East Bay (Marina Bay, Berkeley and Pt. Isabella). The hardcore have been doing the dawn patrol to Rio and then back for the afternoon sessions in the bay.
Please remember to pay your '95 dues if you haven't done so al- ready. The Porto-Toilet, dumpsters for dean-up day, and the other costly items are provided by SFBA, but without your dues they wouldn't be. See you on the water.
Jeff Hickman
June Third Avenue Clean-Up a Big Success!
Thank you, thank you, thank you to all those hearty souls and financial angels who contributed to the Third A venue Cleanup and Ramp Sandbagging ; we couldn't have done it without you.
Officially scheduled to start at 8:30 AM, people were already there cleaning upat 8:30am. On Saturday, June 17, at least 40 windsurfers helped spread gravel, fill, sew, and place sandbags, and haul junk out of the muck. Thanks to Chris Klackle of the Windsurf, Bicycle, Snowboard Warehouse for providing breakfast sustenance and Peter Lui of Fete's Cafe pro- 'tided another great lunch bar-b-que. We also need to thank Steve Smith and Kevin Meyer of the Rio Vista Windsurfing Association for help with bag acquisition and general question answering. And yes, the famous Mud Man did return to successfully defend his junk- hauling title. Two water heaters. innumerable tires and most of a motorcycle were featured in this year's haul. The sawing circle corn- pared stitches and closed enough high-tech sandbags to fix the nearer ramp. Foster City paid for the sand and sandbags and hauled away the trash. The sandbags seem to work and hold up fine, al- though next time we need to fill the bags up more. We heard from and talked to reps from the Coast Guard about safety and rescue concerns. The only thing that didn't go off was the wind, but everyone had a good time working and socializing, and there have been plenty of windy days since then to reward our efforts. Currently we are waiting for Foster City to expand and pave the Third Avenue parking lot (Foster City says parking will be expanded from the cur rent level of 60 cars to 100 with overflow LEGAL parking along the re-routed access from Lakeshore Drive). While we wait for the expansion please park responsibly, there are a lot of windsurfers who dislike hiking with their gear. Thanks again for all your physical and financial help!
Gravel Donations Still Needed
SFBA paid $460 for the additional gravel that was put down at Third Avenue this year, plus a couple hundred for the new safety sign, and help with the food expenses. SFBA's meager finances cannot support this kind of outlay on an ongoing basis, so we're ask- ing for a ten dollar donation, in addition to your dues, Whelp cover the cost of these improvements, and the cost of the gravel we plan to put down next year. We collected $230 in cash at the event, and many have sent in donations along with their dues. Our thanks to those who have already contributed so generously. If you haven't yet, please chip in! It's the best investment you can make to ensure your windsurfing fun!
Season Closing Ramp Work Session?
We have plenty of sandbags left and it would be a great relief to the crowding at the launch ramp if we could fix the currently useless upwind ramp. There are no good weekend morning low tides in the near future, but there are some week- end late afternoon low tides (i.e. Sat. & Sun. October 7 & 8 and Sun. October 22). Would people be willing to work after a potentially big ebb tide session, or alternatively, be there on a no-wind day if the wind shuts down by then? If we get enough people, we will try to get something organized. Otherwise it will wait till next May or June. E-mail Randy Anderson (randy52@ix.netcom.com) or Bill Lennan (LafingGuy@aol.com) or post to Windtalk to let us know if you're into this.
Randy Anderson and Bill Lennan
Updated - 11/8/95