WHAT'S GOING ON THIS SEASON!               .

 
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1) Our next "In Town" social event will be THIS FRIDAY night 3/18/05 at Dave and Buster's - Gwinnett.   Dave & Buster's will be hosting another Comedy Performance night at the Gwinnett location starting at 9 pm.  This will be our fourth Comedy night out and the place was nearly packed last month!  Reservations are FIRST-COME because we can only block out so many seats, so if you're coming, you better shout quickly. Since the show starts an hour later than last month, come join us for awesome deserts, but if you're having a late dinner you'll want to arrive early so you can have dinner in the restaurant and be done by the time the show begins.  The door cover is just $5 making this one incredible deal! Dave & Buster's is also one of the few places to play a game of pool in a smokeless environment.  In the past we've really enjoyed these events and expect a good turnout so call us early to reserve your seat!  Dan Fontaine will be the host of this month's comedians Tim Miller and headliner Marshall Chiles. 

2) I have some good friends that have an open cabin on a Lagoon 410 catamaran in the British Virgin Islands July 1st thru July 9th this summer.  Interested candidates should be fun loving partiers and not budget minded. Hey, after all this is the British Islands! The cabin would be $1,295 which is certainly reasonable but be prepared to wine and dine!  The catamaran will team up with another 3 couples on a 50 foot powerboat affording access to some areas where the cat may not navigate. Plans are to spend a night ashore in St Thomas before and after the charter period to facilitate flights back to the states. If you're interested I can put you in touch with the trip Captain for more details.  Last chance!

3) Here's my tip for March; REEFING is not for sissies!  The weather is always a challenge but the past few weeks have brought some strong winds. In controlled training sessions, we will often allow the boat to become overpowered or temporarily out of control in an attempt to allow students to experience the various conditions for later reference and judgment. Often times the difference between "In Control" and "Out of Control" may be a simple shift of the crew, sail trim or helm change. Our training fleet has the ability to sail in winds in the high teens or beyond depending on the boat, but it's not always about the seaworthiness of the vessel that's the issue.  What many sailors often fail to understand is that the sails are designed with specific weight fabrics that have a range of safe operation wind speeds.  Reefing may minimize the heel and improve steerage handling, but the portion of the sail that is still in use can be stretched beyond it's operational wind pressure load range. Pushing a boat to heel excessively can be exciting to some and terrifying to others, but the real harm may come to the sails and the life of their use.  The increased drag of excessive heeling causes the boat to slow down and creates excessive weather helm. You may have one crew member that enjoys it but everyone else onboard may feel they are defying gravity as the people on the windward side get further away from the water and the people on the leeward side start to inch closer.  This is usually the point when mutinies occur often announced by a crew or family member yelling, "I'm never sailing with YOU again".  The prudent sailor (i.e., one who wants company the next time he/she goes sailing) reefs early and deep-"The time to reef is when you first think about it".  If the wind is blowing beyond the range for the sails, a different tact is needed; pack it in!

Our SPRING MADNESS event begins April 1st.  NO this isn't a cruel April Fools Day Joke! Attend any ground school class during April and your next ground school taken within 30 days will be $30 off!  Attending a third ground school class within the same 30 day period will be $30 off plus receive a coupon for a HALF OFF our FUN sail on one of our spring or summer independent 2-hr sailing sessions on Lanier.  Take a 4th ground class within the same 30 day period and you get the $30 off plus a FREE FUN sail coupon. 

This is a limited special and only applies to NEW booking reservations made before the end of March for classes occurring during April.  

April    1st ground school class                                    $179. 
            2nd ground school class within 30 days            $149.
            3rd ground school class within same 30 days    $149 plus HALF OFF FUN sail coupon!
            4th ground school class within same 30 days    $149 plus FREE FUN sail coupon!

The Summer Adventures Expo

This past weekend Windsong was a charter exhibitor at the first annual Summer Adventures Expo conducted in Suwanee's newest park "Town Park".  Adrenaline Climbing boldly hosted the county's first sports and recreation exclusively expo and the turnout was impressive.  The weather was wonderful and everyone had a great time.  The prizes and entertainment throughout the afternoon was accented only by the excellent display of kites and great wind for the day's events.  Windsong will be presenting an excellent sailing oriented program at Adrenaline Climbing during their forthcoming regional climbing competition. 

If life has you climbing the walls, you really should be doing it at Adrenaline Climbing!

ADRENALINE CLIMBING
460 Brogdon Rd. Suite 100, Suwanee, GA 30024
770.271.1390  FAX: 770.271.1335
www.adrenalineclimbing.com

"For whatever we lose, it's always ourselves we find in the sea"
 

FOR SALE!  GOT SOMETHING TO SELL?  Try Our For Sale New Site Free.
Although we intend to limit items for sale to our student members, we will consider items submitted from the general public as well.  We'll play it by ear to see how it goes.  Just remember to let us know when the item is sold so that we can keep our web site current.  So here's the link Items For Sale.

GOT A BUSINESS YOU WANT TO ADVERTISE?
As a suggestion from one of our students, we're starting a Student Business Links web page. If you work for, own or are a principle in a business or hobby that you'd like to have included on this free links page, send us your web address and a brief description about your business and services. Any special discounts extended to fellow students should be mentioned as well.  Students would certainly like to do business with one of their own over a perfect stranger, so let us know about your business, service or hobby.

I WANT TO CHARTER A BOAT, BUT NOT SURE I KNOW ENOUGH.
At Windsong we are very responsive to student suggestions.  We are here to serve you and your needs and continue to rapidly implement ideas offered by our students.  Most every week during the summer we offer "Fun Sails" for advanced students who want to charter a boat by themselves, but aren't sure about their abilities to do so. Fun Sails do have a Captain aboard for safety purposes, but what you do and where you go is up to you and the others aboard your outing.  These are not "Instructional" outings but could include some instruction if requested.  You are on your own to strut your stuff or merely to kick back and just enjoy some time on the water without all the "Tacking" and "Gibing" every two-seconds.

"There is something about going to sea. A little bit of discipline, self-discipline and humility are required."

Warning To Returning Students: If you don't already have outings booked through December you should seriously consider doing so now.

HATE THAT SPAM?

Ever noticed that all official Windsong emails have the word "WINDSONG:" in the subject? That's so that you can use a filter or rule to intercept and redirect Windsong emails into a dedicated folder based upon this trait.  That way we won't ever wind up in your SPAM folders and accidentally deleted.  This is actually a two-way street.  Any replies from you will automatically contain the same identifier in the subject and we can prevent it's accidental deletion as well.  So any emails from you to us should contain the words "WINDSONG" in the subject or you risk censure by our anti spam software.  Daily we receive just over 400 SPAM emails and find the use of filtering software imperative.  Don't risk loosing our emails, filter TODAY!

	Friends don't let their friends go through life without experiencing sailing! Invite someone to join you today!

PLEASE, REACH OUT AND TOUCH US,                 We're listening!!

Many times students' suggestions are implemented on the spot!  We pride ourselves in our customer service and attention to the needs of our students. If you have thoughts or ideas, drop us a line or give us a call.  All things are possible; you simply need to ask. 

Thanks!
I'd like to take this opportunity to thank all our students for their loyal support through the season(s) and encourage everyone to bring one new friend along each year as you sail.  As we grow and expand our operation, we want to make our products and services available to all who may be interested, but some one has to make the introduction.  Share the love of your sport with those who may be interested in our unique collection of programs. You'll be glad you did and so will they!