The fact that it’s too cold to be out sailing is indeed painful. But the good news is that the winter months bring all of the Bay’s best sailors ashore, where there are seminars, clinics, public talks, and even just meetups at the bar to keep us all busy. While you’re itching to get back on the water, there are still plenty of great happenings up and down the Bay to keep you occupied.
Recent Local Archaeological Breakthroughs
February 4 at the Maryland Historical Society in Baltimore, 6:30 p.m. A lecture looking into the ways archaeology can turn conventional scholarship bottoms up, with examples from William Berkeley’s Green Spring (1643, 1660), Lewis Burwell’s Fairfield (1694), King Carter’s Corotoman (1727), and Samuel Chew II’s Tulip Hill (1690s).
Murphy Rules: What You Really Need to Know
February 6 at the Norfolk Yacht and Country Club. 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. A one-day sailboat racing rules seminar explores what you really need to know before you end up in the protest room. $39 for singles, $69 for couples. Hosted by John McCarthy.
Electronic Navigation for Non-Technical People
February 7 at Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum, 2 p.m. 100-ton captain Jerry Friedman provides short, non-technical descriptions of how GPS, GPS plotters, radar, depth sounders, and automatic identification systems work.
Uncovering Local History: Thomas McCreary and the Slavery Issue at the Mason-Dixon Line
February 7 at the Calvert Marine Museum in Solomons, MD, 3 p.m. Milt Diggins, author of “Stealing Freedom Along the Mason-Dixon Line” brings to life the story of ‘the notorious slave catcher from Maryland,’ providing a close up view of the toxic effects the debate over slavery had on the country in the years leading up to the Civil War.
Sea Chanteys with the Ship’s Company Singers
February 17 at Galway Bay Restaurant in Annapolis, 8 p.m. Listen to some great sea chanteys, both new and traditional, and come up with a few new bars of your own.
Lessons Learned and Sailing in Scotland
February 18 at Fawcett Boat Supplies in Annapolis. 7 p.m. Just another great evening in Fawcett’s winter learning lecture series; Nigel Calder brings in stories and examples from a lifetime of getting out on the water, both near and far. The seminar is free, but come early to make sure you get a good seat.
The Sinking of the RMS Lusitania: Putting Faces to the Tragedy
February 25 at Annapolis Maritime Museum, 7 p.m. Take a deeper look into the sinking of the Lusitania by a German U-boat in May of 1915, and the loss of 1191 lives (128 of them American). The unprovoked attack on the non-combatant ship moved the U.S. closer to entering World War I. This lecture will give a human face to the tragedy, looking at the lives lost and survived.
An Evening of Sea Chanteys with Bob Walser
February 25 at the Havre de Grace Maritime Museum, 7 p.m. An evening of rollicking sea music from one of the world’s leading experts on seagoing musical traditions. Walser’s repertoire includes sea chanteys, sailors’ songs, pub songs, ballads, and songs that make audience participation mandatory.
Sailing Through the Lens
February 25 at Fawcett Boat Supplies in Annapolis, 7 p.m. Sailing photographer extraordinaire Onne van der Wal comes to town to present his photography, tell some stories, and share some adventures.
Leak Management
March 12, hosted by Scandia Marine Center at Whitehall Marina in Annapolis. Learn all about re-bedding your windows, hatches, and hardware. 9 a.m. Preregistration is required, so call (410) 437-6600.
For more, check out spinsheet.com/calendar.
