Port Huron Cruise 2009

The MacRay Yacht Club Banner flew proudly from the railing atop the clubhouse as 21 boats rendezvoused on ‘E’ Dock at Bridge Harbour Marina in Port Huron on Friday July 17th. This was the start of one of the most enjoyable Club Cruises in recent memory, magnificently put together with a ‘pirate theme’ by Gina Tock and Jackie Paulson.

Just a couple miles down the Black River (and a few drawbridges later) members started arriving by noon, and just kept coming all afternoon, with the nice floating docks serving as a gathering place for camaraderie that the club is known for. And the dogs just kept coming as well. There was Spencer, there was Kramer, there was Dante, there was Zyr and Max, there was Stewart and Jasmine, and a host of others.

It was nice to see Lime Cutter, Pure Joy, and Lise Anne back from an up north boat trip, as well as John and Sheila’s Love Boat (who gave numerous tours). And a shout out to returning member Rob Diegel who joined the trip too.

At dusk the docktails started under the big tent set up by the Clubhouse. Quite a few attendees got into the spirit dressed in pirate attire, making others laugh or wanting to walk the plank. Many of those who participated were rewarded with gift cards. While eating, members were treated to one of the many creative games arranged. The first one had some members with pirate related questions in hand trying to find those members who had the answers written on their cards. Afterwards all the matches were read, and no matter how many ‘corny’ pirate jokes you’ve heard, people were laughing their Arrrrrrrrsses off.

The weekend also had a festival going on downtown, with live music (Mark Farner of Grand Funk Railroad fame), a carnival, and a Pink Floyd laser light show, and hot air balloons. Several members went into town to enjoy this as well as take in some maritime displays during the Port Huron Coast Guard Days event.

Saturday morning breakfast was great with a nice spread of muffins, cereal, toasted bagels, fruit, donuts, as well as coffee and juice. Of course a few made there way across the street to Bob Evans as well.

Relaxation and mingling were the key operatives, and there was plenty to do. A nice heated pool and hot tub, and the tennis court and basketball hoop saw plenty of use. Oh yeah, and somebody had to walk all those dogs. It was not crowded at all, so it seemed we had the whole place to ourselves. A few made a dinghy trip down the Black River (Mark and Chrissy Javery even found the cut that took them out to Port Huron!)

Saturday afternoon the featured games began, with almost 100% participation between kids and adults. The first game was to see how many balloon you could have on your person in one minute. What a riot it was watching this as members had balloons stuffed under shirts, down pants, and between fingers. Anna Taormino won for the kids, and new member Brad Byrnes took honors for the adults. In keeping with the spirit of balloons, the standard relay race of sprinting to the picnic table to sit on and pop the balloons provided tons of laughs (and a few sore bottoms).

After a brief break so members could button up their boats before a short down pour, the kids versus adults theme continued. There was a race to walk with a water cup on your head and be the first team to fill the bowl. Surprisingly the kids did better on this one. Speaking of kids, actually Moss was the “biggest” kid, really getting into it.

Other games included emptying a small pool of water with sponges, carrying gold coins with a fork, and a hula hoop contest. (The adults were almost disqualified as Mr. Terry tried to coach Ms. Terry to use her “anatomy” to keep the hoop from falling.)

To wind down the activities, kids and adults took turns whacking piñatas, before candy spilled out to the delight of everyone. Some nice gift cards were passed out to winners and everyone had a great time.

Saturday night (after some more rain) everyone headed into downtown via Taxi and car to Quay Street Brewery for dinner. This was a perfect spot, as we had the entire main floor on the water. The food was fantastic and the service was outstanding.

Afterwards, members were transported back to the docks to “wind down” for the evening where members visited with each other on boats to continue the great time. Sounds of the night included music appropriately “sea themed” coming from Rock Steady (my baby gave me the crabs?) with guitar and bongos. People were collecting beer cans (full ones); and there were stories wafting from the docks and boats until late.

Wow, Gina and Jackie sure know how to ‘throw a Cruise’! This is what boating with the MacRay Yacht Club is all about. If you were there, you know, and if you weren’t, “Walk the Plank Matie!”