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 Dana Point Boaters Association
Topics:
Homeland Security
Harbor Shuttle Plan
Current Boater Surveys
No dues in 2010!
Our Mission
It's that time again... Beer Can Racing!
 
The Thursday night races sponsored by Dana Point Yacht Club start on May 6th. (click here
 
Starting 5/7, there are Friday night races sponsored by Aventura Sailing Association (click here)
 
The Wednesday night races at Dana West Yacht Club start a little later this year, June 17th (click here).  Their Leukemia Cup Regatta, a great race weekend and major harbor charity event, happens June 4-6.
 
and don't forget, there's also the famous Thursday Racers (aka "The Farkles"), a Dana Point Thursday
afternoon tradition for the past 30 years.  Held every Thursday year round (on Friday if Thursday is a holiday) weather permitting. The weather has to be pretty bad though to stop these guys and gals. Participation in the Thursday Racers is open to all, starting at 1:55 PM, leaving the green buoy to starboard. There's no club to join, no entry forms to fill out; just show up and monitor VHF channel 68!
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April 18, 2010
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Homeland Security
 
A special thank you to Sr. Patrol Agent Ivan C. Cole Jr., with the US Department of Homeland Security, San Clemente Border Patrol Station, who made a really outstanding presentation last Thursday evening to DPBA members, boaters and the general public on the programs that his agency is working on, both on land and on the water. 
 
Click above to go to Customs and Border Protection website
Department of Homeland Security
  
There was a lot of information shared and all who attended clearly were captivated by the broad scope of the smuggling, drug trafficking and terrorist protection problems now being faced, as well as what is being done to combat them. The question and answer period ran quite long and when we finally had to wrap up there was a spontaneous and enthusiastic round of applause. 
 
There's one very important message we promised Agent Cole we would pass along to those boaters who were unable to attend:  Patrolling the ocean on a 24/7/365 basis, 3 miles out to sea at the state jurisdiction level, and 12 miles out at the national level, is an extremely challenging task. 
So it will be enormously beneficial when boaters see anything suspicious or even out-of-place to take just a minute and let the authorities know.   You can contact the Harbor Patrol or Coast Guard on VHF Channel 16, call 911 or any police or sheriff office.  You can also call the Border Patrol directly.  They'll take the matter from there. 
 
As Sgt. John Whitman of the Dana Point Harbor Patrol commented Thursday night, "all these agencies want to hear from you."  Agent Cole explained that our local, regional and national protection agencies have established well-coordinated procedures and are trained to react appropriately.  Quoting Agent Cole, "this means you can definitely count on us to take action.  WE WILL REACT.  It doesn't matter whether the suspicious activity is on land or on the water either.  Please be the eyes and ears for this integrated program and let us know!
 
5 smuggling events discovered in only 7 days? 
 
Click here to read the story in The Log published on Thursday.  Click here to read the article published by Vik Jolly in the OC Register Friday morning after attending our event.
 
Click here to watch a short Border Patrol video on YouTube.
 
Study Approved for Harbor Shuttle Plan
 
Back in January, DPBA president Rodger Beard was invited to the Tri-City Trolley Stakeholders Meeting and spoke on behalf of boaters who are interested in solving the parking problems we have in our harbor, especially on beautiful weekends, holidays, and most any weekend during the peak season.  (Gee, for those of us fortunate to recreate here in paradise, that's a lot of days!)
  
One example, the maximum Catalina Island shuttle passenger load is over long holiday weekends.  A trolley system where these ultra long term parkers, sometimes staying in Catalina for 3-4 days and more, can park outside the harbor would be very beneficial, by leveraging underutilized alternative sites.
 
Anyway, it looks like things are moving ahead, as least as far as Dana Point is concerned.  Follow this link to learn more: Study Approved for Harbor Shuttle Plan 
 
In closing, we should add that OC DPH is also working on funding of other off site parking and shuttle opportunities.  We understand these efforts are not duplicative and intended to be complementary to the proposed Tri-City Trolley program.  We'll keep boaters posted as more information becomes available.
 
Current Boater Surveys
 
We have two surveys open right now which are very important to Dana Point boaters.
 
The first survey, concerning the Parking Task Force should be of concern to any boater who parks at Dana Point Harbor.  Let's see now, who cares about boater parking?  This survey takes less than 5 minutes to complete.
 
The second survey is more comprehensive and should be of interest to all boaters who have been or think they might ever be interested in either: 1) trailer boating  or 2) using your boat by appointment.  It takes 15 minutes to complete but it's a smart investment!
 
To take either of these surveys click here.
 
DPBA Member Dues Waived for 2010
  
We announced some very good news for boaters in our February 26th Boater Blast.  We're waiving dues for 2010, for three very good reasons.  This is a great opportunity for boaters and there are absolutely no strings attached!
 
To learn more click here.
 
The Dana Point Boaters Association advocates the preservation, enhancement, and expansion of affordable recreational boating.  We work to improve the family friendly atmosphere and breadth of water-oriented actives we all enjoy in the harbor.  We serve as the watchdog by ethically protecting the rights of all boaters and representing them when collective action is most effective.  We actively gather information and communicate our views to educate boaters, external interests, and public officials.  We build and maintain constructive, working relationships to achieve common goals with other harbor stakeholders.  We will pass on our harbor to the next generation of recreational boaters in better condition than it is today.
Questions should be directed by email to ([email protected]).  Or call us at (949) 485-5656 and leave a voice mail and we'll get back to you soon.

Dana Point Boaters Association
P.O. Box 461
Dana Point, CA  92629
www.danapointboaters.org