scuttlebutt - Fifty Point Yacht Club

SCUTTLEBUTT
www.fpyc.ca
February 2010
2010 Issue # 2
Fifty Point Yacht Club
FPYC Members Work
the Boat Show
FPYC member Barry Lamont
of Sea Tech Marine talks to
Scuttlebutt Editor Paul Charles
at the recent Toronto International Boat Show.
Sea Tech Marine is one of
only five Service Marine Dealers for Espar Heater Systems,
a manufacturer of diesel fired
heaters for marine applications.
Sea Tech Marine is pleased to
have supplied heaters for our
local GAMRU boats and many
other work and pleasure vessels on Lake Ontario.
See page 16 for Sea Tech’s
regular advertisement.
It was difficult to get a word in between customers when FPYC member Randy St. Jacques was working
the booth for Doyle Sailmakers.
With Randy’s sailing history and sales
experience Doyle Sailmakers Detroit
is proud to have him represent them
in Hamilton and surrounding area.
Doyle Detroit’s incredible growth in
the market has been a result of design expertise, reliability and after
sales service.
scut·tle·butt
1 a: a cask on shipboard to contain fresh water for a day's use b: a drinking fountain on a ship or at a naval or marine installation
Scuttlebutt
FPYC Executive 2010
Www.fpyc.ca
Commodore
Paul Pelletier
[email protected]
(905) 635 1209
Secretary
Ken I’Anson
[email protected]
(905) 309 1746
Treasurer
Vern Lowe
[email protected]
(905) 335-8858
Communications
Paul Charles
[email protected]
(905) 547 MAST (6278)
Racing
Troy Farncombe
[email protected]
(905) 543 6478
Social
John Hamilton
[email protected]
(905) 679 0606
Membership
Grace Nyman
[email protected]
(905) 627 4082
Cruising
Marty Tickle
[email protected]
(905) 945 6171
Director at Large
Brian Weber
[email protected]
(289) 235 9577
If you would like to volunteer in any area
please e-mail the director and let him or her
know. The board is a small group and your
participation in any way will be appreciated.
2
Scuttlebutt
OUT OF THIS WORLD
AND ON TO THE NEXT – FUN FOR THE WHOLE
FAMILY
Ever been lying
out in the cockpit on a warm
summer's night
and wondered
which one of
those stars was
the North
Star? And
where the heck
is the Milky
Way? Well, we
have the chance
for you to get a better handle on all the stars. It's a
trip to the McMaster Planetarium right here in Hamilton! A planetarium provides a show of projected images of the night sky on a ceiling screen and then
helps us understand their relationships and their positions.
Our club has the opportunity to book a show at the
planetarium on Saturday evening March 20th. The
presentation lasts approximately an hour or so depending upon interest and questions. Emphasis on
the first half of the show is on the constellations including the Little and Big Dippers and the North Star.
There will be a tour of the planets in our solar system
along with other fascinating objects inside and outside of our Galaxy.
Cost per person: $5.00
Date and Time: Saturday, March 20th at 8:00 p.m.
Suitability: for the whole family (may not hold the interest of children under 8 years of age)
Parking on campus is available at $5 per car
The planetarium seats a maximum of 35 persons
with 2 handicapped spaces
Stay tuned for directions and specific location
For reservations, email John Hamilton, Social Director at [email protected]. We must have
reservations so let me know well ahead of the date.
I will collect your admission fee on the evening of the
show, just prior to entering the planetarium.
Cormorants fishing just opposite
G Dock
3
Scuttlebutt
Family Outdoor Day
February 7th
The Fifty Point Yacht Club’s Family Outdoor
Day is just days away and we encourage you to
drop by Ingledale House any time after 1 P.M.
to join in the skating, skiing, wagon rides and
camaraderie. There will be coffee, tea, hot
chocolate, apple cider, and all kinds of treats to
warm you up.
And remember, the weather didn’t exactly cooperate last year but we had a great turnout
and a wonderful time chatting, telling boating
stories and checking on the wellbeing of our
favourite toys.
See you on Sunday!
SPRING SPLASH April 17th
Your social director really needs volunteers to assist with Spring Splash, no experience necessary.
I promise you will not spend very much of your time attending meetings. It is simply delegating various tasks to more members.
Your positive reply will really make a difference. I know you have all heard that the “ole team” approach really makes a difference and yep, it sure does.
Just send me a Dear John email with the words--"Count Me In"- I return from holidays Feb 16th
and will be in touch with you shortly afterwards.
Once again my email address is [email protected] Hey guys and gals YOU are # 1!
Note the New
Date and the
New Venue
For Spring
Splash
Spring Splash will be earlier this year so
mark your calendars for April 17th! And
it’s going to be held at The Garth Trails
Clubhouse on the west mountain in Hamilton. It’s a beautiful building and a central location for our members. Plan to be
there!
The Garth Trails Clubhouse
4
Scuttlebutt
From the Helm
“We shall fight on the Beaches....................and we shall never
surrender”
June 4th, 1940 Winston Churchill
Although the amphibious assault scene depicted was not exactly
the scenario that Winston Churchill was referring to in his famous
speech, these words have proven to be inspirational to many over
the years.
As the upcoming boating season approaches, your Club Executive has been actively engaged in
planning another complete program of amphibious operations of a more enjoyable variety. I am
proud to inform you that, although they are not soldiers going into battle, they are a cohesive team
of talented individuals that have shown great resolve. Even our newest Board members have
wasted no time in getting their feet wet.
Although our Board has been reduced in size; we are not going to settle with just a repetition of the
same old program; we intend to exert the additional effort required to make improvements. In this
and subsequent editions of our newsletter, you are going to see our plans unfolding. We have taken
all your input seriously and now will respond as best we can. You will notice that we do make the
occasional call for volunteers to help, but make no mistake, this is no plea of weakness, it is a call to
join in and contribute in the process. Most of those who volunteer and get involved find it to be a
very rewarding experience. So dig into your Club and make your FPYC membership part of your
“finest hour”.
Best Wishes,
Paul Pelletier, Commodore - FPYC
5
Scuttlebutt
Notes from GAMRU
John McInally
This short story is true and unfortunately took the life of
an eight year old boy.
The family lived on board their vessel on a tributary of
the Willamette River near Portland, Oregon.
The boy was wearing a life jacket and swimming near
the boat with a group of his friends. He moved away
from the others toward his mother, who was keeping
pace on the dock with the children's water activity. As
he approached the ladder to get out of the water, he let
out a loud gasp, immediately rolling on to his back in
his life jacket, apparently unconscious. His mother
jumped into the water to help her son and experienced
a slight tingly sensation in the water. Her extremities
went numb and she experienced extreme difficulty
moving her limbs. The boy was pulled from the water
and placed on the dock. CPR was administered immediately but the boy died shortly thereafter.
The problem was later traced to a 12 Volt wire lying on
top of an AC wire, which had gotten hot enough to melt
its own insulation and that of the hot (black) AC
wire. This puts120 Volts AC into the entire ground system of the boat, including the engines and propellers. This coupled with the lack of an AC safety
ground, forced the voltage and electrical current into
the surrounding water.
Fresh water is not a good electrical conductor, therefore the AC was unable to reach ground at a sufficient
current to potentially trip the breaker. Because of its
high salinity, the human body is a much better conductor of electricity than fresh water. As the boy approached the ladder, he passed into the field of AC
current and, for a brief moment, completed the circuit
to ground. His heart was stopped instantly.
The bottom line here is that Safe Boating begins with a
Safe Boat. First and foremost, no one should go in the
water at a marina. Signs should be posted on every
pier warning people to stay out of the water. A random
sampling of 50 boats in a marina near Portland, exposed 13 of the 50 vessels leaking potentially lethal
electrical current into the water. This is a ratio of 26
percent of faulty wiring in boats within this marina
alone.
If you should have any doubts about your boat, it
should be inspected by a certified marine technician.
Social Director's
Report
John Hamilton
February is upon us and here I am trying to get
up to speed as your new Social Director. I thank
my lucky stars that last year's Social Director,
Darlene Mantel, is close at hand with lots of answers to my inquiries. I know our annual social
events are listed by month in the Scuttlebutt calendar, however, I would like to set them out so
that you can scan them at a glance and date
your calendar accordingly.
Sunday, February 7th Family Day, 1:00 p.m. Ingledale House
Saturday, April 17th Spring Splash, Garth Trails
Club, Hamilton
Saturday, May 29th (rain date Sunday, May 30th)
Sail Past and Barbecue
Saturday, June 26th Beach Party and Surf and
Turf Barbecue
Commodore's Ball – date and location presently under construction
In addition to the above, there is the possibility of
a visit to McMaster University Planetarium on
Saturday, March 20th, at 8:00 p.m. This event is
yet to be confirmed but I would like you to mark
your calendar, just in case, as March will soon
be upon us. Stay tuned for full details
HELP
Help me, help us, send an email to
[email protected] with your thoughts,
ideas and suggestions for any social event that
you may be thinking about or any ideas in general and we will try to make things happen. I
would appreciate any personal assistance that
any of you can give me. I am a slow learner and
need lots of help to make our social events as
successful as possible for 2010. Don't hesitate to
send me an email.
Hang in there, summer is just around the corner,
although I must admit that it might be a really
long corner depending upon Mother Nature.
All the best,
John Hamilton
6
Scuttlebutt
Racing
Troy Farncombe
The America’s Cup: A Brief History
[email protected]
Following 2 years of legal proceedings, in early February, the highly awaited 33rd America’s Cup is
finally set to get underway in Valencia, Spain. In advance of this highly anticipated event, in this
month’s column, we’ll briefly look through some of the history of this race to those not familiar with it
or the special circumstances of this year’s edition.
History
The America’s Cup originated in 1851
as the Royal Yacht Squadron Cup and
is the oldest continuously awarded trophy in sport. The original race was a
challenge by the Commodore of the
Royal Yacht Squadron to all challengers for a race around the Isle of Wight.
The challenge was taken up by 15
yachts from the Royal Yacht Squadron
and a schooner, America, from the
New York Yacht Club (NYYC) who
happened to be in England racing. The
NYYC ended up winning the race by 8
minutes. In 1857, the Cup was donated to the NYYC in what was to become known as the Deed of Gift.
USA 17—Oracle
Thereafter, the Cup became known as the “America’s Cup” in honor of the original winner.
The first race as the “America’s Cup” was held in 1870 and pitted the NYYC defender against 17
competitors in a fleet regatta. The NYYC won this race, starting an unprecedented 25 race winning
streak (132 years!) that included two challenges from Canadian yacht clubs (1876 from the Royal
Canadian Yacht Club, and the following race, 1881 from the Bay of Quinte Yacht Club). The streak
finally ended in 1987 when the Royal Perth Yacht Club from Australia beat Dennis Conner in a 4-3
series win in Newport, Rhode Island. In a bit of redemption, Dennis Conner successfully brought the
Cup back to the U.S. in 1987 aboard
Stars and Stripes for the San Diego
Yacht Club. Since the 1983 race, the
Cup has gone international with winners from Australia, the USA, New
Zealand and Switzerland; all winning
the Cup at some point.
Strictly speaking, the America’s
Cup is a match race (one on one) between the Defender and a Challenger
of Record. However, since 1970, a
multitude of possible international challengers has led to the formation of the
Challenger Series, the winner of which
Alinghi
7
Scuttlebutt
is designated the Challenger of Record. Since 1983, this Challenger Series was known as the Louis
Vuitton Cup or the Citizen Cup (1992 and 1995).
The America’s Cup has always been raced by the rich and famous. Owners and skippers have included Sir Thomas Lipton (yes, the tea guy), Harold Vanderbilt, Sir Thomas Sopwith (Sopwith Camel
airplane), Briggs Cunningham (the inventor of the sailing control line), Ted Turner (founder of CNN),
Bill Koch (Koch Industries, the second largest privately owned corporation in the U.S.), and the list
goes on. This year’s edition is no exception as Alinghi is owned by Ernesto Bertarelli (52nd in the list
of the world’s wealthiest people), and Larry Ellison (Founder of Oracle, 4th richest person in the
world).
Controversy
With the big names and big money involved in The Cup, it is not surprising that big egos are also active and along with that, often comes legal controversy. In 1988, the newly successful defenders,
San Diego Yacht Club, were hit with a surprise Challenge from the New Zealand-based Mercury Bay
Yacht Club who challenged the Defenders to a “big-boat” race along the lines of the original Deed of
Gift. Faced with a required defense without the time to build a competitive yacht, Dennis Conner’s
defenders built a hard-sail catamaran. Predictably, the catamaran sailed circles around the Challenger, leading to a legal battle whether the catamaran had broken the rules of the Deed of Gift
(DoG). The original court decision agreed that the multi-hull was not allowed, thus placing the win
into New Zealand’s hands. However, this decision was over-ruled in appeal and the Cup given back
to Stars and Stripes. Following this sailing debacle, the IACC rule was imposed and sailing again
took the priority over legal battles. Until now that is.
The 33rd Edition of the America’s Cup
This 33rd America’s Cup race will again not be
your typical America’s Cup race but will rather follow a similar format to the 1988 DoG match pitting
the BMW/Oracle boat against the Defender Alinghi in a best of three series starting on February
8. Additionally, don’t expect to see your typical
sloop-rigged monohull in this year’s edition.
Rather, this year’s race will involve two gigantic
multihulls capable of double digit upwind speeds.
Just a few specs on the two competing boats
(note, these are estimated sizes as the teams are
still hush, hush until Feb 8):
The battles between these boats has so far taken
place in the courts and we can only hope the legal
battles are finally over now and we can get down
to some serious racing. Although as of this writing, BMW/Oracle has filed an objection to the
stated Racing Instructions, so who knows …
For more information, check out:
1. http://33rd.americascup.com/en/
2. http://www.cupinfo.com/
3. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/America%27s_Cup
8
Scuttlebutt
Selling your Boat - Tips for Success
Part I
By Ron & John – Harbour Yachts Inc.
Editor’s note: If you are one of the
many planning to upgrade your
boat and you don’t want to be the
“Admiral” of a fleet you may be
interested in these tips from John
& Ron of Harbour Yachts. Both
Ron & John have been fantastic
supporters of Fifty Point Yacht
Club and we encourage you to
support them also.
“The current economic climate has not hampered the market potential for yacht sales, but it has affected the negotiation process and, therefore the final price.”
The following tips will serve as a “Guideline to Success” as you begin the process of selling your
boat.
Tip #1
Selling your boat during the right seasons will boost your bottom line. Look for key events that may
help sell your boat i.e., during or following major Boat Shows. No one that we know likes to tromp
through the snow to look at boats. You will likely generate more interest for your boat just prior to the
boating season or in the fall when buyers are looking for that “SPECIAL DEAL”. Keep in mind that
boats show much better in the water rather than on a trailer or cradle, particularly if they are tarped or
shrink wrapped.
Tip #2
Establish the best price for your boat. Research the boat's value, by getting advice and appraisals
from a certified Yacht Broker. Check the marine blue book value or surf the internet and visit a number of Yacht Brokers websites. Simply adjust your price based on the number of boating accessories
that you provide with the boat (VHF radio, GPS, Chart Plotters). If you add any new accessories or
make some upgrades such as a new Vaccuflush head or a new bimini or dodger, make sure to reflect
this in the price of the boat.
Tip #3
Know your competitors. Always remember you're not the only one trying to sell a boat. As well people
who start out looking for used boats will be attracted to the new boat market as the Canadian dollar
strengthens or they may look further a field to the USA market. All of this adds up to competition.
Therefore, you must set a very realistic price based on the features that potential buyers may really
desire. For example, if you find out that many similar boats (both old and new models) lack certain
features such as self-tailing winches, VHF radio, GPS, fish finders, you may add them to your own
boat and let the potential buyers know about the recent upgrades.
Watch this space for more tips next month!
9
Scuttlebutt
It's All Good!
Paul Charles
We tend to hear about the bad news on dealing with purveyors of stuff whether the stuff is going on
a boat or not. Well, here’s a good news story.
Several years ago I bought a VHF from Radio World at the Boat show. It is an ICOM and has the
wonderful feature of a fully functional mike in the cockpit so you don’t have to go below to call or receive a call.
The radio was good but I never thought the distance performance was great especially if one was
using the station below. Given that our boat is 28 years old I started replacing things to help improve the radio performance starting with antenna connections, cables and the like. As you can
imagine many of these things need to be done when the mast is down so each one could take a
year from start to test. But each year the performance was the same.
So finally, last summer, I dug out the old VHF that had been replaced and was in a locker for emergency purposes. It performed perfectly! So, after all that, it was a fault in the radio but now the unit
was six years old and well out of warranty.
I sent it to the ICOM service centre in B.C. with a fairly long note explaining my predicament. Three
weeks later it came back with a service report explaining how several parts were replaced and the
mike was calibrated. The invoice said, “Out of Warranty” - No Charge.
That’s what I call good service! Thanks to the folks at ICOM.
Notes from Rob Howe
Visitors to the marina this summer may think they
have entered the wrong place as we will have 3
additional 50’ plus boats on display. The marina is
quickly approaching the limit for large boats with a
waiting list for those who still want to come in.
We hope the winter weather will continue for a
while. The skating on our ponds is excellent and
the fishing in the marina has been successful to
date with jumbo perch and Browns.
On the FPYC family day we will have Nancy and
Eva here to help with the event. Duffy will be operating the tractor for wagon rides. I would like to
invite all the FPYC members to come out and enjoy the beauty of winter at Fifty Point.
Paolo, our FPYC model shows off the new
club jacket. Navy blue, available in S, M, L, &
XL it sells for $35.
Wear Your Club proudly!
FPYC is offering club jackets for sale with the membership forms. Grace Nyman and Dave Goede
are working on this so that an order can be placed early. See them at the Family Outdoor Day
February 7th.
Jackets are navy blue windbreakers in S, M, L & XL. Be the latest in style at Fifty Point and get
your club jacket!
10
Scuttlebutt
Club Nautico Muna,
Bogota, Colombia
Lori Raudnask
In December I was working in Colombia doing a Sales
and Leadership program.
I was fortunate that some of the attendees showed me
around Bogotá after the event. We were driving outside the city for about an hour when I saw water.
Bogotá, Colombia is a beautiful country, very lush and
green. It was a perfect sunny, warm day. A few minutes later I spotted sail boats and I thought, “I wonder if
there is a yacht club here.” so we kept driving along the
water side until we found a building and some boats
docked. There was a party going on and it looked like
a typical Saturday afternoon gathering by the boaters;
they were laughing, dancing, eating and having some
cocktails.
This was not a yacht club but the owner called down the street to Club Nautico Muna and we were
welcomed to come for a visit. The locals who had driven me
(there were 8 of them) had never been to a yacht club or around
boats so they were very interested and excited to see what
boating was all about. We were welcomed by the Yacht Club
Director and I introduced myself as the Past Commodore of Fifty
Point Yacht Club. One of the people who was with me did all
the translation but when this man found out I was a past Commodore he had a big smile on his face and held out his hand to
shake my hand. He then took us on a tour of their Club and it
was fabulous. As you will see from the photo, they had an
amazing club house, with windows all around, a big fire place in
the middle and couches and chairs around that looked so cozy!
Their dues are $4,000 initiation and $350 per month. They cannot sleep on their boats as they do not have pump out stations and it is illegal to release in the water so they use their boats as day outings only.
They offered us Colombian coffee which was delicious and some of their local appetizers. We
watched the sun set and then headed back to town. It was a great day and a bonus to spend some
time overlooking the beautiful scenery, water and boats at a Columbian Yacht Club. I was presented a burgee which I will hand over to FPYC to hang at Fifty Point and we’ll make arrangements
to send one back to Club Nautico Muna.
11
Scuttlebutt
Meet Your Board
Troy Farncombe, Racing
This month we continue our series introducing our FPYC board members to you. This month meet our Racing Director, Troy Farncombe.
Growing up on the prairies in Alberta, I was awestruck by airplanes while sailing was the furthest thing from my thoughts. In the blue skies of Southern Alberta, flying made much more sense; I don’t think I even saw a sailboat until I
was 18. In the mid-90’s, while working on my PhD at the University of British
Columbia in Vancouver, I would often see the sailboats out sailing in English
Bay, and started to think about what it would be like to go sailing. Being a
poor student, I stuck to less expensive sports like surfing and softball but
something was planted in the back of my mind.
After graduating in 2000, I moved to Massachusetts to take up a post-doctoral
position at the University of Massachusetts Medical School. Being just 50
miles outside Newport, RI, I would make frequent trips to Narragansett Bay to check out the surfing
and sailing scenes although I never made it to the America’s Cup Museum to see the Cup (still kicking myself for missing out on that).
In late 2002, I returned to Canada to take up a position as a Medical Physicist at Hamilton Health
Sciences. Having bought my first house in the area, I finally starting thinking about those sailboats
again. Hmm, I live by the Lake, why not? A sailing colleague of mine mentioned that Tanzer 22’s
are great starter boats, so I started looking around, found one in great condition and bought it. This
was in 2004 and even though the boat may not look the same as in 1977 when it was new, it’s the
same great Tanzer 22 today.
In 2006, I was fortunate to be introduced to Joanna Suan. Joanna had just attended the Colgate Offshore Sailing School in Florida and was looking to gain some additional sailing experience.
Following an adventurous trip to Oakville, and the next week to Burlington, we were set. In July
2010 we will tie the bowline and sail off into the sunset (but returning in the sunrise to go racing).
In 2009, I started sailing and racing with Mike VanderVaart and Ken I’Anson aboard their
boats. They introduced me to regatta sailing and I’ve enjoyed every minute of it. I owe them a lot
for teaching me so much more than I ever knew about sailing and I’m looking forward to learning
even more. Also in 2009, I obtained my private pilot license after a life-long love affair with flying.
In 2010, look for me flying something, single engine planes or spinnakers, either way, really.
Troy and his fiancée race aboard Platypus, their beloved Tanzer 22
12
Scuttlebutt
Ladder Safety Part 2
Here is Part 2 of George Pasztor’s contribution to ladder safety after he witnessed a man fall from a ladder at the storage
compound.
13
Scuttlebutt
Scuttlebutt
February
1
2
3
Shellbacks at the
Black Bull at Noon
4
5
6
11
12
13
7
Outdoor Family Day
1 P.M.
8
9
10
Pub Night
Judge & Jester
6:30 P.M.
14
15
16
17
Shellbacks at the
Black Bull at Noon
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
Spring Splash 2010 happens April 17th! Note the new date on your calendar now!
March
1
2
3
Shellbacks at the
Black Bull at Noon
4
5
6
11
12
13
7
8
9
10
Pub Night
Judge & Jester
6:30 P.M.
14
15
16
17
Shellbacks at the
Black Bull at Noon
18
19
20
McMaster
Planetarium
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
Have you hugged your boat this month?
Coffee shop opens weekends on April 1st, Lift-in starts April 14th.
14
Scuttlebutt
Scuttlebutt
Boats and Nautical Stuff for Sale
Tanzer 8.5 (28 Ft.)
Sailing Vessel AQUEOUS
Price:
$ 22000.00
Reason for sale - Failing health - us, not the boat!
Bob and Leslie Taylor 905 639 6789
[email protected]
Goiot pedestal,
with shifter, grab
bar and instrument
pod. Includes Plastimo compass and
cover, 35” Goiot
Wheel, brake, 1”
tapered hub. Faceplate is cut for 3
instruments but
you could easily
reface with plexiglass. Set up for chain and wire (not
included). Needs paint and TLC. $600
Membership
Remember that e-mail you read a few weeks ago about printing the membership application from the web site and sending in your renewal so Grace wouldn’t have to send one
out in the expensive and slow snail mail? You do? Great! And many of you did. Thanks
to you we have saved quite a bit in postage already but, if you didn’t get around to it yet
there is still time to beat the post office.
Print your application from the home page of our www.fpyc.ca , attach a cheque and send
it off to Grace.
Or save even more by bringing it along to the Family Outdoor Day on February 7th.
Grace will be there to pick them up and she’ll be able to show you the jackets that she is
offering.
Thanks for making your club more efficient!
At www.fpyc.ca members can advertise nautical items for sale. e-mail it to Paul Charles at
[email protected] . No charge to members of FPYC.
15
Scuttlebutt
Scuttlebutt
Ginger Cookies
There are many ways to help ease the discomfort of “mal de mer” or seasickness and one is ginger.
Whether the ginger is from ginger ale or ginger snaps it seems generally accepted that ginger will
help. Here is a great recipe for ginger cookies that you’ll love to have on board any time.
2/3 cup packed brown sugar
2/3 cup corn syrup
1 teaspoon ginger
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
2/3 cup butter or margarine
1 egg, lightly beaten
4 cups flour
Thanks to Pat Watson for
sharing her recipe.
Mix sugar, syrup, spices and salt in a large saucepan. Bring to a boil. Add butter and stir until it
melts. Add baking soda, stirring well. Remove from heat
and stir in egg quickly. Add
flour and mix well. Chill until
firm enough to roll. Roll out to
1/4 inch thickness. Cut out
shapes using cookie cutters or
inverted glass. Bake in preheated 325 degree oven on
ungreased cookie sheets
about 15 minutes or until
edges are slightly browned.
(More ginger can be added for
a spicier cookie. The thinner
the cookie, the crispier it will
be.)
Yield: 3 dozen large gingerbread men, or 6 dozen cookies.
16