SSN 680 Plan of the Day

I was in my office earlier today, uploading Frank Allen’s photos from the 2007 Amoeba Races down at Terry Stanley’s farm in Amsterdam, Missouri. I didn’t make that one, or the one back in ’98, but two years later a gaggle of shipmates (it is a gaggle, right?) from the early eighties got together in San Diego for REGROUPEX09. Maybe it’s a goat-rope of shipmates. It could be a section of shipmates, or better yet, a bar-crawl of shipmates. To tell the truth, I’m not really sure, but I digress.

My point was, that looking through the photos, I remembered what a great time we had when we got together. From the photos from the Amoeba Races, that seems to be true whenever Bates sailors cross paths, and that got me thinking of a reunion again.

It’s been eight years now, and I guess it’s up to me to get the ball rolling. So I jumped on the USSVI website, and guess what? The 2017 USSVI National Convention will be held at the Rosen Shingle Creek Hotel in Orlando, Florida next year from August 31st to September 5th. That, my friends, is a sign!

So here is what I’m proposing. We put together REGROUPEX17, or something of a similar ilk (You do know what an ilk is? A really big deer? No, you jack-wagons!). We piggy-back on the USSVI reunion to get great accommodation rates, and take advantage of the other boats that will be adding reunions to the mix. It would be open to all Bates sailors, and I don’t have to remind you that there are fewer of us now than eight years ago.

That means “there’s not a moment to lose”, in the words of ‘Lucky Jack’ Aubrey of Master and Commander fame. We need to start planning now, which not only makes it possible, but lets families plan the Orlando attraction tie-ins like Disneyworld and Universal, etc. It will be an East coast get-together, but Orlando air-fare is like flying MAC and you get real seats and don’t have to wear a uniform.

OK, maybe I’m exaggerating, but I want to know - is this something you’d be interested in. Leave a comment on this article here on the website, or on Facebook and let me know your thoughts. It only took 35 of us to make REGROUPEX09 a memorable experience, so if I can get that kind of interest, I’ll start pursuing the arrangements.

I want to know what YOU think, so leave a comment!

I’ll keep you posted.