Fort Walton Yacht Club Letter Log
February 2018
30° 25.60’N 86° 35.58’W
Interested in a Little Fling?
By Pat Tye - [email protected]
For boaters either new to the Fort Walton Yacht Club or the idea of cruising around our neck of par-
adise, we thought we’d give you some background on the “Flings”. These semi-annual trips have
become somewhat of a Fort Walton Yacht Club institution. The participants, dates, itineraries, etc. are
always fluid and extremely flexible to fit the schedules and interests of the boaters who want to make
the trip. There is usually a combination of anchoring and marina stops. We have dinners aboard or
out in town. We have bonfires, dinghy rides, shopping forays and quiet days of nothing but visiting.
Each fling is as unique as the boaters and their vessels. The one common thread is having a great
time as the goal and, despite any weather or equipment setbacks, usually achieved.
The most recent resurgence was started by former members
Suz and Sam Weston in 2008 as a way to meet other club
members and get maximum use of their boat. Suz was still
teaching in the Okaloosa School System at the time, so the
weeks always revolved around Spring and Fall breaks from
school. The first trip was to the east and Suz did a very thor-
ough job investigating all our options for anchoring, docking
and dining. Many lifelong friendships resulted from that first
trip and it was decided to go again in the fall and explore
more spots to the west. Folks always had a great time and
there have been two trips a year ever since.
The management of the flings has been equally fluid. Someone comes forward and offers to set up
the basic itinerary and sometimes offers a range of dates to the usual participants. Sometimes the
dates are set solely by the ones willing to do the ground work based on their personal schedules.
Either way, it always seems to work out. All club members are welcome to participate whether for
one or two nights or the entire trip. Some boaters have used the flings as either jumping off or return
points from trips to points South. You can participate in some of the raft-ups or all or none, depending
on your personal preferences. You can play dominoes or cards or pigs or not. You can shop or wan-
der the shore or sleep in. That is the beauty of the flings, there is no wrong way to enjoy your time
aboard.
As of this writing, no one has come forward to be the Flingadore or Flingadorable for Spring 2018 yet.
If you would like more information, be the leader or suggest spots to visit, please let me know.
Want the fantastic Friday Night dinner in a
more casual setting? You can order from the
Lounge between 5:30pm - 8:30pm.
And don't forget to checkout the Friday Night
drink specials like Draft Beer for $2, House
Wines for $3, and Margaritas for $4.
Come on down and enjoy Friday Night!!
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