Offshoreonly.com - Info / Roll call for FMO Jan 25 / 26 / 27 weekend run to Hyatt Sarasota

Since the overnight run to the Hyatt in Sarasota was such a success last year we have included it on this seasons schedule. The event will take place on Jan 25 / 26 and 27, 2013. There will be departures on Friday and Saturday with the return to Ft Myers / Cape Coral on Sunday. The following is a brief itinerary of the plans to date so far. We will fill in a few blanks over time:

Group # 1 departure for Sarasota from the Sanibel Bridge at 10 AM on Friday, Jan. 25th. Pace boat - Bob's Nor Tech

Group # 2 departure for Sarasota from the Sanibel Bridge at 10 AM on Saturday, Jan. 26th. Pace boat to be designated

Routing / Distance: The distance each way is about 82 miles +/-. We will take the ICW to Boca Grande and stop there for a few minutes to re group. From there we will then run offshore to Venice where we will stop again to regroup before our final assault on Sarasota. We will re enter the ICW at Big Sarasota Pass and proceed to the Hyatt. If the Gulf is too rough, we will run the ICW all the way up like last year.

Communications: Inter boat communication will be by VHF channel 72. Also my cell number is 239 776 0481. Anyone dropping out should call me and leave a message if no answer so we do not spend time waiting for or looking for you.

Friday afternoon /evening: I have not made any immediate plans for after our arrival on Friday with so much happening on Saturday. It will be a good chance to unwind and relax by their gorgeous pool if warm enough. I am open to suggestions. Smaller groups could get together for dinner in the Hyatt restaurant or alternatively go out to one of the many great restaurants in Sarasota. I will post some recommended restaurants closer to event time. After dinner it may be an idea to meet and socialize at the Hyatt bar is a nice venue.

Saturday Jan 26th. at 11:15 AM Optional lunch run for group #1 from the Hyatt to Venice to meet northbound Group 2. I will see if the Crow's Nest just inside the Venice inlet can handle us. Alternatively, another option I may explore is doing a lunch run jointly with one of the local offshore boat groups in the Tampa Bay area would be fun and different. After lunch all boats will run together back to the Hyatt. Free time for the rest of the afternoon.

Saturday evening. 6:30 - 7 PM pre dinner cocktail party then dinner for the entire group from 7 to 9 PM in the Hyatt Ballroom. After that we have the "Boathouse" booked from 8:30 till 11:30 PM or whenever they kick us out. I will arrange for the same DJ as we had last year as most thought he was great.

Sunday return to Ft Myers / Cape Coral or wherever home is. Leave the Hyatt after breakfast at 10:30 AM ish. Maybe some will want to stop somewhere for lunch as we get close to home with their own little group. I will leave it up to each to make their own plans on that.

Boat slips: As was done last year all boat slips are to be reserved thru FMO. I will be the contact person. What is different this year is the Captains will pay FMO for their boat slip instead of the Hyatt. I have negotiated a flat fee for the 28 available slips that will result in considerable savings. Costs are outlined below. Priority will go to those staying both Friday night and Saturday night at the Hyatt. Single night slips will only be designated if available. Once the 28 Hyatt slips are booked, the overflow can stay at nearby Marina Jacks at an additional cost paid directly to Marina Jacks.

Hotel rooms: Standard hotel rooms are $ 169.00 per night plus tax for single or double occupancy. Upgraded balcony rooms are available at a higher rate. This is higher than last year as the hotel is already 50% sold out for that and subsequent weekends. Last year I was able to add rooms to our initial booking however there is no guarantee that we can do that this year so if you are planning on going, be sure to book early. The deadline / cut off date is the earlier of January 4, 2013 or when our block of 50 rooms is sold out. I will monitor room bookings and post availability from time to time. You may book your room online quickly and easily by going to this link which is customized for our event : https://resweb.passkey.com/Resweb.do...entID=10254219
The Hyatt Regency Sarasota phone number is 941 952 1988 if you have any special requirements. Be sure to tell them you are part of the Ft. Myers Offshore Group.

FMO event fee: There is an event fee payable to FMO of $ 75.00 for each passenger on each boat. That amount covers all your weekend activities including your 4 coarse dinner (menu to be circulated to participants at a later date) Saturday evening in the Hyatt ballroom, the party that follows in the Boathouse Saturday evening and the cost of the DJ. It will be a cash bar. Because FMO has to cover certain fixed costs with guaranteed minimums I cannot have people opting out of dinner and just showing up for the Boathouse party. So if there are 4 people on a boat, 4 people will have to pay the event fee. If you drive to Sarasota and join in the activities you still are required to pay the event fee. That is the only way this can work and me keep my sanity. Any surplus funds over our cost will go directly to FMO's student scholarship fund so the few extra dollars if any will be going to our club's charity.

Captain's event fee: The Captain's event fee is $ 125.00 which is $ 50 higher than his passengers to cover the cost of your slips at the Hyatt for 2 nights including a gratuity for the dock master, dinner in the ballroom and Boathouse party with DJ as described above. This a considerable saving's over the $2.00 / ft that Hyatt charged each Captain last year for slips. If your are staying on your boat and / or require shore power, there is an additional charge of $ 10.00 per day. Note: Those Captain's keeping their boat at Marina Jack's would not be paying FMO the extra $50.00. They will just pay the $ 75 event fee like their passengers. As stated, they will however be responsible to Marina Jack for their slip cost there.

Pricing summary: As an example of a typical boat with 4 people on it, the Captain would pay $125 plus $ 225 for 3 additional guests (3 x $ 75) for a total of $ 350 payable to FMO. It will make my job a whole lot easier if each captain pays for his boatload and collects from his guests instead of 100 or so people descending upon me.

Payment of your event fee: Since this is a snow (LOL) / rain / sunshine event it would be very helpful to me if you will mail in your FMO event fee once you have reasonably determined how many people will be on your boat. I have had to sign a contract with deposits to the Hyatt which I have covered personally until we get some money in. (No problem). Also I do not want to spend all my time in Sarasota chasing after money. I should be there to enjoy it like everyone else.

Make your check payable to FMO and mail to our club treasurer at:

IBR Realty,
953 N. Collier Blvd;
Marco island, FL
34145
Att: Hans Haedelt

Hans will advise me upon receipt but you may want to send me a short e mail saying it is on the way and I will follow up.

How to register for this event: You will need to be a paid up member of FMO and have provided us with your boat insurance details to attend. I will need to know if you will be in the Friday or Saturday group, and how many will be on your boat. I realize the number of guests on your boat could change, however by the cut off date of Jan 4th I will need to have a pretty good idea of who all is coming. Just e mail me with any changes to your crew. The Hyatt is not the easiest to work with. You may post up on this event thread or e mail me at [email protected] As with all our events we will maintain a list of participants.

Weather / Sea Conditions: To be posted 5 days prior to the event and updated daily. Referencing: NOAA Marine Weather and The Weather Channel

Safety: Each boat Captain is required to operate his / her vessel in a safe manner and is responsible for the safety of the crew and their safety.

Contact info: Bob US cell: 239-776-0481 or CAN cell 519-498-6945. E mail: bobbarnhart1(at)gmail.com