New Haven Lighthouse Battle Fun Race is Saturday

NEW HAVEN - The Southern Connecticut Small Craft  Symposium will be held from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. June 14 at  Lighthouse Point Park, according to a release.

"To commemorate the 235th anniversary of the Battle of New Haven, the starting gun for this race
will symbolize when Thomas Painter standing watch on July 4, 1779 sounded the alarm cannon
and sent a drummer to sound the call to arms on that quiet Sunday night," the release said.
(Scroll down for the rest of the historic story)

Organizers promise : "something for everyone," with Displays-Presentations, In Water demonstrations, kayak and canoe tryouts, tours of the lighthouse, Kayak Tour/Nature Tours, Fun Kayak race, Raffle Prizes, Flair Demonstration,  bring your expired flairs for disposal; bring your boat - receive your USCGA safety check

Race information:
Registration: 10 – 11:30 a.m – Area B
Sign up for your category
• Recreational kayaks < 13’ – Fleet A
• Recreational kayaks > 13’ – Fleet B
Attach numbers to right (starboard) side of boat with duct tape
Pre-Race Skippers Meeting – 11:30 – Area I
At this meeting the 2.1 NM race course will be discussed
• Start/Finish at Jetty near Lighthouse,  turn at Marker at far end of Breakwater,  turn at far side of Rock near Morgan Point
• Head along beach to Finish line

Safety information and race course safety: Boats not past the halfway mark by 1:00 will be escorted off the water. Race Start – 12 noon and 12:10 (Incoming tide near high tide ~ 1:00PM)
• Review chart of triangular course
leg SSW ~ 220°
leg ENE ~ 75°
 leg WNW ~ 315°
Finish line is between marker and jetty
Call out number as you pass – do not cross course to get back to beach
• Land on west side of jetty or take out a boat ramp
Award Ceremony – 2:00 (sooner if results tally quickly)
• Prizes for top three finishers in each category

The rest of the historic story:
"Brigadier General Garth and his invading party met a resistance force of only twenty-five young
Colonials as he landed in West Haven and burned houses along the way to the West Haven
Green," the release said. "Simultaneously, General Tyron had landed at Lighthouse Point near Black Rock Fort that was manned with only nineteen local militia commanded by Lieutenant Pierpont. This small  force fired at the British on the beach until the fort ran out of ammunition."
"General Tyron sent out two patrols, one to capture the militia at Black Point Fort and the other to
disperse the forces gathering at Beacon Hill, closer to New Haven. As he and his troops marched
to the city, they burned buildings, killed patriot citizens, and became drunk on plentiful local
rum. By nightfall, the British troops, drunk and demoralized by the constant sniper fire and
ungentlemanly harassment of the militia, welcomed the opportunity to return to their ships, but
not before taking about 40 prisoners and setting fire to the barracks at Black Point Fort.

Catch a 'Wave' at the New Haven Free Public Library

NEW HAVEN – A Wave installation will be held at the New Haven Free Public Library from 1 to 3 p.m. April 26  at 133 Elm St., according to a release.

The installations also will take place at libraries in Stamford, Willimantic and New London, the release said.

The Wave "is an interactive exhibit envisioned by two Connecticut artists to raise awareness of the vital role water plays in our lives," the release said.

"The Wave’s simple design and colorful materials are intended to engage people of all ages and abilities in a contemplation of water," the release said. "Participants cut their own 'wave' out of recyclable, polycarbonate film and see it hung aloft along with hundreds of other individual shapes, to create a community wave."

 

“New Haven residents are blessed with two major waterviews: the Quinnipiac River and Long Island Sound.  The Wave installation will serve as a tangible—and  beautiful—reflection on our essential connection to water,”  said Carol Brown, the library’s programming manager, also in the release.

 

Also in the release: "Connecticut artists Susan Hoffman Fishman and Elena Kalman created The Wave two years ago in response to the 2011 tsunami that struck Japan. The Wave’s first installation in the Peabody Essex Museum in Salem (Mass,.)was so well received, Kalman said, that the artists decided to make this celebration of water a national effort. "

“There’s a limited amount of water on this planet,” Hoffman Fishman said, also in the release.  “More and more of it is being polluted, and a lot of areas in the world are now having water shortages, and we have to pay attention to that.”

 

“Sharing in the process of contributing to a local work of art that is part of a national movement connects us to an important global issue,” said Jennifer Keohane, executive director of the Connecticut Library Consortium, one of The Wave’s sponsors, in the release. “And,” she added, “The Wave certainly stands alone as a compelling work of art.”

"At each site, the artists work with public participants to build community and celebrate water. At New Haven Free Public Library, wave-shaped pieces cut by individuals will be hung from a cord that is strung and folded over the balconies in the Library’s main lobby, creating a dynamic, flowing wave in bold colors, reflecting the beauty and power of water.

Each host WAVE community was chosen because of its work to protect water. For example, in New Haven, plans are underway for a Shoreline Stabilization Project and the development of a Waterfront Park in Fair Haven."

 

A Mystic Aquarium’s aquatic touch tank that will be on site during the installation.

 

"The water theme continues at the Library on Wednesday, May 7, when  Tom Andersen discusses his book, "This Fine Piece of Water, an environmental history of Long Island Sound," at 6 p.m. For more information about these events, call the library at 203-946-8835.

 

  Editor's note: All information in this post was contributed. Click one of the buttons below to share it.

Connecticut Health Department recommending well owners test for arsenic and uranium

In a press release, The state Department of Public Health announced: "it is recommending that private well owners in Connecticut should test their well for arsenic and uranium. These naturally occurring metals are found in groundwater in sporadic locations across the state and can lead to adverse health effects." Here is the document the department released:

Connecticut Groundwater Release March 2013

Editor's note: All information in this post was contributed.