a few years ago, i pulled into a local club. about a two hoursail from my place. four of us had just sailed three hours upwind through a 25 knot blow. one my main halyard sheaves had broken and the halyard had cut through the top ten inches of mast. we were wet, cold, and tired. we asked to put in on a dock and we were told, no. i explained our situation and told the dock guy that our electric motor would not push the boat. he said that they did not take 'your kind of boat here.' i showed him my reciprocal card and explained to him, again, how bad off we were. i was still told that i could not stay. i asked how he would treat a flag officer from my club. (remember, i am shivering and dripping and basically looking like a bag of krap) he told me that the situation would be different. i asked if there was a flag officer from his club there as the vice commodore of my club (me) would like a place to put his catamaran. that is the only reason i was not welcome. because i was a cat sailor. no blue blazer. no cap.
now, basketcase is not your normal beach cat. i wet sail her off a mooring. she is a modified tomcat 6.2 with fixed wings. all up she is 20' long with a sprit by 26' wide and about 650 lbs, so a spot on the beach is not for me.
wy have sailled out of the aquatic park sailing club for seven or so years. it is a small club of about 100 small keel boats and a wharam and me. these people have welcomed my wife, son and i into there little paradise and treat me as an equal. last year i was voted in as commodore.
guess where we did not send reciprocals to this year.