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The Reefs Club

03/22/2010 11:07PM ● By Anonymous

Experience beachfront residences in Bermuda Ask The Reefs owner David Dodwell what brings people to his idyllic resort, and he replies, “Our people are very loyal. They come back here for generations. They know we’re going to take care of them.” First as manager and then owner of The Reefs for 36 years, Dodwell had an opportunity to purchase one acre of prime real estate next door, and he jumped at the chance. Contemplating how to make the best use of the land while giving his customers the luxury lifestyle they want, he settled on the concept for a private residence club. How It Works Instead of selling a unit to one family, Dodwell is selling 1/10 of each of his 19 units, so there are 190 owners instead of just 19. “This concept makes owners feel they’re buying into a lifestyle without the ongoing financial and emotional worry that comes with owning a typical timeshare that they’re not using for 51 weeks of the year,” says Dodwell. By contrast, The Reefs Club owners may visit the resort multiple times per year. Two- and three-bedroom units are available, and every bedroom and living room has a balcony and a view. As an owner, you are also able to use any of the hotel’s facilities, including restaurants and a spa. Worry -Free with Amenities Galore Leave your cares behind when you jet off to Bermuda, knowing that The Reefs Club staff is managing and maintaining the residences and grounds, arranging bookings, and upgrading the facilities. Once you arrive, you can enjoy a private fitness center and a pool with private access to the beach. Call ahead and The Reefs Club staff will stock your refrigerator and have your favorite wine waiting for you. Only the Best According to Dodwell, the best part of The Reefs experience may be the camaraderie among his customers, who build lifelong friendships while enjoying a private club atmosphere and who also appreciate the personal attention and stability of a long-time, family-run business. “I’m hands-on every day,” Dodwell says. “My son is involved in the business, and our customers appreciate the continuity of having the next generation involved. The Reefs is a family business and has never been for sale.” What’s the best part of his job? “Seeing people enjoy a home away from home in a relaxed, comfortable vacation destination,” Dodwell remarks.

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The Alexander Technique

03/22/2010 10:34PM ● By Anonymous

For four years, Heather Fitzgerald had trouble falling asleep. Night after night, the debilitating pain of tendinitis kept her awake, desperate to find a position that wouldn’t hurt her arms. A writer and a trained viola player, Fitzgerald, of Burlington, didn’t touch a computer keyboard or pick up her instrument during that time. She couldn’t even open jars of food or floss her teeth because of the discomfort, and driving a car was almost impossible. Anxious to find a cure, Fitzgerald sought treatment from a range of practitioners—an orthopedic doctor to an acupuncturist, and everything in between. Although the pain would lessen for brief periods, it inevitably returned. In desperation, Fitzgerald turned to the Alexander Technique (AT), a method she had first heard about years earlier. “It’s a movement re-education technique in which students become aware of physical habits, and then can pause, or inhibit those patterns, and redirect themselves,” explains AT teacher Erika Senft-Miller, EdD, of Colchester. “It does take a willingness to change habitual patterns,” she says, adding that “although the technique is not physically strenuous, it does require one’s full attention and commitment to changing deep-rooted habits.” For a Variety of Conditions Originated for use by stage performers and musicians in the 1890s, the Alexander Technique has proven beneficial to many others, including people suffering from chronic back, hip, and neck pain, and even deskbound computer users. The technique has also been used to treat asthma, arthritis, sleep disorders, and panic attacks. It has been proven effective in clinical studies at Columbia University, Oxford University, and most recently in the British Medical Journal, and is regularly recommended by physicians and other healthcare professionals. “The Alexander Technique helps bring back the natural balance and harmony of the musculoskeletal system of the neck and chest,” says John Roos, MD. Dr. Roos, who practices in Burlington, recently recommended the technique to one patient, a businessman, who was “speaking too loudly” to compensate for a chronic sinus problem, resulting in strained vocal chords. That, in turn, aggravated his sinus problem. Practicing the technique allowed the man to relax his neck and chest musculature, which lead to a softer voice, healthy vocal chords, and, in time, relief from the sinus problem. Correcting Alignment The Alexander Technique’s ultimate goal is the proper alignment of the head, neck, and spine. Ideally, the head should balance lightly at the top of the spine. If there is tension in the shoulders or neck, for example, the weight of the head will compress the spine. As a result, the body’s overall movement and coordination will be out of balance. Any AT teacher will explain that injuries tend to come from how an activity is performed, rather than from the activity itself. With the spine properly lengthened, the body will be able to move more freely, without strain and the resulting likelihood of injury. As toddlers, most of us enjoyed that ideal freedom of movement, but stressors, injuries, and time have all conspired to erode it. New AT students should not expect to sit passively as corrections are made. “The teacher’s hands need to communicate freedom in movement,” Senft-Miller says, but adds that the Alexander Technique is “the opposite of a massage or adjustment, where something is done to you.” During the lessons, students learn about human anatomy in general, as well as how to recognize specific stressors and tension that affect well-being. They work on new movements for familiar activities, learning to move and care for themselves in a healthy, natural, efficient way. Lessons typically last about 45 minutes, once or twice a week. A standard course involves 20 to 40 lessons. Although a student will continue to learn and refine throughout, the lessons can be spaced farther apart as he or she progresses. Once the student is familiar with the technique, he or she can practice virtually anywhere, including while standing in line at the grocery store, sitting at a desk, or watching television. Different for Everyone Though the underlying principles are the same for all, no two students will have the exact same experience because each one brings different movement habits and limitations to the lessons. For example, a student seeking relief from the discomfort associated with sitting at a desk all day will have different needs than a student whose neck and shoulder tension hinder her forehand. “As a teacher, I have to meet them where they are and engage them,” says Senft-Miller. That said, the essential elements are the same for all students: to do the work with the back at its most expansive, the neck relaxed, the head up and off the shoulders. The effort at home is as important as time spent with the teacher. Senft-Miller likens the process to learning a language or an instrument in that the student gets the basic information in the class, but masters it through repetition on his or her own. It’s no quick fix, but improvements should be noticeable after six to ten lessons. Says Senft-Miller, “It’s the process, not the end gain. It’s not always about being in total balance, but about making healthier choices.” Fitzgerald has learned that. “I wasn’t sure what to make of [the technique], but I kept going because I didn’t know what else I could try if this didn’t work,” she says. “For a long time I worked on breathing, even though it didn’t seem to be connected to my arms, and eventually, very slowly, I started to feel this sixth sense in other parts of my body.” After several months’ practice, she is now able to do all the things that had caused her such discomfort, including playing her viola. Helpful at Any Age Fitzgerald is in good company. Among the many well-known practitioners are Julie Andrews, Sting, and members of the New York Philharmonic. Indeed, the technique has been proven helpful at any age. Philosopher John Dewey took it up at 60 and hoped it might be incorporated into the American educational system, and playwright George Bernard Shaw reportedly began practicing in his late 80s. The Alexander Technique’s originator himself was living proof of the success of his work, reputedly teaching until a few days before his death in 1955 at age 86. F. M. Alexander was an Australian Shakespearean actor who became virtually mute every time he went on stage to give a performance. Yet he was fine during rehearsals, and no doctor could find a cause for his laryngitis. He soon realized, through the use of mirrors and self-observation of his movements and postural habits, that muscular tension in his neck brought on by performance anxiety was the cause of the problem. Alexander subsequently developed his eponymous technique. Like thousands of AT students worldwide, Heather Fitzgerald remains committed to the Alexander Technique, and says that she is spreading the word whenever she can. “It’s easy to keep going because it’s so effective. It’s never drudgery,” she says.

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Lake Champlain Shipwrecks

03/22/2010 10:21PM ● By Anonymous

Lake Champlain, straddling the borders between Vermont, New York, and Quebec, is a gigantic lake. At 120 miles long, 12 miles wide, and reaching depths of several hundred feet, Lake Champlain is majestic, and for several centuries was a major industrial and commercial highway for the United States and Quebec. Today it is a source of tourism, excitement, and beauty. Bicyclists ride the trails along its shores, cliff divers jump from rocky heights into the blue waters, and boaters take in the sun and the views of the Green Mountains and the Adirondacks. Beneath the waters of Lake Champlain, beyond our eyesight, are more than 300 shipwrecks, varying from Revolutionary War battleships to modern powerboats and airplanes. In 1609, Samuel de Champlain, founder of Quebec City, sailed down the Richelieu River and into the lake, which is named after him. Bordered by the soaring Adirondacks on one side and the towering spine of the Green Mountains on the other, Champlain was struck by the awesome beauty of the lake and spent many years getting to know the natives of the region and exploring the lake’s many bays and inlets. During the 18th and 19th centuries, Burlington was a major commercial and industrial port says Arthur Cohn, executive director of the Lake Champlain Maritime Museum. “It was a major port because Lake Champlain is a north-south navigable waterway that was, essentially, an interstate during that time period, moving supplies between Montreal, Burlington, Albany, and New York City.” As a result, says Cohn, “with the connection in the early 19th century of the canals that now connected this interstate system to other navigable waterways, you can account for the high volume of traffic, and then, where you have a lot of traffic and activities, just like you have car accidents today, they had maritime accidents then. That has left us a representative collection of extraordinary shipwrecks in Burlington Harbor and beyond.” Lake Champlain is home to more than 300 shipwrecks, many of which offer fascinating glimpses into the past. Through the Lake Champlain Maritime Museum and the State of Vermont, experienced divers can visit nine of these sites, which are marked by buoys throughout the lake. Preserved by the cold, dark waters, these wrecks are representative of nearly every time period that the lake has borne witness to. There are extremely significant shipwrecks left over from major naval battles of the French and Indian War, the American Revolution, and the War of 1812. One of the most significant wrecks is that of the gunboat Spitfire. The gunboat, part of Benedict Arnold’s American fleet, was discovered during a survey of the lake conducted between 1996 and 2006 by the Lake Champlain Maritime Museum, Middlebury College, and the University of Vermont. The survey examined the entire lake using sonar and discovered a vast array of shipwrecks, including the Spitfire. The Spitfire, which Cohn says is “one of the most significant shipwrecks that exists in the world today,” sank during the Battle of Valcour Island in 1776. “I think,” he says, “it is the connection to our national story, which makes it a very important American object, but it’s also got a direct connection to the British, to the Germans, and to the evolution of society back when none of the true visions of what America was going to become were well known or well established.” The wreck represents one of only a few known examples of America’s first military fleet, born in the early years of our fight for independence. It is, however, under attack today. Zebra mussels, an invasive species brought over from Eurasia, have been slowly overtaking the lake. Covering nearly every object on the lake floor, the mussels hasten the degradation of shipwrecks. One of the main tasks of the Lake Champlain Maritime Museum is to work with the states of Vermont and New York to establish ways to combat the mussels and protect the wrecks. The invasion of zebra mussels is relatively well known because of public television ads and news stories covering the subject, but another threat lurks. Zebra mussels can live only at depths of less than 100 feet. Many of Lake Champlain’s historic shipwrecks exist at a much greater depth, which is why scientists and archaeologists are worried about the advance of quagga mussels, which can live in the greatest depths of Lake Champlain. Such a threat needs to be combated in order to preserve wrecks. While the location of the Spitfire is kept confidential to protect the site, the Lake Champlain Underwater Historic Preserve Program provides reasonable and appropriate access to nine of the lake’s historic shipwrecks. One of these is the Phoenix, the oldest known steamboat wreck in the world. The Phoenix sailed regularly between Burlington and Plattsburgh. But in 1819, it caught on fire and sank in the deep waters just outside of Burlington Harbor. The wreck, which today consists of a “very large hull,” can be visited by experienced divers. Dotted throughout Burlington Harbor are a huge number of wrecks, but none, according to Cohn, are more significant than the horse ferry found resting on the lake bottom. Used in the 18th and 19th centuries, horse ferries relied on the power of horses to cross the lake. “The horses,” says Cohn, “stood in a stationary location on a very large flywheel, or turntable, and would be commanded to walk in place, and as they walked, they would turn the turntable they were standing on. That transmission of power would be transferred to gears and shafts to power the boat across the lake.” The horse ferries were mainly used to cross the lake at places such as Crown Point, Basin Harbor, and Ticonderoga. The discovery of the horse ferry in Burlington’s Harbor was significant because the technology had virtually been forgotten about until archaeologists were able to study the wreck. As Cohn points out, “The horse ferries were able to cross the lake almost as quickly as traditional ferries at the same points carry cars across today.” The Phoenix, the horse ferry, and three other underwater preserve sites are directly available from Burlington Harbor. They are vivid gateways into Burlington’s past as a major port city and a reminder that the hundreds of boats that can be seen on the lake on a warm summer day float above pieces of American, French, and British history. People interested in visiting the wrecks can do so in two ways. Those with diver certification can register with the state of Vermont to visit the sites as long as they agree to leave no impact during their visit. Those who aren’t certified divers can utilize Storm Boarding or the Lake Champlain Maritime Museum’s boat and ROV program. These two boat and ROV programs take visitors out to the sites. A small, remotely operated submersible vehicle (a miniature submarine with a camera attached) is dropped into the water and guests can watch and see what the camera sees from inside their boat. This program allows people who have no diver certification to see the site in real time. Beyond visiting the sites on the lake, visitors to Burlington can also take a trip to the ECHO Lake Aquarium right on the lakefront in Burlington, or they can visit the Lake Champlain Maritime Museum in Vergennes, Vermont, to learn more about the diverse and fascinating history of Lake Champlain and its shipwrecks.

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