79 Bay St
Double Bay NSW 2028
Australia

The best ILCA / Laser sailing club in the world, located in Double Bay on Sydney Harbour.

News

Weekend Report

Chris Tattersall

Work-on-your-Boat Weekend

All photos by Maxim Dzhura

Saturday and Sunday turned out to be a very fun weekend despite the rainy weather thanks to good company and camaraderie. The work itself was hard, as sore muscles will attest. A big thanks to Maxim Dzhura for organising the whole thing, and for shouting the group with a huge supply of materials and consumables. Thanks also to everyone else who brought items to contribute to the group, and to Steven London for his generous loan of various power tools. Plus a special thankyou goes out to Craig Sheers who spent much time on both Saturday and Sunday lending his ILCA expertise assisting people with their boat repair needs.

Warm up your vocal CORDS... because the DBSC Karaoke Band is ready to rock the AGP!!

Steven London

Following the formal proceedings of the AGP, the DBSC Band will once again be entertaining us. This year, we are turning into the DBSC Karaoke Band... and we need YOU! Our professional (and semi-professional) musicians will be there as the backing band for DBSC members who are ready to step from the shower to the onstage mic.

That's right, you have the opportunity to sing a song with the band! Our musicians and lead singer will be there to support you onstage. And if you would like to sing with a DBSC friend (or friends plural!) then that is perfectly fine.

If you are interested in signing up then please CLICK HERE to fill out the application form and to select your song. We welcome all ages and ALL levels of talent...from the brilliant...to the far-from-brilliant.

Please note the DBSC Band will also be singing a number of songs to balance the spread of talent ;)

 - James Tudball

WHAT'S GOING ON

Chris Tattersall

UPCOMING EVENTS

Sunday, 12 May: Winter Championship series racing commences

  • 07:30 Briefing / 08:15 Warning

Sunday, 19 May: Winter Champs (07:30 Briefing / 08:15 Warning)

Friday 24 May: DBSC’s Annual General Party (Meeting)

  • Please check your email for invitation and RSVP

  • NOTE: Calling for volunteers to help with this. If you able to, please contact Diana Chen


Thank you to the members who are sending through information for the newsletter. If you have content for the newsletter, please email it to newsletter@dbsc.com.au by Monday evening.

View all racing results here.
The club’s calendar can be viewed and subscribed to here.
Make a tax deductible donation to DBSC here.

Race Report - Saturday 27 April 2024

Chris Tattersall

CLUB Sprint RacING

All photos by Diana Chen

Report by PRO Geoff Kirk:

Last Saturday was the last race of the summer season, finishing up with some casual sprint races. The weather wasn't looking great in the morning, but it turned out to be a beautiful day, and a light easterly breeze. 

The race crew was myself, Robert Bruce (LTRaR), Diana Chen (COTD), and Jeff Loosemore (CoOTD). Rob and Jeff did a great job running the racing, while Diana and I puttered around laying a few marks, having a lovely afternoon.  Many thanks for all their efforts. The breeze was light so we kept the course short. Start wise in a reversal of fortunes, with the radial fleet being perfectly behaved, while the standard fleet were terrible with most the fleet being over the line in a few races. Eventually, they wore us down and we had to let them go.  

We also welcomed back to the club one of our favourite sons Hadrien Bourely. Hadrien has been living in Monaco for the last couple of years, but the draw of Sydney Harbour was too much for him, so he is now back home at DBSC. We don't care the reason, it's just great to have you in back. The starting pin has been very lonely without you. 

A few of us had drinks on the deck after racing, with the former commodore giving us pronunciation lessons (Maxim and Hadrien's names). His next impromptu lesson on the deck will be how to wear a pair of white slacks, and eat a piping hot toastie, and still look a  million bucks. We are all looking forward to that. 

Thanks to Paul for the after race snacks. 

Allegra Spender - MP for Wentworth visits DBSC

Steven London

Last week we welcomed our local Federal Member for Wentworth - Allegra Spender to one of our weekly Race Briefings.

As a volunteer organisation, we are very appreciative of funding grants from the government that enable us to provide a quality and safe race environment for our membership and the community. In the last year the Federal Government awarded a grant of $5000 to DBSC that helped us to provide training programs for members including: 

  • Australian Sailing Coach Training, 

  • St Johns First Aid certification, and 

  • Boat Driving Licence courses.

Thankyou Allegra and the Federal Government for your continued support.
Training and Safety are a priority at DBSC, and are part of our volunteer culture.

 - Steven London (Commodore)

Annual Membership Subscription Now Due

Steven London

Thank you to the 51% of members who have already paid their 2024-25 Membership Subs.  For the other 49%, can you please pay now.

You will have received an emailed invoice from Double Bay Sailing Club Revolutionise Sport (no-reply@revolutionise.com.au). Please check your spam folder if you have not received it. If you still have not received your invoice, please contact our club Secretary

If you are having difficulty paying your membership for any reason, please email the Commodore to discuss a suitable solution.

The Club relies on these membership subscriptions to keep the club going, and most of our costs are incurred through the winter months, so please make an effort to pay by the due date of 1 May 2024 (today!).

Payment can be made via bank transfer BSB, or online through the links provided in the invoice email. (Please note that online payment through RevSport has a surcharge fee, Bank Transfer does not)

 - Steven London (Commodore)

Work-on-your-Boat Weekend: 4-5 May 2024

Steven London

Maxim Djura is once again running a boat hull maintenance session on the weekend of the 5th and 6th of May. This is a perfect time to give some love to your boat and get her ready for the next season! The plan is to have enough people there to help with getting boats from their racks and to share materials (flow coat, epoxy glue and other stuff — Maxim will bring these on the day).

Maxim will be at the club from 10 am on both days .

This weekend is for repairs like:

  • Fixing chips, scratches or cracks in the gelcoat

  • Replacing deck fittings

  • Cleaning hull

  • Rope upgrades

He will bring to share:

  • Neutral flow coat and white pigment

  • Epoxy glue

  • Ronstan gelcoat restorer

  • White spirit

  • Sandpaper

  • Silicone

  • Gloves, masking tape, etc.

Disclaimer: Please note most of the items listed above are poison. It is your sole responsibility to handle them safely and you use them at your own risk. No professional advice will be available or provided.


Editor’s note: I, too, will be there. I’ll be bringing a 180 mm power polisher and some polishing compound. This won’t make you any faster, but it will make you shinier!

- Chris Tattersall

News from Coté and José

Steven London

AN OLYMPIC DREAM COMES TRUE FOR COTÉ

DBSC member Coté Poncell has been selected to represent Chile at the Paris Olympics in the women’s ILCA 6 Class. It was excitement plus for her family, as her parents are both previous Olympic sailors, and it was a tough process for her country, and herself to win selection against the odds.

Coté spent a season at our club last year, sailing against our top females, and with limited money, living at the iconic Bondi, with husband, José. They both took on a multitude of casual jobs to survive and live her dream: plenty of hills to improve her fitness as she pedalled her bike around the hilly terrain of Sydney delivering pizzas and living frugally. Along the path to qualify, she had to compete in a similar boat to a Laser, called a Sunfish, coming 2nd in last year’s Pan American Championship. She then did Laser training in South America in freezing winter, often surrounded by snow in the rigging area.  More international regattas followed and plenty of practise in extreme conditions of wind and cold. 

The point score from 4 major world regattas would determine who was selected to represent Chile and, in each regatta, Coté beat her rival by just a few places. To cap it off, her ‘official’ wedding to José was last May in Chile. On top of her sailing program, she rarely saw him as he started on his Masters law degree in London. Leaving no stone unturned, Coté also had both her eyes operated on to avoid wearing glasses, just to make sure she had good vision of the windward mark!

The whole of the DBSC membership give you a mighty cheer, Coté, and wish you the very best of luck in your forthcoming Olympic competition.

- Ian Tudball

WHAT'S GOING ON

Chris Tattersall

UPCOMING EVENTS

Saturday & Sunday 4-5 May: Work-on-your-Boat Weekend (NO CLUB RACING)

  • Maxim will be at the club from 10:00 on both days

Sunday, 12 May: Winter series racing commences

  • 07:30 Briefing / 08:15 Warning

Friday 24 May: DBSC’s Annual General Party (Meeting)

  • Please check your email for invitation and RSVP

  • NOTE: Calling for volunteers to help with this. If you able to, please contact Diana Chen


Thank you to the members who are sending through information for the newsletter. If you have content for the newsletter, please email it to newsletter@dbsc.com.au by Monday evening.

View all racing results here.
The club’s calendar can be viewed and subscribed to here.
Make a tax deductible donation to DBSC here.

Race Report - Saturday 20 April 2024

Chris Tattersall

Autumn Point Score Races 13 & 14

Report by PRO Daryl Lawrence

Saturday was the last Autumn Pointscore races to decide the winners, and it served up a honking southerly to test the 9 Full Rigs, 10 Radials and 4 4.7s that braved the rain squalls to race. A shortish course was set into Double Bay with a bit of pin bias on the start line ready to favour an easterly shift. In race 1, Healy Ryan took full advantage with a port tack start and cleared the fleet. Observant Standard sailors took advantage of the clues. Winds were 23 knots gusting to 29 while the flag mount on the Jazzman was sounding like a pan-flute. There were plenty of shiny hulls and centreboards on display as the squalls hit, and some speedy 13 kt reaching experiences. Everyone kept in order at the starts which meant a quick turn around for the races with the last boat finishing Race 2 at 15:34:10. By five o'clock we were all seated for Paul's wonderful duck fat roasted potatoes, salad, BBQ and home-made rhubarb with ice-cream. A nice end to the season's formal racing. Well done race officials, PRO Daryl Lawrence, LtRAR Scott Finlayson, COTD John Vasey, CoCOTD Peter D'Arcy-King and Rib Reserve Grant Lovelady assisted by Craig Ryan.

Photos by Scott Finlayson

On handicap, Race 1 saw Daniel Costandi, David Airey and Charlotte Jenkins victors in Standards, Radials and 4.7's, respectively. Race 2 went to Nicholas Pellow, Ian Alexander and Jasper Kinsman.

The Autumn Point Score 2024 overall winners ended up as ...
ILCA 7: Nick Pellow, who stole 8 points on Geoff Boscoe to win by 6.5 points.
ILCA 6: Jim (the Hustler) Dounis who scraped in by 2 points against Peter Collie.
ILCA 4: Charlotte Jenkins who maintained a 3 point lead over Jasper Kinsman.

Well done to all who competed!

Photo by Nick Pellow