79 Bay St
Double Bay NSW 2028
Australia

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

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August Sprints Start This Saturday

Kirk Marcolina

In a sign that spring is just around the corner, Saturday afternoon sailing is back this week with our August Sprints. The sprints are a perfect way to get back in shape for the upcoming season of sailing, and will be on every Saturday in August. Because of on-going restrictions due to COVID-19, the series will be a bit different this year, so please read the following carefully. 

The key regulation we have to work around is that no more than 10 people can be in the clubhouse or 20 in the outdoor rigging area at one time. To avoid this, Radials and Standards will rig and launch separately (just as they did in the Winter Championship).  Radials need to launch no later than 12:25pm for a 1pm start. Standards will arrive at 12:25pm for a 12:55pm splash and a 1:30pm start. It is important to avoid inter-mingling of the groups on land. Each week there will be a COVID Compliance Officer (CCO) to make sure everyone is complying with these restrictions. 

Racing will take place in a combined fleet, with a three minute starting sequence and a signal on every minute. Radials will start after two minutes and Standards will start after three minutes. The first signal will be at 1pm and the Radials will begin racing at this time. The Standards will join the sprints upon their arrival at the course. To avoid too many members in the clubhouse and rigging area, Radials will complete racing at 3pm and Standards will continue until 3:30pm. Standards must wait on the water until the Radials have finished de-rigging and have placed their boats in the clubhouse. 

There will be no race briefing. Please familiarise yourself with the SIs HERE, paying particular attention to ANNEXURE 2 which shows the Sprint Course.

Please look out for your fellow members by staying home if you feel the least bit unwell or if anyone in your immediate family or work colleagues has COVID-19 or has been in contact with a known COVID-19 patient. 

Other things to keep in mind:

  1. You are not permitted to attend the clubhouse or to sail from the clubhouse if: 

    • You have been to Victoria in the last 14 days

    • You have attended any of the reported case locations on the NSW Health website HERE (Please note there now are several venues in Potts Point on this list)

  2. Before entering the clubhouse, you must sign in with an active mobile number – as this will allow us to fulfil our requirement to maintain contact tracing records

  3. Hand sanitizer will be provided at the club and must be used prior to entry and after touching any equipment

  4. 1.5m social distancing rules apply inside the club and in the park

  5. No getting changed in the club (it takes up one of the 10-people spots needed to move boats in and out)

  6. No use of toilets, showers, front deck, or canteen – it is get in, get out (if you absolutely need to use the toilet, the accessible bathroom will be available for toilet purposes only)

  7. There will be no socialising post-sailing on the front deck  

  8. We encourage you to download the COVIDSafe App, and make sure it is active when you come to the club

We know the inconvenience caused by these restrictions has deterred some people from sailing. But take it from the many members who participated in the Winter Series, it’s not that bad and you quickly get used to the new procedures.

So come out and join us. We’d love to see a big fleet for some pre-season fun this Saturday!

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