Upcoming regattas

Laser Metropolitan Championships (RPAYC) – 5-6 March 2022: please contact Rod Barnes if you wish to attend.The NoR is here and you can enter for this event here. A guide of competitor information is also available here.

MYC Women’s’ Challenge - 26 March 2022. 

The Helly Hansen Women’s Challenge is Manly Yacht Club’s signature event, reflecting the growing passion women have for the sport of sailing. The Women’s Challenge was first conceived in 1995 and has been running and growing continuously since then. 

The Women’s Challenge committee extends an invitation to female sailors to join us for a weekend of exciting racing in Manly Cove and on Sydney Harbour followed by an evening of prize giving, food and frivolities on the deck at Manly Yacht Club. 

Competition covers every level of experience and age; and encourages all women/girl sailors to borrow, beg or buy a boat and enter. Saturday racing is one-design in dinghy, Hansa dinghies and laser divisions followed by a BBQ after racing on the deck. With some great prizes to be won, this should be a fun event. https://www.myc.org.au/womens-challenge/

NB: Women from DBSC wishing to attend may request for average points in the Pointscore racing that day.

Sailing stories with Malcolm Page

The club will be continuing our sailing stories events for members, this time with Malcolm Page on Wednesday 16thMarch after twilight sailing. 

Malcolm is a three time Olympian and dual gold medallist in the 470 class (Qingdao and London). He was the official Australian flag bearer at the closing ceremony of the London Olympics. Malcom has won the 470 men’s world championships six times and has also won world championships in the 420 and Tasar classes.

Following his retirement from Olympic sailing, Malcolm worked at World Sailing as Head of Media, before becoming Chief of Olympic Sailing for US Sailing. He has now returned to Australian Sailing assuming the role of Mixed 470 coach.

Malcolm is a deadest legend and all-round nice guy of Australian sailing. You won’t want to miss this event.

We will be serving pizzas at 7.30pm for everyone to be seated at 7.45pm.

Laser for sale

181941 – Josh Crichton is selling his laser with radial and standard rigs. Amazing condition laser for its age. Very well looked after, always cleaned and stored inside. Has everything you need to sail and race. new venturi/drain plug fitted and a few new pieces of rigging. Needs no work or attention, just buy and sail. Currently stored at DBSC.

More information available on Gumtree. 

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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 midnight Monday.

Coming up next...

Wednesday 23 February – Twilight sprints

Saturday 26 February – Sprints | Masters’ National Championships (Westernport, Vic)

Wednesday 2 March – Twilight sprints

4-13 March – JJ Giltinan Regatta (18’ skiffs)

Saturday 5 March – Learn to Race (am) | Clean Up Australia Day (am) | Sprints | Metros (RPAYC)

Wednesday 9 March – Twilight sprints

Saturday 12 March - Club Championships 7&8 (BBQ)

Wednesday 16 March – Twilight sprints

Saturday 19 March – Learn to Race (am) | Autumn Pointscore 3&4

Wednesday 23 March – Twilight sprints

Saturday 26 March – Autumn Pointscore 5&6

Wednesday 30 March – Twilight sprints

The club calendar can be viewed (and subscribed to) here.

Race report 12 February 2022

On Saturday there was good attendance for the first Autumn pointscore races in a tricky east-south-easterly breeze which was affected by big shifts and rain in the second race, eventually glassing out in the second race for the standard rig fleet. 

There was good competitive racing with excellent execution from the on water team led by Geoff Kirk (PRO) assisted by David Airey (LTRAR), Yves Stening (COTD), Emily Ball and Richard Finlayson. Paul and Shirly were assisted in the canteen by Luke Parker and Diana Chen.

Our race winners were Jason Wilkins and Alexander Bijkerk in the standard rig, and Scott Hunter and Daryl Lawrence in the radial rig. We also had two special guests – Rob Lowndes from MHASC joined the first race in the radial fleet, while in the standard fleet, Robert Krohn was visiting from San Francisco, who shouted the bar at the end of racing. He can come back any time!

Photo credit: Nick Pellow

Volly of the week

Double Bay Sailing Club is managed and run entirely by volunteers. As the saying goes, “many hands make light work. There is always work to be done in the upkeep of our shed and the ongoing running of dinghy racing.

This week we’d like to thank Justin Davey. Justin is not only the club treasurer, but undertakes lots of unseen jobs every week, from organising the collection of the rubbish and recycling to fixing the Wi-Fi.

The club is full of people making wonderful contributions around the place, and sometimes behind the scenes. Let us know who deserves a mention!

Wednesday twilight sailing

Twilight sailing continues on Wednesday evenings from 5.30-7.30pm until the end of daylight savings. 

Racing starts at 5.30 using rabbit starts. We encourage people to join as they arrive (recognising different work requirements) and to stay out if possible until 7.30 (noting that some people need to start and finish earlier).

Unless communicated otherwise, the top mark in most wind directions will be the large white shipping buoy to the northeast of Clark Island. In NE, the bottom mark and start/finish will be the orange shipping mark. In S/SE, there will be no bottom mark, but the start/finish will be near the zoo. 

The intention is that, as people arrive, they will all sail to the agreed location and start to sail / race there — even if initially only one or two boats.

A WhatsApp chat group has been set up to discuss twilight sailing. If you intend to sail twilight sailing and have not been added to the group, please let us know and you will be added to the group.

This weekend - Vaucluse Regatta

This weekend the club will host Learn to Race and in the afternoon head to the Vaucluse Regatta. A staple of the Sydney Harbour racing calendar, this iconic regatta celebrates its 90th year and is welcoming yachts, historic dinghies, OK Dinghies, Cherubs, VS & VJs, and Lasers. 

The event is free and you need to register here.

DBCS members will need to be ready to splash at 12:15 to sail to the course for a 1330 start.

The sailing instructions for the day are available online here. Members should read the sailing instructions before Saturday. There are some salient points to note:

• Lasers will start 1330, with a combined radial and 4.7 fleet starting first

• There will be up to three races, with all races counting

• The course will be 2 laps of windward-leeward legs with an offset mark at the top and rounding to port.

• There will be separate start and finish lines part-way up the course

• Code flag “I” us likely to be used at the start – boats that are over in the last minute must round the ENDS of the line and come back through it

• Boats must keep at least 50m clear of start line when not in sequence. Please watch out for yachts using the same start line!

• General recalls put that fleet to the end of the queue

• The one penalty turn rule (not two) applies.

• BE AWARE OF FERRIES and COMMERCIAL SHIPPING in this end of the harbour. They are dangerous and have right of way.

After racing, we will be doing a small rack reshuffle before returning to VYC for a BBQ. We will take 2 RIBs down to VYC as on water transport for those members who do not wish to drive.

We highly recommend you register here now to avoid frustration on the day.

The regatta will no longer count for pointscore, and club championship heats as previously advised.

Fuel spill kit

As part of the club’s ongoing effort toward sustainability, we have now purchased a fuel spill kit. This kit will be stored above the fuel locker at the club.

There are no (known) incidents of fuel spillage into the harbour when refilling the RIBs and we hope for this continue. This is a precautionary effort in line with the sustainability guidelines from World Sailing.

Members are reminded to exercise due care when filling the RIBs from inside the vessel, and not to carry around open cannisters of fuel at any time. All fuel cannisters, whether full or empty, must be stored inside the fuel locker when not in use for refuelling.