60 Seconds with Van Allen

Periodically (okay, very irregularly -Ed.) we like to highlight new members to help introduce them the rest of the gang. This week, DBSC’s secretary Tory Epsworth caught up with new member Van Allen, and asked her these questions:

1. How old were you when you first stepped on a boat? I was 2 - it was a commercial fishing boat my father had organised to be built for the entire family clan + friends to sneak out of Saigon.

2. If money (& sailing ability) were no limit, what boat would you buy? Either an Oyster 885SII or a Hallberg Rassy 69. We're actually looking for a ~38ft but unfortunately do have a limited budget. If anyone's selling or knows of a good one - let me know!

3. What is your sailing goal? To be good enough to race my daughter, Zoe.

4. Tell us the back story to your Laser's name? I don't have my own yet, but when I do, I'll probably call it "Ut Somnia" (Keep Dreaming).

5. If you could add any ingredient to our already world’s best toasties – what would it be? I do like a hidden top note in my toasties, so maybe pickled red onions?

6. What are your second and third favourite hobbies (obviously assuming sailing holds the #1 spot). It use to be reading but I would probably say sleeping these days because I generally have drifted off after 2 pages HA!

7. Describe what you do for work in less than 5 words? Kid's Uber driver / part-time architect!

8. What's the dream destination for your next trip? And why? I've always wanted to go back to Africa  - Tanzania, Zanizibar, sail over to Seychelles, Kenya, Ethiopia and Egypt. It's just another time over there, the history, the land…

9. What’s your favourite TV show, movie, and or book? I don't really have favourites ‘cause I have such a broad range of tastes... maybe Blade Runner / Dead Poets Society, Highways to a War / The Lacuna, Bridgerton / Hard Quiz..?

10. Tell us something interesting about yourself that members of the club don’t know? I hung out with Carlos & Ronaldo in a Brazilian dive bar when Real Madrid toured Tokyo in 2003.

That’s Van in the cockpit (ninja on the bow is Zoe). Photo from Van Allen.

DBSC Annual Picnic

The Family Adventure Picnic has become a tradition at DBSC - join us for this year's adventure to north of the harbour at CHOWDER BAY on SUNDAY 30 MARCH ... [see map directions here]

We love Chowder Bay for its accessible parking, nearby cafe, and kid-friendly swimming pen and parkland. So, we're looking forward to seeing you and the rest of your clan. We'll set up camp at the east end of the beach. It’s a 12pm splash @DBSC, with picnic lunch served at 1pm.

$10 per head, plus drinks that you can add to your canteen account at the end of the day... plus a sunset sail back home...! 

So we can plan the catering, kindly RSVP via this link: https://www.dbsc.com.au/club-events/2025-dbsc-picnic.

Photo from Google Earth

WHAT'S GOING ON

CLub Look-ahead Schedule

• Wednesday 19 March: Twilight Sailing (5pm splash, sailing ‘til 7:00pm)

• Thursday 20 March: Twilight Racing (5pm splash, Racing 5:30pm to 7:30pm)

• Saturday 22 March:

  • Sprint Racing (for those not attending TWR) 2pm first warning

  • 2025 The Women’s Regatta — hosted by Vaucluse Yacht Club

    • Entry

    • Notice of Race

• Wednesday 26 March: Twilight Sailing (5pm splash, sailing ‘til 7:00pm)

• Thursday 27 March: Twilight Racing (5pm splash, Racing 5:30pm to 7:30pm)

• Saturday 29 March:

  • MP Kellie Sloan (Vaucluse) visiting the club (~1pm)

  • Autumn Point Score Races 9 & 10 (2pm first warning)

• Sunday 30 March: DBSC Family Adventure Picnic (see preceding article)

  • RSVP here: https://www.dbsc.com.au/club-events/2025-dbsc-picnic

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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 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 - 2025 Metros Regatta hosted by HHSC

Last weekend (8-9 March) Hunters Hill Sailing Club hosted the 2025 Metropolitan Championships Regatta, and competitors were greeted by friend HHSC volunteers who know how to put on a great regatta!

Early arrivals concerned about the light Westerly winds and a few showers were appeased as the wind shifted to the East by lunch time, and filled the course area with a steady +10kts, with some gusts, and a somewhat shifty breeze funneled down the river over the North Shore . The windward mark positioned off Greenwich in the middle of the Parramatta River, and the bottom mark just of the northern end Cockatoo Island - local knowledge was a must and by the end of the day most of sailors had worked out the tidal flows that were at play.

Day two was equally tricky as the wind increased and shifted toward the North-East revealing more blue sky. The top mark off Manns Point (again in the tide) and the bottom mark at the south end of Cockatoo Island. Many sailors were caught off guard (auto-tack/gybe and/or capsizing) when confronted with a gust at 45 degree to the prevailing wind.

A great turn out in all ILCA classes ensured many battles up and down the course, with tight competition. Double Bay Sailing Club was well represented at the regatta with about 30 DBSC Members amongst the 70 competitors.

Congratulations to all members who Raced, and especially to those who Placed:

🥇Harper Spacey 1st ILCA 4
🥇Sylvie Stannage 1st ILCA 6
🥇Charlie Byford 3rd ILCA 6 (1st u19)
🥇Raphael McLachlan 7th ILCA 6 (1st u17)
🥇Daniel Costandi 1st ILCA 7
🥇Campbell Patton 3rd ILCA 7
🥇Brett Beyer 4th ILCA 7 (1st GM)
🥇Healy Ryan 5th ILCA 7 (1st u21)
🥇Hadrien Bourely 13th ILCA 7 (1st AM)

Special thanks goes out to our on-water support team each day:
Saturday: Mark Gray, Justine Scott
Sunday: Scott Finlayson, David Evenden

And to all the parents! And parents who ran support boats.
And our Reach Coach for the Regatta: Page Caldecoat
And Van Allen for Reach logistics

Photos from HHSC

WHAT'S GOING ON

CLub Look-ahead Schedule

• *Wednesday 12 March: Twilight Sailing (5pm splash, sailing ‘til 7:00pm)

• *Thursday 13 March: Twilight Racing (5pm splash, Racing 5:30pm to 7:30pm)

• *Saturday 15 March: Autumn Point Score Races 7 & 8 (2:00pm start)

• Wednesday 19 March: Twilight Sailing (5pm splash, sailing ‘til 7:00pm)

• Thursday 20 March: Twilight Racing (5pm splash, Racing 5:30pm to 7:30pm)

• Saturday 22 March:

  • Sprint Racing (2pm-ish start)

  • 2025 The Women’s Regatta — hosted by Vaucluse Yacht Club

    • Entry

    • Notice of Race

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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 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 - 2025 Vaucluse Regatta

93rd Vaucluse Regatta report by Chris Rodowicz, Photos from VYC

The 93rd Vaucluse Regatta was sailed on Saturday, 1 March 2025, with 86 boats—ILCAs, OK Dinghies, and yachts—entered for a day of close racing (or at least attempting to, given the conditions).

The day was perfect, except the winds were… well, let’s just say “politely absent”, and the strong run-out current turned the start line into a game of “Who Can Stay Behind the Line?” (Spoiler: Not everyone). OCS calls were flying, and the bottom mark rounding demanded maximum concentration.

Despite the light breeze, the dinghies managed to squeeze in two of the three scheduled races (except the 4s), and back at the VYC clubhouse there were plenty of stories to tell and smiles all around.

A massive thank you to our VYC volunteers, PRO Greg Dixon, and the DBSC team for their help—especially for showing off their shiny new Gemini RIB! And, of course, to all the sailors, particularly those who made the trek from interstate. Thank you to the major sponsors, Zhik and Performance Sailcraft.

Congrats to the winners, and for those who didn’t quite get the results they wanted—there’s always next year! Mark your calendars for the first Saturday of March 2026. See you then!

Full results can be found HERE

Link to the photo gallery is HERE

Please note if you want printable versions of any of these photos please email vaucluseyachtclub@gmail.com with photo numbers.

Podium Results:

ILCA 4 Open
1. Harper Spacey DBSC
2. Isabella Taylor WSC
3. Harrison Rudham WSC

ILCA 4 Women
1. Harper Spacey DBSC
2. Isabella Taylor WSC
3. Charlotte Jenkins DBSC

ILCA 6 Open
1. Jon Emmett DBSC on countback from
2. Elliot Scali VYC
3. Sylvie Stannage

ILCA 6 Women
1. Sylvie Stannage
2. Michelle Lefevre MHASC
3. Lyndall Patterson RPAYC

ILCA 7 Open
1. Zander Bijkerk DBSC HHSC RPAYC
2. Quentin Burns DBSC
3. Michael Stackpool VYC

OK Dinghy
1. Peter Robinson DSC on countback from
2. Mark Phillips DSC
3. Jim Dwyer DSC

Yachts
1. Crest - Haydn Skelton VYC
2. Margot - Byron Georgouras VYC
3. Kite Runner - Matt Goodall VYC

ILCA 2025 Oceania & Australian Masters

Ian Tudball reports from Westernport Yacht Club (all photos by Ian):

There was an interesting grouping of fleets with 27 ILCA 7's sharing the same start with 6 ILCA 4's, followed by 39 ILCA 6 Grand Masters and Masters combined in the second group, and 41 ILCA 6 GGM's and Legends in the 3rd group.

The first day of racing was a wipe out with no wind and no racing for the 113 boat event.

Day 2 saw a complete reversal with a nasty off-shore breeze gusting 25+ knots to test the fleet with the added variable of a 2-knot tide. It was a tough day on the water and weary sailors were suitably rejuvenated at the Club that night with a top-flight jazz band and liquid refreshment.

Day 3 saw a few of the Legends electing not to sail as the wind was now onshore with steep rolling seas coming in from the ocean, and healthy gusts of 25 knots. But the challenge was there for the adventurous sailors and the downwind rides were exhilarating.

Day 4 was the final day, and the Club decided to run 3 races in a building 15 knot on-shore breeze. It was the perfect end to a brilliantly run regatta , and the 9 completed races allowed for 2 discards.

The winning sailors comfortably handled all conditions, but everyone agreed it was a tough regatta on the body, Some new faces appeared in the winners circle, and DBSC attire was worn with pride by our English recruit, Jon Emmet who won the Masters Division and did a wonderful interview on U YouTube at the end of each day’s racing. 

Western Port Yacht Club and Nick Ede ran a truly wonderful regatta, both on and off the water. Their Club members formed a big contingent of volunteers that involved manning boats and tractors, to dragging boats up the soft sand, and preparing food every day for hungry and thirsty competitors. A lot of planning had gone into the event, and every sailor appreciated what a great regatta it was.

DBSC was well represented. Tim Heath, Kerryn Smith, Scott Finlayson and Michael (never quit) Morris made their Nationals debuts with good performances. Rod Barnes, David Newman, and Martin White had outstanding performances, with Pat Levy always knocking on the door. Here are the final results:

Fleet 1 (ILCA 7 & ILCA 4):

Winners: ILCA 7 Master: M. Blakey & ILCA 7 Grand Master: Brett Beyer. ILCA 4: M. Lefevre.

ILCA 7 DBSC sailors: 6th o/a Rod Barnes (4th GM); 10th o/a Dave Newman (2nd Master); 21st o/a Tim Heath (11th GM)

Fleet 2 (ILCA 6 Masters & Grand Masters):

Winners: ILCA 6 Master: Jon Emmett & ILCA 6 Grand Master: B.Savage

DBSC ILCA 6 sailors: 24th o/a Kerryn Smith (18th GM); 25th o/a Scott Findlayson (19th GM);

Fleet 3 (ILCA 6 Great Grand Masters & Legends):

Winners: ILCA 6 GGM: J. Mitchell & ILCA 6 Legend: T.Alexander

DBSC ILCA 6 sailors: 5th o/a Martin White (5th GGM); 13th o/a Pat Levy (11th GGM); 23rd o/a Ian Tudball (18th GGM); 27th o/a Peter Heywood (8th Legend); 32nd o/a Michael Morris (21st GGM)

This event is a qualifier for the next Worlds in Italy in September.

Final Reminder: 2025 Metros - this Saturday & Sunday at HHSC

This Saturday and Sunday the Metropolitan Championships will be hosted by Hunters Hill Sailing Club. This event is for all ILCA classes and has prizes for Open, Youth and Masters age categories. HHSC is a great venue with copious rigging area, good sailing water right in front of the club and terrific viewing from Clarkes Point Park.

DBSC Sailors traveling by water will splash about 12pm to make the journey up the river by water, with a RIB for support (towing if required) back and forth each day.
(We suggest that members wanting to go by road trailer organise themselves).

• Notice of Race is HERE.

• Sailing Instructions are Here.

• Competitor Information Document is Here.

• Sign On/Off for each day is HERE

You can Enter online HERE any time up to 11.30 on 8 March at the club. (Entry fee applies)

There will be no DBSC club racing this weekend.

WHAT'S GOING ON

CLub Look-ahead Schedule

• Wednesday 5 March: Twilight Sailing (5pm splash, sailing ‘til 7:00pm)

• Thursday 6 March: Twilight Racing (5pm splash, Racing 5:30pm to 7:30pm)

• Saturday 8 March:

  • No club racing due to Metro’s at HHSC (see previous piece)

  • For boats sailing to HHSC: 12:00 splash for 1:30pm start

• Wednesday 12 March: Twilight Sailing (5pm splash, sailing ‘til 7:00pm)

• Thursday 13 March: Twilight Racing (5pm splash, Racing 5:30pm to 7:30pm)

• Saturday 15 March: Autumn Point Score Races 7 & 8

Note: The 2025 JJ Giltinan 18-Footer World Championships

The JJ Giltinan 18-Footer World Championships will be running out of Double Bay SC from Friday 7 March through to Sunday 16 March. The foreshore rigging area and clubhouse are being used for this event, so please be prepared for this, and give yourself extra time to get your boat out and rig, we will leave a passage to the park and ramp from the clubhouse, but for short periods it may be blocked by masts or rigging, we will all be patient and polite and aim to get out on the water early.

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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 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 22 February 2025

Sprint Racing

It was the stuff of sailing dreams: sunshine, 14-16 knots NE right down the harbour, some nice wave action, and the exotic challenge of an Outrigger regatta crossing our course!

Thrills and spills on the racecourse (photo by David Murphy)

The sprint course for the day was set right in the mouth of Double Bay, taking full advantage of the breeze and conditions, with a lovely wind and wave compression right at the base of our windward-leeward course. The on-water team comprised COTD Connor Roche, Co-COTD/ new member Dan Leupen, LTRaR Richard Holstein and myself David Murphy. Ashore many thanks to Paul, Shirley, John Chesterman and Joshua Dorey.

A strong finish (photo by David Murphy)

While we didn’t take formal results, there were some distinguished performances: Alistair Sutherland started and finished very assertively on a number of sprints in the 6s, as did visiting sailor Mattia Santostefano from Italy in the 7s!, and we had some great course-setting tips from our very own Luke Parker, who predicted the gradual course shift from Manly to Shark Island. There was good clean racing, with just one general recall for the day, and we were back to the club around 4 for refreshments on the deck.

- David Murphy, PRO