The 2010 WA State Open Match Racing Championships were recently hosted by Royal Perth Yacht Club in their fleet of BW8 yachts. Six teams contested the event with representatives from RFBYC, SoPYC and RPYC.

Our team for the event was Thor Schoenhoff, Thomas Blaauw, Matt Wearn, Michael Taylor and myself. After no training together as a team (due to other commitments such as study), we went in quite under prepared, however, we still knew we were good enough to perform well and challenge for the title.

The format for racing was a double round robin, meaning each team raced everyone twice before the finals. In the opening race of the first round robin we had a promising start in securing a penalty on Peter Nicholas, however, this soon changed as we were slightly too eager and broke the start which gave Nicholas a considerable lead and allowed him to wipe his penalty off and to sail away with the win.

As I'm sure we're aware we've got Monsoon Cup take two happening in Germany (should have caught a plane over from Poland!) at the moment. Tovar's is up one on Gilly after a nail bitter and match two is just kicking off. Courtesy of WMRT and Mark Chisnell here's the live commentary....

UPDATE @ 0700 22/5/2010 - The weather has eased a little and is beginning to look OK for a start today. Paul has told us that there are still 2 cells to the north of New Zealand which look as though they will converge in the next 24 -36 hours. If these cells to mix, then you can expect to see 50-60 knot wind and 10 - 15 metre seas, right where the General Lee should be located at the time.

As Paul noted, "This is not where you want a 4 ton boat to be."

Forecast from NZ Met Service -

"Issued by MetService at 8:05am 22 May 2010

Forecast: Front 28S 133W 32S 127W 38S 120W moving eastsoutheast 40kt. East of front: Northwest 25kt with gale as in warning 593, and heavy northwest swell. Low 982hPa near 50S 124W moving east 20kt. Ridge 49S 170W 50S 153W 53S 120W moving northeast 10kt. From front to ridge: Areas of clockwise 25kt about low. South of ridge: Westerly 25kt at times with gale as in warning 594. Low 1002hPa expected near 35S 169W at 220600Z then moving east 30kt. Within 480 miles of low: Clockwise 25kt with gale as in warning 595.

Outlook: Outlook following 72 hours: Slow moving ridge 30S 120W extending northwest. Front 25S 144W extending southsoutheast, moving east. Second ridge 25S 153W extending southwest, moving slowly east. West of slow moving ridge, and east of front: Northwest 25kt to gale, with heavy northwest swells. West of front, and and east of second ridge: South to southwest 30 to 40kt,with heavy southwest swells. At 220000Z, low expected near 36S 170W,moving east and deepening after 230000Z. In broad area about low:Clockwise 25kt to gale, with heavy swells."

The plan now for the General is to start the race, as there are many ports for shelter up the coast should the cells merge earlier than expected. If the weather looks to be suitable for leaving NZ waters, the team will go for it. However this is a brand new light weight 37 footer, so all on board are well aware that if the weather doesn't look good, they will be bringing the boat back the Auckland with the best of seamanship in mind. Should this be the case, it will have been a great shakedown run for the boat regardless of not doing the race, and leave the crew in a better position for upcomong races.

The Doctor wishes the GL team all the best, it is never an easy descision to make, sail safe.

UPDATE FROM PAUL ELDRID 1500  21/5/2010 - The Doctor just got off the phone from Paul as he was going into the race weather briefing. Many of you may be watching and know, but the weather in NZ is blowing dogs off chains, and it looks set to worsen. There is some doubt about the race start tommorow, and the two boats that started in yesterdays Corinthian Fleet have taken shelter at the Bay of Islands.

Should the race start in such bad conditions, the General Lee Team will hold a crew meeting to decide if they will start the race. A sensible move considering the weather, the age of the boat and its size.

Another factor is the 3 meeting currents at the top of the north island. These currents throw up a huge sea and can be real boat and crew breakers even in more ideal conditions.

The Doctor congratulates the team on their seamanship, and wishes them well regardless of their descision. Paul will keep up updated by phone and I will post any update here as well.

Sailors taking part in this year’s Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron Auckland to Musket Cove Ocean Race can look forward to a new level of security with tracking specialists TracPlus Global, RUSH digital and Satamatics coming onboard for the event.

The event involves a fleet of 23 high-tech racing yachts pounding their way through around 2,000kms of open sea between Auckland and Fiji ’s Musket Cove, and TracPlus Global CEO Chris Hinch says keeping close tabs on their progress is a challenge tailor-made for their systems.

'With the majority of yachts carrying portable units to be tracking almost an entire racing fleet in real time is a New Zealand first,' he says.

'Conditions could range from millpond to mountainous whitecaps so we want to make sure our systems keep tabs on these yachts and their crews no matter what conditions they face.

'Knowing where they are at any given time and being able to share that information easily with race organizers and rescue authorities will add hugely to the safety margins and peace of mind.

Anyone who wants to will be able to go on line via the Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron’s website and watch the progress of the yachts during the race, which is expected to last between five and eight days, depending on the weather.

Follow the General Lee here, http://www.rayc.org.nz/

Photo by Garth Cooke

After some tough racing in fickle winds, and a little bit of good fortune, the Mirsky Racing Team have finished day one of Match Race Germany undefeated.

A slow start to the day saw MRT stepping on in the 4th flight to race fellow SailRacing representative Magnus Holmburg of Victory Challenge. After three attempts, racing finally got under way in very shifty winds. With a substantial lead off the line, the team extended their lead to put their first win comfortably in the bag.

Next up was Radich Racing Team who fought hard in the close battle for the lead, but with a miscommunication on board, they handed the victory to MRT by sailing to the wrong mark.

The race committee then managed to squeeze in one more race in the dying breeze. MRT faced Team Proximo, helmed by Ian Ainslie from South Africa. The team managed to hold onto a tight lead throughout the race, but a small shift favoured Team Proximo, and they stole the lead within metres of the finish line.

"We thought it was all over because they were so close to the line, but we had one last shot at it, and with a perfectly timed gybe we just squeezed back in front" said an elated Tudur Owen after the victory. "There must have been half a foot in it at the most, but we would have been really upset if we had lost it because we put everything into staying in front - not an easy task in today's conditions."

Todays video update can be seen here

SURFERS have had access to a range of quality, stylish and tongue-in-cheek clothing for years, but what about their humble cousins – sailors, yachties and other sea lovers? Thanks to an exciting move by a North Queensland sailing family a new line of clothing has washed onto our shores and it has thrown hefty resort price tags overboard.

“Grotty Yachty is created for sailors by sailors and is designed to be worn in yacht clubs world-wide,” Sandy Clark explains, who fabricated the brand with her husband Kelvin and daughter Naomi.

“While there have been a number of brands in the past catering to the sailing fraternity, there was a gap in the market for casual, affordable - and sometimes tongue-in-cheek - street wear designed with sailors in mind.

“Existing sailing brands cater to the elite end of the market, but the reality is the majority of sailors are not yacht owners. It takes one person to own a 44ft yacht but up to six people to sail it and we want to give those sailors a sense of pride... those living the dream will identify with the brand name Grotty Yachty as we have cotton clothing that’s inexpensive, easy to wear and matches the wearer to their passion - much like the surfer wears the iconic brands Billabong and Rip Curl.”

Sandy and Kelvin are based in the Whitsundays – the hub of Australia’s sailing and cruising activity – and devised the clothing label while living upon their Roberts 44 in Townsville. They sailed up and down the Australian coast for 10 years and built strong ties with the sailing community before dropping anchor permanently in Airlie Beach to develop the innovative range.

Grotty Yachty has elected to have all the design and printing work completed by Australian businesses. They are keeping the operation as local to North Queensland as possible by using a screen printer in Airlie Beach for the t-shirts and a local embroiderer will create the polo range for the ‘After 5’ look.

“We could have done things more cost-effectively by taking production overseas, but we really wanted a quality product and to have other Australians and North Queenslanders benefit from this exciting venture,” Sandy says.

The full Grotty Yachty collection is available from www.grottyyachty.com.au/index.php with no shirt over $40.

Grotty Yachty are supporting the AUS SKUD fund raiser (lower on the front page) so for your chance to win a swag of gear, grab some tickets now, the Doctor hears they are selling fast.

The Mirsky Racing Team has arrived in Southern Germany for the second event of the 2010 World Match Racing Tour, Match Race Germany.

The team hit the water this afternoon for the practice session trying to familiarise themselves with the local Bavaria 35 Match yachts that are provided by the organisers.

"Its great to get back out on the water, we have had a break since Marseille where we had a pretty disappointing result at the season opener, so we are eager to get out there tomorrow morning"

"We are sailing on Lake Constance, which is known for its light wind so wind strategy will be crucial here" said bowman Graeme Spence who is fresh off the plane from Australia.

Todays video update can be seen at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lbAw6BVGMWs

The 2010 WA State Laser Radial Championships were hosted by the Mandurah Offshore Fishing and Sailing Club over the ANZAC Day long weekend. The Laser Radial fleet this year consisted of 26 boats and after my recent poor performance at the Mandurah Easter Regatta I was keen to take revenge at the States.
This plan for revenge started well with a win in the first race and an extremely close second in the following race (missed out on the win be a metre). In the remaining two races of the day I scored a 2nd and a 3rd to be equal leader after the first day. This was good to post solid early results as regattas aren’t usually won on the first day, but can definitely be lost by poor results initially!
In an attempt to test our own processes and strategies without the aid of a coach, Arthur and Belinda decided not to coach us on the Sunday which was testing, yet beneficial. The opening race of day two was extremely light and mixed the fleets results up considerably, however, I was able to secure another third and remain in contention. In the following three races of the day I managed to post three consecutive firsts, through sailing fast and smart. This gave me a good lead going into the final day over fellow WAIS sailor Matthew Wearn. The scenario was that if Matt didn’t win both of the final races on Monday morning then the regatta would be mine without needing to sail the final two races.
This situation seemed to affect my results accordingly, as I sailed both of my drops in the testing light offshore breeze on Monday morning, fortunately for me Matt also struggled. This handed me the championship with a four point lead and gave me the title of “2010 WA Laser Radial State Champion”.
I would like to thank MOFSC for hosting the event, WA Laser Association for their organisation and all of the volunteers who made the event possible. Thanks must also go to Royal Freshwater Bay Yacht Club and Boating Hardware for their continued support and also to Belinda Stowell (WAIS) and Arthur Brett (FSC) for the time and effort they put in to helping me improve.
Other RFBYC sailors who also competed at the event also raced well:
• 3rd Luke Elliot
• 5th David Tucker
• 11th Jacek Turczynowicz
• 13th Michael Taylor
• 23rd John Wilson
Full Results: http://laserwa.asn.au/uploads/media/2010_States_Radial_Results_Final.pdf

Past champions Scott Olsen & Sean Gregory were there early ticking off a jobs list. Rumor has it that 2007 winners Peter Chappell (PC) & Sam Gill had been practicing and they looked confident. Ian Pinder, a 5oh veteran was teamed with Mark Stowell and there was a heap of young guys that jumped on to borrowed boats with a chance to grab the $500 prize for the first placed under 25 team. We were soon to discover that the young guys were talented and would make this a tight competition.

In the last 2 weeks UWA has participated in two sailing events that hopefully signify trend toward further growth of sailing at the University. Late May saw Thailand’s annual Top of the Gulf Regatta where UWA sent several students (Adam Gascoyn, James Loughridge, Remy Donraadt) to join a crew fielded by Singapore Management University. The combined SMU team competed in the Coronation Cup component of the Regatta with OD racing aboard Thailand’s own Platu’s. The joint SMU team ultimately achieved a 5th in the class. Last Friday UWA hosted it’s Vice Chancellor’s Regatta now in it’s 2nd year in Matilda bay onboard the WAYF Foundation 36’s. Teams from Notre Damn, Curtin and UWA competed and amongst them where some familiar faces for WA sailing Robert Gibbs and Tristan Brown for Curtin and David Gilmour for UWA. In the light breeze that ensued Notre Damn, skipper Blair Spaulding, was ultimately able to emerge triumphant with one of the UWA 2 skippered by Nick Brownie narrowly scraping second and Curtin 3rd.  With the Australian University Games in Perth this year set to include both Match and Teams racing WA’s Universities seem assured as of being amongst the main contenders.
 

A Series for Everyone

Yachting WA today released its Offshore Racing Program for the 2010/11 Season, which reflects major structural reforms following RFBYC’s recent Offshore Survey results. Asked about the changes, Offshore Chairman Chris Kelly commented: “We recognised an appetite for change to keep our sport of offshore racing fresh and relevant to Western Australia. Current and potential offshore sailors have many demands on their personal time and finances which we acknowledge. A tiered structure of racing has been introduced to enable yachts and crews of varying abilities and commitments to choose a series which suits them.”

“The Bluewater Series is for the hard-core offshore sailors. It consists of seven long-distance, overnight races, including the Geraldton, Bunbury and Naturaliste races, spread over seven weekends. A maximum safety compliance of Category 2 applies.”

“The Offshore Series includes eleven shorter races over nine weekends, with a maximum of Category 3 safety compliance.”

“Our keen sailors can compete in both the Bluewater and Offshore Series, involving a minimum commitment of twelve races over ten weekends, plus the Cockburn Sound Regatta, IRC State Championship weekend, Geographe Bay Race Week and any possible club racing.”

“The Coastal Series has been introduced for the less-experienced sailors, consisting of up to eleven inshore races with nine to count, minimum commitment of six weekends, and a maximum safety Category 4. This is an ideal introduction to an offshore racing series without going too far offshore or having to commit to high-level safety equipment.”

“Competing for the Perie Banou Trophy named in honour of one of the world’s most famous short-handed yachts, the double-handed division will allow experienced yachtsmen to contest demanding courses with a high (Category 3) level of safety compliance. This division offers eleven races, with eight to count, spread over a minimum of six weekends.”

There will also be a number of sub-series, including FSC’s Success Cup, RFBYC’s Farrawa Cup and the YWA Spring, Summer and YAH Consistency Series. The complex and unpopular Cox-Sprague scoring system has been eliminated in favour of the familiar Low Points system.”

Mr Kelly concluded “We thank the Clubs for their contributions to the reform process and look forward to their continued support of offshore racing, by allowing automatic average points in club series for yachts competing in offshore events”.

Details of the 2010/11 Offshore Program and the various series are to follow.

For further information, contact

Chris Kelly 08 9246 2833

Laurie Flynne 0408 130 888.