Todays sailing was at first relocated to Montrose as Tas Water had closed the dam, but when we arrived at Montrose we found out that the dam had in fact reopened - even though the web site said it to be closed. General consensus was that skippers would rather sail at the dam and so that was where we moved for today's sailing. My apologies to anyone if this has caused you inconvenience today.
There was a brisk Northerly of about 10 knots blowing down the dam and while it did lighten after lunch it didn’t stop us getting the full quota of 10 races completed. Unfortunately the weekend rains did mean that there was more weed and flotsam on the dam than usual. Most skippers found some at some stage today. Martin Svensen sailed well today scoring a couple of race wins. One of these was especially noteworthy as he had to recover positions on the last beat from the gate to the finish to gain the win. All skippers got to the podium at least once today. Third place today went to Andrew Wardrop who has worked his starting handicap up from 30 a couple of weeks ago to 60 for next week. John Hall took second place with a more obedient boat today! And Lisa was today’s winner with all podium finishes (after discards) and a total of 2 points. Well done to all. Next Wednesday’s handicap at the dam will again be for IOM’s (button at 11:00) And Sunday’s scratch sailing will be for DF95’s also at the dam (button at 10:00) John S
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It was a full blue sky day at the Dam. Frosty and cool early but warming to a lovely sunny day with the promise of summer ahead - well at least spring. A northerly of between 2 and 10 knots kept us entertained throughout the day.
We still hadn’t done the necessary maintenance to the missing buoy 5 but maybe that was a good thing because it meant that we had to think of some different courses to suit this wind. I thought that the last course that we were using today worked quite well: 3/4 (start) - 8 - 7- 3/4 (gate) - 8 - 7 - 1/2 (gate) - 3/4 (finish) This course gave plenty enough windward work and the extra gates and the decision making that goes along with them provided extra interest. John Hall won race 4 by making a really deep tack out to the western side. So effective was it that he tried the same tactic in the following race but this time he sailed beyond the limits of the range of his receiver (there may also have been a low battery involved). Anyway John learnt that his boat is set up perfectly to sail by itself as it did not deviate in its course straight to the other side of the dam. The handicaps seamed to work well today with pretty well everyone getting to the podium at least once and a good spread of race winners from across the handicap spectrum. Third place today went to Andrew Wardrop who was always close to the head of the fleet. Mat Grey took second place with six podium finishes in his tally. And Phil Jackman was the winner with very consistent results. Congratulations to all. Next Sunday is the RM State Regatta. Registrations from 0900, briefing 1015 and button press at 1030 sharp. Please get entries in if you haven't already. And IOM’s again for next Wednesday’s handicap at the dam. Button Press at 11:00. oWasn't there for long today, so don't have too much to report.
Initially to be sailed at montrose, but the glare was too arsh for the skippers, so t was agreed to decamp to Risdon Brook dam. Very light breeze there (as it was also at MBYC). Just the five races sailed before the wind gave out completely. Mathew Gray continued his hot form, winning the day on 6 points. Rod Jackman took out second place on countback with 9 points, with Lisa Blackwood third on the same 9 points. On handicap today, Rod Jackman took the honours, wit 1 net point. Second place was shared by Mathew Gray, Rod Marshall, John Hall, Andrew Wardrop and Martin Svenson - who all sailed to their handicap today - 0 net points. Big thanks - as always - t Les Hanson for his PRO work today. Wednesday this week is IOM Handicap at the dam, starting at 11am. Next Sunday is RM State Regatta. We only have four entries in so far, so please get them in as soon as you know that you can make it. Two more notes. Rod Jackman is selling his IOM V10. It will shortly be on both the RBRYC webiste in the for sale area, as well as on the ARYA site if you are interested. Lastly, our friends at Forcett lakes are holding their next IOM Classics Day on Saturday 3rd September, from 11am to 1430. Mark it down on your calendar. It is a very enjoyable sail day out there. Kyle It was great to get another windy day at the dam - but only six skippers fronted for the start. Due to the limited numbers we decided to shelve regular handicap sailing and instead have a casual scratch series.
We all started the day with our A-rigs and had launched and were awaiting Andrew to press the button when there was a significant increase in the wind and so it was decide to have a rig change break even before we started. B-rigs proved the order of the day though those that had a C-rig in their quiver were able to change down again for the last two races. With the strong and quite biting wind today we decided to sail the ten races straight and then finish the day early. Tight racing as always with the DF’s, and with just the six starters everyone got a share of the podium. But it was Wayne Behrens who handled the conditions best of all and deserved series honours. Lisa, fresh from winning the DF65 state title, took second with her usual consistency. John Hall is always super-competitive in the DF’s and took third with two race wins in his total. Big thanks to Andrew Wardrop who generously gives his time to keep the racing happening with DF95’s. And a couple of points concerning bonus points: Firstly we do not use bonus points in a scratch series like today, and, secondly, after some discussion with Wayne, for handicap races we will now be using bonus points of 3, 2 and 1 for 1st 2nd and 3rd respectively. Its gold, silver and bronze rewards! Next Wednesday’s handicap is for IOM’s - button press at 11:00 And Sunday’s scratch racing will also be for IOM’s at Montrose - button press at 10:00 John S A very light breeze greeted us today for the 2nd and last day of the DF65 State Championship. It felt a lot warmer at least, with thanks to the much warmer breeze.
Andy Hamilton got us away nicely on time, with similar two lap courses, with the proviso of shortening to one lap should the fickle breeze die out too much. Luckily(or not), this only happened a few times. Again, there was lots of close racing throughout. Quite often a yacht broke out from the group, only to be crueled by sailing into a big hole and having the fleet catch back up. That said though, the best always seem to find a way, and this weekend was no different, with Lisa Blackwood and Mathew Gray battling it out all day for the championship. By the time the last race was finished, Lisa managed to hold out the fast closing in Mat Gray to win the championship with 36 points. Mat Gray retained his overnight second to take the second place with 42 points. Kyle Stewart similarly maintained his overnight 3rd, with 3rd overall on 63 points. Well done to all competitors for a fantastic weekends sailing. Of big note throughout, were the examples of courteousy taking place on top of using the RRS to the extreme, with some great communication and ducking of other yachts just because it was simpler and a better thing to do, rather than be complicit in an incident. Some great examples of communication on the water, especially when it was a common occurence with yachts finding themselves in irons and calling such out to approcahing yachts as a warning. A great example to maintain. Sailors are remembered far more fondly for hard but respectful racing as opposed to using the RRS "just because you can". Thank you to Geoff Martin and Andy Hamilton for putting on the event. Although a bit smaller in numbers than anticipated, we cannot plan for illness which did hamper the numbers this year. Thanks also to all sailors who travelled to the event, from both the NW and south of the state. Something we really need to build on in order to help strengthen all of the clubs. Really looking forward to the next state level event which should be involving all ends of the state - the A Class State Champs in Devonport in 6 weeks time. A cold morning today, with frost everywhere and not a breath of wind anywhere.
Unfortunately, a few entries couldn't make it with Covid and other injuries, but the smallish field of 7 were determined to make it a great championship. An hour or so delay intiially with an early lunch break before racing got under way. That said, PRO, Andy Hamilton expertly corraled us and we got 12 races in for the first day. Some excellent light weather sailing till the last race, where the A+ rigs got a little over-powered. Lisa Blackwood is the clubhouse leader after the first day, with just 14 points. Mat Gray is currently in second, on 26 points, with Kyle Stewart in third, on 33 points. The middle of the field is evry closely contested, and with another full days sailing tomorrow, the results could go anywhere. Surely to be a fantastic days sailing to finish the championship tomorrow. There was a very light wind on the Derwent as I was driving over the bridge this morning. Over recent months the experience has been that light wind on the Derwent means flat calm at Risdon Brook Dam and so that was my expectation. But who would have thought? - Solid B rig conditions to greet the sailors! And it was a nice surprise too as we have not had much wind at all throughout the winter. Those skippers who pre-rigged at home were just as surprised as me and needed to change down before even starting.
It was a day where good choice of rig was important and there were frequent rig changes. While B-rig all day would not have been too far wrong there were races where those with the larger rigs did well. There was a fair attrition rate too and just finishing all ten races put you in a good position in the points tally. Stuart Dawes consistency made him a clear winner today. Congratulations Stuart! Ray Joyce’s second place was also highly commendable as he was the only starter today off the scratch handicap of 70 seconds and sailed the last couple of races off the maximum handicap of 90 seconds. There was a three way tie for 3rd, 4th and 5th but Andrew Wardrop stole the podium spot on count-back with three race wins in his tally. And it was a good sail from Andrew too as he sat out the first three races while it was too windy for his only available A-rig. As far as handicap adjustment is concerned: Normally the bottom third of the fleet gain an additional 10 seconds handicap but skippers who have 3 or more DNF/DNS races do not qualify for handicap alteration. So there were no handicap benefits to those at the bottom of the table this week. We wish the best of luck to those who are heading north for the championships over the weekend. Locally on Sunday we have an IOM sail day at Risdon Brook Dam, while our members sail up in Launceston for the DF65 State Championship. Sailing will start at the dam at 11am per the calendar on our website. Please let John Hall know if you are coming so he has an idea as to how many are intending on sailing. Next Wednesday’s handicap will be for DF95’s at Risdon Brook. Button Press at 11:00. John S Very still conditions to start with today, resulting in a 30 minute delay before we had some semblance of wind to try to sail in.
Ten skippers turned up today, with 9 eligible for results. Some great, close racing, with some exceptional sailing at the front between Richard and Rod - certainly showing their class and why they are state and national champions respectively. Fantastic to see John Hall have such a great day ont the water today, as well as Martin Svensen coming home in a rush on the last race to take a seocnd position. Great sailing, Martin. At the conclusion of the seven races, Richard Fisher came out a clear winner, with just 7 points. Second today, unsurprisingly, was Rod Jackman, on 17 points. Rounding out the top three was John Hall, on 22 points. On handicap today, John Hall cleaned up as winner, on 4 net points. Richard Fisher took second on 3 net points, with Rod Jackman, Kyle Stewart and Martin Svensen tied in third on 1 net point. Just a gentle reminder for all sailors, that all class sailing (scratch and ranking) need to be sailed with yachts that comply fully with the respective rules. We do not want to detract people from sailing, so a yacht could be sailed on a particular day, but for inclusion in results, it needs to be one that complies to the rules. Wednesday this week is IOM Handicap at the dam, starting at 11am Next weekend is the State DF65 Championship at Exeter. Please get entries in if you are intending on sailing. We have people staying at both the nearby caravan park and at Aspect Tamar Valley should you be interested. Next Subday's sailing was to be IOM Scratch, but given we will also be representing up north, it was decided to alter the sailing for the next two weeks. Next Sunday 31st July will be a general sail day for all classes, with the IOM scratch moved to the following Sunday, 7th August. A cold morning greeted the 8 sailors but a nice steady 5 knot breeze that lasted till we finished the last race
Our PRO Rod Marshall performed a great job with setting the courses and keeping the racing going before the wind started droping out. Kim Potter was keen to go but not his boat which had electrical problems. Our commiserations to John Short who came down with covid, hope you are better for next week. Sunday is DF95 Scratch at Risdon Brook, button press at 10am Cheers John A cold, wet and windy day at the dam today. This couldn't dampen (pardon the pun) the enthusiasm, with regular A sailor, Ted Stevens making the trip south to compete with us today.
A good field of nine sailors, with eleven initially turning up. Just the 5 races completed, with an enjoyable lunch and chat in between races 3 and 4. The day was rather difficult to pick the right shifts and squalls on the water, but I am pretty sure all sailors enjoyed the sailing, and for the most part, the rain did keep fairly clear of us. For the handicap today, Ray Joyce was the pick of the skippers, winning with just 6 points. Hot on his heels, was Stu Dawes, second with 7 points. Third place today was Michael Hickman, on 12 points. For the A Class Scratch Series, John Cole-Cook edged out Michael Hickman for the win by countback, both on 6 points, with Ted Stevens taking third on 10 points. Wednesday is IOM Mid Week Handicap, button press at 11am Next Sunday is DF95 Scratch, also at the Dam, button press 10am Reminder that the week after, Saturday 30 and Sunday 31 July is the DF95 State Championships in Launceston. If you are intending on competing, the link to the on-line entry form is on our Website Ranking Events page. Our northern organisers would really appreciate entries in as soon as possible to get an idea of numbers competing. Lastly for today, thanks to those many members who renewed their memberships over the last week. It is really appreciated, and we only have a final few left to chase up. Thanks again. Kyle |
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