|
Not a great deal to say with today's sailing. We had nine skippers today, with Murray Willis coming down from Launceston to sail with us. John Hall kept things moving for us as PRO today and the wind remained fairly steady, but light throughout. Eleven races completed today, with Lisa winning the day on 16 points, John Cole-Cook taking second on 29 and Ray Joyce rounding out the top 3 with 32 points. A bit light on in Silver fleet today, with John Short and Murray Willis the silver sailors. John taking the Silver Fleet out for today on 9 points. Coming up This coming Wednesday will be Mid Week DF95 Handicap at the dam, button press at 11am. Next Sunday will be IOM Southern Tasmanian Regatta, button press at 1030. Only 5 entries to date, so please get them in as well as payment via electronic transfer to our bank with your name in the comments. Bunnings Sausage Sizzle We had the Bunnings Sausage Sizzle yesterday and were rewarded well for our efforts. Close to $2k earned for the club. Massive thanks to Ian Hey for organising it, as well as all of our volunteers that helped make the day happen. We had Jammy and Lynne Jones, John Short, Lisa Blackwood, Peter Sylvester, John Hall, Phil Turnbull, Peter Turner and Rod Marshall all helping out through the day. Rod and Bodge were there the entire day (making a great reason for their rest and recovery day today at home rather than sailing) Kyle 
0 Comments
Another glorious sailing day brought 17 IOM skippers to Risdon Brook Dam for today’s handicap racing. About 5 knots of North-Westerly persisted throughout the day though there were some sizeable wind shifts and some calm holes as well. John Hall again took up the PRO role. Thanks, John for your excellent work today. We do hope that you get your own boat back together and racing again soon. Unfortunately a couple of skippers were forced to finish their day early due to gear failure. Rob Cooney (rigging issues) and Bodge (rudder servo) both only completed a couple of races but they did stay on to watch the good racing on show today. Predicting the shifts was the name of the game. Many skippers went well west today waiting for a shift to bring them back – and sometimes it worked – but not always. Ray Joyce seemed to choose staying close to the Eastern bank when working upwind and was the best performer of the back-markers today. Overall Rod Marshal finished in third place. He was using the Blitz today. This result follows a second overall last week. Second place went to John Penman. John has leased the club boat and it was his first day racing an IOM. And with two second places and two race wins in the mix it’s not a bad way to start. But Alan Short trumped everyone - just one point ahead of John and two ahead of Rod and two race wins in his mix as well. Al has been racing for just six months now and this was his first event win. Congratulations Rod, John and Alan. Coming up: Sunday: IOM Scratch racing at Montrose (1:00 button press.) Next Wednesday: DF95 handicap racing at Risdon Brook Dam (11:00 button press.) Shorty  Eight sailors gathered at Montrose Bay for the Herb Tyson Regatta, competing in the A Class category. The day was characterized by very light wind conditions, but fortunately, there was just enough breeze to complete most of the races. Notably, weed - which has been a persistent issue in recent events—was absent today, allowing for smoother sailing. A total of eight races were completed before the wind died off, prompting a skippers' meeting to discuss an early finish. The sailors unanimously agreed to conclude the day and begin packing up. Ironically, a slight sea breeze arrived just as the packing was completed, a common occurrence in sailing events. Kyle and Lisa, both fresh from strong performances at the Nationals, dominated the field, securing the top two spots. Each won four races, making the competition fierce. In the end, Kyle edged out Lisa by a single point, winning the Herb Memorial with a total of 8 points. Lisa second with 9 points. Phil Turnbull also had an impressive day, consistently placing in the top four and securing third place overall with 21 points. The middle of the fleet was tightly contested, with only 6 points separating 3rd to 6th place. The racing was incredibly close, with many positions uncertain until the final leg of each race. Thanks to Stuart Dawes for his excellent work as PRO today. Tahnks also to Ted Stevens for traveling from Launceston to observe the races and also to Ray Joyce for capturing stunning photographs of the event. Coming up:
 Another ripper of a day for sailing IOM yachts! Twenty eight degrees, blue skies and a fairly consistent 5 knots of North Westerly throughout the day made for perfect handicap racing at the dam. A few old faces returned today. It was great to see, Peter Turner, Martin Svensen, Phil Jackman and Rob Cooney all back on the water after some time away. This gave us a fleet of 18 boats today, - the biggest for the season so far. Rob unfortunately had a nasty slip on the loose gravel of the launching ramp while he was racing. A Super-Hero award goes to Rod Jackman who came immediately to Rob’s aid, having left his own boat even though he was in the leading group and only a short distance from the finish line. Lisa Blackwood who attended to Rob’s boat, and Ray Joyce who missed the start of the next race while making sure that Rob was OK also deserve a salute. It was really great to see such selfless behaviour and club spirit. We all hope that you have fully recovered Rob. (Rod and Ray scored average points for the races affected by the incident.) With that said, it also serves as a reminder to everyone that the barrier installed at the end of the fence to the boat trailer was installed following a safety audit of the area and is there to deter sailors from accessing the jetty from that slippery area. We all need to ensure we go around this barrier (and not under it) in order to access the water from the much more stable grassed area around the other side of the boat trailer. Ian Hey launched his new V12 today. A deep yellow colour, it looked very distinctive on the water and showed good speed particularly early in the day with podium finishes for Bodge in the first two races. We all know the potential of these boats so it will be one to watch out for! I managed third place overall today without any really outstanding races – but some consistency at least. Second place went to Commodore Rod Marshall who seemed to always be at the head of the pack. Rod seemed to work the long down-wind leg well, keeping closer to the shore than most and often catching the leaders by coming with a gust from behind. Today’s winner, for the second week in succession, was Marcus Inches after starting the day with back-to-back race wins. Congratulations on another great sail Marcus but watch out for the handicapper’s sword! Coming up: Sunday: The Herb Tyson Memorial for A Class yachts at Montrose. (10:00 button) Enter on-line. Next Wednesday: More IOM handicap racing at Risdon Brook Dam. (11:00 button).  Conditions were challenging, with wind speeds ranging from 0 to 12 knots and shifting across most points of the compass.Today's racing was a test of skill and adaptability as six sailors battled through highly variable and shifty wind conditions. Setting a consistent windward/leeward course proved nearly impossible, with many upwind legs turning into runs by the time sailors reached the first mark. Despite the tricky conditions, the racing was incredibly close, showcasing the sailors' resilience and tactical prowess. Eight races were completed before the impending rain brought an end to the day. The final results were extremely tight, with only a few points separating the top three sailors. Stu Dawes took out the round today with 12 points, closely followed by Ray Joyce in second on 13 points with Kyle Stewart rounding out the top three, a further point behind on 14 points Well done to everyone for persevering through such challenging conditions! Of note was the exemplary behaviour of everyone today. We had three buoy contacts in all from what I recall, and all three quickly went about their penalties without a word said to do them. One occasion of calling the four boat lengths at the mark, and the appropriate room given. Even on challenging days like today, the behaviour and respect afforded to the other skippers really brings out the enjoyable elements on the day. Coming Up:Mid Week IOM Handicap
Kyle  A North-westerly wind of about 5 to 10 knots but with wild swings and gusts provided interesting racing conditions for today’s IOM handicap at Risdon Brook Dam. Sometimes the wind would gust around the boats in tight willy willies causing rapid changes from beating to running then back to beating. At other times skippers found that they changed from one tack to the other without changing their heading. In all a testing day for skippers with both skill and luck required. John Hall volunteered as PRO and did a great job keeping the day moving well and getting ten races completed, finishing up just as a thunderstorm was brewing. Thanks John. Once again all skippers reached the podium at some stage and most made it there a couple of times which demonstrates that the handicap system is working well. I managed third place overall today. After performing poorly in the first two races I decided to miss the third to make some adjustments. It was definitely worked well as I finished the day strongly. John Cole-Cook took second place with a race win and three second places in his mix. But the day belonged to Marcus Inches. Marcus has only been radio sailing for a couple of months but he is really sailing confidently and had a bit of a day out today. Three race wins, a second, and two third places today and, probably what is more impressive, not a bad race in the mix as well. In was Marcus’s first event win, 8 points clear, and really well deserved. Huge congratulations to you Marcus. Coming up: Sunday: Marblehead Scratch racing relocated to Risdon Brook Dam due to tide and weed (1:00 button-press) Next Wednesday: IOM handicap sailing at Risdon Brook Dam (11:00 button-press) Shorty  Sailing Report – March 9, 2025 Today's Race Summary:
Coming Up:
Cheers, Kyle  Another stunning sunny summers day for our DF95 handicap racing at Risdon Brook Dam. Andrew Wardrop was our PRO for the day and set good courses for the conditions. Lisa Blackwood turned up at lunchtime and was able to assist Andrew. Thank you Andrew and Lisa. The morning wind was a North Westerly initially of around 10 knots but it gradually died during the course of the morning and so Andrew called for an early lunch hoping that a sea breeze would arrive over the break. The sea breeze did come through - but a fairly meek and modest one for the afternoons racing. Just as we were loading the dinghy after sailing however we were hit by a Southerly change which came through with considerable power. It was probably a good thing that we were off the water by then. The podium was well shared today. In fact all skippers had at least two trips to the dais. John Penman, David Woolley and Ian Bailey deserve special mention though as they were the only ones to win two races. And the points table was tight too with several positions being decided by countback. Third place overall went to Jammy Jones who was consistently at the head of the fleet. Stuart Dawes sailed brilliantly today from the back marker position to get second place. This is always difficult to do on ‘nice sailing days’ like today as back-markers generally rely on errors made by the longer handicappers so they can catch up - and on ‘nice days’ the longer handicappers just don’t make enough mistakes. Today’s winner was our newest club member, John Penman. Now that’s a good way to introduce yourself to the club! Congratulations Jammy, Stuart and John. So lovely conditions and close racing. You cant ask for more than that! Coming Up: Sunday: More DF95 sailing. It will be scratch racing at Risdon Brook Dam. (1:00 Button Press) Next Wednesday: IOM handicap sailing at Risdon Brook Dam. This will be a handicap shield event. (11:00 Button Press) Shorty  After the excitement and intensity of the ARYA Nationals, today’s fleet was understandably smaller than usual. Many sailors were in need of a well-earned break after the busy event, and the reduced fleet size was anticipated. Despite the smaller numbers, the competition remained strong. What started as eight sailors soon dwindled down to just four as various reasons kept others from participating in the full session. Though it was a smaller group, those on the water were determined to make the most of the day. The day presented a mix of wind conditions, which caused some issues with rig choices. Sailors who opted for B rigs often felt under-powered, while those on A rigs found themselves a bit over-powered. It was clear that finding the right balance was tough, and there was no decisive “perfect” rig for the conditions. It kept everyone on their toes and proved that adaptability was key. A bit of weed still - showing that the Nationals sailors didn't get all of it.... Everyone got affected at some stage and the skill was to be able to notice it quickly and get it off while racing. Out of the four sailors who stuck with it, it was Kyle who managed to dominate the day. He completed every race and ultimately took the round win with a solid 14 points. Stuart, who was also consistent throughout, took second place just four points behind with 18. Ricky rounded out the top three, finishing third with 19 points—just one behind Stuart. In the Silver Fleet, there were only two competitors on the day. John Short came out on top with 8 points, besting Ian Hey for first place. Despite the smaller fleet, today’s racing provided plenty for the sailors and showcased their resilience and adaptability. Big thanks today to our PRO's for the day. Lisa Blackwood managed the course while Les recorded completed the scoring for us. Very appreciated Coming up This coming Wednesday will be Mid Week DF95 Handicap at the dam, button press at 11am. Next Sunday will be DF95 Scratch at Riisdon, button press at 1pm. Bunnings Sausage Sizzle coming up Saturday 29th March is RBRYC Sausage Sizzle at Bunnings Glenorchy to help us raise further funds for infrastructure improvements. A separate email is soon to come, but if anyone is interested in helping, please get in touch with us as we do need volunteers on the day. Otherwise, please come along and grab a Sausage from us on the day. Kyle  |