A bit more of a difficult day today. Nine sailors started the day off in very light conditions, which soon dissipated to nothing, so we called an early lunch after just two races.

By the end of the lunch break, the wind had increased (just), but we lost a couple of sailors before making it back to the water for the afternoon session.

We got another two races in before the sea breeze came in and everyone changed their rigs to a mix of B and C. Quite heavy for B, but not quite enough for C in the end.

Five sailors battled the last three races, Kyle, John and Rod on C, with Wayne and Andrew on B.

In the end, Wayne put on an absolutely dominant performance, winning five of the seven races, finishing on -9 points.

Andrew came in second, on 10 points, closely followed by Kyle on 11

This Sunday, we have no official sailing scheduled, however, we have enough interested sailors to open up and sail in the afternoon, from the usual 1pm start time. No particular class to sail, so bring what you want. At the moment, it sounds like there will be a Marblehead, an A Class and a few IOM's coming along.

​A great day today on the water, with a strong A Rig breeze to start with, developing to heavy B rig conditions after lunch.

We unfortunately had a few failures today, cutting the 9 starters down to 6 by the end of the day, but everyone really enjoyed the relaxed atmosphere.

Thanks today goes to Andrew, who stood aside and Pro'd the day for us. Handicapping was good, with a lot of finishes being real close. A 3rd less than 20m from 7th quite regularly.

Justin was right on the pace today, with Lisa's borrowed Nitro. Taking three wins, a second and a third to really deserve the win.

John Hall continued his great sailing from the weekend, with a clear second for the day, with two wins and two thirds.

Rod Marshalls Blitz 6 woodie continues to impress, with a stellar performance, taking a win, two seconds and a third.

New member, John Short is increasing his confidence (and enjoyment), with the same points as Rod, but falling to 4th on countback. He will be a serious contender with a few more sail days under his belt.

As a last post before christmas, on behalf of the RBRYC and it's committee, I'd like to wish you all a merry christmas and a safe break from our normal routines during the festive period. We will be back sailing next Wednesday, 30th December for the last sail of the year.

Dominant display today by Lisa Blackwood.
​
Rod Jackman very good as well in second, with Woodies of Stu Dawes and Chris Wood rounding out the top four.

​Twelve boats sailing today, although No.15 was a non starter due to a winch failure.

Chris Wood made a welcome return to the fleet as well as Lisa sailing 135 in her usual efficient manner.

A rigs all day although at times the NW breeze increased into B rig. 

Kim had two wins & a second & Rod M found form as the breeze increased after lunch, also with two wins.

Lisa showing her tactical skills had 2 wins.

A few breakdowns but overall very enjoyable sailing.

Our handicap starting radio suffered a terminal electronic failure so a new one is on order.

​Well, I think Tasmanian conditions have certainly left an impression on our mainland competitors.

After using A, B, C1 and C2 rigs yesterday, it looked like we were going to be much more settled into C and lower rigs today.

After an early session on our C2 rigs, we broke for lunch, and do did the wind.

After lunch, many of us (myself included) took out A rigs out to the point with full intent on putting it on. In the space of the next 10 minutes, we were back to dressing up with a C2, some C3 and others B2 rigs. The wind variation was absolutely crazy.

That said though, we had some fantastic big wave racing, which everyone enjoyed. RBRYC broke its duck of race wins today, with three locals taking the honors at different points in the day.

In the end, the podium places remained the same. The top three showing what consistency does for you. Andrew Reid had his overnight lead cut substantially, but the lead built yesterday was enough to take out the championship on 41 points. Scott Condie took out second place, just 11 points behind, with Lisa Blackwood taking the third spot.

Risdon Brook Radio Yacht Club would like to thank our mainland visitors, Andrew Reid, Scott Condie, Rob Nowak and Bill Wright for making the time to come and support both the club and the RM Class. We certainly hope to reciprocate the favour into the future. The class of your sailing is absolutely exemplary and we have learned so much from your involvement over the weekend. We hope you have all enjoyed the weekend as much as we have enjoyed your company and experience.

We cannot close without also thanking those who helped make the weekend possible. Mike Hickman, our Pro for the weekend conducted the racing in an exemplary fashion, ensuring we got as many races as possible in quite challenging conditions. Les Hansen and Anne Cole-Cook, recording the finish orders. Phil Turnbull and Ted Stevens on the rescue boat - very busy today. And thankyou to all the competitors. I have no recollection of RBRYC hosting 14 Marleheads in a Championship. All the sailors did so efficiently, and respectfully, and was a great example of very high quality sailing at its best.

What a day the first day of the RM State Championship was. Predictions of a 6 knot northerly, pushing to 9 knots at the end of the day were way off. Becalmed early on, but just as sailing commenced, a light breeze filled in. A rigs were used for the morning up to the lunch break, with that last race before lunch very challenging, with little to no wind at all.

After lunch, we all started on B rigs through to the short break, where we all looked to change out to C Rigs, with that northerly filling in nicely.

This is where the fleet split up a bit, with C and C2 rigs being used by the fleet. A good choice for the C2 skippers, who held on to the end of the day in an ever-increasing breeze.

Andrew Reid, showed his class the entire day, with firsts and seconds for all his counted races, 18 points so far for the championship. He will prove very hard to beat tomorrow.

Keeping Andrew honest in second, is Scott Condie, on 26 points.

Rounding out the top three, is Lisa Blackwood, sitting on 48 points.

An all, the racing was very close - closer than some of the numbers show. It was also very enjoyable and sailed in great spirit amongst all competitors.

We must give thanks to our volunteers today as well. Mike Hickman taking on the Pro work, with Les Hanson ably assisting. Anne Cole-Cook also helping with finishing order. Phil Turnbull also on the rescue boat, used quite a few times today, and to all the people who turned up nice and early to set up the gazeebo's and competition area. I am sure the combined efforts of everybody helped in making day 1 so enjoyable for everyone, especially our four interstate skippers.
​
If you have any spare time tomorrow, come down to Montrose Bay Yacht Club and check out the second day of the championship. First race starting at 1030.