DF95 Scratch Series Round 2

A later than normal start today, for those who wanted to, to attend ANZAC ceremonies in the morning.

A great decision as well, as the wind had well and truly arrived for us for our 1pm start. Everyone dressed in B rigs to start with. The breeze extended and could have easily been C strength at times, but just one sailor got his C out.

We did have some excitement early on, with one yacht losing control and getting to within 10m of the Eastern shore by the time the Rib caught up with it. Thank you to all the competitors who patiently waited for the rescue to be performed and sailors ready for competing in the next race. Not necessary, but very appreciated.

We had Les Hanson and Anne Cole-Cook helping out today with the PRO and scoring, as well as sailors hanging around to assist after breakdowns, which was all appreciated.

After the eventful first race and subsequent delay, the rest of the day went very well, apart for the eventual retirements of some sailors with rig/yacht issues.

In the end, we completed 11 races. First place today - not much of a surprise - was Stuart Dawes, on 25 points. Ray Joyce continued his hot recent form, coming in second, on 33 points, and Lisa Blackwood narrowly edged out Kyle Stewart by countback in third, both on 38 points.

In all, an enjoyable days sailing, with real emphasis on tacking at the right times, coupled with checking the gusts as they were coming and ensuring you were on the right tack as the gust hit. Great extra elements in there today.

As we all are aware, the 2021 ARYA DF65 and DF95 Nationals will be held here in October. As part of the scrutineering etc prior to the first race, the race management committee will be conducting checks on the yachts to ensure compliance to the rules. The linked Measurement Criteria is an opportunity to check on your yacht well prior, in order to make sure it is compliant for the championships. Remember, that if something is not in the published rules, then it is not allowed.

As mentioned on Wednesday, John Cole-Cook competed in the Victorian RM State Championship this weekend. In a fantastic result, John finished in 6th position, in a very high ranked fleet of 22 sailors from all over the country. Congratulations on such a good result, John. We look forward to hearing your stories from it in the coming weeks.