The Week Ahead

Wednesday 17 January, 5pm – Twilight Sailing. No Brett Beyer but we’ll be out for some informal sailing (Brett’s back next week – 24 January). Sign up here if you’re coming.

Saturday 20 January, 9am – Learn to Race. Come along if you want to learn more about Laser boat handling, balance, boat posture, trim, starts, tacks, gybes, boat set-up and any other race management fundamentals. Please email Martin White at mwhite@universalmagazines.com.au if you plan on attending.

Saturday 20 January, 2pm Start – Autumn Pointscore Heats 3 & 4. 

Last Saturday’s Sprints

Our first event for 2018 was sprint racing on Saturday. It was a beautiful, warm afternoon, with a rapidly strengthening NNE gradient breeze, starting at 17-22kts and increasing to 23-28kts by the time we finished our six short 15-minute races.  The outgoing tide made for brutal chop upwind and exciting rides downwind.

We fielded a fleet of 15 boats with good close racing and plenty of top mark action on the shortened course. Our on-water team of Hadrien Bourley (PRO), Derek Hand and Geoff Kirk, set a great course and conducted the races well.  Several of us were a little dusty after too much eating and drinking over the holidays, evidenced by hiking fatigue, sloppy mark roundings, and plenty of capsizes!

Ashley Deacon, fresh back from a broken leg, gave us a good show when he forgot how far to duck in a powerful gybe, and found himself flung from his boat, seriously dazed, with an enormous gash on his head, and blood everywhere. Thanks to our on-water team for a snappy rescue, after which Hadrien sailed Ash's boat back to shore, and Geoff "The Doctor" Kirk administered some quality first aid, before Mike Dunne drove Ash to hospital for a check-up.  Three stitches later, all ended well.  Ash sent a text asking us to pass on his thanks to everyone for all their assistance.  Let's see if he wears a helmet on Wednesday.

The Week Ahead

Wednesday 10 January, 5pm – Informal Twilight Sailing. Please note Brett Beyer will not be coaching tonight, but we’ll still be sailing. Sign up here if you’re coming.

Saturday 13 January, 2pm Start – Autumn Point Score Heats 1 & 2. The first official races for 2018 are here. Make them count!   

Sunday 14 January, 2pm Start – Big Boat Racing. Right now, Time & Tide, Smitten, Umbakumba, G-Force and Calypso Magic are scheduled to compete. Please let Jonathan Stone know if you want to join the fleet. 

RIB and Canteen Volunteers Wanted

The 18 footers will be holding their world championship event, the JJ Giltinan, on 3-10 March.  DBSC commits each year to provide a response boat driver for each day of the event. We have the weekends sorted (thanks to John Vasey), but we need assistance each weekday from 2-4pm (Monday 5th to Friday 9th March).  Could you please let Mark Crowhurst (treasurer@dbsc.com.au) know if you are able to assist?

Paul Adam has also requested volunteers who are willing to assist in the canteen on Sundays during the 18 footers’ racing season (which ends on 18 March).  HE PARTICULARLY NEEDS HELP THIS COMING SUNDAY, 14 JANUARY, when all the other regular canteen volunteers will be away, and he will be holding the fort by himself.  The canteen makes a lot of money for the club (and the 18 footers are big contributors to this).  Any help you can provide to Paul would be greatly appreciated – if you can help, please email Paul directly at p.adam@unsw.edu.au.

World Championships in 2018

If you are interested in attending any of the ILCA Laser world championship events in 2018, please note the following details in relation to timing of applications:

- For the Radial Men's World Championship, the Under-21 World Championships and the 4.7 Youth World Championships, applications will be open from 9 January to 20 February.

- For the Radial Youth World Championships and the Laser Masters World Championships, applications will be open from 1 March to 12 April.

The details of all these events can be found found here and the Australian entry ranking criteria for each can be found here. 

Note that the Standard Men's World Championship and the Radial Women's World Championship will be organised by World Sailing not the ILCA.   Links to the details of these events can also be found here.

National Championships Results

Congratulations to all our sailors who competed in the Oceania & Australian Open Championships at RQYS last week.  We had a fleet of 13 boats from DBSC, representing an impressive 8% of the total national pool of entrants.  

It was tough competition in every fleet. Our top performers were Sylvie Stannage (8th in the 4.7s), Marlena Berzins (12th in the Radials) and Finn Alexander (5th in the Standards). Finn also brought home the Under-21’s first place trophy. Our highest finish positions were recorded by Brooke Wilson (2nd in Race 1 of the 4.7s), Zac West (5th in Race 2 of the Radials) and Finn Alexander (2nd in Race 2 of the Standards – ahead of Matt Wearn).

The full results are available here.

DBSC Pennant Spotted All Over the World

This one flying from the back of Adrian Bull's RIB at a regatta on the Firth of Forth in Scotland.  The iconic Forth Bridge, which is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and a symbol of Scotland, is in the background.  Many of you will remember Adrian, one of Gerry Donohoe's mates, who came to our club each summer for a couple of years and drove the Paul Adam for us each week.

Saturday Sprints

Get ready to race in 2018… sprints are on this Saturday, 6 January, with a 2pm race start. Our formal sailing calendar picks up again on 13 January with Autumn Point Score 1 & 2. Hope to see you there. 

January Twilights

There’s no official twilight sailing Wednesday 3 January, but if you want to go for a sail tonight (or any other time) with others should, please post on The Top Mark. There will be informal twilights on 10 January and 17 January, with formal twilights recommencing 24 January.

It's Okay Not to Race

Written by Jonathan Stone

At some point, every Laser sailor has had the experience - the race is on but the wind is building to uncomfortable levels. Do I race?

Part of you wants take it on. The reaches would be a blast; if you could just complete the race, it would be a personal PB, an achievement.

But you also have the ‘skipper’s responsibility’ for your own safety. Maybe you are coming back from an injury that could go wrong and you would end up limping home, the injury made worse. If you needed a tow, it would take a RIB off the course, leaving the remaining fleet less protected.

What's the right decision?  It’s never clear, ahead of the race.

A couple of weekends ago, two Double Bay sailors saw the wind building over 20 knots. They opted out, manned the second RIB and, when a fierce squall hit the fleet, they were there, on course. As it turned out, our fleet managed fine. The race was cancelled; our sailors either went into ‘survival upright’ mode or laid their boat over, until the squall passed.

But other club’s fleets were in more strife - small keelboats and old-style skiffs. In wild conditions our RIBs provided reassurance to many crews, and rescued several.

They earned respect and appreciation for the Club, for themselves and - most important - they protected lives.

They contributed to racing in an important way.

So yes, it’s alright not to race.