79 Bay St
Double Bay NSW 2028
Australia

The best ILCA / Laser sailing club in the world, located in Double Bay on Sydney Harbour.

News

RIB Help Needed on 11 November

Kirk Marcolina

John Vasey graciously helps DBSC fulfil our affiliation agreement with the A18s by supplying support to their fleet in the Paul Adam. John is unavailable to so on 11 November and we need a volunteer to fill in. If you are interested, please let Andrew Cox know ASAP. Thanks!

The Top Mark Needs You

Kirk Marcolina

Want to see some great videos, more photos and some cheeky talk about this week’s sailing? Then check out our Members Only Facebook Group: Double Bay Sailing Club - The Top Mark.  It’s a great way to stay connected with your fellow members, see rare footage of Brett Beyer underlaying the top mark, check out boats and gear for sale, coordinate sailing times with your mates, and see heaps of good-natured sledging. Come join the 77 members who are already part of this exclusive group!

The Top Mark — The Place to Post Crock Sightings at DBSC

The Top Mark — The Place to Post Crock Sightings at DBSC

No Sailing at DBSC this Weekend

Kirk Marcolina

Instead of racing at DBSC this weekend, we’ll be headed up the harbour to VYC to sail in the NB Sailsports Laser Coast Championship. It’s a two-day regatta with racing on both Saturday and Sunday. This is a great opportunity for anyone who has not participated in a regatta to sail with us over to Vaucluse and get a taste of what it is like to sail in a big regatta fleet. You don’t have to be good — you just have to be fun! 

Here are the details:

  • Both Online entry and NSE/ACT Laser Association Membership is required. (Details below on how to do this)

  • There will be a sign on/off via SMS for sailors who enter online so that DBSC sailors can conveniently deploy from our club

  • Briefing at DBSC at 1200 hours on Saturday

  • Splash from DBSC at 1230 hours on Saturday / 1000 hours on Sunday

  • First Warning Signal at 1330 hours on Saturday / 1100 hours on Sunday

You can enter online HERE. The Notice of Race with all the details is HERE. The Sailing Instructions are HERE

Please note to be able to compete in the regatta you must also be a current member of the NSW/ACT Laser Association. Membership entitles you to compete in any State, Australian or International event and runs from 1st October to 30th September. You can sign up to become a member HERE.

We look forward to a huge fleet of DBSC Lasers competing this weekend.  

This is what the marks will look like at the regatta.

This is what the marks will look like at the regatta.

The Week Ahead

Kirk Marcolina

Wednesday 24 October, 5pm – Twilight Sailing. Come on down for our mid-week sail… 5pm splash (or whenever you can get there) for a 5.30pm start. 

Saturday 27 & Sunday 28 October – Laser Coast Championship (see details above).

Pointscore 9 – 10 Recap

Kirk Marcolina

We had nearly 50 boats turn up last Saturday for heats 9 and 10 of the Spring Pointscore. Another overcast day of racing started with a stiff 18-knot NE breeze that eased a bit for heat 10. Luckily the fleet was well back to shore before the major thunderstorms rolled in around 5:30pm. The winners (after handicapping) were: Full Rigs: Hadrien Bourely (race 9), and Steve London (race 10); Radials / 4.7s: Finn Kirk – congrats to one of our newest members! (race 9), and James Tudball (race 10). Thanks to last week’s volunteers for putting on a great day of racing: PRO Mark Lewkowitz, assisted by Clare Alexander, COTD Pat Levy, CoCOTD Justin Davey, and Canteen Assistant Rod Barnes.

Vale Ian Kiernan

Kirk Marcolina

Ian Kiernan recently passed. Ian had a VJ called Morah which was stored at Vaucluse and during school holidays he and Jim Ley would spend their days sailing all over the harbour. Ian competed at Double Bay VJ Club and his father George Kiernan was one of a group of parents who worked tirelessly ensure the Club became a reality, his major contribution was ensuring that finance was available to build the Club.  

Ian was also the Founder and Chairman of Clean Up Australia, which we as a club support each year, championed by Jonathan Stone. In a remembrance email, Clean Up Australia explained that Ian believed that Clean Up belongs to you - the millions of volunteers who have taken to their streets, beaches, parks, bushland and waterways to remove the rubbish that is bothering them. 

Jonathan Stone reflected on Ian’s passing in an email to club members, saying, “For over a decade, our Club has been a ‘site’ for a clean up of the nearby parks and beaches, on Clean-Up Australia Day, usually in March. You are the volunteers that this encomium for Ian Kiernan refers to; you have come year-after-year to do the job. So, be proud and know that you have strengthened the Club’s role as a contributor to the local community.”

Ian Kiernan

Ian Kiernan

DBSC in Fiji

Kirk Marcolina

The 2018 Oceania Laser Master Championships was held on the beautiful Denarau Island, Fiji, hosted by The Denarau Yacht Club from the 16th to 19th of October. Three of our DBSC comrades made the trip - Andrew Simpson, Jules Hall and Brett Beyer. And the results were impressive. Brett snagged first overall, Jules finished sixth overall and second Apprentice Master, and Andrew finished 14th overall and sixth Grand Master. Well done to all!

Jules and Andrew battle it out in Fiji.

Jules and Andrew battle it out in Fiji.

What a beautiful place to rig!

What a beautiful place to rig!

Alexander at Awards Night

Kirk Marcolina

Congratulations once again to Clare Alexander for being a Finalist for Australian Sailing’s Sport Promotion Award. The ceremony was held last Friday, and even though Clare was pipped at the post, she was the crowd favourite and certainly winner in our eyes. Well done Clare — thanks for all you do for Laser Sailing in Australia.

Clare Shining on the Big Night.

Clare Shining on the Big Night.

Spring Postscore Continues to Challenge

Kirk Marcolina

49 boats competed in yet another tricky day of Spring Pointscore racing. Heats 7-8 of the series where held under threatening skies and very shifty winds. The NE gradient got pulled sharply to the right by a series of rain squalls (even as far as ESE), before returning to the NE mid-way through the second race, making for some big winners and losers. With gusts close to 25-knots, and lulls of 10-knots, competitors needed to be aware of the constantly changing conditions.

Congratulations to the hardy competitors who came out on top after handicapping: Full Rigs: Steve London (heat 7), and Craig Sheers (heat 8); Radials/4.7s: David Murphy (heats 7 and 8). Thanks also to the race committee for braving the challenging conditions and putting on a well-run race day: PRO Jim Dounis assisted by Christine Patton, COTD Tim Patton, CoCOTD Kim Ketelbey, and Canteen Assistant Conor Roche. Thanks also for the additional assistance on a RIB from Justin Davey. 

Saturday’s Ever Changing Winds

Saturday’s Ever Changing Winds

The Week Ahead

Kirk Marcolina

Wednesday 17 October, 5pm – Twilight Sailing. Come on down for our mid-week sail, with organised racing and tons of fun.  There is a 5pm splash (or whenever you can get there) for a 5.30pm start.

Saturday 20 October, 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 are planning on attending.

Saturday 20 October, 2pm Start – Spring Pointscore Heats 9 & 10.