Huge DBSC Contingent Headed to State Championships

On 9-10 November the 2019 NSW/ACT Laser State Championships will take place at George's River Sailing Club in Sandringham.  This is always a hotly contested event with over 100 sailors competing. This year on the open waters of Botany Bay it will be a cracker. So far we have a large contingent of 15 masters boats from DBSC attending, in addition a large number of our youth members – around 25 DBSC boats in total!  Ian Alexander conducted a white board session at the club last Saturday to work out how to get everyone to Sandringham.  If there was anyone who want to attend, but was not part of that whiteboard session (either in person or by proxy), please email Ian Alexander HERE if you need transport OR you need to use one of the club’s stackable dollies. Please do not use a stackable dolly unless you have registered with Ian. The Notice of Race is HERE and you can enter online HERE.

Welcome New Members

If you ever see a prospective new member walk into the club, please be on your best selling behaviour!  We constantly want to grow our fleet and increase the depth and engagement of our membership base – and new members are a great way to do that.

In case you are wondering, our racks look full, but they are never actually full.  There are boats on Level 5 that are rarely or even never used – and we keep them there because they pay their way.  But, if we can replace them with an active sailor’s boat, we will.  All members whose boats are infrequently used are aware of this.  So, if someone asks about a rack spot, the answer is ALWAYS YES.  Get their details and pass them on to Emily Ball or one of the Flag Officers.

And in case the idea of being on Level 5 is a turn off for them, our rack policy is clear – members will move rapidly down the racks if they sail more and volunteer more.  It is that simple.  So Level 5 does not have to be a long term position!  Please make sure they know that too.

More Sails Arriving

NB Sailsports delivered a further batch of our bulk sail order to DBSC last week.  If your sail is in the batch, you will have been emailed to let you know.  If yours is not here yet, it will be soon – NB has just 3 sails to complete and is telling us these should be available by Saturday.

Wild Winds force Cancellation of Pointscore

Racing was cancelled on Saturday due to wild westerly winds that were consistently approaching 25 kts with very frequent gusts averaging well over 30 kts (and highest BOM readings of 37 kts).

But the time was not wasted.  Brett Beyer stayed for a Q&A session for a couple of hours on the front deck, where summer was finally here and the wind only occasionally made it far enough into the bay to blow chairs off the deck into the water!

Other than the Q&A session, the BBSP session scheduled for today was not held.  The club has offered to reimburse BBSP participants for the cost of the session that was missed.  If you would like a reimbursement, please let Justin Davey know.  If we do not hear from you this week, we will assume you have waived the reimbursement (effectively making a donation of the reimbursable amount to the club), in which case, thank you!  Note that the missed BBSP session will not be made up.

Saturday’s Wild Winds.

Ray-Bans Found

Someone left a pair of Ray-Bans in a case on Saturday. Paul Adam has them safely stored in the kitchen. If anyone is looking for them on Wednesday evening they are on the kitchen bench beside the microwave.

Top Tip

Pippa Batchelor has shared an interesting tool for members looking to better understand rules and strategy by visually sketching out different sailing situations. It’s a drawing tool called Boat Scenario. It is an ideal companion for training sessions, rule learning, strategy explanations and more.

Try Boat Scenario (free Download) HERE.

Up Next

Wednesday, 30 October, 5pm Splash – Twilight Sailing / BBTP

Saturday, 2 November, 9am – Learn to Race

Saturday, 6 November, 2pm Start – Club Championship, Heats 5 & 6, followed by a BBQ

Sunday, 3 November, 2pm Start – Big Boat Race

Wednesday, 6 November, 5pm Splash – Twilight Sailing / BBTP

Saturday, 9 November, 2pm Start – Sprint Racing

Saturday, 9 November & Sunday, 10 November – Laser State Championships at George's River (see info above) 

Tonight’s Twilights Looking Golden

The forecast is looking perfect for twilight sailing tonight (Wednesday)… 26 degrees and an 18 knot NE breeze. Join us for a beautiful evening on the harbour, with organised sprints with Brett Beyer. Everyone’s welcome. Splash is at 5pm for a 5:30 start! 

Competency Reminder

We are asking ALL members to plan to attend our annual Competency Training on the morning of Saturday, 23 November. No matter how experienced you are, your attendance is required. Most weeks our race management is falling short of the standards we are seeking, and the competency training is an important element of our strategy to address that for the benefit of the club and all our members -- so we need everyone to commit to this. Please confirm your attendance HERE. Thanks!

State Open Championships

On 9-10 November the 2019 NSW/ACT Laster State Championships will take place at George's River Sailing Club in Sandringham.  Please email Ian Alexander HERE if you plan to attend, and stick around after sailing on Saturday to white board trailer solutions. This is important -- if you want to attend the regatta, but cannot attend the white board session, please speak to someone else and ask them to represent your interests at the white board session.