Pointscore Heats Up

It was another light and variable Southerly for Pointscore heats 11 and 12; causing headaches for both the sailors and the race committee. Because of the ever-changing conditions, the racing was delayed and both heats were shortened. Watching for pressure and reacting to shifts was the name of the game.                                

The winners (after handicapping) were as follows: in the Standards, Murray Stone and Hadrien Bourely, in the Radial/4.7s, Julian Van Aalst and Pia Hattersley. With only two more heats in the Spring Pointscore to come, the competition is very tight in both fleets. In the Radial/4.7 Fleet, Daryl Lawrence leads over Pat Levy by 5 points, with Matt Knight, Andrew Cox, Kate McHugh and Sylvie Stannage all within striking distance. It’s even closer in the Standards, with Murray Stone leading by just 0.5 points over Steve London, with Luke Parker and Andrew Simpson close on their heels.  

Thank you to our PRO, Matt Knight, assisted by Brent Smith, our COTD, Matt Wenke, and CoCOTD, Olga Skatkova and Anthea Michael. And thanks to Luke Parker and Simon Stone who helped Shirley in the canteen.  

Finally, a huge welcome back to Dene and Andrea Bergman who made a very special appearance. It was great to see them again and we’re grateful for their help – Dene teaching radio usage during the Competency Training and Andrea whipping up delicious treats in the canteen. Come back again soon!

DBSC Heads to Victorian Laser Championships

Sandringham Yacht Club hosted the first of many Laser regattas this season. As SYC is hosting three Laser Worlds this season, the racing was hot with roughly 20 countries competing. It felt very international in all fleets.

Day one was fresh (15 - 20 knots) with waves never seen at DBSC while day two was light to medium strength breezes.

Finn Alexander did extremely well to finish fourth on countback, the second Australian.  Marlena Berzins, making an impressive comeback to high level competition, was not far behind the top Radial guys and Olympic Women sailors.

Otto Henry was the 2nd Australian youth and will be a strong chance for Youth Selection this summer.

Martin, Marlena and Finn with their cubes.

Up Next at DBSC

Wednesday, 27 November, 4:30pm Splash – Twilight Sailing / BBTP (early start)

Saturday, 30 November, 2pm Start – Vaucluse Challenge (early splash, see above)

Sunday, 1 December, 2pm Start – Big Boat Race

Wednesday, 4 December, 5pm Splash – Twilight Sailing / BBTP

Saturday, 7 December, 2pm Start – Final Heats of Spring Pointscore & Club Champs

Saturday, 14 December, 7pm – Christmas Party

Get Competent this Saturday

We’ve been talking about it for ages… and now the big day is here. Competency Training 2019 is on THIS SATURDAY. Please arrive at 8:45am for a prompt 9am start. It’s the day when our fellow members will impart their knowledge to make us all better volunteers around the club.  Don’t worry, we’ll be wrapped in time for afternoon sailing. It’s a critical morning of education, and we’re looking forward to seeing everyone there.

Champagne Sailing

Last Wednesday’s twilights were magical: a perfect breeze and magnificent weather conditions. One members described it as “Champagne sailing”. Twenty boats took advantage of these perfect mid-week conditions. We’re set to do it all again tonight with a 5pm splash and 5:30 training with Brett. Hope to see you there. And don’t forget, next week (27 November) we’ll be holding sprints earlier, from 5-7pm, due to a club function later that evening.

Your Mum Isn’t Coming to Clean Up

As flagged in last week's newsletter and at the briefing on Saturday, we are implementing a mid-season rack reshuffle.  We asked people to assist after sailing on Saturday to ensure all boats were in the right place.

However, only 9 of the 18 boats that needed to be moved were in fact moved.  We had occasion to watch the whole thing on CCTV as we helped one member locate gear that was misplaced.

What we saw was that the people who sailed that day (and a few helpers with them) made sure their boats were in the right spot, but no one helped to ensure all the other boats were in the right spot.  

Two of the boats that were displaced in the reshuffle, and whose new spots were occupied by other boats that also needed to be moved, were just wheeled outside and then later left on the floor.  People evidently felt it was not their problem and left it for others to sort out.

So that raises the question -- which others do you think should sort it out?  

We are a volunteer club -- there are no others.  For the club to function, we need EVERY member to act like an owner.  If you see something in the wrong place, it is YOUR individual responsibility as a member to fix it.

If something is missing, tell someone or offer to replace it.  If something is in the wrong place, move it.  If something is broken, tell someone or offer to fix it.  If something could be done better, tell someone or volunteer to do it.

The volunteers who have designated management roles already have too much on their plates.  We need every member to take responsibility for our club.

We will try again with the rack reshuffle after racing this coming week.  Could we please ask people to take charge collectively and get this done properly?  

We propose the following -- no boats back in the shed until the boats already in the shed are in the right spots.

Kit Warning

We hope you’re enjoying your new club kit. Some members have learned the hard way that the t-shirts SHOULD NOT GO IN THE DYER OR BE IRONED. Doing so will damage the club decal on the back of the shirt. So, please take care when laundering your new kit.  

Some Serious Solar!

DBSC is proud to tell our members that our DA to fix the Piles is approved. Included in the DA is the ability to cover our roof in solar panels and generate enough green power to run all of the fairy lights in Steyne Park and beyond. 

Mark Crowhurst is managing the Power Station Project and would love to hear from anyone with a good working knowledge of the solar panel world. In particular, rather than the technical electrical details, we want to know our options around what to do with the excess power that we will generate - on top of selling it to the grid. If you think you can help, please contact him HERE or on 0439872305.

If you don't think you can help, we hope you get a warm fuzzy feeling knowing that our club is about to be a net contributor to the grid and do our bit to help stop Climate Change. Hopefully resulting in fewer 30-knot Westerlies.

Race Recap

A challenging 6 – 12 knot Easterly breeze greeted the 35 competing boats in last Saturday’s Spring Pointscore. It was a wind that seemed unsure which direction to blow from – flicking between SE and NE throughout the afternoon. The winners were the sailors who kept their eye on the wind and always ensured they were on the lifted tack.

The winners (after handicapping) were as follows: in Standards, Gavin Blake and Nick Alexander, in the Radials/4.7s, Jim Dounis was victorious in both heats. Thank you to our PRO, Gerry Donohoe assisted by LTRaR volunteer Thomas Beregi, our COTD, Josh Kirton, and CoCOTD, Kevin Gilroy.  And thanks to James Leaver and Pia Hattersley who helped in the canteen.

Boat for Sale

Dave Rogers has a baby coming into his life and has decided to take a break from sailing for a bit. As such, he’s decided to put his entry level boat up for sale. Here are the details:

• Hull number 192579

• In good condition and ready to race

• 1 brand new radial sail (never used), 1 used radial sail

• 1 carbon top mast section (new in 2018), plus 1 spare aluminium top mast section (never used)

• 1 radial bottom mast section (new in 2018)

• Foils, carbon tiller and extension, all rigging systems in good order and rigged for quick setup.

• Stored in rack at Double Bay Sailing Club and ready to go racing.

• No trolley or covers.

Please contact Dave HERE if you are interested.