Smooth Sailing
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News By A Sailor For Sailors!
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It’s been a while since
the last Smooth Sailing newsletter, the pressures of work have been taking
their toll and I just haven’t had the time to get a newsletter together. I have
been keeping the web site up to date though so don’t forget to take a surf by
every now and then to see what’s going on.
One of the battles with
putting together a publication like this is gathering information. Its not hard
to get Notices of Race to post on the site or news of upcoming events, everyone
seems to want their regattas promoted. Fair enough and I am happy to help out.
It’s amazing how difficult it is to get information after an event has taken place
though, and I am not looking for much, just the results really! On Monday
morning I sent nearly 20 e-mails to the organisers of various regattas that
took place around the country last weekend. How many sets of results did I get
back? One, how bad is that? One would think that regatta organisers would want
everyone to know how good their events were, which could only make those who
didn’t attend want to next year! Not to mention that there has to be value in
publicising who is doing what on the water in which classes! Maybe I am just
misguided on this one! The Hobie guys are certainly pretty pro-active though
and you will find the full results and pictures from the Hobie 16 Ladies and
Hobie 14 Open Nationals that took place last weekend on the Smooth Sailing Racing Reports web page!
Shosholoza Marseilles Louis Vuitton Act 1
Marseilles Louis Vuitton Act 1 - Disaster In The Boat
Park
Hobie 16 Ladies & Hobie 14 Open Nationals
There
was drama on board Shosholoza last week when crewmember Sieraj Jacobs lost the tip of his
little finger on the right hand in an accident on board. Sieraj, who was
standing in as headsail trimmer for Alex Runciman who was off with flu at the
time, got his finger caught between the genoa sheet and the winch drum while
adding a turn to the sheet. While it’s a pretty nasty injury to sustain luckily
it wont keep Sieraj off the water for long and he should be on the support boat
for the Valencia Louis Vuitton Act 2 Regatta that starts on Monday. The full
press release from the team regarding Sieraj’s nasty accident has been posted
on the Smooth Sailing Shosholoza web page.
Prior to last weeks drama things had been going very well
for the Shosholoza team. At the Marseilles Louis Vuitton Act 1 Regatta earlier
this month Shosholoza was the talk of the town attracting way more interest off
the water and performing far better on it than many expected. Bearing in mind
that the current Shosholoza was the oldest AC boat on the water at this 6 boat
regatta it would have been fair to expect her to follow the other 5 around the
race course all week. This wasn’t the case with the team putting in an
outstanding performance. Conditions were often difficult with fresh winds and
short courses putting a premium on boat handing. With so little AC experience
on board one might have expected things to be a shambles. Not to be, Shosholoza
sailed an outstanding regatta keeping breakages to a minimum and beating the
French K-Challenge team comfortably in the course racing. The highlight of the
regatta came when Shosholoza put on past both K-Challenge and the second French
team, Le Defi, to score a 4th in one of the fleet races. This was an
exceptional performance from the guys and has certainly done heaps to improve
their profile and hopefully their confidence too. Sailing on board Shosholoza
in Marseilles, and again in Valencia next week, is Andy Green, a British sailor
who was one of team GBR’s helmsmen in the last cup. His experience will have
been invaluable and I am really impressed that the team have been able to get a
sailor of his calibre on board. Reading an interview with Green on the official
AC web site Green was full of praise for the team and what they have achieved
so far. This has to be a good sign and hopefully he can help the guys continue
to improve at the rapid rate that they have so far!
No sooner had the Louis Vuitton Act 1 Regatta finished than
there was a minor Disaster in the Boat Park. With all 6 boats out of the water on their cradles vicious
and extremely localised storm ripped through the area causing Alinghi, Oracle
BMW and Emirates Team New Zealand’s boats to blow off their cradles. An
indication of just how localised the storm was is that only these three boats
were affected while tents that were only meters away were also untouched! All
three were damaged, ETNZ the worst of the lot. In fact it looks like that boat
might be a write off with the area immediately below her shroud bases punctured
by the corner of a container that she fell on to. Luckily for those of us
looking forward to watching some more good AC racing in the next couple of
weeks all three teams have spare boats and will be sailing these in Valencia.
ETNZ had to go to the greatest lengths to get there though having to airfreight
their second boat all the way from New Zealand. For more information on the
America’s Cup and the regattas taking place in Valencia in the next two weeks
go to www.americascup.com.
The following report on the RNYC’s Windhoek Regatta
was written by Colin Becker:
The
Windhoek Regatta 2004 was characterized by carnage, both on the water as well
as the shore. One boat lost it’s keel
while another was dismasted during Saturday’s race offshore Durban, then the
regatta was brought to an abrupt ending when a 40-knot southwester blasted the
final race, the Potjie-kos competition, and the marquee away on Sunday.
However there was quality
racing in between and certainly a lot of the sponsor’s beer flowing each
evening. This year’s Windhoek Regatta
was extremely well supported, with 43 boats taking part. This places the regatta amongst the largest
keelboat events in the country. A mix
of yachts, ranging from Fast 42’s to Theta comprised the two fleets, Racing and
Cruising. The usual after-sailing
festivities at the club made for a fun-filled long weekend.
The sailing side of the
regatta got off to a slow start with light winds on the opening day. Nevertheless the two scheduled sprint races
were successfully completed. Day two’s
there-and-back race was more exciting with a 25-knot southwester. Mel Hickman’s new sports boat Dynamite lost
its keel and had to be towed back to port. The Dickerson’s newly refurbished
Mistral Machete was dismasted when a spreader broke. Fortunately no one was injured in either of these two incidents.
Unfortunately Sunday’s bay race had to be abandoned due to the excessive wind.
The Cryptic Clue Challenge on
Thursday evening was the first non-sailing event that counted toward the
overall results. This involved cruising
around the harbour trying to solve riddles relating to the ships and scenery. The other non-sailing event; the traditional
Potjie-kos competition on the club’s lawns was cancelled on Sunday. That was a real pity as rumours spread a few
days prior as to who was cooking what, and the crews were clearly disappointed
after carefully planning their food, table and dress theme. The marquee came down, leaving the sailors
in the Trafalgar Room for an early prizegiving. Windhoek, Clover and many other
generous companies contributed to the success of the event and gave away
fantastic prizes each evening. Brian
Miller and his organizing committee, and the club staff, all did a sterling job
in providing good sailing, quality food and entertainment to hundreds of
participants over the long weekend. The
number of families present in the club and on boats during the regatta proved
that the mix of offshore racing and fun on land was just right.”
The full results are posted on the Smooth Sailing Racing Reports web page.
The Hobie 16 Ladies and Hobie
14 Open Nationals took place at the Theewaters Sport Club last weekend. Both classes were
well represented with 11 ladies Hobie 16 teams and 44 Hobie 14s taking part.
With 9 races sailed it looks like it was a good regatta. We haven’t got a full
report yet but the full results and pictures from the regatta have been posted
on the Smooth Sailing web site. The top three positions in each of the classes
were as follows:
Hobie 16 Ladies
|
1st
|
Inge
Schabort & Kim Verhovert |
17
Points |
|
2nd
|
Lucinda
Edwards & Judy Macfarlaine |
22 |
|
3rd
|
Jana
Buhrmann & Linda De Rooy |
23 |
Hobie 14
|
1st
|
Gordon
McGillivray |
10
Points |
|
2nd
|
Blaine
Dodds |
22 |
|
3rd
|
Aubrey
Price |
32 |
The Laser Nationals took place at the Lake Denys Yacht Club on the Vaal Dam
last weekend. By all accounts it was a good event with a big fleet of Lasers on
the water and a broad range of conditions from no wind at all to howling gales.
We don’t have the official results so cant tell you exactly how many boats took
part or races were sailed but the unconfirmed results that we were given were
that Paul Willcox won the regatta from Alan Keen and Rowen Clark. As soon as we
get the full results they will be posted on the Smooth Sailing web site.
The following report on the 2004 SPYC Pam Golding Big Boat Challenge was written by Kathy Manten:
“A successful
regatta was held on the 11th and 12th September. Pam
Golding sponsored the Big Boat Regatta this year and as always, it was a superb
event. The sponsors say they are extremely happy to be associated with Seal
Point Yacht Club’s Big Boat Regatta. A special mentioned must be made regarding
the continued and welcome sponsorship (and of course their promotional girls)
received by Jameson Whisky.
Despite
the fact that the Vaaldam is at approximately 42%, we had a really good entry
of 34 yachts. Once the competitors had registered their yachts and joined in
the carnival atmosphere at the club in the morning, they all set forth to
challenge each other on the water.
The wind
conditions were a bit disappointing with a light and fluky eight to twelve knot
North-Westerly wind to start off however this did freshen a bit during the day
and the odd boat managed to broach in order to impress the spectators. There was the usual jostling interspersed
with a few raised voices at the start but there were no casualties and the
competitors got off to a clean start. Craig Schweitzer on his Mountgay “Nashua
North” sailed off into the distance to take line honours. The Atlantis 36
“Apogon” also got away smartly leaving the rest of the fleet to catch up.
Unfortunately the Mountgay’s lead was not good enough as the handicap results
gave Astove “Duty Free To Tango” skippered by Keith Vennel, the win; followed
by Herbert Karolius on Beneteau 345 “Mysti Blue” and Adrian Pule on the Miura
“Elwing”. The race was shortened but still carried on into the night with
Xanadu Too finally calling it quits at 19:15. A tired bridge picked up the line
and returned back to the marina.
On
Sunday morning, the race was postponed for an hour due to the fact that the
wind speed was non-existent. In fact the weather bulletin on the TV that
morning quoted the wind speed as “nil” and the wind direction as “none”. The boats crept around the course and
fortunately the breeze picked up a bit towards the end. Once again “Nashua
North” Came in first across the line giving them line honours for Saturday’s
and Sundays races. They managed a second on handicap with a very consistent and
very well sailed “Duty Free To Tango” coming in first. Mark Van Heerden on the
Stadt 34 “Nautibouy” came in third on handicap, which was enough for him to win
the trophy for the most improved skipper.
Great
parties are synonymous with the Big Boat Regatta as is the feeling of good will
and camaraderie. Manten Marina sponsored a Brass clock set in a ships wheel,
which was raffled with all the proceeds going to the National Sea Rescue
Institute. Pam Golding and Seal Point Yacht Club made a further donation to the
NSRI.
The
final results are as follows:
|
POSITION |
BOAT |
TYPE |
SKIPPER |
|
1ST
Handicap |
Duty
Free to Tango |
Astove |
K
Vennel |
|
2nd
Handicap |
Mysti
Blue |
Beneteau
345 |
H
Karolius |
|
3rd
Handicap |
Nautibouy |
Stadt
34 |
M
Van Heerden |
|
Line
Honours – Long Distance |
Nashua
North |
Mountgay |
C
Schweitzer |
|
Line
Honours – Med. Distance |
Nashua
North |
Mountgay |
C
Schweitzer |
|
1st
Cruising Class |
Apogon
|
Atlantis
36 |
J
Bogos |
|
2nd
Cruising Class |
My
Way |
Carribbea
30 |
R
Tunnel |
|
3rd
Cruising Class |
Drambuie |
Atlantis
36 |
W
Kallerhof |
|
Most
improved skipper |
Nautibouy |
Stadt
34 |
M
Van Heerden |
|
1st
Junior Skipper |
Crux |
Astove |
S
Haynes Jnr |
|
1st
Miura |
Elwing |
A
Pule |
Miura |
|
2nd
Miura |
Jasper |
D
Manten Jnr |
Miura |
|
3rd
Miura |
Kinetics |
W
Herbst |
Miura |
|
1st
Atlantis 36 |
Fairwind |
D
Hobson |
Atlantis 36 |
|
2nd
Atlantis 36 |
Fascination |
H Lindner |
Atlantis
36 |
|
1st
Astove |
Duty
Free to Tango |
K Vennel |
Astove |
|
1st
Holiday 34 |
Moonpath |
B Richards |
Holiday
34 |
|
CASA
Interclub Trophy |
Seal
Point Y C |
Duty
Free Misty
Blue Nautibouy |
|
The following HMYC Youth
Sailing Report came from Rob Walker:
“MYC Youth Sailing started the new season off with
fantastic conditions albeit real character building, Brass Monkey stuff.
Five Optimist sailors and a large contingent of
7 Laser sailors turned out to brave the chilly water but in beauty 10 to
12 knot conditions. The Southerly wind was quite gusty at times and tended to
shift intermittently to the SW, the chop was very surfable and some great speed
gains were achieved by those sailors who got the timing right. These guys were
racing for the Hancock Brass Monkey Trophy. Enough said of the conditions that
it is now snowing heavily as I write this!
Six sprint races on an Olympic Triangular course were
sailed, each lasting between 15 and 20 minutes. Sam Hancock was sporting a new
Radial cut sail and the power and height gain was impressive. He couldn't
however keep Claire Walker at bay who romped away in the breezy conditions
wining all six races. Claire didn't have it all her own way. Sam came short on
a lee bow tactic showing just how intense the competition was. Emma and Sam
were also tied on points at the end of the series scoring three 2nds & two
3rds each. The Gray family were also in contention but needed to sort out some
familial right of way rules! Shannon did well on handicap in the first couple
of races.
The Lasers opted to join the senior course in morning
but rig failure on the Wagner & Dommett boats and the gusts proved too much
for them and they came home without completing the course. Peter Dommett sailed
the afternoon sprints on the Youth course and was joined by Simon Dommett in
the 5th & 6th Race. Pete made most of his weight advantage easily beating son,
Simon, who took several spills into the chilly water.
Optimist Results:
Scratch: 1st Claire Walker (5), 2nd Sam Hancock (12),
3rd Emma Walker (12), 4th Shannon Gray (23), 5th Byron Gray (25)
Handicap: 1st Sam Hancock (10), 2nd Claire Walker
(11), 3rd Shannon Gray (12), 4th Emma Walker (14), 5th Byron Gray (25)”
Coming up at the
end of October is a regatta that should attract a lot of interest from around
the country, the Redhouse Centenary Regatta.
Now its not very often that a yacht club turns 100 years old, especially
in this day and age with the increased pressures that clubs find themselves
under just to survive. What makes this one even more interesting is that
Redhouse is one of very few sailing clubs in the country that is based on a
river, the Swartkops River, as opposed to a dam or the ocean. Despite its
unique location this club has a rich history with many of this country’s top
sailors having learnt their skills there. Not only that, and I stand to be
corrected on this one, but the Extra and Sprog classes both originated there.
The organisers of the RYC Centenary Regatta hope to attract a diverse fleet of
boats including examples of all those that have sailed on the river over the
years including Sharpies, Sprogs, Finns, Flying Dutchmen, Extras, Fireballs,
Spearheads, Mirrors, Gypseys, Optimists and Dabchicks and anything else that
sails to this event. The regatta takes place from the 22nd to the 24th
of October and features a good mix of sailing and social. The regatta starts with boat registration on Friday 22nd October, followed by a Cocktail Party that
night. There is racing on Saturday 23rd, followed by the Centenary
Banquet. More racing will take place on Sunday 24th, which is the
Centenary Day! This will be followed by the Prize Giving. The Notice of
Race can be downloaded from the Smooth Sailing Notices of Race web page or from the Redhouse Yacht Club
site at www.rcy.org.za. As sailing
regattas go this might not be the most important or prestigious regatta on the
calendar but it will certainly be one of the most unique and if for nothing
more than celebrating RYC’s achievement in reaching its 100th
birthday it has to be worth taking part!
Opinions
expressed herein are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the
views of this publication nor its editor.
From: Mike Robinson
RE: Nankin & Meek in Optimists
Dear Andrew,
Your
correspondent, Derek Bouwer, seemed serious in his contention that Messrs
Nankin & Meek learned their trade in Oppies.
If my less
than perfect memory serves correctly, Mr Nankin was a doyen of the Fireball
class, and Mr Meek had already won his first Rothman’s week regatta, by the
time the optimist arrived on the shores of this country.
I wonder how
much skill they would have acquired had their formative sailing years been
limited to sailing in a pram dinghy with an un-stayed mast, and how much of
their skill was acquired from the experience of sailing other vessels with
stayed masts, foresails, and sometimes even trapezes and spinnakers while
growing up.
(I also got
a very interesting mind picture of a twenty something year old Nankin, crouched
in the bottom of an Oppie, desperately trying to secure his future as a heavy
in South African sailing)
I note that
you are now in Port Elizabeth. I hope it was not you that misled Mr Bouwer.
Regards,
Michael Robinson
The latest SAS Bulletin, No. 8 of 2004, is published below. It includes more details of the
ongoing process to investigate an alternative financing arrangement for our
national body, something that should be of concern to all yachtsmen in SA.
1. Result of mandate on changes to the Levy system
2. SAS
investigation through FINCOM’s
3. Club
actions
1. Result of Mandate
Following
Bulletin 7/ 2004 in which SAS member clubs were asked to vote on whether to
retain the existing levy system or to support an investigation into an
alternative method of financing SAS the result was very close. On direct votes there were 16 votes of NO
and 16 votes of YES, but once these were weighted there were 28 votes for
investigating a change with 24 to maintain the status quo.
In view of
this result, SAS will undertake an investigation into an alternative method of
financing with the objective of completing it by the end of December.
2. Investigation through FINCOMs
The
investigation is to be undertaken by Finance Committees (FINCOMs) in each
Region. Each Region has been given a
summary of previous investigations but are at liberty to initiate new ideas.
All alternatives will be coordinated into a single alternative for
consideration across all Regions and then by Council. The resulting alternative will be presented to the SAS membership
for approval or rejection at a Special General Meeting.
In order to change the financial system for the next financial year an SGM must approve the change by the end of January 2005. The present levy system will continue until the end of the current financial year and beyond that if the alternative proposal is rejected.
3. Club Actions
The
FINCOMs need the cooperation of the Clubs and members to be able to carry out
the investigation and in this regard full details of Club member numbers by category
are a first step. This includes all
non-sailing members and those members contributing to other associations.
Typically the information will include categories such as Social, Family (see
below), Ordinary, Country, Youth, Junior, Absentee and any others plus their names. If it is possible for the information to be
sent in Microsoft Excel format it would be appreciated.
The
need for family details is to allow each family member to have a SAS membership
card.
It is requested that such information
be sent to SAS regional offices by the 30th September 2004.
The FINCOMs would welcome any constructive ideas from
Clubs and individual members and should direct these ideas through the regional
offices in the first instance.
Your
cooperation is appreciated.
SAS
Council
15 September 2004”
Our Notices of Race page on the Smooth Sailing has all the NOR’s available to us. If you
have a regatta coming up and would like to make the NOR available online then
e-mail it to hethcot@iafrica.com and it will be posted and
listed in this newsletter. To get your copy simply click on the name of the
regatta you are interested in below:
|
Regatta |
Venue |
Dates |
|
False Bay Yacht Club |
18 to 26 September |
|
|
Milnerton Aquatic Club |
18 to 25 September |
|
|
Denysville Aquatic Club |
22 to 26 September |
|
|
Denysville Aquatic Club |
22 to 26 September |
|
|
Royal Natal Yacht Club |
22 to 26 September |
|
|
Theewaters Sports Club |
23 to 26 September |
|
|
Eastern Cape Laser, Extra, Mirror & Dabchick
Champs & Fireball Nationals |
Swartvlei |
24 to 26 September |
|
Lake Denys Yacht Club |
24 to 26 September |
|
|
Stillbaai Yacht Club |
24 to 26 September |
|
|
Zululand Yacht Club |
1 to 3 October |
|
|
Henley Midmar Yacht Club |
2 & 3 October |
|
|
Various KZN Clubs |
October 2004 to July 2005 |
|
|
Henley Midmar Yacht Club |
16 & 17 October |
|
|
Redhouse Yacht Club |
22 to 24 October |
|
|
Hermanus Yacht Club |
11 to 18 December |
|
|
IRC KZN Champs |
Zululand Yacht Club |
14 to 16 January 2005 |
|
Royal Cape Yacht Club |
4 January 2006 |
The Smooth Sailing Classifieds are a free service for private advertisers only. This service is not available to any commercial enterprise or service provider. To place an ad, e-mail the details to andrew@smoothsailing.co.za.
FOR SALE
Excellent Condition
R4 850-00 ono
Contact: Tony Strutt
Cell: 082 823 4388
Posted: 21/09/04
At LDYC Vaal
Dam
Good condition.
Antifouled DEC 2003.
Full sail
inventory, flares, life jackets, new covers on cushions, new rudder.
R30 000-00
Contact: Peter
James
E-Mail: peter@metago.co.za
Phone: 011-787
9876
Cell 0828293733
Posted:
21/09/04
Excellent condition
R3 000-00
&
White and
blue
Price
Negotiable
Contact:
Charles
Cell: 082 771
0719
Posted:
21/09/04
Good condition, cruiser racer
Lying RCYC. Built 1989
Full instrumentation, VHF, SSB Good cruising sails:
1,3,storm,msl,spin, Furler, Dodger, clutches, wheel, Fridge,
Recent respray
R400 000-00
Contact Wilhelm for full inventory
(011) 324 3850 or wherbst@nous.co.za
“Pipe Dreams"
Presently moored at Kosmos - Hartbeesport Dam
With full suit of sails incl lazy jacks
5hp Mariner outboard
R22 000-00 ONO.
Contact: Peter Gardner
Cell: 083 225 7934
Posted: 10/09/04
Good Condition
Cell No: 0845067874
Posted: 31/08/04
WANTED
Any condition
Price in line with
condition.
Contact: Dave Millard
Cell: 082 805 4504
Posted: 29/09/04
Will pay cash.
Cell: 083 308 5544
Posted: 29/09/04
Contact:
Peter Gardner
Posted:
10/09/04
E-Mail: vixend@iafrica.com
Posted:
10/09/04
Any condition
Contact: Rob
Attwell
E-Mail:
thut@iafrica.com
Posted: 10/09/04
Contact:
Megan Thornton
Email: Thorntonfam@telkomsa.net
Posted: 31/08/04
Radial or Full Rig.
Contact: Sean Richards
Good
Condition
In Durban
area
Contact: John Armstrong
E-Mail: johna@royaluniongroup.co.za
Cell: 082 454
9952
Andrew Heathcote
Mobile: +27 (0) 83 783 8805
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Please note that the views
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