​Hi Everyone , I have been checking the weather maps and it looks like we are in store for the possible visit from tropical cyclones as we have already had one in the gulf and there is some bad weather brewing off tropical north queensland so its time to keep a look out . Thankfully most of these storms dont reach us in full intensity but they sure wreak havoc up north so spare a thought for our northern neighbours this cyclone season.
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8.30 am Sunday Juniors :
Ok with Sunday morning kicking off in its usual fashion with bright blue skies and gentle winds we were expecting a big crowd and we werent disappointed with over 20 kids signing on with nearly half newbies . After getting everyone kitted out in helmets and jackets and rigging enough boats to accomodate everyone Andrew set a nice reaching course straight across the front of the club in about a 6 knot s/e wind so al;l the parents could sit back and watch their kids enjoy either their first sail or learn more about sailing . Yes there was the odd tow as new skippers got a bit confused and were trapped over near the bridge but once everyone got the idea everyone it was smooth sailing . Our team were great and even Pat turned up to help after being away overseas since the beginning of December and yes captain headbut ( Ben ) wore a helmet so no ice packs were need in the making of this session !

10.30 am Sunday Junior Training ;
Mother nature had really kicked in by the time we got everyone on the water with a good e/s/e wind around 6/8 knots . Abbey went Tera instead of Laser as did Ben and Aidan with Ollie , Addy and Eddie going Bic and everyone soon got hooked in to the upwind and broad reach course. We started just tacking at both ends with everyone really starting to nail the manouver but the big one was the gybes which of course everyone moans about but with a bit of coaching gybing was not a problem . I have to say the girls stood out over the boys and amongst the girls Addy absolutely nailed it its amazing what sitting on the side and looking at the boom does for balance and skill . With the boys well as I said at the briefing if you don't look at the boom for timing and you let go of the steering you will capsize right Ollie ! but when you do it right its not a problem , all in all a great session for everyone .

1.30 pm Open Racing :
With our first club championship Race for the 2018 season and also the presentation of 2017 club championship trophies we had a good crowd turn up for racing .

So who won in the Championship ? well first overall was Tom Slocombe then to her surprise Simone Dougherty was second and Steve Pudney was third , for Tom it was the second year as Adult Champion and as well it was Steve's second year in third place . In the Youth division which was hotly contested by Dallas , Pat Charlie and Casey Casey managed to pull ahead towards the end of the season to win her second Club Championship with Dallas second Charlie Third .

With it being race one and good sailing conditions I expected some over eager sailors at the start so I had the recall flags at the ready but even though the start was hectic everyone got away well and set of on the triangle / windward course . In the Adults Tom slowly moved ahead of the fleet but a navigation error saw him loose first place to Greg which he just couldn't recover from . Steve had a great sail and mister luckless James again broke his vang saddle but still managed to finish . In the Youth Pat managed to get away with a port start but was soon leading the 4,7s but Casey slowly pegged him back coming over the line just in front . well done everyone !

Happy Australia Day everyone !!

CU on the water
John Murphy

Hi Everyone , Yes its nearly back to school time and for some of our older sailors its the last of school and either off to study or start work either way they are starting a whole new part of their lives but don't worry as long as you keep sailing in your life you have the opportunity to get out there and have some fun .

8.30 am Sunday Juniors ;
Sunday morning started with a very iffy weather forecast which prompted the Instructors and myself to seriously consider cancelling but as luck would have it the winds stayed in the w/n/w at around 6/8 knots which made it perfect for sailing . What we didn't expect was the nearly 40 kids who turned up for sailing which sent Andrew , Abbey , Ben Casey Charlie and me into overdrive rigging boats , signing people on and generally organising the biggest morning we have ever had , we even ran out of chairs !
A special thanks to all our young sailors who took all the first timers out and despite some people falling out ? and the inevitable capsize  . Charlie and Eddy seemed to have a lot of trouble with the Bic constantly capsizing , Charlie B had people abandoning ship and Ben just needs to learn how to duck when he is purposely capsizing or wear a helmet ? All in all it was a great morning session and lets hope we get a few more sailors from the day to come back and join in !

10.30 am Sunday Junior Training ;
Unfortunately we only had one keen sailor ( Abbey ) who turned up for this session and as luck would have it thats also when the wind started to increase so their was no choice in the end but to cancel .

Open Racing ; Club racing officially starts next weekend with race 1 of the 40 race format but a few of the guys in Tom , Greg , Steve and young Jonah who has been away at nationals all rigged up and went out for a practice run in around 16/18 knots while the crew and I packed up boats and equipment . 
A special thanks also to Harvey who donated Public Nuisance to the club coming up from Narooma to have a look at what we have had done to the boat and to check out junior sailing, unfortunately we couldnt take him for a sail as the southerly was starting to get a bit nasty . 

Holiday sailing Camps :
After three successful Camps you guessed it we had to cancel our last camp due to the worsening wind conditions , we do have a contigency plan for windy conditions but even that wasnt an option as buy lunch time the winds were over 30 knots and by mid afternoon over 40 knots 

2017 Club Championship Presentation is on next Sunday at 12.45 pm so come along and congratulate not only the winners but everyone who competed last year 

CU on the water
John Murphy

Hi Everyone , After a big year in 2017 it was great to have a well deserved break over Christmas for all the volunteers and committee giving everyone a chance to recharge their batteries for a big 2018 with The annual Bendigo Bank Youth Cup in June and The Pan Pacific Masters Games in November plus 40 club race events including 20 club championship races for the year  .

​8.30 am Sunday Juniors ;
With blue skies and gentle winds our first Sunday Juniors for 2018 was an absolutely perfect start to the year ahead . We didnt expect much of a crowd due to the holidays but we still managed to get 14 junior sailors on the water and with the winds around 4 knots it was perfect for everyone to practice tacking and  gybing . With most of our bic fleet still out of action we could only launch one boat for Charlie which she seems to be sailing with more confidence with every lesson even Taine was showing good skills in the Tera and a special thanks to Ben Roake for taking all the new kids out on the Taz and showing them how much fun sailing is . Yes there was capsizing as well but mainly on purpose as it was truly getting hotter as the morning went on even we Instructors got wet .

10.30 Sunday Junior Training;
With the winds becoming a bit shifty and the sun really starting to beat down it took a bit of convincing to get everyone out of the shade and on the water . The winds were settling from the n/e so I set an upwind down wind course which proved a bit of a challenge for everyone at first but with a bit of on water coaching I managed to get everyone to not tack at the bottom mark but instead to sail at right angles from the mark then tack when the top mark was in the sailing zone . I have to say that on the day the best sailor was Abby who not only went upwind well but her bearaways were perfect great work ab ! Ollie also did well in the Bic and Addy after some innitial struggling with the upwind section ( remember Addy when you sit on the side the instructor doesnt have to yell at you to sit on the side !!) We did stop early mainly due to the ever increasing heat but everyone still had a great time on the water .

Open Racing ;
Presentation of the Trophies for the 2017 season will be held on Sunday the 21st of January at approximately 12.45 pm prior to our first race of the 2018 season so come along and congratulate everyone for their efforts in 2017 .
The 2018 Sailing Race Calendar will be ready next week 

CU  on the water
John Murphy