Hi Everyone , Well its just around the corner now yes Easter is here so make room for the easter eggs and to much food but also dont forget that there is no Sunday Juniors or club racing this Easter Sunday but everything will be back on Sunday the 28th of April so I hope everyone has a great easter break .

The last junior sailing camp ran this week with a great bunch of kids turning up and even though the winds were around 18 knots which made us pack up and move up to soverign we still had some great sailing with many thanks to our assistant instructors and volunteers for showing the inexperienced sailors who to sail the conditions , all we need them all to learn now is some better jokes because trust me some of them were definitely forgettable .

8.30 AM Sunday Juniors ;
With this being a school holiday Sunday we were expecting a pretty cruisy sunday with probably 10 junior sailors but you guessed it we ended up with over double the numbers which meant more boats down so that we could accomodate everyone , so with 3 lasers , 7 teras and the Taz we slowly got everyone on the water . There was an innitial shock from both the sailors and the safety boat crews when the saw me sailing a laser with a couple of first timers yes thats how busy it was as I hate sailing 4.7 lasers especially when tacking and yes I did get two bumps from the boom but still had some great fun teaching the new kids sailing . The course was a bit close at first but after the crews stretched her out we stopped having collissions . The wind was from the south east at around 6/8 knots so it was perfect conditions for a bit of reaching and tacking and gybing . It did build towards the end of the session but everyone just seemed to handle the change well with a few bow waves evident and hiking out just to coax that extra bit of speed from the boat . With the wind from the south and the water temperature getting a bit chilly we didnt think anyone wanted to practice capsize drills but you guessed it as soon as we said yes there were boats over everywhere with lots of laughing and smiling faces even some of the first timers jumped in and joined the fun.

10.30 AM Sunday Training;
This session was a bit down on numbers because of the holidays but we still had a mix of lasers , Teras and bics out for a training session in winds around 6/9 knots S/E . Abbey and Eddy continued their battle in the laser 4.7s and Alex and Addy were out in the bics with Alex just struggling with getting the bic to go upwind ok and occassionally downwind . In the Teras Ben was just having one of those days and ended up pulling out early being too cold from too many swims , Ben sailed a tera instead of his laser because he thought the winds were going to be too strong for him but you guessed it the wind increase didnt eventuate but at least he got on the water . Abbey is absolutely smoking close hauled lately and is just un catchable when her mind is on the job which gives Eddy the challenge of improving her upwind so she can keep pace with Abbey all in all a great training session .

1.30 PM Youth Rcae ;
With the winds building again from the S/E to around 10/14 knots we set a course starting at the club and running down to the southern side of the canal making a very close close hauled upwind and a broad reach back . Everyone made the start well with Eddy and Abbey son pulling away from Kaleb ( laser 4.7 ) and Addy and Ollie close behind . The fleet slowly pulled away from Ollie mainly because he has missed sailing for several months so he was a bit rusty but still had a good sail . Abby was first around the top mark but had to go back as she rounded on the wrong side as did Eddy who also had to go back then the did the same at the start line mark and I made them go back again which resulted in Addy who was also smoking the upwinds and down winds ( must have been saturdays training ?) jumping to the lead but once abby and Eddy started going around the buoys the right way they soon caught her and were over the line abbey 1st and eddy 2nd with Addy 3rd overall but it was addys day on handicap with a 1st overall , Kaleb finished 4th with Ollie 5th .

1.30 pm Open Race ;
With Casey and Glen in Charge of the race start apparently everyone behaved themselves and the recall flags remained in the bottom of the boat ? and with the start set near the canal and A mark down near runners it was a good upwind slog followed by three downwinds back to B then back to A and of up to the top of ephriam for C mark for two more laps . When I set this section I tried to set it so that C to A would be on the edge of no sail and when I asked Peter how that section went he said it was perfect as everyone had to throw a couple of tacks in . I expected the first boats back in around an hour but you guessed it the wind went from a solid 12/14 knots to 7/9 knots resulting in the first boats back tacking over an hour and a half to complete the course . Greg cleared out on Tom and Peter finishing just on a minute and a half ahead and Tom 20 seconds behind him with Ben a further minute behind the leaders . Kate took my advice before the start and went 4.7 so I will take the blame for her lack of speed as I was thinking the winds were going to build not drop off that mother nature is so untrustworthy !

UPCOMING
CLOSED EASTER WEEKEND BACK ON THE 228TH APRIL

CU on the water
John Murphy

Hi Everyone , the first batch of school holidays are here and with only two camps set down for the break the first camp was nearly full and the second one next week is also nearly full so lets hope that next weeks group has the same great weather as this weeks group did with blue skies and light winds day one and 6 to 8 knots day two making for a perfect two days of sailing.

8.30 am Sunday Juniors ;
Although the early conditions were looking very light but with blue skies we still had our very keen young sailors arriving as early as 8.00 am wanting to rig their boats and get on the water . We had to hurry up ourselves so we could start signing everyone on but we were soon up and running with Lasers Teras and the Taz being pulled out and lined up for the session . We had a surprise for all the Tera sailors in that one of our great sponsors ( NEWHAVEN ) had commissioned 8 new tera sails and everyone couldnt wait to get them on the mast and in the boat . After a few photos of the new sails rigged and the boats on the water it was time to launch everyone in what turned out to be very light and flukey n/w to n/e winds around 2/4 knots . So who did well in the light conditions well starting with Jack and Dean in the Taz who sailed well especially with the help of a jib as did Elizabeth who continues to improve with her steering as did carl ( who looks like 10.30 material ) as did Curtis who is always the earliest to arrive . There was the odd tow back whenever the wind just died but towards the end the wind started to fill in making it at least possible for everyone to sail in the capsize area where everyone tipped their boats over but were not allowed to turtle and stick the new sails in the mud at least not on their first sail.

10.30 am Training ;
The numbers were down a bit for this session with only the really committed sailors out there keen to practice for this weekends race with Addy , Eddy , Abby , Ben , Mason and Jackson rigging up for some serious tacks and gybes . Mason stepped up into a Open Bic after trying one last year and going back to a Tera to learn more and both he and Jackson who also sailed a Bic both sailed the bic the best I have ever seen them sail ( nothing like pulling the mainsheet on right boys! ). After our training session a couple of weeks ago Ben continues tacking forward so no more hits with the boom and is also looking at the sail a lot more . Abby , Eddy ( laser ) and Addy ( bic ) all just cruised around the course which was a long triangle tacking and Gybing smoothly and having generally good boat speed , maybe it was from looking at the telltales more right girls? Oh yes we did discuss telltales at the briefing and what to look for and which side to get working first now lets see what happens this weekend when the pressure of racing is included , Iam actually looking forward to it fingers crossed !

1.30 pm Open Race ;
Thankfully by midday the winds had settled in and shifted around to the n/n/e at around 6/10 knots so we set a start line down in the runaway bay corner with A mark a straight accross the channel for a few windward leeward legs the the second part of the course was up the soverign channel about half way to the top green . How did the start go well you guessed it the general recall was called and how many boats were over well out of thirteen starters I think 8 boats were over and by how far ? well lets just say we started picking up the recall flag around 15 seconds before the horn it sounded like a convention of up callers . Charlie had a great early battle with greg and managed to break free and lead the race for almost half the race distance before the pack slowly overtook him towards the half way point but still only finished just over two minutes behind Tom withgreg second 35 seconds behind and Kate a further 30 seconds behind him coming in third . Ben and steve picked up their pace and around a minute and a bit next over the line with Peter Fell with a borrowed club Radial ( sorry about that mate that sail is really stretched ) following them in then Maurie , Casey , Roger , Simone , Brendan ( brendo had my steering assembly which made the boat go faster right Brendan ?-and Stewart .
All in all a good days racing!

Upcoming ;
This weekend is race three of our new Youth Series should be interesting !
Easter weekend the Club will not be open Easter Break and will be back for the following weekend 28th April

CU on the water
John Murphy

Hi everyone , Winter is slowly on its way after a very hot and steamy Summer its nice to wake up early and just feel that slight nip in the air well providing its not raining that is . Lets hope with school holidays and Easter just around the corner that the strong winds and heavy rain move on so that everyone can enjoy the break .
8.30 am Sunday Juniors :
This beginners class never ceases to surprise me with its consistant numbers every Sunday with all the regulars and always the odd new sailor showing up for this early session . The weather was bright and sunny with light winds from the N/E and an ever increasing outgoing tide it was always going to be a challenge for everyone . I have to admit the tide was a bit of a pain as it kept sucking everyone in as the moment they lost concentration they were going backwards well that was except the laser with Eddy on board and the Tera with Addy on board who with their experience made it look easy good work girls . Richard and Andrew also managed to master the light conditions as did Aithan and Jonah who at one stage were drifting towards a moored Yacht but managed to tack away and sail back towards the club . It was nice to see Jack and Dean back as well after a summer of nippers and although they were a bit fuzzy on rigging once the hit the water you could see their sailing skills coming back as the session went on . Amongst the girls Cianna sailed well if occassionally looking a bit confused as to where the wind was coming from as did Jade , Sasah , Elizabeth , Ava and Athenia even if Liz and Athenia had a bit of help from Addy and yes despite the water temperature starting to ncool most everyone still wanted to capsize at the end ?
10.30 am Sunday Training :
Luckily by the time everyone had rigged and we had a briefing the winds had gone a bit more east making it easier for this group to beat the still outgoing tide . Charlie took nearly everyone out and headed south towards the bottom end of Ephriam for more wind while I stayed back with Ben as I had promised him the week before that I would show him how to tack facing forward to hopefully stop him from getting hit with the boom consistantly while facing backwards and to his credit after about ten minutes he started to get the idea and was soon tacking facing forward and also his timing was better by now because he could see it waiting for the boom to start changing sides before he changed so well done Ben now lets hope he remembers next Sunday? Jackson sailed his laser for the first time with a bit of help from some club bits and pieces and despite struggling at times with popping rudders and the increase in power especially when gybing he did well for his first try so it looks like we have another laser sailor in the fleet . Addy , Eddy and Abby just took the conditions in their stride and it definitely looks like they are taking gybing in their stride and finally everyone will be relieved to know Ebony didnt sight any boat swallowing stingrays this week so all was good on the water !
1.30 PM Open Racing:
With Ben Simone , Tom and Casey away at the states we still managed to have eight boats on the water and with the winds moving more towards the S/E and increasing to around ten knots it was looking good for a great race . On the start boat we were so confident of a good start we didnt even get out the recall flags so you guessed it with Michelle leading the early starters we had a general recall so back to five minutes again and the second start was much more civilised it was so good in fact I had Addy film it and stuck it on facebook . Greg soon broke free with the pack in hot pursuit and with Charlie using my full rig sail he was soon in hot pursuit of greg after passing Michelle and Steve and things were looking well for a good finish for Charlie until yep you guessed it he fell out apparently due to a mysterious wind knock? with only one and a half laps to go and yes he was catching Greg ( radial ) There was not much in it with Greg Michelle Steve and Charlie all finishing within two minutes of each other and Matt , Lance and Russel less than two minutes behind them and our newest racer Laurie rounding out the fleet . Will Charlie try the full rig again yes I am absolutely sure of it if the yahooing we heard as he took of at the start has anything to do with it and Michelle blamed her watch breaking for the early start !

UPCOMING
School Holiday sailing camps ; there are only a few spots left in both camps ( 8/9 & 15/16 ) so contact the sailing office for a booking form .
EASTER : The club will be closed on Easter Sunday but member scan access their boats by contacting the office
Mid Winter Cup : 29th and 30th of June ; we are looking for some volunteers for the two day event so if you would like to donate some time over the two days volunteering forms are available at the club .

CU on the water
John Murphy

Hi Everyone , The cyclones up in the gulf and in WA have certinly affected the weather this week with heat and humidity first now 10 degree lower temperatures and consistant rain and winds , i even had to cancel a school group yesterday and luckily my prediction turned out true for their 1.30 lesson with the winds up around 20 knots and heavy rain which is just no fun especially for learners . Luckily the forecast is a bit dryer for the weekend so fingers crossed .

8.30 am Sunday Juniors ;
Last Sundays beginner session started well with a good group of sailors again signing on including the usual couple of first timers and everyone ws soon rigging Teras , Lasers and even the TAZ was back out with a replacement centreboard which was a tight fir but still worked . The winds were light from the S/E so the crew set a course basically up and down the channel but with the incoming tide the bridge came into play with quite a few tows as people got too close to the bridge and tacked late in the wind shadow but once we moved it further away most everyone avoided drifting under the bridge . I was really impressed with Aithan who rigged a tera ( dads help )with the smaller sail and sailed the boat alone and was tacking and gybing in the light conditions and looked very comfortable in the boat . Eddy took a new sailor Maria out on the laser with sasha as crew and by the end of the session they both looked to be really enjoying herself . Especially the capsizing at the end . The Taz boys had a few early issues but a stern word then an explanaition on the beach soon had that sorted . All in all a great session .

10.30 Sunday Training;
With the winds morel from the north east for this session and still very light we firstly had a talk about where we sit in the boat and why so where ? well up the front near the centreboard to get the back of the boat out of the water to reduce drag . I set a course down to the second green channel marker and a red buoy at the club but with the flukey winds it was certainly a struggle for everyone . Mason was really slow at first but once I showed him how to pick up speed by sitting on the boom side both he and jade started moving forward . The laser were ok having more sail area but the bics did struggle a bit right addy? .What surprised me the most was that half the training fleet was alsomost of the race fleet for 1.30 and apparently they were out there to practice for their race now that shows dedication amongst our young racing sailors . I normally pick a few people who went well on the day but considering the light and shifty conditions everyone did very well so give yourselves a pat on the back for a great effort.

1.30 Youth Racing ;
With the winds picking up and turning more E/N/E but still a bit light I set a longer but similar course as their first race two weeks ago with a start line just south of the canal and a turning buoy down near runners . As for how the racing went I had to ask andrew and Peter as I got caught on shore with a broken down jet ski ( not ours) but thats another story but from what I was told the start was a little hectic but everyone took off well and yes the winds had picked up to around 8/10 knots so everyone was flying . Addy said her new longer mainsheet made her boat much easier to control and Eddie,s laser with no leak was much more competitive but just needs the sail pulled on a bit harder right eddy? Felix ( the boat breaker ) lost his deck fittings ( the mounting screws were to short ? ) Ben capsized and hit his head but we are going to fix that next weekend by changing his tacking style which will result in a lot less capsizing , Ebony pulled out after seeing a enormous stingray apparently big enough to swallow her boat ? but it didnt and then there were the rest with Jackson looking very tired at the end and Eddy being pipped at the finish again by you guessed it Abby and yes she again was the one yelling as she returned to shore somewhat excited !

1.30 PM Open Racing;
Again thanks to Glen Charlie and Casey who manned the start boat for the club race so that I could concentrate on our Youth Group . I set a course starting near runners then over to the sand bank adjacent to the starboard mark then a long run up to the top of Ephriam which I thought would be plenty considering the winds were only around 5 knots and an outgoing current . Even though I was stuck on shore I soon saw that the course was way to short as the winds had picked up to around 12 knots so I contacted the start boat to have them ask the sailors once they finished if they would like a second race as the first was only about half an hour which of course everyone said yes to so Casey helped Glen and Charlie sailed her boat yes Casey loaned her boat ! Tom and Greg told me after the race that they backed of a bit to let Charlie overtake them then the plan was to hunt him down but they forgot to tell Charlie the plan and they just couldnt catch him even his dad was impressed watching from the shore , I could have told them to watch him as his speed has been increasing over the last couple of months especially on the reaches .

Upcoming :
Laser states this weekend with Casey , Greg , Tom , Ben and Simone competing so good luck everyone and enjoy the competition
Easter weekend and a reminder that there is no juniors or club racing that weekend
Mid Winter Cup ;
We are starting to have sponsors come on board with Ronstan and PSA already committed with a couple more to make their decision soon. We are also looking for volunteers to help with the event so if you may be able to spare some time either or both days check with the Office and put your name down .
NEWS ! Evolution sails have finished the new sails for the club Teras and are now at the signwriters have the sponsors (Newhaven Funerals ) Logo fitted before they are ready for use . A special thank you to Phil Colloney who organised this generous support package .

CU on the water
John Murphy

Hi Everyone , With Easter just around the corner dont forget that the club will be closed over the Easter break so no Sunday sailing . Members who have their boats stored at the club can gain access to their boats if they want to go for a sail by just contacting me and I will organise for the cage area to be unlocked but they must let me know the day before .
8.30 am Sunday Juniors:
With the ever changing weather lately luckily Sunday turned out well with blue skies light winds plus humidity for our beginner sailors . The group was mainly return sailors but like every sunday the were a couple of new sailors and even one we hadnt seen for over a month ( Athenia ) due to family commitments and yes she has definitely grown . With a light s/e breeze it was easy rigging well except for the sails which are just falling apart but luckily Newhaven have sponsored a new set which should be about a week away . With a quick briefing it was time to hit the water so Casey and crew set a reaching course for everyone to practice both tacking and gybing . Ok it was a bit slow but for our smaller sailors and relative new sailors it was perfect for everyone to nail down the turns . Daniel who usually sails with his brothers took a Tera and sailed it well sitting forward to keep the bum out of the water as did Jade and Athenia even though there was a bit of complaining at the start when athenia found out that she was sailing a Tera and not sunning on a laser ! Finally we let everyone practice capsizing which is always fun to watch as everyone trys the different ways to tip a boat over right Blake ?
10.30 am Sunday Training;
This class has evolved this year into more about racing skills for our keen sailors as they slowly transfer over into our fortnightly racing team . Yes it is a bit difficult especially at first but with the help of Charlie and Casey as Instructors everyone is slowly enjoying this new challenge . Last sundays training centered around gybing as the conditions were perfect with e/s/e winds around 6 knots so off everyone went down to the canal and we proceeded to introduce everyone to whistle gybes . What is whistle gybes ? well its when everytime you hear the whistle you gybe so with a big group like sundays it certainly makes for some wild manouvers which was certainly the case with lots of out of control and a few capsizes but overall everyone started to come to terms with it so we sent them for a sail south and back then you guessed it back to whistle gybes and this time there were no capsizes and only the occassional out of control . Everyone was definitely smiling when the came back to shore even Torin who was on whistle duties . Next weekend is race two of this years Youth Racing Series so fingers crossed for good winds and blue skies .
1.30 Open Racing;
With the winds settling in from the e/s/e at around 8 knots and the storm clouds building all around us I set a course starting at runners heading east then a leg up towards the club but I didnt make it too long a course because of the building storm clouds  . We were a bit late starting with a few people late of the beach so we were around 20 minutes late for the start but what I didnt tell everyone at the briefing was the start was set accross the current which certainly ahd everyone struggling in the first run to A mark but Greg Steve and Matt sorted it out and were the first boats around the buoy . Matts son Finn who was on the start boat and couldnt believe how well his dad was going and like all sons was giving him sailing tips all around the course ? As the race went on greg moved clear with steve holding second and Roger slowly overtaking Matt to come in third with Charlie fifth and Casey sixth but she was in the 4.7 as she is training for racing at Manly in two weeks . It was great to see our Treasurer out there as well with an afternoon off even though he didnt complete the course due to sore hands and it was also nice seeing Lance sailing and Stewart out racing as well .
Yes we did beat the storm and even had time to pack up the club before the heavens opened again and it absolutely bucketed down and it was definitely not a fun drive home >

Upcoming . Manly is only two weeks away and Casey , Simone , Ben , Greg and Tom are all gearing up for two days of racing .
The Mid winter cup ( june 29/30 ) has secured its first sponsor with Ronstan Australia coming back on board so its all guns blazing now all we need is the Sabots , Optis , Open Bic and youth Laser sailors to rock up again for another great sailing weekend NOR will be posted shortly!
Adult Learn to Sail Course :; starts this Saturday 23/3/2019 two spaces left !

CU on the water
John Murphy

Hi Everyone , Yes I did get in early with this weeks news as Iam away on thursday and I wanted to make sure that all the action from last week got a mention as there was plenty especially on Sunday which for the first time included our Junior racing program .
8.30 am Sunday Juniors ;
With the heat back again and lots of phone enquiries during the week we knew that we had to have everything prepared early for the expected rush and we werent wrong with 18 Juniors signing up for the beginners class so it was action stations for all the volunteers helping rig Teras and lasers to accomodate everyone . With the winds basically S/E at around 6 knots and smooth conditions Casey set a reach accross the channel but no sooner than the course was set it had to be changed to suit a more e/s/e wind change . The conditions were extremely hot so everyone was soon asking when capsize practice could begin which even for the new sailors sounded like a good idea . Blake and crew were the first to have an accidental ?? capsize so I soon had to give in and allow the rest of the fleet the same opportunity so in no time there were boats over everywhere with even the instructors getting into the act . I had a couple of our sailors asking how to capsize alone and in no time they were tacking and rolling the boat over then back in and off again . Its actually great to see everyone purposely capsizing which is all part of the sailing experience .
10.30 am JuniorTraining ;
We had an influx of new sailors in this session comprising of some of our 8.30 sailors who had decided to come along and try out this more advanced class . We probably had the biggest group ever and it showed as we struggled to get enough boats on the water especially amongst the Tera,s where the sails are just starting to tear from age but with some creative rigging and adult looking we managed to get everyone on the water . We started with a reach tacking at one end and gybing the other then as a said at the briefing we then added a third mark to include a bear away and after a lot of intense instructing from Casey and Charlie in Sarah C and me in rescue four everyone yes even the new sailors were tacking , gybing and bearing away and once we got everyone to sail remembering the outgoing tide and its effect everyone as actually sailing good courses . To finish the session we sent everyone from public nuisance to the second green channel mark so they could have a nice long broad each then a reasonable upwind return all in all a great session by everyone .
1.30 Junior Race Series ;
This being a new series had some very nervous young sailors sitting at the pre race briefing where we discussed the course and starting sequence both of which were pretty straight forward . The course was a start in front of the club with a rounding buoy in front of allisee . The winds were around 8/12 knots with the winds at their strongest below Ephriam which made for some exciting sailing . After a good start from everyone it was pretty close heading towards the A mark wel that was until some people decided to follow felix who wasnt at the briefing which gave Edwina the chance to jump in front ( she helped lay the course ? ) with everyone in hot pursuit . Addy had trouble in the gusty bits and we found after racing tha her mainsheet was a metre and a half to short so she couldnt let her sail out far enough . Felix had to be towed home due to main sheet failure ( knot practice ? ) and Kaleb had a couple of capsizes in the laser . Jackson finally learnt the benefit of sheeting on and was a much improved sailor by the finish . Ok so who one out of Edwina and Abbey well just in case you didnt hear the screaming at the finish line it was Abbey who slowly pegged back Eddys lead finishing 50 seconds in front well done girls ! Th whole lot had plenty of stories back at the beach so yep their turning into sailors 
1.30 Open Race Series ; 
Thanks to Glen and Matt who volunteered their time to run the club race so that i could run the Junior racing so after a quick rundown of flags and times I sent them off to start the fleet which apparently went well for first timers even with the starters clock only counting down and not up for elapsed time , next time I will show them the count up position ! on the clock . Most of the news is from the competitors with Tom having a good start as did Charlie but I believe Casey forgot turn turn her timer on so you guessed it she was late as was Tara ( toms daughter ) Greg and Tom had the usual battle but fro what I saw the excitement was in the middle of the fleet with everyone trying to get a break with Charlie breaking away and developing a hand break that everyone else just couldnt get back . The final result was Tom first Greg Second and Charlie third . Matt and Glen did a great job even with having to ask tom for the elapsed time as he went over the line then they could time everyone else .

Upcoming ; 
Easter , please be aware that the club will be closed on Easter Sunday 
2019 Mid Winter Cup 29th and 30th June 
2019 Youth Week Manly 5th / 9th July 

CU on the water
John Murphy

Hi everyone , Sailing was back in action last weekend after the effects of Cyclone Oma and some pretty high tides from the cyclone and full moon phases combined there were plenty of stories from some of the locals about wind gusts reaching 45 knots at the club and waves lapping just below the rock wall in front of the club . Our caretakers gazebo even had to come down before it blew away as the winds were trying to lift it off the balcony so all in all a pretty wild event and lets hope its the last one for the season.

8.30 am Sunday Juniors ;
Well the morning started with rain and squalls so we didnt expect many numbers but by 7.30 things were starting to look good weather wise with the winds dropping back to around 6/8 knots s/e so we pulled out enough boats for around 15 sailors and set a easy reaching course . As usual we had a few first time sailors in the group so with declan / Torin piloting lasers with the beginners we set off for a morning sailing of course only after our morning briefing where we discussed wind direction , no sail zone and capsize drill . TJ decided to try steering again as Daniel normally steers their boat but there are still a few bugs in his technique ! if you can call it that actually I think his biggest problem is just laughing too much which seems to affect the steering way to much causing some wild manouveres and of course capsize but it all turned out well when Dan took over about half way through , still a lot of laughing but straighter lines . The most impressive effort was from our littiliest sailor who ok with Declans help was on main sheet duties just cruising around in the laser well until her hands got tired but still a great effort especially in front of one very proud grandmother.

10.30 Sunday Training :
With the conditions stable at around 6/8 knots we first sat down in the briefing to discuss the set course and especially gybes and centreboard position for unwind and reaching after gybing which even had the assistant instructors thinking hard in question time . We had a mix of lasers , bics and teras out there with addy and alex in bics tom , Aithen and ebony in teras and abbs , ben and eddy in 4.7 lasers . As expected abby and addy just cruised the course especially with their broad reaches with mainly letting the sail out more and very good tacks and gybes . Alex , Aithen and ebony struggled early with a combination of minor errors with things like letting to much sail out on the broad reach especially Alex and Ebony who had multiple capsizes and Aithen just overpowering himself causing a loss of control . So with the tide on the way out I set about pulling each one asside at the inner turning buoy and showed each one how to rectify the mistakes , Alex and Ebony were easy the just werent pulling the sail on enough causing their boats to high side capsize but they did get it and off they went Aithen was doing the age old mistake where he was holding the main when tacking and not the steering but again after some work around the buoy he was off as well . Finally we had Ben whos general sailing is improving everytime he hits the water now all we have to do is get him to look before tacking right Eddy ?

1.30 pm Open Race ;
By tthe time we went out to set the race course the winds had come up to around 12/15 knots e/s/e so we set a start line near the canal with a upwind to A mark and the a long broadreach to reach up to nearly the top of soverign for two laps the a return to A the back to the start buoy and back to a before returning to the finish .

At the start Tom got a blinder of a start and was gone before anyone else realised he had gone and was never headed at one stage pulling out a healthy lead . Greg did slowly close down Toms lead and at the finish line he was only 18 seconds behind with Michelle holding third in a radial for the whole race . Steve and Casey had a great tussle after they both started a bit slow and Simone struggled a bit with the broad reach section but hopefully we have fixed that with a few after race tips about vang tension and body position in her laser in smooth water conditions ( it all helps ) Trish was back from Sydney and had a good sail with Stewart who wasnt an official entry but came out fro a practice race keeping each other company around the course . Where was Charlie ? well apparently soccer is a dangerous game especially went someone does a slide tackle into your right ankle or was it the left ?

Upcoming :
First Race of the new Junior Series is on this weekend finally with conditions looking good for the first series race starting at 1.30 pm in line with the open club race .
P.P.S.C. MID WINTER CUP 29TH AND 30TH OF JUNE
YOUTH WEEK 5/9 JULY

CU on the water
J Murphy

Hi everyone , Yes firstly I have to appologise for missing last weeks newsletter as I was just a bit snowed under with other projects and only remembered on Friday . I was thinking of trying to catch up with all the info from then but my memory for the finer details is a bit shonky , all I can say is juniors had a great turnout with 16 junior sailors in perfect sailing conditions then junior training went reasonably well with everyone finally understanding the concept of sail on upwind and sail off on a broadreach down wind , even the downwind mark roundings improved over the course of the session.

With the open racing the conditions were perfect with e/s/e winds around 12/15 knots and the occassional extra puff and a course set starting in our channel and then 2 laps in the soverign channel where I set a good broad reach up to the top of ephriam then a really close reach back to A mark opposite runners . This course made for great racing especially amongst the middle pack while greg and peter stayed out in front . Casey came home third after a recall at the start for over early and then becoming involved in the middle pack challenge with the rest of the fleet close behind , all in all a great race to watch.

Last weekend was certainally a wild one with both saturday and sunday sailing cancelled thanks to the cyclone just hanging off the coast thanks to the two high pressure cells down the bottom of the country allowing the cyclone to basically remain stationary . Its not the worst I have experienced regarding cyclones although the winds were up around 50 knots combined with full moon high tides but no rain which would have made conditions even worse . My main concern was our damaged pontoon ( cracked ) which I thought might break up taking public nuisance with it but surprise surprise she is still there even if the crack is a bit wider , nuisance rode it out well thanks to andrews smart bridling system and a bloody large anchor and heavy chain all firmly stuck in the mud in front of the club.

The weather is looking much better for this weekend with another club championship race scheduled and juniors plus junior race training for Sunday and week two of our current Adult learn to sail program back as well so lets keep our fingers crossed for a good weekend of sailing for everyone.

CU on the water
John Murphy

Hi Everyone:  Unfortunately after setting up our new Junior Racing program mother nature had the final word last Sunday by bringing in winds up to 20 knots then 25 knots so it was definitely a non starter for Junior racing and also our normal 10.30 training class so we will be starting the racing well trying too on Sunday 24th of February lets hope mother nature agrees this time.

Over the past several weeks our caretaker Geoff has been very ill in ICU after a sudden collapse but with fingers crossed  from everyone at the club and family support he is on the road to a full recovery . Geoff and his wife keep a close eye on the club when we are not around and are always there to lend a hand when needed .

8.30 am Sunday Juniors :
Well if anyone saw my Facebook post on Monday you would have seen over 30 kids yes 30 kids signing up for this introduction class so it was all hands on deck pulling out boats and setting them up even the instructors started learning a new skill called looking for boat parts as a few boats hadn't been rigged for a while maybe they even learnt the value of putting everything back in its right place maybe! The conditions were on the change with a predicted southerly change mid morning but to start with we had winds around 6/9 knots s/e so a long reach was set up for all the sailors both new and beginners but conditions soon changed with the winds increasing to around 15 knots which was a definite challenge for our young sailors but with a lot of grit and determination everyone seemed to come to grips with the tough beginner conditions . I personally saw some good sailing amongst the more experienced juniors showing the new kids how its done with some good control in the worsening conditions . I cant pick individuals because both Casey and I with our crews were very busy towing boats back from under the bridge especially as the winds increased , I think my crew Addy has longer arms now from hanging onto bows while I towed boats backward . The best activity I saw was that when things became just too rough those smaller sailors who were having trouble came back to shore which is always a smart move .
  
10.30 am Training :
Well as you just read above the weather was getting a bit out of control so it was decided to cancel 10.30 and just do some theory so we started with reading sails for upwind sailing then we did sailing angles especially how to go down wind the best way . Theory usually has a tendency to become boring for young sailors but everyone actually chipped in with some good comments so to round the session off we took everyone out in the safety boats and did some on water sailing angles again upwind and broad reaching down wind rather than a dead run . We will see next weekend what everyone remembers . Just as a foot note these non sailing sessions are free as we don't charge if the don't get to sail so they can save their money for next weekend.
  
1.30 pm Open Racing:
With conditions worsening with wind gusts 20/25 plus knots everyone still decided to give it a go so just to be on the safe side I set an upwind downwind course in our channel only starting just down from the club . There were a few capsizes before we even put the first flag up so it was definitely looking like a tough race for everyone . The start was uneventful as no one wanted to be over early and have to come back but Casey cracked the line first with Tom , Steve and Michelle close behind on the first upwind . The waves were around half to 1 metre so it was a punishing upwind followed by some lightning downwinds but mother nature soon started to take over with Steve after umpteen capsizes pulling out then Matt  with even more capsizes following the finally Charlie who while gybing the bottom mark pinched a nerve in his arm so his race was over . Tom was going well until two capsizes left him in second and Michelle third and yes you guessed it Casey was just flying out the front and no she didn't miss any Gybes ( must have been the training on friday ?) OK she was running a 4.7 but she couldn't have sailed anything bigger even if she wanted to but her speed was awesome and yes I forgot the camera so everyone will just have to take our word for it . Testament to the toughness of the conditions was the general look of I am shattered from everyone back at the beach even the start boat crew were looking a bit ragged after a rough session on the water.

CU on the water
John Murphy

Hi Everyone , Well we have already hit February and the interest in sailing between children and adults has definitely increased with plenty of budding junior sailors signing up for school holiday camps and the same fro our multiple Sunday programs . We are again looking at getting Public Nuisance out again and to top it off our Adult introduction to sailing courses are showing great interest so its looking big for paradise point sailing club in 2019 .

8.30 am Sunday Juniors ;
With school back last week we thought things would be a bit slow for the early class but were we ever wrong , even with early rain showers it didnt deter anyone who can down and signed on for their sailing fix . As usual we had a few first timers so we rigged plenty of Teras and lasers so that we could fit everyone on . Once the rain showers moved on we were treated to a perfect morning with winds from the south east at around 4/7 knots so we set a course over towards ephriam and back which was just a comfortable reach which gave everyone the opportunity to practice their tacking . There was the odd capsize which kept the safety boat crews busy especially out in the middle and then there were the capsizes near the beach especially with some of our girl sailors who just wantd to practice capsizing resulting in one very chocolate topped sail but it didnt worry the girls who even had fun washing it all off with the hose oh and anyone standing near them .Each week I thank god we have helmets at P.P.S.C. as some of our new sailors really cant duck but the helmets save them every time whether on shore or on water and even some of our more experienced juniors still forget occassionally .

10.30 am Sunday Training ;
With this group about to split into both training and a racing section we had a good turn out with 10 sailors signed on to see how they would go with this more advanced session . With quite a few slightly nervous faces rigging boats including Eddy who was rigging the new club racing laser for the first time everyone finally were ready for the briefing . The course for the day was a close reach and a broad reach return so much more of a challenge than our normal 10.30 sessions which was originally going to include a practice beach start race but we actually didnt get that far .

Being a few peoples first time at these more difficult angles there were quite a few wayward sailors out there with the broadreaches causing the most trouble whith people not letting the sail out so consequentally lots of gybe capsizing over at the beach mark . As usual there was the one boat who forgot his bung right Alex and then Mason who didnt check the mainsheet which was tangled at the boom so you guessed it it wouldnt let of on the broad reach so Mason joined the capsize crew .

So how did Eddy go first time in the laser well I think the smile told it all and Addy and Abbey were going well until a bit of confusion at the beach mark with abbey accidentally gybe capsizing right on top of Addy resulting in a few bumps and bruises . I have to say that when asked after packup if they were still keen to give this new format a go again next week everyone still said yes !

Open Racing 1.30 pm ;
With this being the first Club Championship Race for 2019 we had a good rollup of sailors wanting to get out there and shake off the cobwebs . The winds were e/s/e at around 8/9 knots and the last of an outgoing tide so we started them done near the canal and set a couple of windward leewards in our channel then of up towards the top of Ephriam for a couple of laps before finishing back at the start line . Everyone was looking well behaved before the start but just before the gun Charlie got pushed over the line by Casey resulting in him having to do a restart . Tom and Steve had a great tussle swapping the lead several times and Michelle held a comfortable third throughout the race . Casey and Chris had a bit of a tangle at a mark rounding but she still came back to the fleet which was great considering she was the only 4.7 sailor in the fleet with everyone else either in radials or full riggs . So who one out of Tom and Steve well Tom made it first but Steve was only about 20 seconds behind with Michelle holding third place . Charlie who came back and started last caugt back up and finished 6th but I think on handicap Michelle might have won the day all in all a great first race for 2019.

Next Weekend ;
Next weekend there is a non point Adult Open Club race and also the first Open Junior points race starting at 1.30 pm so we will need a volunteer or two on the start boat as I will be off with the kids so if anyone doesnt mind missing one race a month just let me know so we can organise crew

CU on the water
John Murphy