E-News 4 January
Hope all our members had a fabulous Christmas and New Year Break.
Cruising Division - Lord Howe Island Rendezvous - 5 to 19 January
Three yachts are cruising in company to the gorgeous Lord Howe Island this week - Evan Hodge and Kelly Nunn-Clark on Nashira, David Day on Arawai and Frank Taylor on Bundeena. We look forward to hearing their adventures on their return.
MHYC Competitor's Results
Congratulations to all our sailors representing the club.
Lachie Brewer & Max Paul (MHYC members) - Australian 29er Champions! Archie Cropley and Simon Murnaghan (MHYC members) also on the podium in 3rd place. Great work from the whole 29er fleet with seven pairs in the top 28 in a fleet of 43!
Congratulations also to the other MHYC Youth Sailors who have been participating in the Cadet Class Australian Championships in Victoria and the International 420 Australian & World Championships in Fremantle!
Andrew and Pauline Dally's yacht Khaleesi was 38th on Line Honours and and 9th on IRC Division 2 in the Sydney - Hobart.
Tony Levett's yacht TSA Management Eleni was 56th on Line Honours and 3rd on IRC Division 3 in the Sydney - Hobart.
Flying Fish Arctos was 73rd on Line Honours and 1st on PHS Divsion 1 in the Sydney - Hobart.
MHYC member Mark Mclean reports on his first Sydney - Hobart experience. We had an amazing race on Pekljus, a Radford 50 and I finally managed to acheive something that has been on my bucket list for 30 years. We came 60th overall and 6th in our division taking 3 days and four hours.Interestingly we were coming 2nd until the last night where we hit some calm weather and stopped. We slipped back to 13th and managed to reclaim some placed during the last day. It was a very tight race with 47 yachts finishing within 5 hours of each other. We finished 4 hours after the 34th place. The race was everything I imagined. Although we had weather in our favour, it was a challenging endurance. Windy, 5 metre steep confused seas and I have never sailed in anything like it. We were going to enter our boat Pindimara but in retrospect, I doubt she would have made it. We blew two spinnakers , hit two sunfish hard damaging our steering. But still usable helming was hard . I got about 6 hours sleep over the 3 days. We had about 6 sail changes each day and all hands had to be on deck regardless of Weather you were off shift or not. Eating was an inconvenience. My job was to helm and trim sails. Helming in 5 metre seas with full spinnaker travelling at 15 knots in the middle of the night is both exhilarating and scary.knowing that if you gybed accidentally then you could break something and you were out of the race was always on my mind. We had a great crew and a great boat and she got us to Hobart. The teamwork was brilliant and I was very lucky to crew with a great mate Rowan . It is a race I will never ever forget. When we finished we paraded the yacht past a long line of waterfront restaurants and got a huge applause from everyone there. Mandy and Jan were on the finishing line to welcome us across and then rushed around to shout and wave to us as we entered Constitution Dock. It was so lovely that Mandy and Jan were there and share our experience. When we docked the atmosphere was electric and hugs were abound I have never been more exhausted and drained in my life but 3 days later I still have a big smile on my face as I recount the race. Will I do another!
Members Sandy Farquharson and Keith Bromwich also raced to Hobart on Enigma.
Member Billy Sykes was a part of the crew of Ichi Bahn - Overall Winner of the Sydney - Hobart. His report is here.
Steven Proud's yacht Swish was 4th on Line Honours and 6th on IRC in the Newport - Coffs Harbour Race.
MHYC member Ray Semmens Davidson 52 Prime Example has won the prestigious Petersville regatta www.petersvilleregatta.com.au held recently at the Blairgowrie Yacht Squadron in Melbourne. She was partially crewed by several MHYC members including Leigh Dorrington (skipper) Brian Whitbourne. Brigitte Holbach. Rob Armstrong. Marco Bergamaschi and Arthur Chapman. Prime Example will now compete in the Festival of Sails regatta http://festivalofsails.com.au/ at Geelong Melbourne over the Australia day weekend and will then be offered for sale prior to competing in the Port Lincoln regatta www.lincolnweek.com.au in Adelaide. They are currently looking for crew for this regatta so please contact Leigh Dorrington on 0411733219.
Bob Cox's yacht Nine Dragons achieved 2nd position on Line Honours in the Pittwater - Paradise race.
Youth Sailing Camps
Spaces still available on our popular Holiday Camps during January 2018 - book online now so you don't miss out! The camps run from Monday-Thursday until the end of January and are a great fun way for kids wanting to experience and learn the fun of Sailing!
Middle Harbour Yacht Club / Gosford Sailing Club Challenge
Gosford Sailing Club in conjunction with Middle Harbour Yacht Club as Organising Authority invite entries from owners of suitable yachts to race from Sydney to Broken Bay and on the Brisbane Water.
The MHYC GSC Challenge Regatta will consist of 9 races over 3 days racing from Friday 26th to Sunday 28th January 2018.
Please see Notice of Race.
Sailing instructions will be available on the GSC & MHYC websites no later than Wednesday 24th January 2018.
Australia Day - Friday 26 January
Come and relax on the private beach at your club - this is a family fun day with a Jungle Float located in the marina (in front of the beach) in the morning from 9.30am to 11am for member's children/grand-children to play on followed by some fun Aussie tunes with Sydney Groove Trio from 3pm to 6pm in the afternoon. The Sandbar Cafe and Harbourview Bar & Bistro will be open for all your tasty food and cold drink favourites.
All the News.....
Kayaks for MHYC members - A great way to get out on the water and stay fit over summer or spend some time with your kids now that school holidays are here. Midweek or weekend, these are available for $15/hour for a single - $20/hour for a double. Call the club to book in advance on 9969 1244. Rental fees apply. Form here.
Thursday Twilight Series
Congratulations to our Division Winners listed here.
** Don't forget to book a table for your crew in the Harbourview Bar & Bistro after racing - please call 9969 1244 and we can take your reservation.**
The Twilight Burger Bar will be providing quick and tasty food options downstairs from the Cafe.
Yacht Sales Australia Wednesday Series 2 - results 3 January
Many thanks to our sponsors for the Wednesday Series, Ivan & Jeff Rowe of Yacht Sales Australia.
Congratulations to our Division winners listed here.
If you are looking to buy or sell a boat, visit their website at www.yachtsalesaustralia.com.au. Special commission discount available to MHYC Members.
Sandbar Cafe - Open 7 days a week
The Sandbar Cafe is open 7 days a week from 8am. Come down to the Club & enjoy our coffee and freshly made gourmet rolls, fresh muffins, slices or an icecream.
Don't forget we have takeaway beverages for sale - cases of beer, bottles of wine, and bags of ice.
Harbourview Bar & Bistro
The Harbourview Bar & Bistro is open on Saturdays and Sundays for a delicious breakfast from 9am. Sit on the balcony and enjoy the view - Click Here for the Breakfast Menu.
The Harbourview Bar & Bistro's Lunch & Dinner menu is available online - Click Here for the Current Menu.
The Harbourview Bar & Bistro is open Wednesday to Sunday for Lunch and Thursday to Sunday for Dinner (unless advertised otherwise), with daily specials. For all bookings, please call the MHYC office on 9969 1244.
