E-News 15 September 2017
Spring has definitely sprung in Sydney and a very busy last weekend was enjoyed on the water at MHYC by our members!
Our Race Management team ran a successful regatta for the MC38 class over Saturday and Sunday with the full results below.
On Sunday the club hosted the Opti Travellers Trophy for 60 young sailors and their families.
HOT NEWS....
Kayaks for MHYC members - Our new kayaks are a great way to get out on the water for an hour or two. Call the club to book in advance on 9969 1244. Rental fees apply. Form here.
Parking reminder - MHYC members are no longer permitted to park anywhere beyond our club into the area leased by Middle Harbour Amateur Sailing Club. This area is currently being used as a construction site by Sydney Water as they renovate the old pumping station. Please respect this request, or you may risk your vehicle being towed away.
Ronstan Offer for Members - Ronstan is pleased to offer Club 20% off RRP on Ronstan Headsail Sheeting Systems during September. This can be new cars to replace the ones you have now, a completely new track system, or maybe even a self-tacking setup! Information sheet here.
Kid's Disco - Friday 20 October - bring your kids along to dance with Bop till You Drop while you enjoy dinner and a few drinks with friends. $15 per child includes a drink and a snack. Great idea for a birthday party! Flyer here.
The 40th Sydney Short Ocean Racing Championships (SSORC) countdown......10 weeks to go.....
"Ginger" overcomes MC38 Winter Series challengers
Cool spring easterlies and a sparkling Sydney Harbour were the back-drop to the final day of the MC38 Winter Series act four, which went to the dominant Ginger team led by the class Godfather, Leslie Green.
“We had a very successful regatta; seven races in two days and we won five and came second in two, which is not bad,” Green said. “This crew are fantastic; we recover quickly if we make a mistake, and we don’t make many, and everyone knows their job. And they are all really nice people.
“Having Col Beashel on board is a great honour…. he’s sailed at six Olympics! When he gives me the tip to go up or down he waves his hand like the King. And Julian Plante and Chappo [David Chapman] work so well together as strategist and tactician.”
As the winner of three of the four stages of the Winter Series, Ginger also takes the pointscore crown.
There were plenty of shining moments for the Matt Allen-helmed Maserati. The crew was aggressive in the pre-start and once on the field tactician Joe Turner made some nifty calls which helped put Maserati into second overall by six points, and six points ahead of Chris Way’s Easy Tiger in third.
Easy Tiger is the newest MC38 crew and Way says, “I think we are pretty comfortable where we are, we never thought we’d step in and win. Speed-wise we are getting there, we are happy with our starts and much happier with the main we used today plus we were at full weight having raced Saturday a man down.” On the swag of equipment Way inherited he laughed: “I’ve got 28 sails from the previous owner, and no notes to go with them.”
Like a few MC38 sailors, Way will now head overseas to compete in other class world championship - his is the Platu 25 title while others are making their way to the Etchells Worlds in San Francisco - but will be back for the MC38’s first event of the Summer Series pointscore next month. “We’ll all come back ready to rampage for the summer!” Way promised.
On Saturday September 9 Steve Barlow’s Lightspeed ended up at the boat doctor requiring structural repairs and on Sunday afternoon Chris Hancock’s Vino crew found cracking in the deck. Tactician Billy Merrington explained: “Where the mast goes through the hole in the deck there is some cracking at the front. We aren’t sure when it happened; we noticed it on the last downwind. We hit some pretty big ferry waves downhill and the deck might have compressed a bit. The carbonologists have got some work to do.”
On their day Merrington added: “It was a pretty tough day on Vino; we had a few good first beats and just couldn’t finish it off. A few times we thought we were in a good spot and had to keep going to keep out of the way of the Manly ferry, which put us in the wrong spot. The other guys are sailing really well. Hopefully some of the regulars will return for the summer series, to strengthen the fleet again.”
Middle Harbour Yacht Club ran an excellent series thanks to David Staley in the sailing office and race officer Phil Yeomans and his on-water team.
By Lisa Ratcliff/ MC38 Association Media
TT2 MHYC 10 September
A fantastic Sydney spring day welcomed around 60 Opti sailors to Middle Harbour Yacht Club on Sunday for the 2nd round of the NSWIODA Travellers Trophy (which followed the 1st TT back in June at GRSC).
10 knots of consistent breeze greeted the sailors on water and RO Jeremy Atkinson was able to complete a total of 5 great races off Balmoral Beach.
Sailors from RPAYC, GRSC, WSC, HHSC, NSC, SLMASC, MHYC, DAC, GSC, Ascham and Scots were represented across all fleets and it was great to see the excitement on many of their faces ahead of the new sailing season about to commence.
A fleet of 23 Intermediates and 30 Open fleet sailors competed over the 5 races. During presentations at the end of the day, Jeremy Atkinson made special mention of the good behaviours and sportsmanship being demonstrated by many sailors which was really pleasing to see.
We congratulate all sailors and recognise the below trophy winners for TT2:
Optimist Intermediate Fleet
1st place – Ben Costandi (GRSC)
2nd place – Cameron Scade (GRSC)
3rd place – Thomas Whitehead (Scots)
1st Female – Hannah Kernohan (GRSC)
Optimist Open Fleet
1st place – Finley Scade (WSC)
2nd place – Fletcher Walters (RPAYC)
3rd place – Daniel Links (RPAYC)
1st Female – Bridget Conrad (SLMASC)
We want to also acknowledge our small and great Green fleet sailors at this regatta who were under the supervision of Connor Campbell. The Green Fleet got 4 races in with big smiles on faces all day. Well done Green Fleet.
MHYC wishes to thank all volunteers who helped out on the day and in making the event a very enjoyable one indeed.
Centreboard Racing starts Sunday 17 September
The MHYC Centreboard Racing Season gets underway on Sunday 17 September with three races scheduled for the One Design Series starting at 1pm. Briefing will be at 11.30.
Enter Now - To assist the Sailing Department allocate entries in the various divisions for the different series in the new season, it is important that you complete your online entry at the earliest opportunity. We cannot anticipate which series or races you wish to enter, so please lodge your entry online at least 48 hours prior to the race in order to confirm your entry. Online entry for all centreboard series is available at http://www.mhyc.com.au/sailing/centreboard-results
Safety Audits & Insurance - All yachts racing in MHYC events this season are required to have completed a declaration of compliance with the Australian Sailing Special Regulations Part 2 and current public liability insurance in order to be included on start lists and eligible for results.
Sailing Handbook - The 2017-2018 Centreboard Handbook is now available at http://www.mhyc.com.au/sailing/centreboard-results. Printed copies are available at the office.
Volunteers Needed
MHYC has a busy program of keelboat and centreboard events scheduled through the season and we are seeking volunteers to help support these activities. Volunteering can be a fun and rewarding way to enjoy being on or by the water with a great group of people. The club aims to match people to the roles which fit their interests and abilities, and is supporting some accredited and non-accredited training for interested volunteers. Aspects of volunteering can include on-water race management and safety support, protest committees, safety auditors, beach marshals etc.
Please contact Cathy or David in the Sailing Office sailing@mhyc.com.au / 8969 3103 if you have any questions.
MHYC Keelboat Update
Enter Now
To assist the Sailing Department allocate entries in the various divisions for the different series in the new season, it is important that you complete your online entry at the earliest opportunity. We cannot anticipate which series or races you wish to enter, so please lodge your entry online at least 48 hours prior to the race in order to confirm your handicap and division. The Top Yacht entry system also enables you to update the yacht and skipper details ahead of your series entry. Online entry for all keelboat series is available at http://www.mhyc.com.au/sailing/online-entries
Safety Audits & Insurance
All yachts racing in MHYC events this season are required to have successfully completed a safety audit for the category of races they are entering and the new Australian Sailing Special Regulations have come in to force as of July 1. The MHYC Sailing Office will not accept race entries from boats that have not completed their 2017-2018 safety audit and provided evidence of current public liability insurance – these boats will not be included on start lists or eligible for results.
Notices to Competitors
A Notice to Competitors has been posted to the noticeboard and online keelboat noticeboard noting a change in the colours of laid marks for the Inshore Series. Notices to Competitors, Sailing Instructions and Notices of Race can be viewed at http://www.mhyc.com.au/sailing/keelboat-division/keelboat-noticeboard
Results Links
Entrants and Results links are progressively being updated on the website and the new season’s results and start lists will appear at http://www.mhyc.com.au/files/results/2017/club/index.htm
Sailing Handbook
The 2017-2018 Sailing Handbook is now available at the office. One copy is provided free to full members. The cost for sailing and social members (and additional copies for full members) is $10. A PDF version can be downloaded from http://www.mhyc.com.au/sailing/keelboat-division/keelboat-noticeboard/sailing-handbook
Racing Rules of Sailing
Having a copy of the current RRS is an MHYC Requirement. This can be the electronic version published by World Sailing or, if you prefer a printed version, copies of the Racing Rules and Australian Sailing Special Regulations for keelboats are available from the office at a cost of $35.
Please contact Cathy or David in the Sailing Office on 8969 3103 / sailing@mhyc.com.au if you have any questions.
Catch up on the latest news..........
Membership Renewals
Thanks to all our members who have already renewed for this season. Your cards are now ready for collection from Club office. If you can't get to the Club and would like it posted out to you, please email Simone at membership@mhyc.com.au. If you still need to renew please call the office on 02 9969 1244 or visit Reception next time you are visiting your club. Any funds held on your current membership card will automatically roll onto your new card.
Junior & Youth Sailing Programs
Online registration is now open for the variety of Junior & Youth Sailing Programs being conducted during Spring and for the September/October school holidays :
• Little Tackers
• Tackers 1, 2 & 3
• Discover Sailing Courses
• Opti and Youth Race Squads
For further information - click here
Get Checked for Twilight
A reminder that all yachts racing in MHYC events are required to have successfully completed a safety audit for the category of races they are entering and the new Australian Sailing Special Regulations have come in to force as of July 1.
MHYC has a capable team of accredited auditors who are now making themselves available to conduct further audits.
To find out how to book an audit for your yacht – click here
Twilight Sailing commences on Thursday 5 October.
Are you a Skipper looking for Crew or a member interested in Crewing?
There are a few different ways for you to find new crew.
1) Use the Crew Board located in the Breezeway or contact the Sailing office and let them know what you are looking for
2) Use the MySail App - Click here
3) Come along to the MHYC Crew Meet & Greet on Wednesday September 27 at 7pm - Click here
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 or an icecream. New on the menu are American Style Hot Dogs!
Don't forget we have takeaway beverages for sale - cases of beer, bottles of wine, and 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 Saturday for Dinner, with daily specials. For all bookings, please call the MHYC office on 9969 1244.
