Category: Latest from Double Bay Sailing Club

The thrill of the SailGP! By James Tudball

Last week Double Bay Sailing Club members were invited to participate in a number of activities as part of the SailGP Adopt A Club program.  Our club was partnered with Team Canada, which saw nearly 30 members visit Team Canada’s base in the lead up to the regatta.  On Wednesday we were lucky to see the (safe!) launch of Team Canada’s brand new boat and we were taken on an in depth tour to see the boats and wings up close and learn about the physics of the F50s.  Phil Robertson, driver of Team Canada, also facilitated a Q&A with us and Alistair Sutherland asked the burning question of whether Phil would be as aggressive as always on the start line!  Phil didn’t really answer the question, but judging by his laughter we assumed the answer to be ‘yes’.

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ILCA Masters Worlds by Ian Tudball

DBSC was represented by Martin White, Pat Levy and Ian Tudball in the ‘Great Grand Master’ (65-75yo) category.The trio had all copped health issues just before departure, but Pat was king hit  the worst, with a bout of Aussie food poisoning, just hours before take off. Martin nursed him for the marathon journey, as Pat trimmed his 82kg down to a more competitive racing weight. It took Pat 3 days to purge his system and crack a few ‘plumber jokes’.The Royal Varuna Yacht Club was a stunning venue, and all 120 charter boats were brand new.  Conditions were perfect for racing with consistent 12-15 knot breezes and rolling waves for downhill rides. Race 1 was a disaster for the DBSC trio as they were all black flagged in a strong tide, along with 9 other boats in the fleet of 32. Race 2 was a big improvement with Martin coming back

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Clean Up Australia Day 4 March

Calling all volunteers who enjoy a clean environment! I’ve spent the past few weeks driving around the pristine Tasmanian Countryside enjoying the ‘freshest air’ on the planet, and so I’m inspired to clean up the environment surrounding our club. On Saturday 4th March from 10am to 12pm, members (and guests) of Double Bay Sailing Club will be conducting a clean-up of the foreshore, park lands and local roadways near our club in Double Bay. Trevor Potts (member) will be at the club house at 10am with all the CUAD materials, sign-on sheet, and a short safety briefing. Please arrive by 10am.  We are also asking volunteers to download the EyeSea app and use it to upload photos of rubbish on the day. It’s simple to use. Take a photo and upload it to the app.Download for android: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.mariapps.eyesea.eye_seaDownload for iOS: https://apps.apple.com/es/app/eyesea/id1667239428We recommend you wear sun protective clothing, and bring protective gloves

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Racing this weekend – Vaucluse regatta and an early start

This Saturday 25th of February is the Vaucluse Regatta. DBSC members are invited to the event which is free.You need to register here in order to sail in the regattaThe Sailing Instructions can be found here.DBSC members will need to be ready to splash at 12:10 to sail to the course for a 13:20 start.Some further salient points to note:Lasers will have the first warning signal class flag at 1320, with a combined radial and 4.7 fleet starting firstThere will be up to 3 races, with all races countingThe course will be 2 laps of windward-leeward legs with an offset mark at the top and rounding to port.Code flag “I” us likely to be used at the start – boats that are over in the last minute must round the ENDS of the line and come back through itBoats must keep at least 50m clear of the start line when not in sequence.

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Race report 18 February 2023

From our PRO Mark Lewkovitz:A very pleasant day for sprint racing with champagne sailing conditions, clear blue skies, a 15 knot nor’easter and an ultra-low tide. Sail GP in the afternoon meant an early start just before 1pm and the course was setup deep in Double Bay to avoid the exclusion zone which brought Point Piper into play.6 punchy races were completed by 2:15pm to allow the Sail GP viewers to get away by 3pm.Early races favoured a windward end start and a left turn at the gate, but a tweak to the course for the later races then favoured the pin end and drove boats to the left side of the beat.Some performances of note include Luke Parker with multiple wins in the Standard, Diana Chen leading the way with two 4.7s and multiple wins from Sylvie Stannage as well as Scott Hunter grabbing a win.Lots of smiles out

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Important safety information when using the davits

Following the completion of repairs to the Western Davit (where the Paul Adam RIB is hoisted), there are new blocks and winch Lines that have a different requirement. Members operating the Davits are required to leave the blocks and winch line under tension at all times while the RIB is connected to the Davit. This means that after the RIB has been hoisted to the upper position, the Safety Chain (which we require to be attached) does not ever need to be in tension – only attached (as a safety/backup). Also notice in the Photo the distance between the two blocks (they should not be so close as to be touching, only high enough to attach the safety chain).

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SailGP events and activities

As part of our involvement with SailGP and the Adopt a Club program, we have been presented with some exciting opportunities for DBSC members to enjoy. The three activities below are exclusively for DBSC members and are a ‘first in, first served’ basis. You MUST register at the link below to participate in any of these events. ACTIVITY #1: Base Camp Tour Team Canada have kindly invited us to attend their F50 base Technical Tour on Wednesday 15th February at 5:30pm. 30 DBSC members can participate in the tour.Location: SailGP Tech Site’s NEW address: Barangaroo Ave & Barton St, Barangaroo NSW 2000, Australia Location Link: https://goo.gl/maps/za3QzU3mq8tWo7yv8  ALSO NOTE: The tour is obviously taking place at the same time as our Twilight Sailing program.  We unfortunately did not have a choice of day/time for the tour.  Our Twilight Sailing will still take place on Wednesday February 15th for those who intend to sail.  ACTIVITY #2: On-Water Spectatorship As part of the Adopt a

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