NSC 2011Feb Bulletin.pdf - Northbridge Sailing Club

NORTHBRIDGE 

sailing club 

February 2011 Bulletin

Bulletin Contents 

• Commodore’s Report 

• Vice Commodore’s Report 

• Laser Report 

• Tasar Report 

• Flying 11 Report 

• 2011 Live-in Report 

• MG14 National Championship Report 

• NSC Teams Racing Report 

• NS14 Canberra National Report 

• as we go to press 

• SEAcreatures 

NORTHBRIDGE SAILING CLUB LTD 

Incorporating Seaforth Moth Sailing Club 

ABN 78 000 469 947 

CLIVE PARK, NORTHBRIDGE 

PO BOX 39 NORTHBRIDGE N.S.W 1560 

PHONE 9967 2632 

http://www.nsc.asn.au

Commodore’s Report 

The season seems to have has moved along at a rapid pace, or is it just 

my advancing years? Two Junior Learn to Sail programs, one Adult 

program, a Christmas Dinner, a busy couple of weeks of class nationals 

and then our Live – In have made the club a hive of activity. I suspect 

many of us were feeling the need for a holiday after all that. 

The Club’s Junior training program has been 

a huge success. Some 60+ children passed 

through the two five week courses. The retention 

rate from the program is more than 50% with 33 

purchasing boats. Some opted for Optis, while 

others snapped up all the NJs that were on the 

market. I am really pleased to see our active NJ 

numbers on the rise, and we now have more NJs 

sailing than has been the case for some seasons. 

Gus, Stephanie and the Instructors and Assistant 

Instructors deserve recognition for devoting so 

much time and energy to introducing new junior 

members to the joys of sailing … and the Live-In 

was still to come. 

The Junior Captains, David Ross and Gareth 

Dando have been running terrific morning races, 

well done. The flow on from the Learn to Sail 

programs is going to make their lives even 

busier. Luckily we have a very enthusiastic group 

of Junior parents to help them. The changing 

demographic of our catchment shows all local 

primary schools are experiencing an enormous 

growth in numbers which means we will have 

more and more families wanting to join NSC. It is 

obvious to all of us that our current facilities are 

at maximum capacity on numerous occasions, 

particularly deck space. The Committee is in the 

process of drawing up options for expansion. 

Once these are completed, they will be available 

for members to comment on and choose the one 

we all consider best for the Club. 

Adult training is something close to my heart. 

I learnt to sail long after I had left university (it 

probably shows). I am therefore very keen that 

our Club continues to offer a program for adults. 

Surprisingly, we are possibly the only club in 

Sydney to do so. The program is run for five 

Sundays concurrent with the Junior program as 

the majority of participants are parents of children 

in the Junior program. This season, 12 people 

took up the challenge and the feedback I have 

received has been very positive, with the only 

criticism being that it is not long enough. The 

program’s existence and great success has been 

entirely due to the willingness of our Tasar Class 

to provide boats and coaching. It is a big ask to 

call upon members to volunteer so much and I 

am deeply grateful for their enthusiasm, terrific 

goodwill and patience. 

One participant summed it all up to me in an 

email “My skipper sat patiently while I kept 

making the same mistakes over and over again. 

Always quiet words of encouragement and then 

even more patience as I mastered my mistakes 

and promptly set about making new ones.” 

The Club Christmas Dinner was wonderful, Letitia 

and her team turned on a fantastic setting and 

sumptuous dinner. Thank you. I know this time 

of year is always difficult to fit in everything that is 

going on, but to those who missed it all I can say 

is make sure you give it first priority this year. You 

don’t know what you missed. 

Northbridge Sailing Club - www.nsc.asn.au 

February 2011 p5

The Christmas/New Year season is also the time 

for Nationals. We have many members sailing in 

Nationals and Junior classes have wisely learnt 

to schedule their regattas over a much longer 

period to accommodate the growing situation 

of families having sailors in different classes. 

This has meant that NSC has had to move our 

famous Live – In to the last week of the school 

holidays. While this has taken us out of our 

traditional time-slot, the Club’s only other option 

is the pre Christmas period which brings with it 

another set of dilemmas we don’t even want to 

contemplate. 

Once again the Live – In was a huge triumph. 

To the outsider it looks like joyous chaos. Those 

taking part find it one week long party. In fact 

it is an enormous undertaking that demands 

a lot of time from the organisers. I particularly 

want to thank Sue and Colin McCall who have, 

for as long as I have known, been responsible 

for the initial stages of the process as well as 

preparing the rosters; Jacinta and Peter Warner 

who took on the catering and did a superb job; 

Gus Kernot, Stephanie Sheridan and her team of 

Instructors and Assistant Instructors, who made 

the sailing such a fun way to learn. I also thank 

all the parents who were “volunteered” to fill the 

support roles. Our Club excels at these sorts of 

events and it happens because of the willingness 

of members to pitch in. 

A few weekends ago we had our inaugural NSC 

Teams Racing Day. It was a stunning success; so 

much so, some asked if we could hold another 

one before the end of the season. The Club has 

to thank Hugh Tait for bringing this day into the 

Club Calendar. Hugh conceived it, planned it and 

then not only sailed in it but also ran it. It will now 

be part of the NSC Sailing Season. I have asked 

the Committee to approve the awarding of a 

new trophy to recognise this event and they have 

unreservedly endorsed my request. 

Our Championship dinners continue to be a 

great evening. The Junior Classes hosted the 

last one and we had 150+ attend. Once again 

I encourage everyone to come along, it is an 

opportune time to meet other members and revel 

in the spirit of NSC. 

Finally, my thanks goes to the Committee who 

has been working very hard. I have already 


February 2011 p6

mentioned some of them, who have been very 

uch in the public arena, however, there are others 

who have been working just as hard in other 

roles. Tony Stephens our Vice Commodore, has 

deftly managed the machinations of the Club’s 

primary function – sailing. Graeme Lee, our Rear 

Commodore, has to look after the Club itself and 

thus spends more time at the Club than all the 

rest of put together. Cameron McDonald, our 

Treasurer, has kept a steady hand on the finance 

tiller and ensured our Club remains buoyant. 

John Smidmore our Company Secretary, has 

the difficult task of negotiating our insurances 

and all matters legal, which in this day and 

age are far more complex and pervasive. Sue 

McCall, our Club Secretary, whom I have already 

mentioned, is also the first person of contact for 

people outside the Club. Michael Chittenden, our 

Publicity Officer, not only keeps us up to date via 

the web and emails, but also gives up a lot of 

his time to providing us with excellent images of 

members’ activities, which include some rather 

interesting and unique techniques in the art of 

sailing. Matthew McLennan, our Racking Officer, 

has done an excellent job of updating the Club’s 

racking and has put in place a clear and easy 

process for members to apply for a rack and to 

keep track of where they are on the waiting list. 

I delight in the buzzing energy that emanates 

from the Club each Sunday and seeing it grow 

from strength to strength. This is because we 

have keen people happy to pitch in and help in all 

sorts of ways. 

Fair winds and most of all …..Have Fun 

Tony Potter 

Commodore 


February 2011 p7

Vice Commodore’s Report 

It has been a busy first half of the racing season 

with many Northbridge members representing 

the Vice Commodore’s Report 

This is my first report as Vice Commodore and 

I am only just now beginning to appreciate 

the opportunities that being a member at 

Northbridge Sailing Club brings. As Vice 

Commodore, I have the privilege of chairing 

the Sailing Committee- comprising the Class 

Captains and the Starter. This body represents 

you the members on all matters associated with 

on-water activities. 

Our first meeting was held on 6 December 2010 

and focused on the challenges of growth in the 

Club’s actitvities. This Sailing Committee meeting 

made the following recommendations: 

1. Opti’s in the Afternoon 

Following the trial, we will adopt afternoon 

racing of the Opti Class, with the start 30 

minutes before the NS14s (so 14:00h during 

Summer, and 13:30h in Autumn and Spring). 

This has meant that most Optis are clearing 

the rigging deck as the late “speed-rigging” 

Laser sailors arrive. 

2. Junior Training and Safety 

• All instructors at NSC should be YA qualified 

and must complete First Aid Certificates 

• At least one extra boat is required for training 

and rescue for the Junior sailing fleet 

o a RIB has been purchased 

• In addition Club radio communications are to 

be reviewed in light of these activities 

• The Club will input on the best propeller 

guards from other sailing clubs that do not 

also cause significant reduction in outboard 

performance 

• The Club will re-introduce a Safety Officer 

to provide periodic review of the Club’s 

operations and environment and a focal point 

for contact to bring issues to the management 

committee’s attention 

3. Officer Of the Day 

This is already a big job, and with expanded onwater 

activities, it is getting bigger. 

• OOD checklist to be amended to remind that 

the OOD must ensure a rescue boat is on 

station where boats cannot be seen from the 

Clubhouse (e.g. in Sugarloaf Bay and Long 

Bay in the Blue Course) 

• An additional person be rostered (ideally from 

the Opti parents) to provide coverage to the 


February 2011 p8

Opti race fleet and free up the OOD/AOOD or 

their delegate to provide coverage to areas of 

the course not visible from the Clubhouse 

• OOD checklist to be amended to identify 

someone who will be at the Clubhouse while 

racing is underway that can be contacted to 

contact emergency services if necessary. 

4. Starting and Finishing 

• If a boat is over the line at the start and is 

recalled by the Starter, but does not return to 

the start line, the boat shall be judged OCS 

(On Course prior o Start). 

o This is the Racing Rules and there are no 

exceptions – so pay attention! 

• Northbridge Sailing Club’s standing Sailing 

Instructions will be amended so there will no 

longer be discretion by the Starter to disqualify 

a boat that crosses an active Start Line 

o All sailors should respect the rights of 

other sailors to a fair start. 

o Commonsense and good seamanship 

means you should keep well clear of 

boats starting. If there is an altercation, 

you may be subject to Protest and 

disqualification 

• All sailors need to be reminded that if they 

abandon the race and finish early, they must 

inform the Starter 

Following the events surrounding the decision 

to abandon Heat 4 of the Club Championship 

on Sunday 6 February 2011, I plan to have at 

least one further formal meeting of the Sailing 

Committee this season. 

Please feel free to contact me directly down the 

Club, at vicecomm@nsc.asn.au or on my mobile 

040 202 6590 

Good sailing 

Tony Stephens 


February 2011 p9

LASER Report Feb 2011. 

I am encouraged to write this report not only 

because of the number of things and events that 

have been relevant to our ever strengthening 

class at NSC, but also if I don’t, the ever reliable 

Tony Stephens will step in. The only problem 

with Tony writing the report is that he tends to 

concentrate on idiosyncrasies of yours truly. 

As I proceed to write on Sat 5th February I am 

seriously strapped from right shoulder to forearm, 

right knee, and both buttocks. I am walking uphill 

and backwards downhill without discomfort, 

but Laser sailing is out for me for a few weeks. 

Injuries always come at a bad time but I have had 

to withdraw from the Laser Masters Nationals at 

Port Stephens, a four day event from Friday 11th 

Feb, and also from last weeks 2 day coaching 

week end at Middle Harbour Amateur Sailing 

Club (MHASC). 

Tim Alexander, Ian Clare, Simon Bellamy and 

Stephen McCulloch benefited from the training 

sessions at MHASC. I saw Tim at the club, on 

the Sunday evening and he was hopeful there 

would not be too many more demands on his 

body when he went home that evening. 

Also travelling to Port Stephens for the Nationals 

will be Laser sailors Ian McGregor, Ian Clare, Tim 

Alexander and John Smidmore. I shall be going 

along as an observer and have been co opted 

by the organisers to assist with course laying 

etc. Of interest is that Ian McGregor and I will be 

sailing Ian’s yacht “Giselle” from Middle Harbour 

to Port Stephens and the yacht will be our 

accommodation base whilst we are there. We 

will be anchoring in Fame Cove which is a short 

Zodiac ride from the starting line. 

And what else has been happening. We are 

getting consistent turnouts in excess of ten lasers 

racing each week. This is providing a good level 

of competition for most of us and we all have 

someone in our sights to consistently beat. Sadly 

that joy appears to be reserved for only a few. 

However I shall not forget who I beat both across 

the line and on elapsed time in my last two races. 

A special welcome to Nikki O’Shea who has 

come back to afternoon laser sailing at NSC, 

with her son sailing in the morning. Nikki has 

demonstrated that she has not forgotten the 

skills she learnt as a junior member here and 

from her subsequent years at the Squadron. 

Nikki is providing encouragement to our other 

Lady Laser sailors, and is proving a match for 

Sandy. A little bit of gossip here in that Nikki 

and I both moved to Northbridge in 1980 and 

were next door neighbours for many years. One 

essential difference here is that Nikki was about 3 

years old and Lorraine and I had been married for 

6 years at the time we became neighbours. I am 


February 2011 p10

looking forward to competing against you Nikki 

when I recover from injuries incurred the last time 

I raced against you. 

So tomorrow will be Heat 4 of the club 

Championship and there will be some keen 

sailors trying to break Tim A’s unbroken record 

of winning the first three heats. By the time you 

receive this bulletin the result of this heat 4 will be 

known. 

Peter Doyle 


February 2011 p11


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MOTHS 


February 2011 p15

TASAR-Report 

Three boats attended the Nationals held at 

Woollahra in January. Tim Westwood and 

James McClelland on Black Jack, Malcolm 

Handel and Jenny Sheridan on Something Cool 

and Anne Muller and Gene Phillips on Raining 

Men. 

It certainly rained men and 

there were only 2 female 

helms. I came second. Tim 

and James came second in 

the youth. Neither of these 

fine performances attracting 

any attention. Malcolm and 

Jenny fought through the 

turbulence of a seaplane 

taking off directly past the 

finish line in the last race. Malcolm’s aside to 

me after the race was a remark about how the 

wind had shifted right around on the line....being 

oblivious to the floats of the seaplane passing 

at eye level 50 or so metres in front of him. In 

Malcolm’s defence, there was a pack of boats all 

finishing together at the time and so it must have 

been an interesting moment. The concrete ramp 

at Woollahra does not improve ones feelings 

of well being at the end of a hard race. And 

yes we had good winds of over 20 knots to 30 

knots for the first three days and a start line of 

“seaplane passing 

at eye level 50 or 

so metres in front 

of him” 

73 boats with the normal criminals winning - the 

Douglas’s. 

Back at the club we have had an interesting 

Travelling Trophy with only 4 guests. It was hard 

to say just who had not broken a rule relating 

to the start, with one guest 

calling for water in the middle 

of no where...apparently 

related to an extension of the 

line of moorings. They were 

then rather surprised to see 

the Northbridge fleet sail into 

the moorings to motor of the 

lift off the shore. Another thing 

to add to the pre race talk. 

Two new crews of David and Rowan Airey and 

Scott and Harry Lawson are keeping us on our 

toes. David Savage has made good his close 

connections with the laser fleet and now has 

Guy Winship crewing for him! 

Another new Tasar has hit the water...Me and 

My Monkey - an addition to the Stephens 

massive fleet of boats.Tony and Ella are quickly 

coming to grips with the new boat. I can only 

say that the boys have been eyeing Raining Men 

enviously and hopefully another new Taser will 


February 2011 p16

hit the water in the not to distant future. And 

yes that just might be Ric Day finally taking the 

plunge. Richard Cranium will be up for sale soon 

(hopefully) at 72kg. Good hull for a light crew. 

A most enjoyable Tasar get together was held 

on Friday 4th at MHYC. We had the club to 

ourselves with a long table for 30 set out on the 

verandah. A magical evening. It was good to 

see Frank and Nell plus some of the past tasar 

fleet in attendance. 

Finally, congratulations to Hugh Tait for organising 

a spectacular Teams Racing day. Also, thank 

you to everyone who volunteered to help. This 

event was just plain good fun, great to watch and 

discuss 

tactics and a quick race...if you had the 

centreboard down. Congratulations to the 

winning NS14 team and 2nd the Opti’s helmed 

by the sons and crewed by the dads. 

Anne. 


February 2011 p17


February Febuary 2011 p18

Flying 11s Report 

The Flying 11s have made a flying start as a 

new youth class at Northbridge bridging the gap 

between the Opti’s and NJs and the senior fleet. 

From the first Flying 11 “Top Gear” arriving for 

live-in last season there are now 6 active boats in 

the fleet with the expectation of more on the way. 

Ideally suited to 13 to 17 year olds, the F11s 

are introducing our teenagers to the thrill of 

three sail sailing and the challenge of managing 

a spinnaker down Middle Harbour in a stiff 

nor’easter. 

The introduction of the class to the club has 

been strongly supported by the F11 association 

with funding for coaching, and the provision of 

coaches, to get our kids started. 

Three boats participated in the NSW State 

Championship which was held in two rounds, 

first at MHYC then at Avalon, being River Rat 

(Amelia Stabback and Edward Halstead), Top 

Gear (Kiah Hodgkinson and Sarah Warner) and 

Berserk (Maxine and Michelle Malaney). Some 

good results were achieved in the 90+ strong 

fleet. 

Top Gear and River Rat participated in the 

Nationals at Belmont 16s which, with over 100+ 

boats on the starting line each day and 200+ 

teenagers on the deck between races, was teen 

sailing nirvana. 

Kiah Hodgkinson and Sarah Warner in Top Gear 

came away with a 3rd place on handicap for the 

series. 

All in all a great start for a class for a class thats 

only been with the club for just over a year!States 


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2011 LIVE-IN Report 

Live In this year was a pleasure to run. The instructors 

and kids all worked together really well, 

creating an awesome atmosphere and everyone 

seemed to be having a good time. By live-in almost 

everyone who we had taught had managed 

to get their hands on a boat, and so they were 

able to get so much more out of this camp. 

The top groups often intermingled between 

themselves bringing another level to the camp. 

The less experienced sailors were often learning 

just as much from their peers as they were 

from their coaches. The lack of age gap between 

the top groups and their instructors are part of 

what makes the lessons so interesting, and there 

were always huge grins on everybody’s faces. 

The coaches focused on skill building this live-in, 

especially as most sailors had sailed abroad in 

various regattas the week before. It was difficult 

getting them off the water most days! 

The intermediate group were often seen out on 

the water, racking up hours in their new boats. 

These groups are always a pleasure to watch as 

the kids gain more confidence everyday in their 

own boat. These groups progressed from basic 

sailing to being able to make it around a course 

competitively. One group even progressed as far 

as to include racing starts. Despite a few tears, 

there were many more laughs heard across the 

water, and each instructor was very proud of their 

kids. 

The beginner group, although very large, furthered 

the skills learned in the five week course. 

They worked well together while getting into 

various kinds of boats including tasars, lasars 

and pacers. All were sailing by themselves by the 

end of the week and it is always an awesome 

feeling seeing them out there by themselves 

sailing confidently. There were a few new games 

invented, including ‘sailing’ around instructors 

whom pretended to be buoys. This gave them a 

new way to show their knowledge of the points 

of sails and was a lot of fun for everyone! 


February 2011 p22

There were some novelty awards handed out 

at the end of camp. These included being capsized 

on a fairly regular basis, grinning too much, 

sailing with a broken wrist among many more! 

No doubt your children have several interesting 

stories to relate back to you. 

A huge thanks goes out to Zhik for sponsoring 

another year. The prizes provided each year by 

them add important elements to the kids sailing 

gear, and is always appreciated. 

The Northbridge Sailing School has got a strong, 

passionate group of instructors that make this 

sailing school so amazing. Their willingness to 

teach the sport they are all so much a part of, 

and to help out without even being asked, is 

what makes this sailing school so unique. If you 

need any proof I suggest you come down and 

see the team work that it takes to just put the 

pacers away each week! I would like to take this 

time to passionately thank them for all their help 

this season, and for making my job so much 

more enjoyable. 

To the parents of whom always do a wonderful 

job of looking after us, thank you for putting 

delicious food in our mouths, lifting boats into the 

water and good conversation after hours! It made 

our jobs easier and is definitely appreciated. We 

hope that for many of you this is just the beginning 

of many live-in’s. I would also like to thank 

again Jacinta Warner for her tireless dedication to 

the food organisation, Maz Beeston for her awesome 

pavlovas and Gus Kernot for his passionate 

guidance as principle of the sailing school. 

This brings me, of course to the children that we 

all enjoy teaching so much. This group in particular 

was full of young sailors that went above and 

beyond what we expected. It was brilliant seeing 

them progress through the 5 week course, 

to the transition and then to live-in. Most of the 

older kids, the older instructors have taught at 

one stage or another, and we love seeing them 

each season moving through the ranks. It is 

what makes me so passionate about not only 

teaching, but also being a member of this club. 

Without the volunteering of everybody’s time, 

the goodwill and the dedication of its members, 

this club would not be the unique and wonderful 

organisation that it is. 

I look forward to seeing you all again throughout 

the rest of season and next....until then HAPPY 

SAILING! 


February 2011 p23

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75 members enjoying a 

night of festive frivolity !!!

JUNIOR sailing report 

We have had huge growth in junior sailors racing 

thanks to a combination of the popularity of the 

Optimist class; a resurgence of the NJ class with 

new families to sailing; and most importantly the 

success of Gus’ Learn to Sail program and the 

Live In. 

At the start of the season we had 3 NJs and 

4 Green Fleet Optimists racing in the morning; 

and 6 Open Fleet Optimists trialling racing in the 

afternoons. It seemed many NJs and Optimists 

were sitting unused, unloved and in some cases 

unwanted. 

In our latest race we had 10 NJ sailors and 7 

Green Fleet Optimists racing; and 9 Open fleet 

Optimist training or wanting to get out (but for 

the weather!). We in the process of selling the 

last Club Optimist and we have parents actively 

looking to buy NJs and Optimists – if you know 

of any please let me know! 

We started the season with a focus on greater 

training with great assistance from the Youth 

Instructors (Alex, Danii-elle, Evan, & Tom) 

which has enabled our NJs & Green fleet to 

improve their boat handling skills and increase 

competition on the water and we continue to 

spend time training before each morning race to 

develop our young sailors. 

We wanted to introduce some coaching and 

increase attendance at external regattas for 

the Optimist Open fleet and this has been 

achieved. Our Open Fleet has had the benefit 

of specific coaching from an outside coach, 

Stuart Johnstone as well as gaining experience 

at regattas. We have had 8 Opti sailors attend 

the SORS regatta at RPAYC; 7 sailors went to a 

MHYC regatta; 3 to the regatta at Canberra; 3 

to the regatta in Melbourne; and 7 went to the 

Nationals held at RPAYC. All results have been 

solid with real improvements being seen across 

the board. We also have 16 sailors involved in 

the Optimist Teams racing hosted by NSC this 

coming Sunday. 

Finally, we continue to call on the Junior parents 

to step up and help with getting boats into the 

water, manning safety craft; starting races, 

recording results, help with dinners and events. 

It has been exceptional to see such dedication 

and enthusiasm from them to contribute to not 

for their child but for the benefit of the club. Our 

thanks goes to them. 

David Ross & Gareth Dando 

Junior Captains 


February 2011 p29


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MG14 NationalChampionships 

The 20th MG14 National Championships were held at Port Kembla Sailing Club from 

the 8th January to 12th January 2011. Two boats from Northbridge competed in the 

championships, Romana and Damian Ryan on Tardis and Hugh Tait and Tara McCall 

on Carbon Neutral. The fleet of MG14s has grown consistently recently and the 

biggest turnout in many years attended this year’s regatta. 

The growth in the MG14 class has been largely due to the increase in numbers 

at Balmoral Sailing Club and the involvement of SCEGGs sailing MG14s there. 

This has added a huge youth component to the class which has really revived 

the class and given it a real buzz! Tardis can be seen racing at Balmoral 

regularly and I may have even seen BSC on their entry..... 

The regatta was sailed in similar conditions every day of 5-18 knots E 

to NE winds and reasonably flat water. There was a convincing win by 

Aqua Rodent sailed by Rohan Nosworthy and Neil Tasker who won 

every race up to the final eat where they broke their mast and had to 

retire. Tara and Hugh managed a string of seconds with close racing 

against Aqua Rodent. Having secured 2nd place Tara steered the 

final 2 races maintaining the string of 2nds in heat 8 before winning 

the final heat! Tardis had fairly consistent regatta finishing a very 

respectable 20th with a best place of 12th in heat 6, which also 

gave them a 2nd on handicap in that heat. 

We are looking forward to the NSW Championships which will 

be held at Toronto Sailing Club from the 9th to 11th of April 

2011. I’d encourage all the NS14 sailors to borrow a boat if 

they can find one and come and join us! 

Cheers 

Hugh Tait 


February 2011 p31

NSC Teams Racing Day 

Northbridge has previously held a Teams Racing 

day a number of years ago, where the Tasar fleet 

was kind enough to lend their boats for the day. 

The requirement to improve the training fleet 

gave the Club the opportunity to purchase boats 

that could have a dual purpose and allow all the 

members to use these new boats. 

With the majority of members who attended 

the day having never teams raced before the 

first flight of races was interesting and lots was 

learnt by all! As the day progressed the teams 

became more accustomed to the format and the 

idea that you may actually need to sail slowly for 

the benefit of your team. Ten teams (yep that’s 

60 sailors) battled it out through 4 flights before 

moving on to the semi finals and finals. The 

racing was very closely matched as we utilised 

the ‘Swiss league’ format, which effectively 

creates a ladder. The top team going into the 

semi finals was 3 optimist sailors sailing with their 

dads doing well to lead the more experienced 

NS14 youth teams. There was also a 4 way tie 

for 4th place which had to be broken via count 

back. 

The semi finals were a first to 2 wins format with 

both ending after 2 races. This put the Optimist 

team (Taylor, Graeme, Max, Michael, Harry, Scott 

and super sub Conor) against team FAFT (ask 

Tara McCall what this means) (Tara, Charlotte, 

Jack D, Kiah, Rosie and Hugh) in the final. With 

more weight and experience team FAFT closed 

out the final with a 2 wins in the first to 2 win final, 

including a 1-2-3 finish in the final race. 

The weather couldn’t have been better with a 

north easterly wind coming in early and building 

throughout the day. This allowed for the course 

to be very close to the club and change overs 

to occur form the pontoon. There was a bbq 

during the days for competitors and the social 

interaction between all members a highlight of 

the day. I would like to make special mention 

and thanks to those who volunteered and made 

this possible. Rick Mcfee for starting many more 

races than a typical Sunday! John Dorling for 

umpiring, Colin McCall and Michael Chittenden 

in the mark boat, Tony Potter and Ray Cook in 

the finish boat, Sue McCall for results, and Letita 

Hodgkinson for organising a great bbq!! If I have 

missed anyone I sorry and thank you for your 

help! 

Many people have told me how much they 

enjoyed the day and hopefully we can see it 

become a regular fixture on the Club calendar!! 

Cheers, Hugh Tait 


February 2011 p32


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NS14 Canberra Nationals 

by emma and nora 

Yo. We went sailing for a week. It was hectic. You 

should all come next year because you’ll have a 

hell of a time and it won’t be in Canberra again. 

As much as we love sailing in poo coloured lakes 

and it only taking 5 minutes to get anywhere, 

Canberra made us appreciate Sydney. Anyway 

– shout outs to Ranga who made the long trip 

down just to say hello – and then staunch some 

food, Cal who was on then off then on then off 

then on then off a boat so instead ripped up 

the skate park, to Sophie and the Dunstans 

tribe for putting up with our late night arrivals, 

that hilarious old man breaking out some heavy 

dance moves at the NYE bash in Canberra 

city, Evan who’s glow-in-the-dark bracelets 

freaked us out at night, the hooligans on TP’s 

boat Peak who survived a mega hit and some 

serious damage, Steph who got shat on, the air 

conditioner who was somehow well aware of 

Emma’s sleeping patterns, Simon who provided 

endless entertainment, Oli who made our New 

Year with around 15 missed calls at 4 o’clock in 

the morning, Emma, again, for her embarrassing 

yet totally unintentional colour coordination, Lee 

for all his enlightening geography lessons on 

Canberra, Catherine for being supermum of the 

regatta, we couldn’t have done it without you 

and your constant supply of energy food, Chitt 

who still placed 17th after missing half the races 

for another regatta, and lastly to the echidna who 

was walking across the road on the trip back 

to Sydney – you held up a respectful amount of 

traffic with that cute-arse face of yours. 

Oh yeah, top Northbridge boat was Hugh – 

duh – on his shiny new boat Carbon Neutral, he 

placed 3rd with his little squirt of a crew Taylor. 

That’s about all I remember from this week. Most 

of it was spent watching movies in all honesty, 

and hunting for straw hats, which we eventually 

found (thanks, Target) and love, even if they do 

make us look like rice-farmers. 

However, there wasn’t a great turnout from 

Northbridge at Nationals this year. We know it 

can be a trek to some of the places but truth is; 

the more the merrier. The next NS14 regatta is 


February 2011 p36

States at Easter and newbies, old sea-salts, the 

competitive and the…not so competitive should 

all get there and have an awesome time in what 

is a really fun week of sailing. Plus you get a cool 

t-shirt. 

In a while, crocodiles. 

Emma and Nora, over and out. 

Oh, and Evan says peace out. 


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and as we go to press....... 

Henry Kernot is on his way to Wellington New Zealand to compete in his 5th regatta since Live-in, 

representing CYCA (Cruising Yacht Club of Australia) 

Results so far are.... 

1st Colin Mullins trophy sailing with Evan Walker, Perth 

1st 2011 Warren Jones International Youth Regatta sailing with Evan Walker, Perth 

2nd 2011 Hardy Cup sailing with Evan Walker Sydney 

1st 2011 Harken Youth International Match Racing Championships Auckland sailing with Jay Griffin 

(see picture) 


February 2011 p42

CHS Combined Highschools 

Regatta,Belmont 

Calling all high school kids. It is time to get your parents organised for this year’s CHS regatta at 

Belmont 16’s Skiff Club and accommodation at glorious Belmont Bayview Caravan Park. As in 

previous years we expect to have parents happy to take an extra body or two. Don’t be shy. 

Gus Kernot is the contact point for now. training@nsc.asn.au 

Live-in photographs can be found at https://picasaweb.google.com/NSCpublic 

NSC Teams Racing photographs can be found at https://picasaweb.google.com/NSCpublic 


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SEAcreatures 

Theo Jansen’s “Strandbeests” are maybe the most creative and interesting sail-powered machines 

ever. As much art as science, you simply must watch this video of wind-powered, recycled PVClimbed 

‘artificial life’ – with the emphasis on ‘art.’ Click here for the video, and go to Theo’s 

site for more info. Images from strandbeest.com. 


February 2011 p44

Image taken by Michael Chittenden 

and Photoshoped by the master 

retoucher, Evan Andrews

NSC 2011Feb Bulletin.pdf - Northbridge Sailing Club

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