Plain Sailing November 2019 from the Flag
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PLAIN SAILING NOVEMBER 2019 FROM THE FLAG BY MARK BECROFT RYC COMMODORE So how is the maintenance going? to season as crew to enjoy the Is the boat ready for the summer casual and social racing that is the season? Race sails in good nick, VCCRYCFNS. One of our crew from hull clean and extraneous materials last year has bought an Elan and has removed from the race boat? How entered the series to take others out about you cruisers? Fishing rods to start the FNS sequence. This year clean, reels lubed, dive tanks full we have a couple who have a yacht and regs serviced? How is that but are lacking experience. We have barbecue looking? a volunteer skipper who will take them out on their own boat with Summer is here, let’s enjoy the water! other FNS crew and give them a few pointers and some valuable cockpit I’d like to chat about the VCC Friday time. Who’s to know, they may feel Night Special. This is our 22nd year confident enough to come back next of hosting the FNS and it is looking year and take a bunch of beginners good already. The numbers at the out with them. I know of another start of the season are reasonable crew who has a Farr 1220. Maybe we and we have a wide diversity of can get her skilled up enough to join members. I would like to offer a big in some of our cruising events. THANK YOU to all the skippers and volunteers (and Kate) who put in a The Wednesday Night series started large amount of time to help make with a hiss and a roar. Well we didn’t this series the success that it is. start because the wind and waves Without all your efforts, hundreds of were hissing and roaring instead. people would not have had a chance I’m glad the race officers called the to go sailing on the Waitemata first two races off. We could have Harbour and beyond. gone out racing, but it was going to be seriously uncomfortable. At least Do you know how successful the FNS no crew or gear was broken and we is in getting long term members for can all look forward to some lovely the club? Over the years we have had summer racing. many FNS crew become valuable members of the club. Here is a How about “Nigel No Mates”? A term snapshot of our current situation. The commonly used by our solo sailors. RYC has five committee members They had a varied weekend for the that I am aware of that started with start of their racing season with a the FNS. One has his own yacht and good breeze for the trip up to Gulf is now taking others out on Friday Harbour, but Sunday was a bit slow nights. The other four are all active for the ride home. Have you seen the sailing members in a variety of racing photos on Facebook? events. I look forward to seeing you all on We have a good number of sailors the water, or back at the club. who come back from season THIS ISSUE BY CHRIS CRONE EDITOR about crossing the Tasman during a recent delivery trip; Cory and Antony Welcome to the Spring issue - and an report on the recent Spring Regatta, especially warm welcome to our new and Richard reports on the opening members who have joined us through weekend of the Vining Single-Handed the Victoria Friday Night Special. Series. There’s all sorts of sailing going To all members: Are you cruising over on in this issue. We hear from “G”, summer? Take a few photos, make a exploring the Pacific; and from Richard few notes, then turn it into an article exploring Swedish cuisine during for your fellow members to enjoy! the Flap Martinengo. Mike tells us Email [email protected] DEDICATED READER This issue, we hear from Andrew “G” Hall, somewhere in the Pacific... It’s been about 10 months now since Lynn Shrewsbury and I moved onboard Intrinsic, our Dennis Ganley design Timerider 38 - and even though she’s not a quick boat we’ve done some sea miles in her since. We’d previously owned a basic boat, the systems of which mainly included a small outboard engine and a failing battery that serviced lights and music. Intrinsic was a step up and we had a lot to learn. Prop walk where? hot water cylinder. A permanent fitted Accumulator who? A shunt does what? hydronic ram for self steer plus a She was a different beast, holds 750L Fleming wind vane, a cutter rig with a of fuel in the keel that transfers to a furling staysail, 3 reefs in the main and day tank, multiply water tanks with removable running back stays. Mate pressurised water, a water maker and a she’s got inner sprung mattresses and (continued on page 6) WELCOME New Members New Crew Members Tony Baker Irene Anastasi 38 Special, Bakewell White 38 Joanne Antonetti General Dale Boddie Simon Carroll Vela Via, Elan E4 Kimberly Bunch General (prev. Crew) Stephane Carayol Peter Channings Richard Choi China Doll, Reactor Sarah Defaux General Paulette Donaldson Sharon Cope Revolution Blues, Ross 830 Jessica Fadel General Family Mariano Gagliano Tony Smith Lucy Harrison Fast Company, Ross 930 Veteran Christina Huesgen Andre Kiste Coen Ursem Freedom, GBE Polina Kuptsova General Christopher Lear Annah McMillan Ben Levy Associate Jean Machado Mark Werner & Denise Bosbach Associate Family Chloe Maringues Penny Mitchell Ryan Schell-Chao Oleg Smirnov Graeme Smith Guru Sundarum Nicolas Terrien Lucy Whitehead Miriam Williams UPCOMING CALENDAR & EVENTS January 2020 22nd Wednesday Night Race 7 24th Cruising Series Race 3 - November 2019 Mahurangi & Single-Handed Series Race 5 1st Friday Night Special Race 2 27th Auckland Anniversary Regatta 2nd Gold Cup Race 3 31st Friday Night Special Race 6 3rd RYC Single-Handed Race & Single-Handed Series Race 3 6th Pot Luck Lunch 8th Friday Night Special Race 3 February 2020 th 9 Westhaven Triple Race 1 5th Wednesday Night Race 8 10th Single-Handed Series Race 4 & Pot Luck Lunch th 13 Wednesday Night Race 4 14th Westhaven Triple Race 2 - 15th Cruising Series Race 1 Kawau Night Race nd 22 Friday Night Special Race 4 15th Cruising Series Race 4 - 27th Wednesday Night Race 5 Kawau & Single-Handed Series th 30 Cruising Series Race 2 Race 6 16th Single-Handed Series Race 7 19th Wednesday Night Race 9 December 2019 21st Friday Night Special Race 7 & Gold Cup Race 5 4th Pot Luck Lunch 29th His-n-Hers Race 2 (PCC) 6th Friday Night Special Race 5 7th Gold Cup Race 4 8th His-n-Hers Race 1 11th Wednesday Night Race 6 March 2020 th 18 crew.org Race 6th Route 66 - save the date! the continuous streams of cold fronts (continued from page 3) crossing the country in June and a we just weren’t using her enough. She massive one just after we left, we were wasn’t built for the Hauraki Gulf. treated to our 4 night stay at North Minerva to ourselves, tick - our first So we decided to take a year off and reef crossing. see where we got to. We rented our home, sold the car, stashed our stuff, Living on board has been an easy and planned to sail up to the Pacific process and it doesn’t take long to get Islands for the winter and do a NZ into cruising life up in the islands. music festival tour over the summer as Collecting food from markets or our shake down. Lots to do prior, villages you visit, lures out for mahi- upgrades to make and finally we said mahi or wahoo when on passage, goodbye to Westhaven just after hanging out and foursies with fellow Christmas. Did our favourites: Bay of yachties. We’re using Iridium Go for Islands, Whangaroa, Great Barrier weather and listen into Gulf Harbour (including Arid Island), then south of radio on the SSB. Each island group Ponui Island for our first festival date we’ve visited has its own charms - mid-February: Splore. Then the real loved the isolation and classic coconut adventure began. tree covered atolls of Ha’apai group in Tonga yet the diversity and ease of Womad was in New Plymouth in 3 Vava’u has its attraction. Fiji we’ve weeks, so up over the top we went, realised is just too big for one season lurked round Abel Tasman and Nelson and it’s outstanding. Loving the for a couple of weeks - even found relaxed friendly attitude on the eastern Marchfest down there - a music and side and throughout the Lau group. beer festival - double bonus. During The snorkeling and diving on its coral Womad, a massive high was over the reefs just blow you away - the variety country so no issues leaving the boat of fish and diversity of coral on some on the crazy West Coast, then patches is unbelievable. afterwards popped into Marlborough Sounds for a bit, then across to However, whenever talking to the Wellington. From here it was just keep locals the conversation will turn at following the coast round, so up to some stage to the devastation of Napier, and a lumpy night past East hurricane Winston in Feb 2016, the Cape to the Mercury Islands. It was a largest tropical cyclone in the funny feeling heading across the Gulf Southern Hemisphere on record and to Auckland, like summer was over..