Winners are grinners - Allison Ostenfeld collects her prize from Commodore Hariet Woodrow
Annual Regatta Report
Sunday, 14 March 2010
They say sailors are an intrepid lot and that was again reinforced when a good fleet turned out to contest the Big River Sailing Club’s Annual Regatta last weekend. With the miserable weather leading into the event and the forecast of strong winds over the weekend, it would have been excusable to think that numbers might have suffered as a result. A total of 48 boats were in attendance including a number of new faces amongst the many regular visitors. Particularly pleasing was the increase in the junior presence, either sailing in the junior division or with their parents on the larger boats, or simply enjoying and of course adding to the atmosphere of what is a very social weekend.
The Saturday race was staged in a strong South Easterly which in combination with the run out tide made for some testing conditions, particularly in the lower part of the river. With most of the fleet turning at Browns Rocks, the gybe mark at the channel marker was a scene of chaos as boats struggled with the wind and wave action, however the ride back surfing the swell was also the most exhilarating part of the race. After an average race time of about 2 hours all competitors were feeling the affects of an exhausting afternoon and were quite content to sit back, relax and enjoy recounting their various adventures over a few drinks and a good meal.
If there is one good thing about a Southerly, it is that you know you are going to have wind in the morning and organisers were able to easily manage a 3 race program that included a race before and after lunch on the Sunday. Despite the weekend’s conditions there were no major incidents or reports of damage which is always a good outcome.
The Grafton based Clarence River Sailing Club dominated the faster catamaran division with Andrew Landenburger, Michael Cahil and Phil Cavanagh filling the top three spots. Similarly, the Richmond River Sailing Club made a clean sweep of the slower catamarans with Phil Robbins, Jacquie Heap and Dave Bolwer finishing 1st, 2nd, and 3rd. Regular visitor Tom Graham from Toowoomba was the best of the faster monohulls, whilst Arie Van Spronssen from the Central Coast blitzed the slower monohull division with some impressive sailing in his Impulse. Local boat Ally-Oop, a Hartley 16 sailed by Col Hinwood and Bill Heuchmer, were clear winners in the slower yacht division ahead of Richmond River visitors Graeme Flemming and Jenny Heuchmer. In the faster yachts Stan White from the Lake Keepit Sailing Club finished ahead of Ballina sailor Todd Goldsmith and other Lake Keepit regular Ken Donaldson. The junior division saw a close battle between Allison Ostenfeld and Zac Heuchmer with Allison in the end taking the honours.
Three generations of the Bienefelt family sailed the regatta
Toby ventures out
Zac Heuchmer had a good weekend
David Carswell in his newly acquired A Class
Phil Cavenagh in his Taipan
Division 3 winner Tom Graham
The Benson family attract some onlookers
Chris Larson on his MG
Div 4 winner Arie Van Spronssen
Coffs visitors Frans and Kim Bienefelt
Exhausted but still smiling
Up and Away, Michael Cahil and Andrew Landenburger
I think you've got him Ally!
The yacht fleet heads for the finish
Close racing between the Nacra 4.5s
Lake Keepit visitor Stan White wins Division 7
Its been a big day!
Which is the front and back on this thing?
Sailing Report 6 Mar 2010
Sunday, 7 March 2010
With good breeze on both the Friday and Sunday, Big River sailors can only lament at their misfortune not to have had something similar when they gathered on the Saturday to contest the last Club Championship event for the season. The showers and early morning calm eventually gave way to clearing skies and a gentle North East breeze, which at least enabled competitors to salvage the day by completing two shortened races.
In the catamarans, Bob Eggins and Josh Crompton again went head to head. Both are competent sailors sailing almost identical boats, so each time they meet it’s never a forgone conclusion as to the result, and like so many times this season the pair ended up sharing the spoils with a win each. In the monohulls, the Lasers dominated with Mark Mulligan and Paul Hargan scoring a win each. Paul revelled in the lighter conditions and was only a few seconds from taking both races. Sarah Ostenfeld continued her good form to be the standout junior ahead of her sister Allison, who this week took advantage of the lighter winds and sailed a Laser in the final race.
The Big River Sailing Club launched a new training boat last weekend. The ‘Firebug’, a 2.4 meter plywood dinghy that originates from Auckland and raced regularly around New Zealand, is enjoying increasing popularity worldwide. This latest addition results largely from the efforts of BRSC Training Officer John Woods, who has worked on the project over the last few months. The unsinkable design features a flat bottom and independent watertight compartments fore, aft, and along both sides. The superior level of comfort and stability, and the extra buoyancy means the boat can double as a child or adult trainer. Whilst reluctant to capsize in the first instance, when righted the boat comes up almost dry, meaning less bailing and more time spent sailing. Importantly, the dinghy also represents a return to traditional amateur boat building. Aside from the satisfaction and skills acquisition that come from undertaking such projects, the final product is a cost effective alternative to the expensive composite constructions that now dominate other classes. This latest project represents a commitment by the Big River Sailing Club to continually explore options that improve the accessibility and affordability of the sport. Training sessions are held each Saturday morning from 10.00 am. Anyone interested in learning to sail can contact John on 66451270.
Sail Training
Sunday, 22 November 2009
Most Saturday mornings from 10.00am. Anyone interested or wanting more information can contact John Woods (Training Officer) on 66451270.
2009/10 BRSC membership information now available
Saturday, 20 June 2009
Click on the file below for all the information needed to either commence or renew BRSC membership for 2009
