News and other stories about real people, places, and events in Double Bay and nearby suburbs.
The Season Opener Barbie was a great success with many brilliant conversations, and members, partners and parents chatting into the evening, and maybe the odd drink was enjoyed. Thanks for the great food and atmosphere, wonderful to catch up with everyone, and thank you to Diana Chen and Peter Collie for arranging the food, and to Shirley and all those who helped on the day.
Photos by Diana Chen
Photo from Mike Dunne
Club Championship Races 1 & 2
Saturday was the opening of our 2023-24 sailing season and the gods/godesses dished up sunny skies and a beautiful 12-18 knot oscillating southerly. We don’t get the harbour to ourselves very often, but it seems the slight chill in the air kept other boat traffic to a minimum. Other than one general recall, both fleets were well behaved on the start line, which was surprising given it was the first club championship heat of the year. Plenty of young sailing talent was on show, some returning from the recent ILCA Open Worlds, the U21 Europeans and the 4.7 Youth Worlds in Greece. They were looking sharp
There is a correction to the email address (which was wrong in the newsletter). Please email David Murphy (davidmurphy@dbsc.com.au)We encourage all members to obtain First Aid Certification and to this end we have arranged an expert trainer (Brian Richards) to run a course at the club on Saturday, 23 September for members. The course is intensive, and is designed for those with no prior first aid training, as well as those wanting to update their skills and keep their certification current. It will start at 07:00 and will finish by noon, to allow those attending to race in the afternoon. The Club will pay for the cost of members attending the course, so book now, there is a maximum of 20 on the day.If you want to attend this course, you must email David Murphy (davidmurphy@dbsc.com.au). (If you would like to receive this training but cannot make it on the
SEASON OPENING and BBQ: SATURDAY, 2 SEPTEMBERJoin us for a BBQ on the deck on Saturday 2 September for the official opening of the 2023/24 sailing season. Family & friends are welcome! Please RSVP by Wednesday 30 August so we know how many hungry sailors (and guests) to feed: dbsc.com.au/club-events/2023-season-opening.Thank you to the members who are sending through information for the newsletter. If you have content for the newsletter, please email it to newsletter@dbsc.com.au by Monday evening.View all racing results here.The club’s calendar can be viewed and subscribed to here.Make a tax deductible donation to DBSC here.
Sprint RacingAfter a morning of hard work repairing, tidying and generally sprucing up the clubhouse, 25 sailors took advantage of the sunny weather to get in some sprint racing. PRO Mike Dunne reports:Westerlies on Sydney Harbour are there to remind us that, yes, there is a hell. These brave souls tackled extremely variable conditions. The wind eventually reached the predicted SSW direction, but took a long time to make up its mind. Mostly it was all over the shop and more than a few enjoyed a cool dip after being caught by a sudden shift, gust (or both). Best performers on the day had their heads out of the boat and read the shifts (or guessed) the correct side. No-one
Vice Commodore Rod Barnes directing the work…
Thankyou to all members who attended the annual working bee. A very respectable turnout of 57 members helped out in last Saturday, and with the fine weather, this group tackled the following tasks:Replacing some of the deck timbersScraping and repainting facia boards on the north gable (above the deck)Replacing some of the cladding boards (including painting)Sweeping shed floor beneath the Laser racksReplacing rack beams on the east side, creating a little more vertical clearanceDe-cluttering and cleaning the workshop, including replacing fluorescent tubesRepairing wheels and replacing noodles on the club trolleys (including the stacking “away” trolleys)Pressure washing the rampCollecting, sorting and fixing components of the training boats (centreboards, rudders, tillers,
3 spots left – Don’t miss out, this is your last chance to book your place in the Brett Beyer Saturday Program.The program comprises individualised on-water tips before and after racing and between races, as well as a video of the start, and a GPS animation and accompanying analysis that shows your tracks and stats vs the other participants in the fleet on a leg-by-leg basis, with commentary on fleet and/or selected individual performances on each leg. It also includes the opportunity to ask Brett questions during the week, between BBSP sessions.The initial program for the 23/24 season will run for 8 sessions on 9 Sep, 16 Sep, 23 Sep, 7 Oct, 21 Oct, 28 Oct, 4 Nov, and 11 Nov. The cost of the program is $560 (plus merchant fees) per person, and this pricing is dependent on 20 participants.Click HERE to register for the program. The terms and conditions can be found
Saturday Racing Commences This WeekendPlease don’t forget we are switching back to Saturday racing this weekend with Winter Sprints starting at 13:00 (briefing at 12:00).Also on Saturday, Youth Training will commence at 08:00.
Thank you to the members who are sending through information for the newsletter. If you have content for the newsletter, please email it to newsletter@dbsc.com.au by Monday evening.View all racing results here.The club’s calendar can be viewed and subscribed to here.Make a tax deductible donation to DBSC here.
Four DBSC youth members (Healy Ryan, Cormac Johnston, Charles Byford and Jack Restuccia) have just successfully completed the 4.7 Youth Worlds in Greece. The regatta was held at the Nautical Club of Volos and Argonauts in Volos.There were 290 boys and 159 girls from 49 countries competing in the regatta. The huge competitive fleet, predominantly light winds, HOT weather, a sprinkling of wildfires and delicious Greek food provided lots of fun and challenges for the sailors!The Aussie team are now en route back to Australia and we look forward to delivering a thorough regatta report in the newsletter next week. In the meantime, congratulations, boys. We know you (and your supportive parents!) enjoyed a fantastic time and learnt lots on the water. – James Tudball
Sunday’s Racing:Winds were variable from light to non-existent, generally from the northwest, but the race committee managed to complete two races. The first (R22) set off in a decent 8 kts. The racing was tight and tactical on the upwind (as long as you didn’t head left off the start line), with some stress added to the downwind legs as the breeze lightened and the fleets compressed. Our PRO wisely moved the weather mark closer for the second race (R23). The breeze picked up again for the first weather leg, but then died off completely for a while. Most managed to complete the second race, though some elected to paddle home early.Winter Championships R22/R23ILCA 6: Ian Alexander / James GoslingILCA 7: Zander Bijkerk / Ryan AldrichILCA 4: [no entries] / Olivia Aitken Winter Point Score R22/R23ILCA 6: Daryl Lawrence / James GoslingILCA 7: David DaCosta Enes / Daniel CostandiILCA 4: