National

By the Lee, Australian J24 Champion – 2019

Congratulations to Brendan Lee and his crew on his Nationals win.

Here is a precis of the champs from Brendan’s point of view.

“After some confusion as to whether the 2019 J24 National Championships would be held in Adelaide or not, the Cruising Yacht Club of South Australia got behind the J24 class and hosted the championships from the 3rd to the 6th of January 2019.
Whilst down on entrants from previous years the competition was just as fierce. A special thank you to the 10 crews that travelled from NSW and Victoria.
Twelve races were scheduled over 4 days of racing with the first discard coming in after race 8 and the second after race 10.
Day 1 and with a forecast top of 41 degrees, race management decided to put up the “AP” and keep the fleet in the shade until the sea breeze kicked in. Race 1 eventually got underway in about 6 knots of wind with the official sea breeze announcing itself part way up the 3rd leg with a massive starboard lift. Those that decided to go to the left gate and out to sea prospered. Those that did not, paid a hefty price, except for “Team El Fideldo” who charged out to sea and picked up the generous lift to record a bullet in Race 1.
If anyone was watching from the shore they would have been curious as to why there was often someone hanging over the back of the boats. This was to rid seagrass from the rudder. Unfortunately arms were not long enough so it was just a case of putting up with it and assuming that everyone was “in the same boat” so to speak. As for the keel, well there was little that could be done other than sailing backwards which would not only have been costly but likely pointless as it would have just been a matter of time until more accumulated. I understand “Wildfire” did infact execute the backwards move mid race. The following morning a number of brooms showed up on various boats with “Vice Versa” and “By The Lee” targeting the same Bunnings at the same time.
With the first race out of the way and hopefully an early discard,  the hammer went down and “By The Lee” picked up Race 2.
Race 3 and it was “Stamped Urgent” recording the win, successfully defending off “By The Lee” which at times were just 4cm behind and doing everything possible to get by. A shoulda-coulda moment for sure. J24 One Design sailing at its best!
By the end of Day 1 and with 3 races sailed it was “Stamped Urgent” showing the way on 7 points with “Tinto” and “Two Dogs” on 10 points and “By The Lee” lying 4th on 11 points.
Following the day’s racing, it was the usual stories and banter about what coulda and shoulda been enjoyed over a BBQ put on by the South Australian Association. Thank you to Jim and Robyn for bringing it all together and Andrew and others for doing the cooking in almost 40 degree heat.
Sponsors “Dog Ridge Wines” joined the party by giving away 60 bottles of Rosé to be handed out to the top 3 places on ‘One Design’ and ‘PHS’ for each race and a new Genoa from Peter Stevens, representing a new Chinese Manufacturer “Loong Sails” for the median placed PHS boat overall.
Day 2 and the forecast Strong Wind Warning was spot on. St Vincent’s Gulf was recording in excess of 25 knots. With no wind abatement in sight, race management called off the day and after just 3 races the fleet was rewarded with a lay day. Some chose to go to the wineries and others decided to race go-carts to blow off the adrenaline built up from Day 1. All in all it was in fact a great J24 community day with many teams coming together and having fun.
Day 3 and the wind had moderated to 12-15 knots. Race 4 was set in at 0.6nm, however I think the race officer underestimated the speed of a J24 and subsequently set Race 5 at 0.8nm and Race 6 & 7 at 1.0nm. With a big incoming tide the upwind legs on the last race was seriously hard work.
Race 4 and 6 were taken out by “By The Lee” with “Stamped Urgent” picking up Race 5 and their second win.
Onto race 7 and the final race of the day and it was a new boat at the top “Wildfire” which I think started a few minutes ahead of the rest as this is how it ended up. I think Ron and the team were in the bar by the time the second boat crossed the line. Well done!
So at the end of Day 3 it was “By The Lee” and “Tinto” at the top on 20 points with “Stamped Urgent” just 6 points behind.
With Day 2 being blown out, race management decided to get things underway an hour early on the final day so the stage was set for a 10am start and up to 4 races scheduled. The championship was far from decided.
Day 4 and “By The Lee” knew what they needed to do….stay ahead of “Tinto” in every race. Race 8 got underway in about 8 knots of breeze it was “By The Lee” rounding the top mark in first place with “Tinto” a few places back. However in true Steve Wright style the competition was picked apart and in the end it was “By The Lee” followed by “Tinto” in second. With 8 races sailed the first discard came into play and the finishing positions were starting to take shape with “Stamped Urgent”, “Wildfire” and “Two Dogs” all eyeing out a podium finish.
Race 9 and it was “By The Lee” first at the top mark however this was short lived after a massive spinnaker wrap which took a full 3 minutes to come free allowed “Tinto” and “Vice Versa” to sail through. With “By The Lee” going toe to toe with “Tinto” for the entire regatta any placings between the two was huge so in this case it was +2 to “Tinto”.
Race 10 and “By The Lee” had “Tinto” sucking dirty air off the line, however a short tack out to sea and back over to starboard saw “Tinto” cross the fleet which left “By The Lee” wondering what the hell just happened. “Tinto” recorded their second win and once again the gap narrowed by a further 2 points with “By The Lee” coming home in 3rd.
With 10 races sailed and the second discard now in place it was a showdown in the last race with just a two point spread between first and second place. A good upwind leg on Race 11 saw “By The Lee” round the top mark first with “Wildfire” hot on their heals. “Tinto” was a bit further back, but again this was short lived. Another less than ideal spinnaker launch saw “Wildfire” sail over “By The Lee”.
With a close eye on “Tinto”, defensive mode kicked in. “Wildfire” extended their lead and the fleet closed in on “By The Lee” with both “Tinto” and “Stamped Urgent” getting past. Provided the gap was no more than 3 placings and a result of 5th or better, “By The Lee” was okay.
The next thing I saw was “Tinto” doing a gybe upwind which I later understood was as a result of contact being made with “Stamped Urgent”. With a generous port lift, “By The Lee” crossed ahead of “Stamped Urgent” and as a result of the penalty, “Tinto” was back in 6th.
At the end it was “Wildfire” recording their second win, “By The Lee” coming home in second place and securing the championship with “Stamped Urgent” crossing the line in 3rd which also resulted in being awarded 3rd overall by one point over “Wildfire”. A very consistent effort across the 11 races saw “Tinto” drop their 6th place finishing second just 3 points behind “By The Lee”.
And so it was onto to the prize giving with a traditional dinner overlooking the beautiful North Haven Marina. The last few bottles of Rosé were handed out and the winner of the Genoa was awarded to Jack Fullerton on “Two Dogs” who sailed an excellent regatta finishing 5th overall, just five points off the podium.
After 7 attempts, it was Brendan Lee, Rory Groves, Dan Cave, Peter Lee and Keren Reynolds on “By The Lee” picking up their first National Championships.
In usual J24 style, the night went on with plenty of laughter and cheer. The 2019 championships was a great success. A special thank you to the CYCSA, J24 SA organisers and volunteers and to the sponsors “Dog Ridge Wines” and “Loong Sails” for their support.
We look forward to seeing you at the Victorian Championships regatta in Victoria being held on the 30th and 31st of March 2019.”
Thanks to Brendan Lee for his story.
If you would like to contribute a story about the Nationals or pictures, please send it to me so I can publish it for you.

OD Results

PHS Results

 

Girls Going Sailing in Melbourne 2015

The 25th Australian Women’s Keelboat Regatta at Royal Melbourne Yacht Squadron in Melbourne is coming up in June and the Silver Anniversary is going to be bigger and better than ever! With teams coming from across Australia and interest being shown from international teams, the fleet is already shaping up to be a competitive one.

The Hyper Girls (centre in the pic above) have taken this one out more than once before, proving that the J24 is very competitive in this fleet, so if you are local at Sandy why not get your boats up the bay. Looks like there may also be a crew from Manhattan coming. Which means if you are from Sydney or Adelaide, you really are coming from just around the corner. Boats may be available to use from the Sandy fleet.

If you are a female sailor and would like to get involved, or if you are a boat owner who would like to donate your boat to a team please contact RMYS Sailing Coordinator Allicia Rae – awkr@rmys.com.au

The AWKR will be held from 6-8 June 2015.

http://www.awkr.com.au/

Want to go sailing with girls before then – try the Port Phillip Women’s Championship Series

The YV Port Phillip Women’s Championship Series (PPWCS) 2015 marks the third series which combines the existing ‘signature’ women’s events from the five keelboat clubs at the top of the bay into one event and will be contested on the waters of Port Phillip from February to May 2015. Check out the Championship details here  http://www.womenandgirlsinsailing.com.au

Don’t want to do the whole championship – why not sail the opening race and enjoy the party !

The Jennifer Goldsmith Trophy is also race 1 of the Port Phillip Women’s Championship Series
For more information on the series please visit   www.womenandgirlsinsailing.com.au

This is the traditional ‘Lady Skippers’ Race’ and has been a feature on the sailing calendar at Royal Melbourne Yacht Squadron for many years.

Traditionally the race is open to any yacht as long as it is ‘skippered’ by a woman.  She can have a crew of all males, a mixed crew or a crew of all females but the boat must be helmed throughout the whole of the race by a female.

Entry for the 2015 Jennifer Goldsmith Perpetual Trophy is now open. You can read the NOR and enter here: http://www.rmys.com.au/jennifer-goldsmith-perpetual-trophy.html

This is the first race in the Port Phillip Women’s Championship Series and as always there are going to be some gorgeous prizes thanks to the Goldsmith Family.

Details of the lunch post racing will be available soon.

2015 National Championships in Adelaide

Kites 2

CYCSA's sheltered maring witht he clubhouse in the background
CYCSA’s sheltered marina with the clubhouse in the background

The 2015 J24 National Championships will be held on 8 – 11 January at the CYCSA in Adelaide.

December 15th Update – SAILING INSTRUCTIONS NOW AVAILABLE  – DOWNLOAD BELOW

Only one local hull is now available, so if you want in at the last minute this is the time to grab this boat. Entries need to be put in by TOMORROW at the latest – today is better. Interest is shaping up to be around the 20 boat mark so this is going to be a great regatta

For those wanting to get some racing in early, there will be a Twilight Race on Wednesday evening, a W/L course starting around 1800 with the number of laps to suit the breeze and reds back at the bar to follow – Jim is keen to get everyone in the mood for the main game. So if you are keen to sail the twilight, please give Jim an email on   jim@micrometonline.com    just so he has an idea of the number of entries beforehand.

Ladies – ‘bring a plate’ – No !   Don’t worry girls you don’t have to bring anything but yourself and your smile, but you could win a cup. Jim tells me they are giving a trophy for the first female skipper and you are going to be surprised at the name this trophy is going to have. Can’t let you know that here, but it is another reason for the ladies to race hard.   Jeanette – that means you could possibly take away at least two trophies this year !  No Ron – no dressing up, it won’t apply to you and your boatload of girls !

December 8th Update – Early bird entries close on the 17th December and race office will be closed from that date due to Xmas break until the 7th of January so it is important that entries are received this week. 

IMPORTANT NOTE: THE CYCSA DOESN’T HAVE ONLINE ENTRIES. SO YOU NEED TO FILL OUT THE FORM ON THE BACK OF THE NOR AND FAX OR SCAN AND EMAIL BACK TO THE RACING MANAGER (JESS HARGREAVES)

HER EMAIL ADDRESS IS  Racing.Manager@cycsa.com.au  IT IS ALSO ON THE BOTTOM OF THE ENTRY FORM

IF YOU WANT TO EFT YOUR ENTRY FEE TO THE CYCSA: HERE ARE THE DETAILS

Bank details:
BSB 035-000
a/c 290626
name Cruising Yacht Club of SA

Please put ‘J24 Nationals’ as your description and add your name when making payment this way

Jim Townsend the SA President says there are still two local hulls available for crews wanting to use them. One was previously taken but the visiting crew are now bringing their own boat I gather. So you can still get to the Nationals on the cheap and have a ball, but you need to get in quick !

He also tells me that there is going to be great social atmosphere, plenty of SA wine and good food and a relaxed approach to the champs to make sure everyone has heaps of fun.

Don’t let that fool you though, mystery surrounds the Sydney fleet entrants, the Thommo Cup is on this year, so that’s one – Jeanette and her girls, Convicts and Kaotic are probable ‘no goes’ so the title is up for grabs, the Black Prince will be there and he wants it back – bad, the Shorts and O’Rourkes from ‘The Shire’ want to take it north, as does former World Moth champ Dave McKay, of course there are another half dozen wannabees from Vic with the same idea, Dougie Watson and the locals want to keep it there so it will be hot on the water!

Want to play ? Get in touch with Jim and get one of those boats asap

Mid November Update – Interest in attending the Nationals is growing by the week with several Cronulla teams booking boats to use and several Sydney Harbour crews also planning to go. There will be approx 9 local SA crews sailing and up to 8 Victorian crews planning to go. Thats a fleet of nearly 20 boats enjoying the great sailing water off the CYCSA. The supply of local boats available to be charterd is now nearly exhausted so you need to make a move quickly if you want one.

The club has a very good set up with lots of hard stand area, trailer parking and gear storage. It has crane and ramp launching for Js and plenty of wet sail mooring area right in front of the club. Walk 20 metres from your boat and you are at either the outdoor BBQ and catering area, wet bar and the club restarant and bar, it is a great set up with your boat in a sheltered marina and a cold drink in your hand after sailing. The club is very friendly and will look after your needs very happily – as will the class association.

If you haven’t been there before – give Jim Townsend a call for directions, organisational help and anything else you need on the way to the start line. He is a great guy and is driving the regrowth of the SA Fleet and this regatta in particular. Jim is also happy to help people with trailer usae to get to Adelaide as well.

There will be some hulls available for those wanting to fly in with sails and there maybe some assistance with trailers as well, but get in early for those – now wouldn’t be too soon.

The format will be a 4 day regatta starting on the Thursday and running through to Sunday, this minimises the time off work for fly-in crew to 2 days.

Jim Townsend, the current SA President is planning a great regatta with an opening function, prize giving function on the Sunday night and informal evenings on the Friday and Saturday.

If you haven’t sailed there before, Adelaide is great sailing with seabreezes to around 20knots and warm sunny weather the norm.

To keep measurement time to a minimum, boats should have a current measurement cert, insurance cert and inventory cert organised prior and sent in with your entry. As usual check measurements may be made at any time during the regatta period. So prepare your boat before hand and make sure you have it all sorted.

NEW INFORMATION FROM JIM TOWNSEND – NOW ONLINE ON THE REGATTA PAGE updated as of 24/7/14

Click here to go to the regatta page for more information  Regatta Page

Download your NOR J24+2015+Nationals+NoR+-+Revision+1  Make sure you check back here or go to http://www.cycsa.com.au/racingdocuments.html to check for any updates

SAILING INSTRUCTIONS – J24 2015 Australian National Championships Sailing Instructions – Revision 1

Ports North FNQ J24 Championships

Cairns Yacht Club is hosting the 2014 FNQ J24 Championship, to be held on 4-6 October this year. We don’t know alot about it yet and are waiting for more details but I guess you can imagine racing in the warn northern waters, fair winds, palm trees, bikinis and board shorts, pinacoladas etc.  Doesn’t sound all bad does it !

They have some boats available for charter (it’s a long way to take your own !)

Interested – then you need to get in contact with Brian Dowling the Cairns YC Commodore on 07 4031 2750 or email   dowling1952@gmail.com  by the 1st August.

Check out more information on the entry form here.  EOI FNQ J24 Champs 2014 – final approved 9th of June 2014

Convicts Revenge on winning the Nationals

Top mark

Steve won the start, won the race and won the regatta, our new National Champion talks a little about the regatta – wise words indeed ! (Ed)

“All agreed the 2014 J24 Nationals was well run by the very quaint and accommodating Royal Prince Edward Yacht Club . There was much attention to detail and plenty of volunteers and staff to ensure the sailors felt welcome and enjoyed themselves. There was the friendly tender service servicing all the moored Js and the catering staff doling out bacon and egg rolls and cappuccinos for competitors to enjoy while sitting on the grass overlooking one of Sydney Harbour’s most pristine beaches. The presentation dinner was wonderful on the enclosed verandah.

This was some consolation to the Melbourne folk who observed that for most of the regatta it was sunnier and warmer in Melbourne, to which of course the locals responded with the local standard “its not normally like this, you should have been here last week“. In other onshore developments an undeserved twist of fate found the RPEYC Commodore’s (Sean Kirkjan) J24 beached in front of the club one morning mid regatta under mysterious circumstances, suffering considerable keel damage.

After being blown ashore at night, Sean's keel was slightly modified. He still won a race with it like this though !
After being blown ashore at night, Sean’s keel was slightly modified. He still won a race with it like this though !

It was great having competitors from Singapore, South Australia and Victoria as well as locals.

It certainly was not “the brochure” of steady Sydney summer nor’easters, in fact we only had nor’easters for the invitation race and final day.

Most of the racing happened in fairly shifty and mentally challenging south and south east winds. The upside from this was that there was a lot of “snakes and ladders” on the course, with leaders never being able to relax and those deep able to carry on in hope.

Racing was close, positions changed regularly throughout the whole the fleet, and big winning margins were rare.

The results sheet over 10 races bears this out and shows the variety in heat winners and place getters which made it fun and kept it interesting.

All the competitors would have their own perspective of how it went, but from on board Convicts Revenge this is how it happened …..

From a technical sailing perspective this regatta seemed very much about throwing away the compass and fine tuning guide and just sailing free and fast to the next bit of pressure.

The racing culminated in a friendly “showdown” of sorts for the last 2 races on the final day, where 1 point only separated Pacemaker from Kaotic and Convicts Revenge between 1st, 2nd and 3rd.

Some tough decisions to be made because the bible to Sydney Harbour sailing says “thou shall starboard tack from start, hit Bradley’s head, tack on to port and thou shall to the lay”. However the bible also says “the incoming tides around the celebration of Xmas can be strong so go right on port”.

This theology on top of which boat to cover ! ?

In the first beat of the first race, the 3 boats went, right covering each other, to be collectively somewhat hammered by those who stuck with tradition and hit Bradleys in the left.

In the last race there was (predictably)some match racing action at the start between Convicts and Pacemaker which resulted in Pacemaker doing penalty turns. Convicts came out better on the first beat, in the lead ,working the left with Kaotic going right. Up the last beat Kaotic worked the middle well and caught right up and then it was a tacking dual . .  They split, Convicts picking up a pressure advantage in the right which delivered the winning margin…. of one point.”

J24 National Championships 2014

NSW Nationals 2013 poster

J24 Nationals Championships 2014 Notice of Race

Sailing Instructions National Championships 2014, J24

2014 National Championships Entry form

Download a copy of the poster. NSW Nationals 2013 poster

Current results (when Simon can get them – thanks to Dave Suda)

These results are now current to Wednesday 8 Jan – one more day to go and it is CLOSE !

Ben Lamb, Dave Suda and Steve Girdis can all win this regatta now. Brendan Lee has sailed well but is almost certainly out the top three. Where the big changes could happen tomorrow is in the middle of the pack where incredibly 6pts separate 6 places and these places could change dramtically on the last day tomorrow.

Sean Kirkjian, Vlad (Singapore), Doug Watson, J Spot, Ron Thompson, Dave West, are all great skippers and could easily move around in these places. This is a small fleet but the depth of talent is huge and great skippers are back in the pack this year.

P.S. Congrats to Sean on winning this summer’s Sydney Hobart on Victoire.

Steve Girdis sailing Convicts Revenge wins the 2014 Nationals in an ultra tight battle in the last two races. More details as they get sent to me !

Race No Sail # 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Total with drop Place
Convicts Revenge 4771 3 3 3 6 2 3 1 2 4 1 23 1
Kaotic 4770 2 1 1 1 5 1 6 5 10 2 24 2
Pacemaker 5333 1 4 2 4 4 2 3 1 5 7 26 3
By the Lee 4795 5 9 6 5 3 4 5 10 2 6 44 4
Sail Pac 5085 9 7 4 8 1 14 4 13 1 4 51 5
El Fidelo 4859 7 2 5 9 9 10 8 8 3 5 56 6
5 to 6 SIN10 6 6 9 3 7 7 7 11 8 3 56 7
Ace 4801 8 5 8 7 8 11 9 6 6 8 65 8
Kicking Bottom 1324 12 8 14 2 11 6 2 9 7 9 66 9
J Spot 4786 4 13 7 10 10 5 10 3 12 10 71 10
Innaminka 4793 11 12 12 11 6 12 11 4 13 11 90 11
Wildfire 5058 13 10 10 12 13 8 12 7 9 12 93 12
Good Company 2663 10 11 11 13 12 9 13 12 11 13 102 13

J24 needed for 2014 Nationals

Do you have a racing standard boat that you wish to charter out for the J24 National Championship 5-9 January?

We have an international team looking to join the Regatta but they need a good boat!!

If so, please contact Vlad on vlado@starhub.net.sg

 

 

2013 National Photos

Photos by Chis Furey of the action on Wednesday. Thanks Chris!

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New Inventory Form now online

We now have a new style Excel spreadsheet you can use to work out and print out your Required and Optional Inventory form.

Note that you must carry a filled out copy of this form or the original hand filled version on your boat whilst racing.

This form is good as it automatically calculates your weights for you, then you can simply print it out.

To find the form go to About J24 in the drop down menu above and select “Measurement & Equipment Inventory Certificates”