Victoria launches new newsletter – 'Hit the Mark'

Doug MacGregor (Crackerjack) has been promoted to the Victorian Publicity Officer position – first job get a regular newsletter going. It’s called ‘Hit the Mark’ and I’m sure you’ll agree it certainly does that well.

As irreverent as a dour Scot can be, Doug’s editorial style is already flourishing in Issue One, emailed to the great unwashed of the Victoria J24 community today. His hard hitting, ‘pull no punches’ style will engage you from the start and you will be waiting for the next one to hit. Make sure you’re not the subject of the editors pen !  Move over Mad magazine.

Here’s the first one – June 1st, Issue 1..J24_Newsletter_2010_06

2010 Victorian States Pictures

More Pictures of the 2010 Vic States have been put online on the ORCV site – these are some great shots from Steb Fisher, if you want to have a look CLICK HERE

Victorian State Champs 2010

Jeanette Syme skippers Scott Salisbury into 3rd in the Vic States

Good things come in small packages, just ask Jeanette Syme. She helmed Scott Salisbury into 3rd place at this weekend’s Victorian State Champs at Sandringham YC in Melbourne.

Jeanette couldn’t have seen much of the race out in front as she is only half the height of Pete Stevens who spent the weekend right in front of her doing the trimming, but she is beaming. Big brother Ron, sailing Kicking Bottom and sailed very well and although the green machine was up near the pointy end of the fleet a lot of the time, he could only manage 5th.

We suggested she should rename her boat “Kicking Ron”.

In fact the whole Kicking Bottom / Scott Salisbury relationship is an interesting tale. The Melbourne fleet is undergoing something of an explosion of interest and in the last few months we have seen two new boats join the fleet and we have another 3-4 people genuinely interested in buying boats. Warren Campbell who has been sailing on Kicking Bottom for the last two owners, jumped out and bought Scott Salisbury from Adelaide a couple of days before the regatta. Peter Stevens very kindly brought the boat over and sailed on it with Arthur Crothers and Jeanette Syme and crew who came down from Sydney. So Warren, still sailing on Kicking Bottom watched his new boat sailed by his skipper’s sister fly by to finish ahead.

Got all that!  Need more?

Simon Grain was the bridesmaid again and Dave Suda, who didn’t even make double digits in his series score was very clearly the winner and deservedly so. He had an almost clean sweep with 5 wins and a second – guess to who – Yep “Kicking Ron”.  Good things do come in small packages, although she did say the crew were brilliant too.

Of course the “Kicking Ron” crew stayed at Warrens!

What it does very clearly show is that you can take an older boat, set it up in half a day and be very competitive in the fleet.

A very noticeable change this year was the calibre of the fleet, with close racing, and boats that have been out the back, now right up in the pack. Boat speed was generally up on last year and so Ron Thomson’s “Kicking Bottom”, Mike Lewenhagen’s “Excite Your Senses” and Doug MacGregor’s “Crackerjack” all lifted themselves into 5, 6 and 7 respectively. The Hyperactive Babes had an up and down regatta and finished fourth.

The weather co-operated with 5 – 15 knot northerlies, a little shifty and patchy at times but great sailing and with this sort of weather for many of the last years comps, the Vic States really is the “Balmy Regatta”

Although we had expected 4 interstate boats, it turned out to be two and the other boat was Terry Wise from Sydney who brought down Starpac with a very keen sailing school crew who really enjoyed the glamour Melbourne weather experience, flat water and warm sunny skies.

The tail end of the fleet was rounded out with new owners Andrew and Chris Hely on Vertigo, Jack Crawford’s Sanguine and another new owner Rowan Pollard on Two Dogs.

Glam weather also allowed the social side of things to go very well indeed, with a huge BBQ at Lisa Simonov’s house (thankyou Lisa) and virtually the whole regatta crowd were able to have a great night outside in the warm weather. Terry Wise gave a presentation on the upcoming Gosford “Legends Regatta” that is shaping up to be a very big event.

You’ve probably picked the name missing from the results. Hugo Ottaway was unable to make it this year due to his son doing the big 21 party and the bleary eyed master did struggle down on the Sunday to say hi – “lights on, but no one home” look !

The class is on fire and next year at the rate we are going we could very well have 20 boats on the start line, so book early if you want a bed in Melbourne!

Place Ties Sail No Boat Name Skipper From Sers Score Race 6 Race 5 Race 4 Race 3 Race 2 Race 1
1 4792 PACEMAKER DSuda HLandes SYC 7.0 1.0 2.0 1.0 1.0 1.0 1.0
2 4787 MAKE MY J Simon Grain SYC 19.0 2.0 4.0 2.0 5.0 3.0 3.0
3 2632 SSS Jeanette Syme MHYC 24.0 6.0 1.0 4.0 3.0 2.0 8.0
4 5246 HYPERACTIVE Kirsty Harris SYC 28.0 8.0 8.0 3.0 2.0 5.0 2.0
5 1324 KICKING BOTTOM Ron Thomson SYC 29.0 3.0 3.0 6.0 6.0 7.0 4.0
6 1636 EXCITE YOUR SENSES Michael Lewenhagen SYC 37.0 4.0 6.0 5.0 7.0 6.0 9.0
7 5086 CRACKERJACK Doug Macgregor SYC 39.0 10.0 7.0 7.0 4.0 4.0 7.0
8 5247 STARPAC Terry Wise CYCA 45.0 5.0 5.0 8.0 8.0 13.0O 6.0
9 5.0S 4436 VERTIGO Andrew Hely SYC 54.0 9.0 11.0 11.0 9.0 9.0 5.0
10 4470 SANGUINE Peter Moulang SYC 54.0 7.0 9.0 9.0 11.0 8.0 10.0
11 4464 TWO DOGS Rowan Pollard SYC 64.0 13.0F 10.0 10.0 10.0 10.0 11.0

A Strange Paradox

In a world that is constantly changing and becoming more expensive, one keelboat class offers you the opportunity to cruise and race for under $20,000.

A class that offers fleets all over Australia and an international fleet of over 5,500 boats.

You guessed it – the J24. And it’s making a big come back as people realise the unique potential of this little boat.

24 ft with a main, jib, genoa and kite, five crew, 4 bunks and an icebox. 24 ft of competitive excitement. And they are everywhere and compared to Etchells, Sportsboats and other similar sized keel boats – they’re as cheap as hell.

Some call it old – it is, same age as the Etchell.

Some call it slow – it isn’t, Div 3 of this years Spinnaker Cruising (Racing class) at Geelong Audi Week (the biggest class available), 56 boats and J24s gained 3 First places and a Second over the line in the 4 races held, even though it was the smallest boat in the fleet (beating boats 12ft longer over the line). It isn’t a sports boat speedboat, but it is a one design that doesn’t get out designed and out dated.

Some do call it outdated – it isn’t in fact, in a handicap or measurement class it rates so well they hate us entering – we tend to win. We still put 90 odd boats on the start line at most world champs.

So what other one design keelboat is there for under $20,000 with all these benefits you can get into and race competitively (or cruise), in a fleet around Australia?

You’re right – there isn’t another one.

Some people call it all sorts of names…… But we call it the J24

We’re putting stars into …. reasonably priced … boats !

Doug MacGregor, a new skipper competes at the Nationals in Melboure 2010

Light winds Give “ No Eye Deer” a clear victory

 

 

Trevor Conyers Crew
Trevor Conyers and Crew

Light and fickle winds compounded with strong tides tested the skills of the 10 J’s  participating at the SA state heats on the weekend of the 13th & 14th March.

The six races were always close with only five minutes separating the first and last boats in many of the races. Even those boats at the back of the fleet found the competition tense and enjoyed the thrill of coming in only a split second in front of another boat.

Trevor Conyers and his crew aboard No Eye Deer demonstrated consistent form in winning all but one race with Alyn Stevenson and Simon Grain always close on his tail.

As is a hallmark of J events the participants had a great time together and we very much appreciated the participation of our national president and his crew who incidentally presented the trophies to the winners even if that meant giving two to himself.

Thanks must go to the race officers who handled a constantly shifting course with considerable skill and also to the CYCSA who were our gracious hosts.

It was fantastic to see our fleet numbers up this year and with two other clubs showing significant interest in starting their own J fleets we reckon the J’s are in for a big year.

Simon Grain and Crew

The final results were

No eye Deer                Trevor Conyers

Fun 2                           Alyn Stevenson

Fun                              Simon Grain

Hi                                 Peter Stevens

Vertigo             Jamie Goode

Such is Life                   Roger Nicholson

Good Company            Robin Townsend

Kaizan 2                       Michael McGlinchey

Foolish Behaviour         Rod Wenham

Cookie Monster           Brian Walsh

 

For a break down of each race and PHS results go to the CYCSA website under racing results.

Rod Wenham

J24 SA President

We had Fun

Alyn Stevenson, Pete Stevens and crew race FUN in an earlier series
Alyn Stevenson, Pete Stevens and crew race FUN in an earlier series

The SA states were held over the weekend of 13/14 March in Adelaide. With typical late summer soft winds and fine weather the sailing was a glamour and easy on the body.

Trevor Conyers in No Eye Deer sailed an almost perfect series to win with five bullets and a second, from Alyn Stevenson sailing Fun 2.

Pete Stevens should have finished third but a small mistake in leaving the life jackets in the car on Saturday morning meant he was late to the starting line for the first race and scored a DNF and with no drops meant he had to carry that.

Instead he had to watch his old boat sail away into third ahead of him with me at the helm …. because we had ‘Fun’. Pete had invited us over, lent me the boat, given us a bed and as it turned out conceded to us the third he would otherwise have got. Sometimes it all turns out sweet … for us anyway.

Saturday and the weather was hot and sunny, wind around 8 knots from the south and flat water, you’ll be asking yourself why you didn’t come to this one. The CYCSA held the Great Southern Regatta in conjunction with the J States and did a very good job to get 3 races in – shortish courses with 2 or 3 times round and nice tight start lines to keep us on our toes. We had 10 boats on the line and plenty of talent in the field.

Competition was fierce around the track in all 3 races on Saturday with most of the fleet sailing the course and finishing in a tight pack.

Sunday and we had light westerlies with sun-blocking cloud – thankfully – once again the PRO did a good job to set up a tight line and course giving fair racing and tactical sailing. Trevor didn’t seem to have a lot more speed but with good sailing put himself in the right place each time and he moved through to lead each race by a small margin from either Alyn, Pete and in the last shortened race, Simon.

Snapping at the transoms of the first 4 boats were Vertigo, Good Company, Such is Life and Kaizen. Never far out of the picture, these boats are ready to jump you if you make a mistake. Foolish Behaviour and Cookie Monster rounded out the fleet.

The club and the State Association came together to put on a good regatta with many thanks to the PRO, his team and all the volunteers who made this happen.

Oh did I forget to mention we had the most amazing stroke of luck as I hadn’t even considered the handicap part of the series … but we took that out too.

As the only interstate boat we had a Fun time and were looked after by Pete Stevens in particular, but thanks to all who made us feel so welcome. Next time get on the blower and organise yourself a berth interstate, there is a cost but it is worth the effort and having class members organising billeting and help to get on the water makes this a great short holiday and a way to get to know your interstate friends better.

The next regatta is the Vic States on 17/18 March and if you haven’t already decided to come then have another think about it. Melbourne in autumn is traditionally a carbon copy of the regatta above, warm and light and lots of fun.

Results:

One Design

1   AUS1315 NO EYE DEER Trevor Conyers CYCSA 7.0 1.0 1.0 1.0 2.0 1.0 1.0
2   AUS5304 Fun 2 Alyn Stevenson PASC 18.0 3.0 3.0 5.0 1.0 4.0 2.0
3   AUS4787 FUN Simon Grain SYC 27.0 2.0 4.0 6.0 4.0 7.0 4.0
4   AUS4795 Hi Peter Stevens CYCSA 29.0 4.0 2.0 3.0 3.0 6.0 11.0F
5   AUS4859 VERTIGO Jamie Goode CYCSA 30.0 6.0 6.0 4.0 6.0 5.0 3.0
6   AUS2637 SUCH IS LIFE Roger Nicolson CYCSA 32.0 7.0 8.0 2.0 7.0 2.0 6.0
7   AUS2663 GOOD COMPANY Robin Townsend CYCSA 36.0 8.0 5.0 7.0 8.0 3.0 5.0
8   AUS4763 KAIZEN 2 Michael McGlinchey CYCSA 40.0 5.0 7.0 8.0 5.0 8.0 7.0
9   AUS4474 FOOLISH BEHAVIOUR Rod Wenham CYCSA 54.0 9.0 9.0 10.0 9.0 9.0 8.0
10   AUS4424 COOKIE MONSTER Brian Walsh CYCSA 58.0 10.0 10.0 9.0 10.0 10.0 9.0

Handicap

1   AUS4787 FUN Simon Grain SYC 22.0 1.0 5.0 8.0 1.0 5.0 2.0
2   AUS1315 NO EYE DEER Trevor Conyers CYCSA 23.0 2.0 2.0 10.0 5.0 3.0 1.0
3   AUS4763 KAIZEN 2 Michael McGlinchey CYCSA 28.0 5.0 6.0 3.0 3.0 6.0 5.0
4   AUS5304 Fun 2 Alyn Stevenson PASC 31.0 3.0 4.0 9.0 2.0 9.0 4.0
5   AUS4474 FOOLISH BEHAVIOUR Rod Wenham CYCSA 33.0 4.0 8.0 2.0 6.0 4.0 9.0
6   AUS2637 SUCH IS LIFE Roger Nicolson CYCSA 34.0 9.0 9.0 5.0 7.0 1.0 3.0
7   AUS2663 GOOD COMPANY Robin Townsend CYCSA 35.0 10.0 3.0 4.0 10.0 2.0 6.0
8   AUS4795 Hi Peter Stevens CYCSA 41.0 8.0 1.0 7.0 4.0 10.0 11.0F
9 1.0S AUS4424 COOKIE MONSTER Brian Walsh CYCSA 42.0 7.0 10.0 1.0 9.0 7.0 8.0
10   AUS4859 VERTIGO Jamie Goode CYCSA 42.0 6.0 7.0 6.0 8.0 8.0 7.0

Bar Talk – or news from the club bars

Alyn Stevenson just sent me this great chunk of “News from the club bars”, mostly talk around whats happening in SA – and plenty is happening, just like the action in the Victorian fleet – more of that later. So what a great idea and here it all is for your further edification. I’ve called it ‘Bar Talk’ – fits on the nav bar at the top easier – so check on this page regularly and if you have info to add send it to me at grain@smarketing.com.au

So go on ….click on the navigation link above

Cheers Simon

The battle for 3rd

A somewhat delayed post about the nationals – but better late than never!

As mentioned in an earlier post, there were two battles to take place on the final day of racing in the nationals.

The race for first between Sean in Wetty Gripper and Doug in Code Violation and the race for third between Hugo in Vice Versa and Dave in Pacemaker – with both boats only separated by a point.

As it turns out the race for third turned into very interesting battle on that final day.

The goal for Hugo was simple, beat Pacemaker in both races and secure third.

As soon as the northerly filled in and the start gun fired, it was game on. Hugo had the pace and the tactics to keep Dave at bay for the first lap. The comments from the crew on Pacemaker were that they had been outclassed by the team on Vice Versa. During the final lap, Vice Versa held a loose cover on Pacemaker taking them close to the starboard layline. A tacking duel just before the layline gave Pacemaker just enough room to breath on the way towards the mark.

By the time the to boats reached the top mark for the final time, Vice Versa had extended their lead to almost 10 boat lengths. Spotting traffic and a left hand windshift at the top mark gave Pacemaker the break they were looking for and tacked in on the stern of Vice Versa as they rounded the top mark heading for the finish.

From this point, it was game on. Pacemaker had one goal at this point… get in front! What ensued was a shy to shy gybing duel that would have had at least 10 gybes in it (we lost count!) that pushed both crews to the limit of their abilities.

At one point down the leg, Pacemaker broke the overlap and moved clear ahead, but failed to gain a starboard advantage. It was during the second half of the leg, that the Pacemaker crew had realised that something interesting was about to happen on the scoreboard. By locking horns with Vice Versa, Pacemaker had moved Vice Versa back down the field to a point where the boats were due to finish 8th and 9th. It was the 8th that was going to make the scoreboard very interesting as this changed the drops for both boats and left them with even points going into the last race. (For a detailed explanation, which includes hand waving and whiteboards – talk to the Pacemaker crew!)

Race 9 finished with Vice Versa just beating Pacemaker across the line.

The final race was shaping up to be a battle, with both teams going in on even points, but with Hugo ahead on a countback.

An unfortunate first beat and top mark rounding saw Vice Versa stuck at the back of the pack, with Pacemaker having an easy time up the front. The final result saw Pacemaker sneak home with a third.