Cheshire Cat

Maintenance

2012-02-10T11:17:00.003+11:00

Thanks to Paul White, but I changed the beer. He's right about Corona being wee.

Bad and Worse results

2012-02-06T14:17:00.003+11:00

We've sailed a couple of times since Xmas. Results are unfortunate.

A good day out on the 8th January was marred by us (read me) failing to read the instructions properly and therefore missing the final mark of the course and being marked DNF (did not finish). That was followed by a last place in the race on the 5th February. Both days we enjoyed the sail although being three handed on the 5th meant I had to work way harder than I am used to and I was rather tired at the end of the day and very stiff the next day. But I see this race as a handicap correction measure.

A beer at the Balmain Sailing Club afterwards is a nice way to finish up even if it means climbing all those stairs afterwards.

But it is great to get out and good to keep using Cheshire Cat. Poor thing is in need of some TLC at the moment. All the canvas covers are starting to wear out and the bimini is looking particularly sad with bird poo and green mould on it where the water doesn't drain properly.

I've sailed with Charlie on Solveig in the Friday twilights couple of times as well. She is doing much better with regular podium finishes. Her handicap will get the better of her eventually though.

Spring Series Results

2011-12-12T17:11:00.003+11:00

So we came 7th out of 12 in the Balmain Sailing Club Spring Series spite of only doing three races.

Southerly Buster

2011-12-12T11:23:00.004+11:00

We raced on Sunday (me, Julie, Roberta, John and Paul - Terina piked after a BIG night). We started in warm, light breeze and lovely blue skies. We stated well and headed for Long Nose Point where the mark was in place this time, then west towards Gladesville and back around the islands towards Goat. The clouds were building, the south west was black and we could see the rain coming and the lightening flashes advancing towards us. Storm a'comin'

Undeterred, although Paul did keep predicting mayhem, we rounded Goat, tried and sometimes failed to fall into windless holes, and then the wind hit. Gusts of 20 knots just as a ferry was bearing down on us heading for East Balmain. But having managed to bear away we benefitted from the following wind as we headed home. North of Cockatoo we reefed the headsail and the main without mishap thanks to John's dexterity and skill and then rounded the island to find the wind had dropped off. But we decided not to risk losing time by shaking out the reef as we had so little distance left to cover.

You can see the wind spike just in the middle of the race which started at noon

Southern Aura 11 that was near us got stuck north of Goat Island and eventually decided to retire. Amon Re also retired when they ripped their headsail before the storm arrived. We got soaked but had a good race and eventually came 4th. We still don't know what the flashing blue light on the club house means. The flashing yellow was for a shortened course but was posted too late to mean anything.

Race Cancelled

2011-11-28T12:10:00.003+11:00

It turns out that people must have complained about the missing mark off Long Nose Point. The race has been cancelled from the pointscore. Maybe there were protests against the committee. Doesn't make any difference to us as we haven't sailed enough races for it to count. But it will no doubt help someone. I am told that the buoy was laid but went missing, either run over by a power boat or washed away in the wind.

Feather Dusters

2011-11-28T08:55:00.006+11:00

Yesterday cock of the walk, tomorrow a feather duster. Cheshire Cat's winning streak came to an abrupt end with yesterday's race when we came 8th!! from 12 boats. A windy day so we furled the headsail a bit to make the winch wenches life a bit easier. We completely missed the start, unable to hear or see the signals but managed to start a slow catch up until we fell in a hole while rounding a non existent mark near Long Nose Point. Amon Re turned before us thereby getting ahead and then our windless hole compounded the damage. Still, it was a lovely day and we enjoyed the sail. Worst part was that when we got to the Balmain Sailing Club the sausages had run out. Julie and I shared the last one. Bummer!

You can see how it was a bit windy in the middle of the day, right at race time.

Balmain Regatta Pictures

2011-11-24T13:11:00.004+11:00

Here is the proof that Cheshire Cat rocks! We leave boats in our wake. By Goat Island we were five abreast but then we took off!

Jenny Gill's pictures.

Another Win - Who Knew

2011-11-17T12:00:00.003+11:00

Don't you love the handicap system!

We won the race last Sunday in spite of coming second last and generally not having a great race. When my start clock stopped we had to guess the time, wimped out and tacked just as the horn blew, losing our rather commanding position. But our new crew valiantly learnt the terror of the winches and we sailed the course without any major mishaps. It was a lovely day and we did enjoy everything except the winching bit. And we decided not to go back to the clubhouse but to stay on the boat and have a beer, which was very pleasant.

And then the results were posted on the web site and there we were - winners again!

The Cat's Whiskers

2011-10-31T13:24:00.007+11:00

We won the Balmain Regatta! at least we won our division, open yachts B, a non-spinnaker division.
No one was more surprised than me. Very surprised skipper with the trophy

I had been complaining that it was the single worst race I had ever sailed. In very light winds we were overtaken by a bigger boat on the start line as we crossed just after the gun, and we lost all our wind. That combined with a tide running out against us meant we came to a complete stop then drifted backwards "kissing" the start boat. Fortunately they were not fussed and just reminded us about the 360 rule. So we set off again, we managed to cross the line and tack up towards Birkenhead, Cheshire Cat finally gets past the start line

watching poor Solveig struggling to get moving. Solveig struggling against the tide

Then we battled fickle winds, outgoing tide and predatory boats around the islands including Goat where thankfully there was some wind. At one point there were five boats all in a line side by side between Goat and Mort Bay but good old Cheshire Cat pulled ahead aided by some excellent sail handling by the crew.
We then headed towards the Hunters Hill mark and rounded it then fell straight into irons. Thanks to some very poor helming. We then hit the mark but managed to avoid several other boats rounding behind us. So another 360 turn was made quickly while we had some wind and the crew were running on adrenaline. Finally away again we rounded the final mark and had a neck an neck race to the line with another boat, eventually pulling ahead to cross first. We were about 13th across but WINNERS on handicap!
Lucky Jenny has cemented her nickname.
Some of the old gaffers racing
Pictures are by Barbara Hamilton at BSC

Yes we have sailed again

2011-10-18T13:43:00.007+11:00

We went out twice in three days! First was the Friday twilight at Balmain Sailing Club. The breeze was OK but as we did our second lap of the islands we discussed how long the course was given the supposed cut off finish time. We also wondered why so many boats were taking a short cut between Cockatoo and Snapper/Spectacle. We later discovered that the course had been shortened! Next time we will take more notice of the big flashing yellow light on the clubhouse roof.
We came 13th out of 15 finishers.

Then we went out for the Sunday race. Another beautiful day but a few technical fixes meant we started late. And we never caught up. A dirty boat bottom doesn't help and neither do those bloody winches.

Time for a service I think. Or replacement if a lottery win comes our way. We came last, both over the line and on handicap. At least our handicap will be lower next race.

Too long ashore

2011-05-25T10:06:00.003+10:00

This is what happens if you neglect your boat.

I hadn't been out to the boat for a long time and we hadn't sailed since before Christmas. So stuff started growing. I expect that on the bottom and had a diver clean the hull before the race which obviously helped our result, but I was not expecting a vege patch on the deck!

And this is a better shot of the trophy showing the nice three bridges detail on the sails.

The Cat Rules!

2011-05-23T22:00:00.008+10:00

Cheshire Cat rocks! We won the Balmain Sailing Club 3 Bridges Race on Sunday. The race is a handicap start and the course goes past the Iron Cove Bridge, under the Gladesville Bridge
Coming up to the Gladesville Bridge

and up the Parramatta River to within sight of the Ryde Bridge. And back.
Julie on the foredeck
Julie and Terina discussing tactics - not!
Rooky crew and winch wench in training, Jenny

The skipper trying to concentrate

It was a tricky, tactical race with some luck thrown in. We had light winds but managed mostly to stay in the breeze, both passes of the Mortlake Ferry it was safely on the shore as when its in mid river it isn't safe to pass over the cables, and our tacking duel with Amon Re on the last leg saw several really excellent winching efforts by the crew so we held our lead position to finish 10 seconds ahead. Nail biting stuff. The winning team, happy at the bar!

The race is a handicap start and we were the third boat to cross the line but we quickly passed the others and held the lead all the way. Exhilarating.

And what was especially nice was that as we motored back to the mooring all the boats behind us clapped and cheered for us. Sweet.
The handsome trophy!

Poop - we came 6th

2010-11-02T10:05:00.003+11:00

No so bad except it was out of 8 boats!

I did think we did better than that but that's handicapping for you!

Balmain Regatta

2010-11-01T18:33:00.003+11:00

On a day that started out sunny and ended in a downpour, but well after we had put the trusty Cheshire Cat away, we had a boat full of rock stars and sailed a great race. A reasonable start in mild winds around the Balmain islands leading to very brisk winds around Goat Island and then a run home, well ahead of our rival Rogate and several others in our division - non spinnaker B open yachts. With John, Jenni B (ex CYC youth training coach) and Terina, Julie and Dayna we had a great time, maybe a bit too much chat from time to time with everyone catching up on the months or years of not seeing each other. Jenni and John were not happy with the placement of some of the running rigging so did some instant rethreading.

After the race we stopped for a beer and wine but then decided to take Cheshire Cat home to bed before heading back to the club for the results. Just as well, apart from selling Jenni B my extra dinghy it meant that when the rain bucketed later we didn't have to go boating in the wet. We did have to climb the club stairs and the very steep hill to the car so managed to get completely soaked anyway.

And we know we didn't win or come second but have no idea where we placed as the rest of the results have not yet been uploaded to the BSC web site found here

Another great day out

2010-10-19T15:50:00.002+11:00

Cheshire Cat continues her excellent performance with Balmain Sailing Club.

Shrugging off the disappointment of being demoted from second to fifth in the winter series Cheshire Cat was back with a second in the third spring series race. The first was cancelled due to severe winds. For the next one Cheshire Cat was mastless at Noakes waiting for a mysterious "part" for the forestay. The second race we were in Lake Macquarie earning over a thousand dollars for the Cancer Council and Marine Rescue so this was our first race of the series.

A windless start gave way to a light breeze as we made our way around Spectacle, Snapper and Cockatoo Islands. We were doing OK when we fell in a hole and Amon Re passed us just off Woolich. But we weren't last by a long shot and as the wind picked up so did we and eventually passed Amon Re, Rogate and a couple of others when we caught a lift and managed to avoid tacking on the work from Berry's Bay back to Rozelle. Fine steering by Jenni and exceptional crew work form terina and me kept us in front. We even overtook Southern Aura II around Goat Island as the wind picked up. Sadly Amon Re and Southern Aura II managed to pip us by seconds at the finish but on handicap we came second.

Even three handed these girls rock!

2010-10-10T10:02:00.007+11:00

I have been asked how to donate to Heaven Can Wait's two very worthy causes, NSW Cancer Council and the NSW Marine Resuce volunteers. If you go here and select Cheshire Cat then click the "donate now" button you should be able to follow the prompts. But be warned I think it closes tonight, Sunday 10th. You will find more details at the Heaven Can Wait web site.

Heaven Can Wait - but the rain didn't

2010-10-06T10:30:00.022+11:00

What a big adventure.

Cheshire Cat entered the Heaven Can Wait Regatta in Lake Macquarie. The regatta is a fund raiser for the NSW Cancer Council an the Lake Macquarie Marine Rescue Service.
Sunshine to start with
Rain at the end

Our intrepid team, Julie and Terina, Dee, up from Melbourne specially and me, set off from Balmain on Thursday in sunshine. The boat was full of edible and drinkable goodies thanks to provisioning queens Terina and Julie. A seal at the green channel mark near Obelisk saw us off and dolphins accompanied us up the coast. With the sails hoisted we made our way to Coaster's Retreat for the night and an on-shore BBQ and way too much wine. There were only a few tents in the camp ground but lots and lots of wallabies with joeys in their pouches grazing the lawns.

Good winds after Norah Head

Next morning at dawn we fired up the motor and headed for Swansea to catch the high tide across the bar. The wind was too light most of the way to abandon the motor but when it did kick in around Norah Head we stormed up the coast in 20 knots arriving in perfect time to cross the bar at slack tide. I wondered what all the fuss about Swansea Bar was all about.

Tiring work!

Safely inside the channel we waited for the bridge to open and then motored across to Toronto where Mark Cherrington from Balmain Sailing Club who is also one of the organisers of HCW had a spot on the wharf for us. We tied up between 2 Balmain boats with another inside the marina and a 4th to arrive later.

We managed to get the boat a bit wet on the way up the coast so when trying to make a cup of tea the gas alarm went off and that was the end of the mid-ocean cuppa. To get it fixed I went to the bar of the Toronto Royal Motor Yacht Club, as you do, and was directed to Greg (Woodsey) Woods. Greg came to the boat, found the alarm, and worked out how to fix it but needed overnight. So showers in the Club and dinner in the bistro were the solution.

Race day meant another early morning, partly because Greg said he'd be back at 6.30am! We later discovered from the cleaner/barista at the club that mornings are not his best time! He eventually arrived as Dee and I set off for the briefing so we left Julie and Terina to look after Greg. Lucky girls. By this time he'd taken a bit of a shine to us all-girl boat.

Briefing over we tidied up and went out to the start line to do a few runs and test the wind. The start line was a bit protected but the wind was blowing just past the headland. An OK start saw us in a good position out wide so we could avoid a tack. We caught some boats and were looking good. As we were in Division 2 we didn't have to do the full stretch of the lake but were to turn off around Pulbah Island. One boat lost its rig in the 20+ knot breeze and when the rain came we heard another one radio the race committee to say "we're wet and cold and we're coming in".

Bigger boats ahead of us

We were having fun, keeping out of the dead patches and staying in the wind. Strong winds took us across the top of Pulbah and into Belmont where the pressure dropped and we slowed down for a while. There is something to be said for having boats in front because you can see where they lose the wind. The second last mark was at the top of a protected bay and everyone slowed down. Then a quick couple of tacks and we were back across the line and had finished well within the time limit.

It had been wet and cold and strenuous so we did not regret for a moment our decision to do the One Lap Dash and not the 24 hour race.

Back on the marina and Woodsy turned up, most surprised we had finished so early! Being girls and all. While I sat back the crew cooked a feast and Julie's friend Carolyn from Newcastle joined us for dinner and a hilarious evening.

A pre-dawn start was needed for us to make the 6am bridge opening so we could catch the high tide again to cross the bar on the way out of the channel. There was no breeze and it was drizzling as we motored across the lake and we felt for all those hardy 24 hour sailors.

Swansea Bridge at dawn

It took longer than I expected to get to Swansea so we missed the 6am bridge opening and had to wait til 7am which meant we were crossing the bar 2 hours after high tide. I had been told by locals that up to 2 hours was OK. But it was by now blowing steady NE which is the worst conditions.

Ready to head south - a bit of weather about!

The Marine Rescue guy reported the mouth was "becoming rough" and was non-committal when I asked was it navigable so we thought we'd have a look and see if it was safe. A stink boat was going out just ahead of us which was great because we could see how they handled the seas. We all agreed it looked OK so off we went. Cheshire Cat rode beautifully through the swell and before too long we were past the bar and into slightly calmer waters. But now I do know what all the fuss is about. Another hour and it definitely would not have been possible to go. But we were safely across so up with the sails, a reef in both the main and the jib, and we were off.

We flew down the coast with several squalls reducing visibility and speeding us along. Julie had very sensibly kept a log on the way up with headings and times so we knew where we should point and where we were even though we often couldn't see the coastline.

But when we could see we saw loads of whales, blowing, tails in the air, jumping and waving their fins. And some more dolphins.

Thank god for wet weather gear

It was a bumpy ride and hard work steering. And Woodsy's fix of the gas alarm stopped working so we couldn't even make a cuppa much less the noodles we were craving. So we decided to stop off in Coasters again. We collected a small gas BBQ from Terina's boat Firefly so we could cook the spag bol for dinner. The crew were dreaming of hot showers again but when we got ashore discovered that the Parks and Wildlife had blocked the hot taps. Dee was the only one game enough to have a cold shower. We resorted to a sparkling red instead while the dinner cooked.

Next morning we left for Sydney and the promise of lunch at Jenni and Deirdre's. Terina requested a fire and we tried to guess what would be on the menu. The wind was still strong at around 20 knots mainly from the NE so we made excellent time of 3.5 hours head to head. Funnily enough Woodsey rang just as we were coming through the heads to see if we had made it home. I think he's going to come looking for us at Balmain. I'm not sure he understands the significance of the rainbow flag!

With the lunch beckoning the crew did a fab job of packing up and getting everything off the boat at the pontoon in record time. And we were sitting in front of the fire, drinks in hand by 2pm! Full of tall tales and feeling very proud of ourselves. We raised $900 blitzing our $500 target. So thanks very much to all who donated.

And now we know just how well Cheshire Cat handles big seas.

HEAVEN CAN WAIT

2010-09-29T11:45:00.005+10:00

Cheshire Cat is going to Lake Macquarie for the Heaven Can Wait one lap dash. We have opted not to do the 24 hour race this year, saving it for 2011 when John Harris can join us - we hope!

The organising authority of the fifth Heaven Can Wait 24 Hour Yacht Race and One Lap Dash is the Heaven Can Wait Yacht Club. The Venue is the Toronto Royal Motor Yacht Club Toronto.

The Heaven Can Wait 24 hour race was conceived and promoted by Lake Macquarie resident, keen sailor and cancer survivor Shaun Lewicki as a major annual sailing event on the lake, to promote sailing, the Lake Macquarie/Newcastle/Hunter region – and to raise funds for cancer research.

Proceeds of the 2010 will again benefit the NSW Cancer Council and the Royal Volunteer Coastal Patrol (now Marine Rescue NSW). You can sponsor us by logging on to this very pink site

We (Anni, Julie, Terina and Dee from Melbourne) set off on Thursday and will stop overnight at Pittwater before making a dawn start to reach Swansea by lunch time when the tide will be on the turn and good for bar crossing.

The race starts at 11am on Saturday and will be finished by 5.30pm. This is the course.

We will of course have the rainbow flag flying high, along with the Balmain and ASCC burgees. And maybe even the cocktail flag!

Too Good To Be True

2010-08-20T11:31:00.005+10:00

It never pays to be too happy or too pleased with life. Something will come along and bite you in the bum immediately.
The Balmain Sailing Club has revised its Winter Series results. We are now not only not 2nd but have slid to 5th!
So we now have a DNS (did not sail), a DNF (did not finish), a 1st, a 4th and two 7ths. Bummer.
Maybe we should have stuck with the ASCC after all!
I am waiting to hear from the handicap person what happened as it is a bit odd that we seem to be the only boat affected. I don't want to be paranoid but....

Blogs I Like

2010-08-17T14:26:00.005+10:00

There are a few blogs I check regularly. One is Berrimilla sails on...
Alex Whitworth and Peter Crozier have sailed Berrimilla twice around the world doing Sydney-Hobart and Fastnet races at either end. One circumnavigation was via the North West passage. Berri is a 33 ft Brolga. The guys, both in their 60s, are interested in so many things and write funny and fascinating stories about their travels. The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy features for fans of those books. So do bird and flora pictures, ruminations of the world and the vagaries of people, the weather and life in general. Alex is presently on his way home from visiting the Mars Institute research base in the Arctic very close to the path of Berri on her northern journey. They are both so interested in everything that their blog is a continuing joy.

Sailing Leapfrog is fun at the moment as friends of Scott and Tony's sail Leapfrog to Cairns for them. The naked bottom is a bit scary but.

I liked Junk and the read is still pertinent even though the voyage is long over. It was a precursor to Plastiki and a catamaran really made of flotsam and jetsam rather than the much more highly engineered Plastiki made from carbon dioxide filled water bottles.

Photo Competition

2010-08-17T10:55:00.006+10:00

Now I have your attention.... I thought some pictures would be good.

This picture did not win the ASCC's competition but got an honourable mention.

I submitted this picture as well but it was not so successful.

I thought it did a great job of epitomising the ASCC. Sparkling water, rainbow flags, Sydney Harbour in all her glory, very relaxed crew ....

Three Wins In Two Days - Priceless

2010-08-17T09:55:00.003+10:00

Well it's official, we won the two races we sailed in the ASCC Winter Series.

The Vice Commodore is confident we would have taken out the series but Balmain was the sweeter win this year.

Rock Stars

2010-08-16T14:37:00.006+10:00

Yes we have had another win!

We had a big weekend. Two races with the ASCC on Saturday, a night sleeping over in Blackwattle Bay and then the final Balmain Winter series race on Sunday.

Blackwattle Bay

Saturday was ideal conditions with bright sunshine and northerly winds 10 - 15 knots - Cheshire Cat's favourite conditions. And the crew feels the same. We blitzed both starts leaving even Jo's 36ft Bavaria in our wake. She caught us both times eventually but we finished within a minute of her both times which is pretty amazing. In race 2 we passed her on the run with ease. But upwind she is faster, and points a bit better as well. It was fun to be so close and so competitive and even better to find out selves so close to a boat that was bigger, newer and one we would have though was a faster boat. Laine and Costa were sailing very close races behind us with only minutes between them.

After stopping off at Cobblers for very delicious mulled wine and some nibbles, and losing Terina to Jo's boat briefly, we headed for Blackwattle to rendezvous with Helen and Deirdre coming by car and Charlie and Ange in their boat. With the two boats secured to the public pontoon, if not exactly legally (except that we were picking up and dropping off people as allowed) we had a very lovely BBQ dinner and way too much wine. After dinner Deirdre offered to take all the dishes back to her place and put them in the dishwasher which was a great relief to us all.

We went to bed very tired but hoping to be pumped for the big race on Sunday. That didn't go quite to plan as a few sore heads were had in the a.m. Julie's alarm went off around 6 which was a bit of a shock but we all went back to sleep til closer to 9am when Jenni started cooking bacon and eggs and hash browns. And it was another sunny morning so we ate on deck, still nicely tied up to the pontoon. Eventually a dog walker came and told us we weren't supposed to be there so long. Other than that no-one came near us or the pontoon until a couple of boys in a little yacht pulled up, picked up another couple of boys and cruised away.

And so did we, to collect Jen and Nicki from the Balmain Sailing Club ready for the race. As we were a bit early we picked up a rather skanky empty mooring. And just as well. There was a nasty looking black cloud headed our way. As it passed there was thunder, lightening, hail and 30+ knot winds. It was very close to the start of the race and next thing we knew the cancellation/postponement light came on at the club. The crew all disappeared below but I was worried that the mooring might not hold so stayed on deck with the motor running just in case.

As you can see from the Seabreeze graph (seabreeze.com.au) it passed as fast as it came and we hoisted the main sail, but cautiously with a reef in it, ready for the start. As the wind dropped away we realised we needed to shake out the reef. This made us slow off the start but was a good call. We had a great race, again close to some other boats which always makes it more interesting. A few big gusts around Goat Island, along with a ferry in the way, slowed us a bit. And with bigger winds we reefed the headsail a bit to keep some control. Even then we broached a couple of times but not too badly. And the boats around us got away from us.

We were last across the finish line and we weren't hopeful of a decent place. We dropped off the crew at the club with all the luggage and took Cheshire Cat to our mooring. By then the wind was back up to 20 knots and gusting more so it was a struggle to get secure. I couldn't see or hear what Jen and Jen were saying and stupidly came up to the mooring from the wrong side which made it even harder for them. But eventually we were sorted and I rowed ashore as penance.

Back at the club we were having a beer and a sausage as they read the results. As the other boats close to us in the point score were read out the tension was palpable. Again we thought they'd forgotten us. But no - we won! Again.

The blokes from Ambitious, who we passed and who retired to the bar instead of finishing the race (not very ambitious of them) were fulsome in praise of us all girl crew. Rather too fulsome in a couple of cases!

We were all exhausted but stoked at what a great weekend it had been. But we also wanted very badly to get home for a hot shower and a lie down.

Another First! Now it's serious

2010-08-03T13:33:00.001+10:00

Last Sunday the wind was forecast at between 10 and 30 knots depending on which web site I looked at. But it was gorgeously sunny.

With Jenni on the helm and Julie, Terina, Nikki and I poised on the winches we made a great start and pointed perfectly to the first mark in Balls Head Bay. It is great to be among the fleet these days instead of bringing up the rear. We sped around the islands and off towards the bridge to round Goat Island. While expecting big gusts the wind didn't ever get much over 15 knots which suits Cheshire Cat just fine. We had the headsail furled a bit making the tacks easier right up til the run to Goat Island where we let out the full stretch giving us lots of power. As the wind still hadn't increased we left the heady out for the tack back up the harbour making it more work for the girls grinding but they did a fab job and kept us up ahead of Coppelia, Rogate and Umbakumba and just seconds behind Amon Re. The final stretch home was made in one tack. We were pleased but not expecting the final result. As the Commodore announced the results we thought they had left us out. But no - we were first again! Fabulous. And the sausage sizzle was free because it was Tommy's birthday! What more can a girl ask.

We drifted to 2nd!

2010-07-19T20:53:00.002+10:00

Sunday's race started in no knots of wind and ended up with about 4 knots! We spent the first 20 minutes (although Dayna says it was 40 minutes) on the wrong side of the start line pointing in the wrong direction, unable to turn Cheshire Cat towards the first mark. The rest of the fleet were drifting away from us at about 0.5 knots. Eventually a stink boat wake helped us turn around and we were OFF! After creeping towards Birkenhead with the headsail flapping we decided to furl it for a while and let what little breeze there was fill the main. It worked and we started to close on the back of the fleet.

Meanwhile the dinghy sailors had started and they too were drifting slowly. We eventually caught up to Amon Re, Scylla and a couple of others. The committee boat had been ferrying beer and collecting bored crew for a while. Then they came past and said the race had been shortened! Like that was a surprise.

Determined to persevere when all around us were abandoning the race we managed to pass Rogate at the corner of Snapper Island and finally found a small breeze. The wind made us forget all about the beers we were about to open. It was quite exhilarating to be clocking 2.5 knots on the speed log and we finally felt we might actually finish within the 3 hour time limit! And we did, with about 10 minutes to spare.

When we got to the club they asked if we actually did the race! The cheek of them. It was because we had furled the heady. They thought we'd decided to quit! Never! And we came 2nd which was great.

A DNF and a Win!

2010-07-05T12:03:00.004+10:00

After a few very pleasant social sails where we just pottered out had lunch and came home Cheshire Cat is now back into racing having entered the Balmain winter series.

Julie says it's 10 months since she last raced. Her knee op had something to do with that.

So on Sunday 20th we gathered early with a plan to scrub the poor Cat who had been suffering from neglect and bad weather. But flat batteries kyboshed us getting round to Balmain Sailing Club for power and water. We still did a clean up and Alan Clarke jump started us from another battery. Thanks Alan. Lucky he was at the marina at the time.

We eventually chugged to the start line a little late and then with very light winds found ourselves on the wrong side of the line at the warning signal. That meant getting to the right side of the line, doing a 360 which we did with great skill! and starting. Given the lack of wind and the very grungy bottom we moved extremely slowly round the first leg of the course. It was a lovely day so we enjoyed ourselves. And it meant newcomer C Moore didn't have to work hard.

We were soon being lapped by the faster boats even though they too weren't going very fast. We finally approached the line in front of the club as the cut off time loomed. We didn't manage to finish even the short course! Only one boat finished (just a minute or so in front of us) the long course but results were taken from the short version. So we scored DNF.

Then on the 4th July, with new batteries and clean bottom, we set off, got to the start in time and even though I missed the warning signal we started close to the rest of the fleet. Then we started the chase. We eventually passed three other boats (Rogate, Copelia and Ambitious) by virtue of squeezing past the edge of Cockatoo Island when they all had to tack. And we held the advantage for the rest of the race, almost passing Umbakumba as well at Goat Island.

And so we won! That will bugger our handicap but we don't care. It was great to not be last for once. And the day was lovely, if a bit cold, and the sausage sizzle and beer at the club, plus the prize of a bottle of sparkling red, made it a great day.

At last - back on the water!

2009-10-12T13:55:00.003+11:00

It's been ages since we went sailing. Actually we did go out to the ASCC race in early September but that's ages ago.

On Sunday we sailed with BSC. The weather was lovely if cool and the wind interesting. We had some good gusts but the rest was between 8 and 14 knots - nice.

Maggie, a friend who does the starts for the twilights, sent this picture taken from her balcony.

And we enjoyed the sausage sizzle afterwards along with some hungry four legged friends.

Terina, Julie, Jenni and Alice. Also on board was new sailor Sam who did a great job for a beginner.

And we came 8th out of 16 or so boats. Much better than our usual last.

Skandia

2009-04-08T10:26:00.004+10:00

Half way through Broken Bay week, John, Jason and I drove back to Sydney to go for a sunset sail on Skandia, the 98 foot maxi. Happy boys. We all got to steer and that explains the big smiles.
Lots of room in the cockpit

Big sails

We drove back to Cottage Point in the rain but we didn't care. We didn't even mind missing Laine's celebrated paella. We had a great time.

Broken Bay

2009-04-07T18:45:00.007+10:00

Another great week has passed. Here are a few pictures until I get time to post properly.
We set off in glorious sunshine after taking hours to load the boat, get the dinghy on board and make sure we had enough alcohol.

This is what we woke up to the first morning.

John gets a push from Jason

The theme for the cocktail party was "f". We were the fuckarewes

Terina brought Firefly 2 along

The trip home was smooth sailing.

ASCC Regatta

2009-03-18T12:44:00.003+11:00

Julie and I raced with Gavin in the 2009 ASCC Mardi Gras Regatta. And we won!!!

Here we are just ahead at the bottom mark

We won the first two races, then Gavin said " to win this regatta we just need to win three races". Then we came second - twice!

Heading for the windward mark we were determined not to be distracted by Quest (Sydney Hobart winner) trying to fly a spinnaker!

So going in to the final race it was a dead heat and we were battling against Gavin's nemesis and former crew member Dale who is also from Melbourne.

It was a hard fought race but we eventually passed Dale who got the better start and we held on to win.

The relaxed smile is only because this is crossing the line at the end of the last race

New Year's Eve

2009-01-28T17:17:00.003+11:00

We had a great spot, fabulous view.

And had a lovely night.

2 Prizes in 1 Day!

2008-11-23T14:28:00.005+11:00

Its been a long time since I posted anything but we have been sailing and winning. But not races.

The Balmain Regatta gave us another opportunity to bring out the rainbow flags. And this time our style was appreciated and rewarded with first prize for best dressed boat. Way to go girls!

And this is Tony Partridge who is Cruising Captain at Balmain with me, Terina and Julie accepting our prize.

And then after an interesting race we went ashore at the Balmain Sailing Club which was jumping with dinghy races, a band, beer and the prize giving. Sadly we did not do too well on handicap in the race but I did win the raffle! And am now the proud owner of a Walker 8 white plastic dinghy with blue seats. And it has a spot to put a centre board and a mast so I can sail it as well. Could be fun in Broken Bay.

Two other ASCC boats raced but not very happily. This is Leapfrog skippered by Scott Davis in the Classic division
Balmain Regatta results here
There are more photos here

Winners are Grinners

2008-07-18T17:54:00.009+10:00

The ASCC Annual Prizegiving Dinner was held on July 4th at the CYC. Tony Tyson made a wonderful toast to the club and talked about how our club is not about a place but the people and the community spirit we share and foster.

Cheshire Cat won the winter series and we scored a very nice trophy. As it was the only series we entered we are pleased with ourselves.

I also won all three places in the photo competition! Mainly because Dayna didn't enter and Mike McCabe who also takes lovely photos didn't get his entries in on time. Still I'm not complaining. It was judged by Angela Catterns. She is obviously very discerning. The prize is a digital photo frame. It wasn't plugged in which is why it is blank black.

Third - Coming home after the winter series
Second - Chris Mugden's steam boat in front of Mathilde at Broken Bay
First - Early morning in Castle Lagoon, Broken Bay This is the one that I think most epitomises the club and the cameraderie we share. It didn't even get a mention.

And Helen and I presented the inaugural "HELP" Award to an absent John Harris for his seemingly endless willingness to hlp me and others out of difficulties on water. So congrats John.

This is Helen and I with the trophy - a lighthouse - in the background.

No Sailing

2008-06-12T10:14:00.004+10:00

No sailing at the moment. Maintenance goes slowly.

But I found this picture of Michael bailing out after having let me drive the jet boat at Broken Bay.

At last - some regatta pictures

2008-04-25T12:03:00.008+10:00

Very close racing! We are in Club Marine followed by Dale.
The third and fouth teams also had close races.

S/he who hikes hardest goes fastest.

A finish that was a little close for comfort. Less than a second in it. You can just see Dale in #3 behind our bow.

Mally has the time of his life with Rob and Chris.

Jenni Bonnitcha keeps a close eye on us.

Jenni and Evan. Sadly Jenni is leaving the CYC so we wont have the blonde bombshell looking after us in future.

Our four skippers - Gavin, Jenny, Chris and Dale

Broken Bay

2008-04-13T11:53:00.014+10:00

Once again Cheshire Cat and her valiant crew set off for Broken Bay week. Julie Terina and I were on board. Jenni was following in Mathilde. Can't understand why. The forecast was promising and once we'd loaded a mountain of supplies we motored to the Heads because there was no wind. But no sooner had we turned left than a very nice north easterly filled in and we set the sails and made Barrenjoey in one tack. Very cool!

On the way we were passed by John, Paul and Jenni in Mathilde but unfortunately John managed to delete the pictures he took of us sailing happily north. Behind us were Wayne in Far Out, his new stink boat, and his friend John in a sailboat called Phoenix. Aboard Quest Laine, Neil and Mike plus some others were way ahead of us and already in Coasters Retreat having left too early for the breeze and therefore having to motor the whole way.

We picked up a mooring close to Mathilde and Quest and got ready to go ashore for a BBQ. Wisely we all prepared our beds prior to imbibing. There were twenty or so revelers on shore boosted by a huge contingent on Far Out and Bernie in Xantippe with Zane and Ross. Zane made someone very happy.

Sunday dawned sunny. Jenni had been trying to get the club to go to Lobster Beach for years so with Mathilde at her disposal she and John announced their intentions to go there for lunch. In spite of us keel boats being a little concerned about the depth we decided we would all go too. We sailed north past Lion Island and then switched on the Iron headsail when we were approaching the narrow channel into Brisbane Water. Lobster Beach is just inside the channel so keeping a wary eye on the depth sounder we crept into the bay and dropped anchor. I had never been sure of the setting of the sounder so it was an interesting test. According to the gauge we were in 1.9 metres of water. The bottom of the keel is 5 ft 6 inches from the water level or 1.7 metres. Mike, who was to become my trusty mooring partner, stood on the bottom and put his hand in the air. His fingers just cleared the surface. As a result we knew the depth sounder was pretty accurate and that at 1.9 we were OK and anything less than 1.7 was probably aground.

We had lunch and some of us swam. Being at Lobster Beach was described by someone as sitting in a cafe on Parramatta Road. Because it is right on the edge of the main channel into Brisbane Water, Gosford and all places in between it has a constant flow of boats and ferries motoring past. Jenni has been satisfied and we are unlikely to go there again.

Then it was time to drop Julie and Terina at Palm Beach as they had to go to work on Monday. And then to Refuge Bay for the night. As I pulled into the bay John and Jenni sped up in Mathilde's jet tender and Jenni climbed aboard to pick up the mooring for me.

That night I had dinner with Jenni and John (very nice beef bourguignon) as Jenni was leaving the next day and John was also going home for Monday night.

A lovely glassy morning was followed by a trip to Castle Lagoon via Hallets Beach for lunch. Mike came with me to help with moorings or anchoring depending on our luck. The lunch stop-over provided another test for the depth sounder. After some excitement Laine, Neil, Mike and I had lunch aboard Cheshire Cat featuring smoked trout with horseradish cream. Far Out and Phoenix had gone to Brooklyn for drop offs and pick ups. My plan to patch the hole in the floor of the inflatable was abandoned to a later date.

Motoring in to Castle Lagoon we found empty moorings which made us all happy.
Specially since we were to be there two nights. Dinner was aboard Far Out as Wayne proudly showed off her entertainment potential, not to mention the accommodation including a double cabin with en suite. His attempts to seduce Mike to make use of the currently empty berth fell on deaf ears.

Tuesday's schedule, apart from a work conference call and some light boat maintenance included a trip to nearby Cottage Point for lunch. We all boarded Far Out and moored right at the restaurant feeling very glamourous and important. Mathilde with John, Peter and Michael aboard had arrived when we got back to Castle Lagoon. The obligatory boat hopping included an inspection of Cheshire Cat's emergency steering with Wayne and Phoenix John and an invitation to dinner on Quest for goat tagine. Peter and Michael, still recovering from a trip to Vietnam, declined. John, as my date, collected me in the jet boat bringing a lovely fake hibiscus as a corsage. The tagine accompanied by couscous with cranberries and almonds was delicious. Quest is also a very comfortable boat for entertaining.

Wednesday morning was misty with a river of cloud streaming down the cliff into the lagoon. A great photo opportunity before I went back to sleep.

The forecast was for a very windy afternoon so we all decided to head for the scheduled overnight at Warratah Bay and see how secure it would be. Mike came with me in case we had to anchor. As it turned out the three moorings were empty so Quest, Mathilde and Cheshire Cat were all nice and safe. Far Out and Phoenix had again gone to Brooklyn. A couple of runs in the jet boat saw 7 of us at Bobbin Head for a very nice lunch. On the second return trip John ran out of fuel and had to row from Apple Tree Bay. It didn't seem far at 6 knots but I am told it seems much further when you're rowing. Far Out with new crew appeared late in the afternoon.

After roast pork on Mathilde we all bunkered down for a windy night. In the end it wasn't too bad. In fact it was worse the next morning gusting 15 to 20 knots. Then while we were having our respective breakfasts a rather odd looking work boat chugged into the bay and as I watched nosed up near Quest and had a conversation.
Wouldn't you know it they were there to service the mooring. So Quest rafted up next to Cheshire Cat for an hour or so. In spite of the stiff breeze we sat very nicely together. And then it was time to head for my favourite spot - Smith's Creek. I still remember Wayne, years ago, arriving in his inflatable in the dead of night with Charlie, his faithful dog, wearing nothing but a microscopic leather lap lap and a string tie. Wayne that is not Charlie. He was dressed for the Commodore's cocktail party where the dress code was formal.

This time, as I rounded the corner I saw one empty mooring and a house boat just leaving. Further in, it turned out all the moorings were for us - hooray. Quest on one, Mathilde on one. I was able to pick up my mooring single handed just before John arrived to help. A small moment of accomplishment. We tied Wayne's dinghy to the fourth mooring as he had again gone to Brooklyn for a change of crew. To identify it we also tied a rainbow flag to the outboard. So we ended up owning the bay for the night. And Michael encouraged me to drive the jet boat. That was fun! If a little scary. But I have since discovered it is also against the rules. Just as well, as it could become addictive.

Another roast dinner aboard Mathilde. Laine and Michael have mastered the art of roasting now. Peter was practicing horizontal pole dancing and John tried out a wig.

The morning was for exploring up the creek a bit where there were lots of fish and sting rays in the water. Yet another work conference call and then off to Akuna Bay for the Commodore's Cocktail Party. And a final brush up of my performance piece. Mike came with me again as we knew we would have to anchor, there being no moorings. Once again we had the place to ourselves. Bruce and Bert were already there in their little cruiser Antibes. Bernie reappeared in Xantippe with Zane, Robert and Ross aboard, and Chris Mugden in his little steamboat Aldebaran with a new member, plus Cheshire Cat, Quest, Mathilde and Far Out. I don't know what happened to Phoenix. Afternoon included helping decorate Mathilde as well as an ice run to the shop at Akuna Bay. A messenger run in my dinghy to tell people what time the party would start ended with a slight mishap that meant I got a bit wet.

Commodore Roger with his Davey, Rear Commodore David and, as a special treat, MY HELEN arrived on the 7pm pickup from the jetty.

I had been going to offer bunks to a couple of girls who were said to be going to come but who never arrived or to Roger and Davey, but with Helen as my surprise guest I was glad we could have cheshire Cat to ourselves.

The theme of the party was "Hello Sailor". Bereft of inspiration I went as a sailor in wet weather pants, Gay games t-shirt, gloves, cap etc. Helen dressed as the gorgeous Sunday sailor that she is. Laine was Popeye, Mike a shipwrecked bum, and various other takes on the concept were seen. Michael was resplendent in a rainbow t-shirt, white pants and white cap. Very gay and ultimately the winner of the costume prize. The judges, Helen and Bernie, felt his outfit most expressed the theme of both gay and sailoresque. Neil's costume was apparently too subtle. But he again did a great job as cocktail maker.

The performances were all good. The Quest crew sang "Popeye- the sailor's man" , Chris and his crew did a poem which I am told is well known, but with lots of innuendo in it. Roger reworded the Jamaica song with the line "I had to leave a lovely boy in London town". Given that Davey is now here and not in London it was a bit old news I thought. But sweet and well sung. Bert and Bruce did a very rude poem and friggin' in the riggin' and I did a version of "Friends, Sailors Cuntrywomen lend me your yachts". Chris won based on performance. I felt unjustly discriminated against because Helen was a judge and may have therefore felt compromised, but the verdict that while clever, it wasn't as well performed was true. Note to self - try harder next time.

Lots of fun, dancing, champagne and then bed with my girl. And no dinghy mishaps, thank god.

Next morning Helen and I had a leisurely breakfast and watched Chris give tours on Aldebaran. The boys from Xantippe were skinny dipping and jumping off the rope on shore. Some folk were not on the boats one would expect. Some very big grins were seen! We had a snack aboard Mathilde once the boys were dressed (no dangly bits for us) and then Mike and I dropped Helen back at Akuna Bay. She drove home while we motored back to Coasters Retreat to pick up Terina and Lea from the ferry. On the way we took pictures of Quest and she took pictures of us. Mike was on the helm.

Again plenty of moorings to pick up. Scott and Tony in a rental yacht were there too. Another BBQ ashore, a few drinks on Quest and then to bed. Julie came over on the morning ferry and we prepared to head back to Sydney. A still morning meant we might have to motor home but again the breeze filled in just at a perfect angle to sail down the coast on one tack. So we sailed all the way to Balmain. Jenni had the BBQ ready when we got home which was a lovely way to finish another perfect Broken Bay week full of sun, sea, food, wine and mucking about in boats.
Some of the pictures are Neil's and some are mine.

Some eye candy

2008-03-20T18:24:00.005+11:00

I haven't got any pictures of this year's regatta yet so here are three of a brilliant start last year. That's Gavin, Dee and me in the foreground in MMM. A little hiking and away we go!

It's nice to have the significant others on board from time to time. Here's Helen

and Mally with Haitham

Here's Laine's new boat Quest at the Harbour Party
and Laurie's Sampinguita

Costa and the cops

And here's the two Cunard queens passing each other at Fort Denison. The QE2 at the back at least looks like a ship. The Queen Victoria looks like a block of flats.

ASCC Races

2008-03-19T16:42:00.009+11:00

We've done two ASCC races this year and no Balmain ones, mainly cos of the demands of Mardi Gras, and the desire for some casual sailing and picnic lunches. The first one was on February 24th when we raced against Quest, Laine's new boat, Antares and someone else who I forget. On board were me, Julie, Mally and Karina. We had a nice race and later found out we came 2nd.

Cheshire Cat at anchor

Then we went off to Farm Cove where we dropped Karina at the Opera House and collected Helen and Haitham. Back on anchor beside the Mardi Gras Harbour Party we met a woman from another boat who swam up for a chat. Quest was also nearby and Antares came soon after having dropped Tony home. Two police boats started circling Antares but eventually left them in peace. Laurie also arrived in Sampinguita (sp?).

Helen and me on the foredeck

A gorgeous lunch followed plus a little dancing to the disco music. Then we saw a big orange funnel moving along the tree line above Mrs Macquarie's Chair. The Queens were on the move.

As the Queen Victoria backed out of Circular Quay, the Queen Elizabeth 2 was steaming out from Garden Island. They passed either side of Fort Denison while we had a fabulous view of the whole thing. Heaps of helicopters overhead and lots of boats watching.

After a little more dancing we got sick of Wayne's new boat Far Out bumping in to us as he had anchored too close and decided to head home. Wayne is parked too close

It was a school night after all.

The next race was on Sunday 16th when Julie, Terina and Lea came with me. We raced against Antares, Quest, Leapfrog and Alcyone. A big turnout for the ASCC.

Tacking before the start

We had an OK start in Taylor Bay after having got to the line too soon and having to tack.

But we sailed to Lady Bay, back to Rushcutter's Bay back towards Watson's Bay and a finish in Taylor Bay. This time we came 4th of 5 boats. Not so good. Then a lovely lunch in Athol Bay before heading home.

Crossing the start ahead of Antares

Next is Broken Bay!

ASCC Regatta

2008-03-13T17:18:00.004+11:00

I sailed again with Gavin and Dee in the ASCC regatta. It was another terrific day. The regatta always (touch wood) seems to have good weather. This year was with spinnakers. I was a bit anxious because I had only ever flown a spinnaker once and that was years ago on Sisterhood, my previous boat. But Gavin and Dee came up Friday so we could have a practise in the afternoon and Jenni Bonnitcha, star that she is, lent us one of the Elliotts for a couple of hours while her girl trainees also had a session training for the Marineassess regatta.

So I was feeling much more confident by Saturday mroning. A little bruised but not completely scared. Dee was still recovering from a broken wrist so while she did the jib and flew retrieved the spinnaker I did traveller and put the pole out. Mostly it went really well. There were only four boats which was very disappointing, but one of them was skippered by Dale our rival from last year with Paul White, a UK sailor and president or whatever of Glory - the International Gay Sailing Organisation, and Neil Cosser, Vice Commodore and all round good sailor of big boats and Topknot. The other two teams were Jenny Handley - skipper with Kelly and Pat and Chris - skipper with Robert and our Mally, thrown in at the last minute after Scott had a migrane and couldn't sail.

We had a continual battle with Dale's team and Jenny and Chris were also very closely matched. And we all had a fab time. Mally couldn't take the smile off his face!

Our team won four races and came third in fourth race. That was a shock. It was one of those times when every shift went against us and in Dale's favour. To have Jenny's team also beat us across the line given they were not using a spinnaker shows just how badly the shifts hurt us. But it certainly inspried us for the last race.

In the last leg of the last race Gavin said jibe the spinnaker but not the main. I just looked at him! We hadn't practised that and I had no idea how to approach it. What side of the mast should I go, how do I make it work without falling overboard. Anyway then he said don't worry, it's fine, and we crosed the line first again. So my gobsmackedness didn't matter. That's the good thing about Gavin, he doesn' shout and he can compensate for my incompetence. I suspect if we do this again that will be the first thing we practise!

'Straya day

2008-01-29T14:46:00.000+11:00

We took Cheshire Cat to get blessed on Australia Day. The ASCC had organsed for the Sisters Of Perpetual Indulgence to bless the fleet at Store Beach near Manly. So Julie, Karina, Roger and Davey joined me for a lovely big day out. On the way down the harbour we nearly ran onto the Ferry Race coming towards us. But a nice maritime services man suggested we go round the back of the ginormous P&O liner parked off Athol Bay. We saw Mathilde all decked out in yellow and green balloons but they didn't see us. Just after that we looked up to see first a huge Australian flag towed by a helicopter, and then a skywriter writing "sorry" in the clear blue sky. That is sorry to the stolen aboriginal generation. It was great to see on what has also been called "Invasion Day".

When we arrived at Store Beach there was only one other club boat there, the newly aquired Quest, Laine's replacement for Topknot. There were two hire boats full of gay boys also in the vicinity which was the reason for the choice of location. Later Wayne turned up in his new stink boat.

After some trouble anchoring for which I blame helmsman Roger (not really) we had lunch (sushi courtesy of Karina and Julie) and then went ashore for the blessing.
The usual farting about and a swim while we waited and then a nice blessing although the obvious hand of Neil in our one referring to main sheets and fan belts.

And then a lovely cruise home downwind with just the jib out and doing 4 knots in 10 knots of breeze. Noice. But neither different nor unusual.

The pics are from Karina but they're very low res so they're little.

Another Day Another Fan Belt

2008-01-28T10:14:00.000+11:00

Karina and Jenni brought Cheshire Cat round from Phoebe Street and collected Mal, Lea and me from the Club for another perfect Balmain race day. Not the best start but we were well in the field as we headed north and then east south east to round Goat Island. Again we were keeeping close to Amon Re, our bench mark these days, and ahead of several other boats. Having elected to take the executive crew role I stayed forward a lot unless we needed to furl the head sail which was my job. I had a great time being ballast on the rail and enjoying the scenery.

One round of Goat and two rounds of Cockatoo, Spectacle and Snapper Islands in winds between 10 and 14 knots. And the crew were pumping with the winches. A well sailed race.

We finished 30 seconds from Amon Re but behind her unfortunately. If she hadn't fouled our start maybe we would have been in front.

Then Jenni started the motor. Lea commented about the odd smell, I noticed a strange whining sound, opened the engine hatch and saw the fan belt had shredded. We were very close to the police mooring so picked it up and switched off the motor. Since we are now quite familiar with this we had a spare on board. We also knew our mechanic was near by so called him to help. He was happy to oblige and we were soon fixed. What we did forget is to check the radiator. So after sending the crew off with Alan in the tender Jenni and I headed for our new mooring round the corner. Before we had got half way the heating guage was over the top again. Bugger. So we pulled out the head sail to sail on to the mooring. After a few go arounds, a bit of extra sail and a lot of running around and adrenalin use, plus a short burst on the motor for the last few metres, we were secure.

I had planned for Karina to help Jenni with the mooring so I could step off at the club. Not to be. Maybe next time. We came 8th out of 18. Which puts us equal 5th over all. We are happy with that.

First Post-Christmas Race

2008-01-09T10:50:00.000+11:00

Trying to see the tell tails
Julie and Dayna

Terina

New Boy Mal (below) Lea (r)

Light winds were predicted for the first race of the New Year. What we got was virtually no wind at all for the start. Just before the gun we were actually facing backwards. And we were not alone. But as the gun went off we were facing forwards and creeping across the line not long afterwards. One or two boats got away but the rest of us were virtually stalled with what wind there was veering all over the place. Then clever rookie Mally suggested we goose the sails and it gave us a huge boost and meant we left half the fleet in our wake. Of course they all quickly followed suit or hosited spinnakers but we did get the jump on many of the competition.
We had a very pleasant race with everyone working hard on the winches. We had Julie, Terina, Dayna, Mally and Lea on board plus me. The course was clockwise around Spectacle, Snapper, Cockatoo and Goat Islands and a second round of the three Balmain ones with a run to the finish outside the club. aain we were not last but we didn't manage to catch Amon Re after they got a big lift heading for the last mark.
In the end we came 8th (not as good as first [I put it down to a higher handicap of course and not to the skipper] but way better than last) and 12th on AMS which is a big improvement in that system of placing. Although that could just be the conditions and not the crew's competance.
We dropped the crew off at the club and took Cheshire Cat back to her new mooring round the corner in front of Jenni's before driving back to the cub for a drink and the results. Two sets of stairs is a bit of a disincentive but we will work that out next race.

WE WON! WE WON! WE WON!

2007-12-11T17:03:00.000+11:00

You can go here: http://www.balmainsailingclub.com/Results.html to see the official results or put on your magnifyers and see it here.

Sunday started out a beautiful day in spite of predicted thunderstorms and high winds. Jenni (on helm) Julie, Terina Dayna and I set out with the shiny new bottom feeling very fine indeed.

Jenni got a great start, first over the line or near as damn it, and we kept close to the front runners for some time. It was certainly nice to see boats behind us for a change. We must have been going at least a knot faster than last race. Who would have thought a skungy hull would make such a difference. And great team work as well.

After our pass of Goat Island we headed for where the Ball's Head mark should have been and it was nowhere to be seen. With the rest of the fleet we shrugged and set our sails for Cockatoo and beyond. Amon Re, a boat we are sometimes near but rarely ahead of, was beside us so after a chat they rang the race committee to alert them to the missing buoy which is a rounding mark on the next leg.

Meanwhile Julie and I set the pole and we cruised west. By this time we were in a pack of four boats and all vying for advantage. Nice not to be at the back on our own. A tack East past the club and then a rounding of the missing mark by using a nearby buoy from anotehr club with the committee boat standing by to let us know the plan, then up goes the pole again and back past Cockatoo. Halfway west Jenni wanted to gybe and so Julie and I tried a clever trick we had seen on another boat to gybe the pole - and it worked!

We were still very close to Amon Re and Duet and by the time we rounded the last mark off we were match racing Amon re to the finish. and we won by a whisker - 14 seconds to be exact. And there were three boats altogether behind us. What a thrill.

It had started raining and we heard the odd thunderclap but nothing close. By the time the tender picked us up we were wet but happy.

We got back to the club so early that the sausages weren't even cooked yet. An when they were ready I burnt my mouth they were so hot.

The icing on the cake was that we won on handicap. Hooray! And won a bottle of red. And that brought us from 11th to 5th overall for the season.

Last again

2007-11-27T15:57:00.000+11:00

Maybe it's me but we came last again. We got diverted just before the start with one boat in trouble with their sails and then another pushing us up as I tried to get a good spot on the line. So we started badly and then stayed last from then on. But it was another nice day with wind from 10-15 knots most of the time and we tried sailing with the jib furled a bit to reduce some overpowering. This worked quite well although in hindsight maybe it was a tad too furled for the conditions. Also we had only Julie, Jenni and me on board which meant the girls were a bit worn out towards the end. But our handicap continues to drop and that can't be bad.

The only sour note was that the Balmain race officials managed to remove the last mark before we got to it and then neglected to collect us from the mooring so we had to drop Julie off at the pontoon to ask them to come. It took the edge off the day but after some abject apologies and denials that they didn't want is racing with them, and a cold beer, all was forgiven.

More Balmain Races

2007-11-12T16:06:00.001+11:00

I've been very slack about posting. but we have been racing. And I have been boating elsewhere as well.

First the races. One on 30th September where we came 12th out of 12. Julie and Adelaide friend Sonja were among the crew. Sonja who has sailed as a kid, sailed with me on my first boat Sisterhood, a little Hood 20, and taught me lots about sailing. So it was nice to have her back on a bigger boat. And to know a little bit more about what I was doing.

Another race on October 14th saw Jenni as skipper, Malcolm, Lea and Roger and me aboard. Roger has a natural ease and ability for sailing which helped newish boy Mal to learn to hoist the pole and generally learn the ropes (yuk yuk). This time we did really well. We came second last over the line instead of last (hooray) and 11th out of 13 on handicap. We're getting better!

October 28th was the Balmain Regatta. I was away but Jenni, Roger and Lea went out and braved the light winds interspersed with 25 knot bullets. With only three that must have been pretty trying. After a great start they came 23rd over the line (second last) which betters our performance of last last year, and 24th on handicap.

Then on November 11th with Jenni, Mal, Lea and Julie we set sail with three hangovers on board. Jenni did the start cos I felt in my condition I would not be a steady hand on the wheel. She got us well placed on the line just at the gun. Then once the heat settled I took over. It was a perfect day and we cemented our improvement by coming 5th on handicap. Still last over the line but handicapes are a great thing. At this rate we'll be amongst the prizewinners before you know it. Balmain gives two cheap beers for third, two expensive beers for second and a bottle of wine for first. Can't wait.

But we do love getting the results on the day, the open bar at the clubhouse after the race, the tender service and this week a sausage sizzle!!! I conned everyone into doing the Balmain races on the basis of sausage sizzles but this is the first day there's been one apart from the regatta.

My reason for missing the Regatta was that I went north to Mission Beach to visit the set of TV series Sea Patrol 2 and spent a day aboard the new patrol boat HMAS Broome.
She is masquerading as HMAS Hammersley for the series. She is a lot bigger than the patrol boat used for series one. The navy crew love it because they all have ensuites in their cabins even if they are mostly 4 to a cabin. And the film crew love the space on the bridge. It was incredibly calm weather and the scenery around some small islands was lovely. I jumped ship to Mourilyan Harbour and got a lift back to the hotel with the runner in time for a swim before dinner.

Then I flew to Hamilton Island to board Mathilde, Peter and Michael's lovely Grand Banks to travel to the Gold Coast with John and another Peter.

Its a very different style of boating. Pushing buttons on a preset tracking computer takes the stress out of getting from a to b. I did have an exciting moment when, with john below taking a nap, we found ourselves on a collision course with a fishng boat. Following John's instructions I took evasive action and then reset the tracking computer without anyone leaping up from below in fright. 7 great days cruising by day and moored at a series of marinas by nght. Much "naughty table" practice in the evenings.

BSC Official results

2007-09-23T11:44:00.000+10:00

Yes we came 12th out of 16. The results are on the Balmain Sailing Club web site

2nd Balmain Race

2007-09-18T18:49:00.000+10:00

Sunday the 16th saw us out again with the Balmain Sailing Club. And yes we love the tender service. The race started at 2pm and we were up with the first across the line. Well - in the middle actually but starting with 16 boats is sure different to the three we are used to with the ASCC. On board were Julie, Karina, Malcolm amd Lea, plus Anni on the helm.

The weather was gorgeous and the wind varied from about 5-6 knots to gusts of 16 knots. We manged to stay in front of one boat almost til the last rounding of a mark near Balls Head. The course took us round Goat, Cackatoo, Spectacle and Snapper Islands and back to Balls Head before rounding the islands again with the finish in front of the clubhouse.

No time for lunch so we have to work that one out for future races. We ended up last again but only minutes behind the next last boat this time. And on handicap we were about 12th I think. So we're improving!

And the bar was still open and the tender service still running when we finished so its all good!

Days Like This

2007-09-10T12:51:00.000+10:00

Karina took this photo on the way home from the winter series.

Lovely!

Our First BSC Race

2007-09-06T14:20:00.000+10:00

With Karina away, Jenni otherwise occupied and Lea with a crook kneck Julie, Terina, new boy Malcolm and I set off for our first race with the Balmain Sailing Club since our rather tragic last place in last year's Balmain Regatta. Just to be consistent we came last again.

The weather report said the winds would be light 5 to 10 knots. By the time we were at the start line it was 15 knots gusting to 18.

This is the wind for the day. You can see the peak as we started at 1pm and the drop off while we tried to finish

But we started well, right on time and in the heart of the pack. From then on we gradually fell behind the other 8 boats til we were struggling under the Harbour bridge in 3 knots of breeze and definitely last. However we did not give up! We ghosted across the finish line minutes before the 5pm cutoff.

The tender service had long since packed up and gone home but Alan kindly fetched us in his tinnie. And we had a well earned beer at the clubhouse before heading home. It was a long race but the rest of the series is up the Balmain end and should not be quite so gruelling.

But with much stiffer competition we hope to improve our skills and our place. Meanwhile at least our handicap will be low for a while!

Winter Series

2007-08-31T11:29:00.000+10:00

4 races in two days would have been a bit hard going except that the winds were light and the weather fair, especially on Sunday which was just gorgeous.

It was misty on the harbour when we motored to the start just off Kurraba Point. We had a start boat thanks to Maria in Holy Spirit, Dayna as PRO (Principle Race Officer) and Glen as the crew. Jenni was skipper for the first race as she was leaving us at lunch time. Also on board were Terina, Julie, Karina and Lea - one of our ACON girls. The race was uneventful for us and also I suspect for Alcyone but poor little Topknot, with Neil on the helm and Mike as crew, again had engine troubles and so was sailing to the line in light winds and had a very late start.

The course took us around Fort Dennison and Clarke Island to Taylor Bay. Nice and short. Having finished we skipped off to Double Bay to drop Jenni and saw Topknot still stuggling to get to Clarke Island so we offered them a tow, which they happily accepted. Having started so late ending with a DNF wasn't the end of the world.

The second race of the day started at Taylor Bay, slowly, and finished at Quarantine after a rounding of Shark Island and a spin past Obelisk. The we picked up Topknot on tow again and headed for 40 Baskets Beach north of Manly. We were fortunate to find three empty moorings all close together so deposited Topknot on one, picked up one for us and pointed Maria at the third. Drinks and smackerells followed on Cheshire Cat.
Then the others left us to get on with our duck in hoi sin sauce. And more wine.

Sunday we collected Simon from 40 Baskets Beach having lost Terina to partying in town. We again towed Topknot to the start line but made ourselves late in the process. The start was delayed to give us some time but it ended in a bit of a scramble. The course took us to Grotto Point, Lady Bay and finished at Obelisk where lots of boys had themselves on show. Still light winds but we were moving. We had lunch at anchor and because the start line was right beside us didn't have to tow Topknot anywhere. Very light winds due to the cliffs all around us made the start a bit of a challenge.

Then Julie dropped her sunglasses ( a very fine pair) into the water and Simon leaned so far over to try and retieve them I was sure he was going to fall in. Only his feet were above the deck it looked like. But we hauled him back on board and finally crossed the line. Alcyone, a little to the north got wind first which meant she was seriously ahead and almost got run down by a very smelly tuna boat.

But she still led the way and when Topknot passed us we thought we were in trouble.
Topknot

However rounding Shark Island we caught Topknot and passed them well and truly. Finally across to Athol Bay from Clark Island we got the 10 knots of wind I'd been hoping for and finished in style.

We tranferred Simon to Topknot for a lift home, picked up the dinghy from Holy Spirit and headed home. The final drama was when the dinghy rope snapped just near the Harbour Bridge. With the boat hook Karina picked up the trailing line, added a new one and we arrived safely at the mooring after a lovely, if wearing, weekend.

Two Firsts and Two Seconds!

2007-07-19T17:15:00.000+10:00

Cheshire Cat won the 07 Summer and Combined series and came second in the 06 Winters and Spring series. And the winter series we only lost on countback. So we are very proud of ourselves.

And Julie, Karina and Anni (Dayna was somewhere in the Simpson desert) did a show-and-tell of our adventures at the Chicago Gay Games and with the ACON Girls as the dinner speech. (To know more visit the Sisterhoodlums blog). We have now inspired a few of the others ASCC members to join us in Barcelona!

Team Sisterhoodlums at the dinner.
2nd place trophy - thanks Commodore Roger.
The big one for the Summer Series Anni with Roger and Vice Commodore Neil.
And the bigger one for the Combined Series, no discards allowed in the score for this one.

Last Two Races

2007-05-09T13:23:00.000+10:00

Race 5
We had pretty much the whole team together for the 5th race. Jenni on the helm, with Terina, Julie, Karina and me doing the work. It called for the new caps Jenni had made. And gorgeous they are too!Jenni is very happy at the helm

We had the first full fleet of the CYC's winter series crossing our path and Jenni managed to stay on starboard for most of the times when we were in close proximity. We had a one or two close calls and exericised our lungs with cries of "starboard" now and then but no dangerously near misses.

We sailed well and finished hot on the heels of Mercedes who passed us on the last leg to Clarke Island. We even put the pole up and took it down again without mishap.

Lunch was Moroccan spiced lamb with roast vegetables, salad and rolls. A few fruit cakes and a little turkish delight rounded off the meal. Another triumph for Julie.

The trip home was one of those lovely cruises into the setting sun. Sydney Harbour looks gorgeous in the late afternoon. I was pretty relaxed about it all.

Race 6
The last race of the season and mainly light winds were forecast. Jenni was packing for her overseas trip so Cat came instead. She is a beginner but learning fast.

We did the same course as race 5, westerly from Taylor Bay, again with no wind to speak of so a very slow start. We were first across the line but it was slow going until we got clear of Bradley's Head. Leap Frog and TopKnot were the only other boats. No sign of Mercedes and although we saw Saitama she wasn't racing.

We crossed the CYC fleet while heading for Fort Denison but managed to be on starboard for most of the way through them. Then we tacked to find that Topknot had got a great lift and was close behind us. But we left them for dead and they got a big hole in wind behind the Fort as we ran down the harbour to Rose Bay.

A few big gusts kept us on our toes but we finished first and because the wind had turned southerly we headed for Topknot's more protected mooring in Double Bay to have lunch and wait for them to arrive. It gets dark early these days so we didn't stay long but headed home to Balmain in the certain knowledge that we at least had a place for the series even though we have had no results since last sunmmer.

Please Neil can we get the handicaps sorted or revert to the old system.

BROKEN BAY

2007-04-16T15:46:00.000+10:00

This is very belated but the pictures are such fun I thought I'd do it anyway.
Cheshire Cat ready to roll

On Friday 16th March Julie, Terina and I headed off on the good ship Cheshire Cat for Pittwater and parts beyond. Most of the fleet had departed on Wednesday but work commitments kept us in Sydney til Friday.

We motored to the heads and then hoisted the sails and headed out to sea. With wind on the nose it looked like being a long tack seawards before turning north. Behind us a pod of dolphins were jumping out of the wtaer to say farewell. And the sun was shining (it seems to be always shining these days) and not too rough. After an hour or so we heard Elessa log on to the coast watch. That meant Maria was behind us. Then Saytama logged on so the three of us chatted a bit on the radio as we headed for the rendezvous at Halletts Beach. Mother Ship Mathilde

A few hours sailing and a few warships off our bow til the wind started to drop and we decided on a motor sail. It wasn't long before we reached Broken Bay and got in touch with Commodore Roger to find out where the fleet was moored. It turned out that most of them were aboard Roger's cruiser coming back from a late lunch at Brooklyn.
Roger's boat for the week

Given the predicted wind we decided to go straight to Castle Lagoon and the others agreed to meet us there. We were in luck because we arrived to find one empty mooring. Hooray. With the anchor windlass not working we hate using the anchor.

Another Catalina owner was in the Lagoon and came over for a visit. Topknot followed us in and anchored near the shore. Shortly thereafter Laine and Neil came over for a drink.

There were great big squat legged jelly fish everywhere so swimming was not very attractive to me.

And so began the Broken Bay cruise for Cheshire Cat. That night we did boat hopping, much drinking, and generally started what I love so much about this event, mucking about in boats. I had sensibly made my bed as asoon as we arrived so could crawl into it at the end of the night and sleep comfortably. Others who shall remain nameless were not so smart.

Saturday there were some sore heads about. Karina was joining us at Cottage Point so we went over for lunch in Mathilde's very speedy tender. Then we all relocated to just past Akuna Bay in preparation for the Commodore's cocktail party. It rained in the afternoon so John in the jet tender had to take precautionary measures.
The theme for the party was pink. In keeping with the environment Julie, Terina and I went as pink jellyfish. We were supposed to sing a reworded version of the Kookaburra song while we did the jellyfish dance (you had to be there) but lack or rehearsal meant it was spectacularly unsuccessful. Karina, who was supposed to be the dooof doof music for us got the giggles and proved useless.

Other performances were much more clever and practiced including Ruth's poem about her trip so far. And almost everyone wore pink.
Hosts Peter and Michael deservedly won the costume prize for Michael's pregnant outfit, complete with Marge Simpson wig, and Peter's sartorial splendour.
More sore heads Sunday and a slow start to the next stop at Warratah Bay. Morning After Flowers

We anchored watched by a skeptical fisher bloke holding a can of beer and were cheered by the thought that he was about to be surrounded buy a big bunch of poofs and dykes. Karina, Terina and Julie had to leave so Michael took them back to Cottage Point in the speedy jet boat.

The rest of us joined the Mathilde team for roast dinner. Towards the end of the evening Michael decided we should make a field of flowers on the outside table. It looked gorgeous. One doesn't normally expect such art installations in a place like that.
I had a lovely night on my own on Cheshire Cat. Not that I don't enjoy the company but having the whole boat to myself was great. However I did need help to pull up the anchor in the morning so Jenni, who had arrived the night before to stay with Peter and michael came over to help. As Mathilde was going on a circuit of Broken Bay Jenni went back on board the mother ship and I set off for Refuge Bay in the certain knowledge there would be a mooring I could easily pick up single handed.

And that's when disaster struck. Luckily I am in the habit of checking the guages every now an then and when I looked the temperature was sky high and the volts were down. The engine cooling water was not hot which was a puzzle I thought but I turned back to Warratah knowing that there was a mooring empty (fisherbloke had left) and that it was the closest place to stop. This is why my significant other hates boating. Something always goes wrong and usually just when you're feeling confident.

Jenni saw me come back and came over. John, my knight in the shining dinghy, was in the shower and hence unavailable so we opened the engine compartment and stared at it. Then I twigged! No fan belt. Or rather a broken fan belt lying on the floor of the engine compartment. Since we had been through this two years ago we had a spare. I guess this is why people say cruising is just fixing boats in beautiful locations. Being resourceful girls we wrestled it on. And hey presto fixed!

Or so we thought. I left the engine idling while returning Jenni to Mathilde then came back to find the temperature guage way too high again. As Mathilde set off for her cruise I put my head in my hands and pondered what to do. I didn't want to ruin everyone else's day. Maybe the temperature would drop after a while. Or something. But as always other people save the day. My distress was recognised and John came over. Is it fresh water cooled he asked. Der! Dummie that I am I had no idea. Turns out that apart from salt water flowing around the engine it has the equivalent of a radiator full of fresh water. At least it was until I ran it dry when she got hot. A few kettles full of boiling water and all is well at last. John speeds off to join the Mathilde cruise and, with the stereo on and the fridge working again, I motor off to Refuge Bay. Nice.

Arriving in Refuge Bay I found Topknot but the wind had swung around and the spot they were in was rather blowy so I went to see what conditions were like on the other side. Again there were heaps of jelly fish everywhere. I found a more sheltered spot picked up a mooring all by myself (yay) and the boys joined me.
Topknot and friend in Refuge Bay

Later Maria in Elessa and Mathilde all arrived. I had been invited to dinner on Elessa which was lovely and then stopped by Mathilde on my way home to bed for a nightcap. I love this life!

Next morning was still and peaceful. I slept late, had breakfast and waved off Topknot and then Elessa. We were to meet later at Coasters Retreat in Pittwater. Then while I was below Mathilde left too and I was all alone and felt rather bereft. But I quicly got a grip of myself and finshed sorting myself out before firing up the engine which started thank god, dropping the mooring and heading off myself.
Elessa

On the way to Coasters I passed a fishing boat followed by hundreds of seagulls and three sedate pelicans all waiting for the spoils. Plenty of moorings at Coasters made stopping for the night easy again. I was still feeling rather clever being sinhgle handed. Neil and Laine came over for lunch. By this point it is a competition to get rid of all the food left over. I made them promise to bring over nothing but cake.

A new potential new club member Simon arrived on the ferry. I had been a bit concerned that the volt meter was not reading as high as it used to so after lunch we all went and looked at the engine again. Images of boys, bum up in their cars. It turned out that the fan belt which is on a complicated route around several wheels was the wrong way around one of them. It's supposed to go over not under. So we fixed that.

Mathilde arrived after dropping off some visitors and it started to rain. Rather heavily in fact. Before we knew it we were surrounded by roiling grey and green skies and lightning in every direction. And absolute buckets of rain. Roger and David, who were on the bus to join us for the evening and the sail back to Sydney rang to see what was happening. John, Sir Gallahad again, offered to go get them from Palm Beach in spite of the wet.

At the height of the storm we saw Bernie arrive in Xantippe. In spite of the fact that she is a beautiful boat not one of us envied the crew on the bow trying to pick up the mooring in those conditions. For some reason John had the windscreen wipers on on Mathilde. Because he could, I guess.
Commodore Roger undaunted

The ASCC had planned to hold the social meeting on shore accompanied by a BBQ. So we all went ashore. I discovered that washing a rain jacket reduces its waterproofing to zero. But we fired up the barbies, opened the wine and had a great if soggy night. ASCC Coasters' Retreat Social meeting

Jenni and Sophie came back to help sail back to Sydney harbour. Thinking we should get a bit ship shape before their arrival I started the motor. At least that was the plan. Nothing. Totally flat batteries. Not because we had been using the starter battery for the stereo or anything like that. Probably because the altometer wasn't working cos the fan belt was on wrong. Topknot offered to lend us one of their batteries to start us but we didn't have jump leads. I phoned John to ask him if there were any on Mathilde and if not could he get us some at Palm Beacch. No and too late he was on the way back.

But of course he had another plan. He towed us to Mathilde, we plugged in our 240 volt shore charger and after 20 minutes, during which time we got the dinghy on board, the outboard stowed, and all the wet clothes from the night before out of the way, bingo, she started. I am learning more and more about Cheshire Cat every time I go cruising. Stuff I should already know but still. I guess its why I go in company. There's always someone there to ask or help.

Finally we ready to set off about 10. No wind to speak of and the sea was glassy. So we motored. Roger took the helm so I could play, read and make the lunch. Jenni and Sophie watched the passing shoreline

It was a lovely day. When we gave David the helm he was in heaven. He didn't step down til we were surrounded by three fleets of racing yachts well inside the harbour. Am I having fun yet?

When we got quite close to Sydney we saw Mathilde way way in the distance. Beyond Collaroy at least. So I radioed them and bet them a bottle of the dreaded pink sparkling wine they had been trying to get rid of since the cocktail party that we could beat them to the heads. Silly me. Suddenly she came towards us on a huge wake of white foam. And passed us. But not willing to take back the pink fizz she then turned seawards claiming maintenance required before passing the heads. So we won by default.
Too fast to focus!

With some breeze now behind us we unfurled the head sail for the first time in nearly a week and sped up the harbour at over 6 knots. We were back on the mooring by 3.30, a record for us.

ASCC Summer Series

2007-04-16T09:51:00.000+10:00

Its been way too long between posts. Too much to do and so little time. And work gets in the way! So apologies if there's anyone out there reading. A Broken Bay Cruise report will come soon.

ASCC Race 4 Sunday 15th
Sydney really does turn on the weather at this time of year. Another warm sunny day. Terina, Dayna, Cat and I were the team. Predicted light winds meant we didn't have to work too hard. Well they didn't have to work too hard. For me in what Julie calls Fantasy land its never that hard. A little scary sometimes oin big winds but rarely hard. We motored to the start in Taylor Bay not a moment too soon. Laine and Neil in Topknot were still putting up their sails as we crossed the start line at noon and headed north for Lady Bay. Mercedes arrived ready for their 12.20 start.

We tacked up the harbour without incident. The CYCA's first winter series race came by us on the way back to Double Bay but not in great numbers. It was Ladies Day so while it was great to see lots of women on the helms of some serious race boats I am pretty sure many boats didn't bother to race. Probably not willing to trust a mere sheila to the wheel.

We sailed pretty well and Cat learned a bit about tacking. A nice run to Clarke Island was followed by another tack slog to Easte Channel off Watson's Bay then a final run and chicken with a Manly ferry to the finish in Taylor Bay. Lunch at anchor with Topknot hanging off the back.

The trip home was lit by lightening flashes all around us, some rain and then clear with a spectacular sunset. But I was too tired to take a picture.

ASCC Race 3 Sunday 1st
Julie, Karina and I needed some help so we took advantage of the enthusiasm of our ACON girls, 3 of who were very eager to join us for the race. And did they get a work out. Executive crew gave much instruction whil our novices ground those winches.

The noon start in Taylor Bay was well executed if I say so myself. Good timing and good speed across the line. The tacking up the harbour as the girls learnt how to race as opposedf to plonk about the harbour. The weather was good and the wind not too strong. And we had both Topknot and Leapfrog starting with us. Mercedes and Saytama - Jo's new boat started at 12.30.

The race was rather uneventful except for one spectacular mis calculation on my part which saw us nearly T-bone Topknot near Shark Island. Quick thinking by Neil and David plus a quick tack by us aaverted disaster and we were able to demonstrate the practise of penalty turns for our ACON girls. And Neil didn't have to ring the absent Laine and explain why his boat had a big ding in it.

Although invited to join Jo and her team on Saytama I was worried about our anchor so we stayed put and just waved our prawns at them to make them jealous.

We all headed home tired but happy.

Just another perfect day

2007-03-12T13:43:00.000+11:00

Sunday was the second race for the ASCC summer series. Jenni, Julie, Karina and I set sail in beautiful sunshine with a predicted breeze of 8-13 knots ahead of us. Again no start boat although Dayna had hoped to rent a tinnie. We found out why she couldn't later in the day.

We started from Taylor Bay and we were the first across the line having taken care to stay out of the notorious dead zones further in to shore. The we encountered a windless hole which stopped our progress somewhat for a while. But fortunately before Laine in Topknot and Scott in Leapfrog could catch up to us we found the wind and cruised off. Tacking up to Lady Bay we dodged ferries and a big freighter heading into the harbour. And a fleet of Lazers zipping around off Nielsen Park.

Jenni as preventer

On the run to Clark Island we put the pole up which we had almost never done before. Unfortunately when we came to take it down we discovered it had gone up upside down so took a while to unhook. Still, you live and learn. Then a couple of tacks back to the wedding cake of Watson's Bay where we found several of the aforementioned tinnies fishing off the lighthouse. Resisting the temptation to scare the sleeping fellow in one of them we rounded the mark and reached back to Taylor Bay well ahead of the other two boats. Nice!

For a picnic on board we were joined by Laine and crew but not by Scott whose crew had too many hangovers to stay. We decided to fill the fuel tank on the way home in preparation for the Broken Bay trip on Friday. Turns out D'Albora marina fuel service closes at 4.30! not very boatie friendly at all. So we filled the water tanks, emptied the spare fuel tank and found that was enough to top up the main tank.

Then a motor home to Balmain in the dying day. Too lazy to put up the sails.

One of these days we may get some results. But don't hold your breath as we are still waiting for the Winter Series places much less Spring or, heaven forbid, Summer results.

ASCC Regatta

2007-03-09T10:17:00.000+11:00

I had the great pleasure to sail in the ASCC's Annual Regatta with two very talented sailors, skipper Gavin Dagley and crew Dee Mason.
They are both from Melbourne and are incredibly good sailors. Gavin has won the ASCC's regatta every time he has entered except last year when he and Dee, without their regular third member Dale, came second. With Dale deciding to skipper his own boat this year I was the lucky to be asked to be the third team member. I was very nervous in case I was the result of another 2nd.

It was a beautiful day with winds predicted to lift during the day from the early 8knots. Because we were a light weight team (in lbs not talent) compared to our main competition we expected to have to hike pretty hard. I had been doing sit ups in preparation for this challenge but feared it wouldn't be enough.

The first drama was that our headsail has a broken top batten. We were given a replacement sail and it too had a broken top batten. What rare the chances. Rather than change the sail yet again Dee as foredeck, removed the batten completely.

Gavin can pick wind gusts that a normal person (me) can't see. He was always exactly where he wanted to be on the start line and ready to power off as the gun went.
Seconds to go... We are third from left (and right)
And we're off
Instant speed, (we are now in the lead on the far right)
And we're way out in front.

We had three other boats to watch out for. Dale's team, the boys that won the regatta last year (Nik and David) and the girls from Adelaide who won the non-spinnaker division of the Gay games both here and in Sydney (Julie, Julia and Meredith). Gavin clearly has a friendly rivalry with Dale and so we kept a very close eye on him at all times. And the need to hike was quickly realised. Dee is a champion at it.
Look at that girl go! And I realised that sit ups for a couple of weeks is definitely not enough.

Although we were not always in the lead the downwind legs were always good for us. Upwind the weight told a bit I think. But downwind we were awsome. We passed Dale and the Adelaide girls more than once in the five races.
Here we are on the left of the girls
getting the all important inside overlap
and first around the bottom mark!

We won the first four races which assured us the win but couldn't quite overtake the girls in the final race.

The boats came from the CYC's Youth Training Academy under the watchful eye of the very patient Jenni Bonnitcha.

It was a fantastic day and the race committee did a really great job

in between wines!

Belated New Year's Eve

2007-02-24T14:22:00.000+11:00

A little late but here are some better pictures of the fireworks courtesy of Caroline.

Work Experience Skipper

2007-02-22T13:35:00.000+11:00

A couple of weeks ago Jenni & I took three of Jenni's UK friends out on a harbour cruise. John and Mario came too.

It was a beautiful day and we anchored at Athol Bay where we were joined by Mathilde. We all went aboard the cruiser for lunch. Then we swam and some bombing took place from the top deck. After a lovely day we set sail for our mooring in Balmain

and young Jessie was keen to try her hand at steering.

And she turned out to be a natural.

Cheshire Cat Wins Again!

2007-02-03T09:39:00.000+11:00

Last weekend the ASCC held the Annual Treasure Hunt. Julie, Terina and I were the only stalwarts on Cheshire Cat. With predicted winds of 30 knots forecast we were a little trepidatious but set off anyway in light winds to answer the first questions at the western reaches of Balmain. The clues then led us towards Sydney Harbour proper. As we headed North to Yuralbin Point and the prospect of unporotected waters Helen phoned to say the southerly had arrived at Clovelly. And a minute later it hit Balmain. The whitecaps whipped up and before we reached Goat Island we had decided to call it quits.
Julie & Terina after a hard day Treasure Hunting

Laine and Neil on Topknot were ahead of us but they are more competitive than us when the alternative is a lesurely lunch on the mooring sheltered from the wind. At least so we thought. As we turned back John, Dayna, Roger passed us heading out in the 59 foot power boat Mathilde. Wind was no object to them obviously.
Mathilde - no sticks and rags here!

Rounding Yuralbin we saw Maria and David in Holy Spirit coming towards us with their headsail up. I thought they were mad but far be it from me.... But when they saw us coming back they wisely dropped the sail and followed us to the mooring.

Having secured ourselves we got out the charts, books on Sydney Harbour that we have on board and the mobile phone. This Treasure Hunt has no rules, specially not about outside help, so we phoned Helen, who got on the net and solved the questions about the Sydney Opera House and what one finds at the bitter end of an anchor line - the boat!

By then Laine had arrived back in our bay and John was quick to follow. Noone had gone all the way to the furthest clue point, partly cos the answer was to be found on the Pt Jackson chart - what is the bearing of the Obelisks at Obelisk Bay?

Then lunch - yum -prawns, oysters, salad etc with Maria and David joining us. There was some chat about pooling answers but we resisted, not because we felt confident given that John would have found many more of the answers having gone further into the Harbour. I can't remember why. I am sure it wasn't a sense of honour.

Cardinal TiTi and Friend
At four The Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence arrived to bless the fleet. They were clever and funny as always with inside information about owners and their boats to add a little spice to the individual blessings.

And as if that wasn't enough fun then Commodore Jolly Roger announced the winners. AND WE WON!!! Amazing really. John lost lots of points for having four out of date fire extinguishes on board. Ha! And I was about to protest that being bigger of course they have more and shouldn't get extra points. I quickly shut my big mouth. The scratchie prize was welcome but failed to deliver.
3 Rev heads - John, Dayna & Roger

A BBQ on shore followed and then a quiet night on the pontoon with just us, Maria's Holy Spirit and Laine's Topknot remaining. At least it was quiet for me. Others may have a different story judging by some heads in the morning. We got reprimanded by Waterways Police the next morning for staying overnight on a 15 minute pick up zone. Next year everyone will have to anchor off instead.

Sunday was fine with a light breeze. Julie and I had stayed aboard and then picked up Jenni, Claire and Ros for the first race of the summer season. We had a slow start due to light winds and me trying to be start officer - not very well. I am surprised Topknot didn't protest the committee. We were the only two boats in the Fast division with Mercedes the only Faster boat. The course was one big loop around Snapper Spectacle Cockatoo and Goat islands followed by the smaller loop around Snapper Spectacle and Cockatoo. We trailed Topknot for quite a while but eventually passed them although we were never too far in front. Mercedes caught up to us before the finish but they too were not very far ahead.

The eastern harbour boats went straight home while we were joined by Graham and Bob who came over from Double Bay in the very splendid Mustang. After lunch and some mind boggling logistics I went back to Double Bay on Mustang, a real treat. Its quite ddifferent sitting in the cockpit of such a grand sailing boat while the skipper steers with the remote control!

Another Sydney harbour weekend. You wouldn't be dead for quids!

New Year's Eve

2007-01-09T10:36:00.000+11:00

After the last adventure I sent Cheshire Cat to the doctor. Unfortunately, although she had her bottom cleaned, the doctor didn't have time to look at the motor. So then I booked the engine repair man who finally found time to check out the air leak and agreed with us that that was indeed the problem. So he replaced the split screw and the fuel filter (I don't know why it wasn't found in the engine service a few months ago) and now she runs beautifully.

Jayne, Caroline and Helen

As we discovered on New Year's Eve. With best mate Helen, Jayne and Caroline, Dayna and her neice Devon we found a great spot just beside Garden Island. The Navy had a band playing all the old rock hits and we had a perfect view of the Harbour Bridge, the nine o'clock fireworks, the parade of lit up boats and the midnight extravaganza. And we were able to watch good mate John (also sometime doctor) ferrying hoards of people to Peter and Michael's grand Mathilde. He was in the very spiffy jet propelled tender. Once we saw them rowing. I guess he ran out of fuel.
A bad fireworks picture. I was too busy ooohing and aaahing to take photos.

After the fireworks we motored safely home in the endless stream of boats also not staying the night on water. A change from the first time we took the Cat out for New Year's Eve when the batteries went totally flat and we had to sail home in the stream of stink boats heading up the river. That was exciting although Helen was not happy.

We also went out on the ASCC's renta ferry for the start of the Sydney Hobart Yacht Race on Boxing Day. All the Sisterhoodlums were there with Team Manager Kim from Chicago. It was great to see her again and she loves Sydney - of course!
Team Sisterhoodlums with Team Manager Kim

And we took our Chicago hosts Kim and Lisa out for a day trip on Sunday. It rained a bit but noone was bothered. A nice lunch at the fish markets and then back to Balmain past the Dutch replica square rigger Dufkyen sailing around Yuralbin Point. The predicted strong winds did not fully eventuate so my worries about having 10 people on board in a storm were not realised. We did need to have a couple of bodies forward to keep the exhaust out of the water though.

Kim, Lisa and the Dufkyen

Good Friends

2006-11-27T15:40:00.000+11:00

A few weeks ago our dinghy was lost, stolen or strayed from the Balmain Sailing Club. It was in the rack, locked up with a stainless wire and decent sized padlock. It was also looking the worse for wear with the fender having parted from the actual boat across the front so it looked like a flying nun. It also had some peeling paint leaving nasty sploges on the sides. But it floated and would take three people so it was very useful. Its disappearance is not only a mystery but very annoying. Specially since there were lots of better looking dinghies and some were not even locked up.

And it meant we had the problem of how to get to Cheshire Cat. Commodore Roger kindly offered to lend us his dinghy which was sitting in his Elizabeth Bay driveway. Then my good mate Malcolm offered to meet me at Roger's at 8am on Saturday - he is a very good mate! - with his roof racks on his 4WD car. Much as I love my car you can't fit a dinghy in a convertable Mecedes unless its an inflatable. The dinghy, not the Mercedes. So we loaded the dinghy, drove to Balmain, took it off the car walked it down some stairs to the lift and took it down to the club. Where I locked it up! Hopefully the burgler wont be back. And I bought Mal a coffee and a sultana snail at Balmain's "2006 best bakery" for his trouble.

Engine Trouble

2006-11-27T15:23:00.000+11:00

Its funny how when bad things happen you learn something new. I now know how to bleed the deisel engine on Cheshire Cat for when the fuel lines get air in them. This could come in handy again some day. I'm also glad I recently got some spanners to put on board having decided not to wait any longer for Richard's tool kit to materialise.

Dayna and I set off happily, collected Laine, Claire and Terina form the pontoon and then the engine stalled before we even got back past the mooring. So we picked up the nearby police mooring and dug out the engine manual. Luckily we had two people on board who actually know something about motors, Claire and Laine. Between them and Dayna they worked out what was wrong and fixed it - for a while. As the problem kept happening we decided to sail across the start line thus putting us ahead of Alcyone for the point score and then go and fill up the fuel tank at the CYC. The theory was that the air lock was because of low fuel level. Even though I'd put in 20 litres that morning. So as Mercedes sailed away to complete the course - again - we went to buy petrol (well diesel actually).

As it turned out, after filling the tank and the spare gerry can and the water tanks since we were there, the problem continued. Next theory is that the line has a small leak somewhere that is sucking in air. We headed home in the knowledge that we could keep the motor going by regular bleeding of the lines. And so we stopped by Topknot, Laine's boat to see how she was with her new mast, commented collectively on how much work Laurie has to do on Iruka, and managed to get back to the mooring with only one more bleed stop.

Now a call to the machanic is required to get the motor seen to. And maybe the bottom cleraned as well. And, what the hell, perhaps even a holding tank for the toilet too. As a Christmas present for our smiley cat.

Two's Company

2006-11-21T08:08:00.000+11:00

We were one of only two boats in our Spring Series 5th race. Another lonely start but a good one with Jenni on the helm. As we headed for Lady Bay the sun was shining on another pefect Sydney day. In fact its getting boring how nice the weather can be.

The grunge on the bottom slowed us down a bit and so on the final leg Mercedes, the other boat in the race, caught us and slipped past, but not before I took some pictures.
This is Mercedes in all her glory
Julie and Dayna holding the boom out. You can just seee Mercedes under Julie's arm
Are we there yet?

Balmain Regatta

2006-10-31T15:37:00.000+11:00

Last Sunday some of us sailed in the Balmain Regatta, a huge annual event. We didn't do very well - maybe because of this:

Actually I blame the dirty bottom on our lovely Cheshire Cat.

It was fun if a little nerve wracking starting with 24 other boats instead of alone. But we started well if at the wrong end of the line. And we had a few challenging tacks, judging the moment when we a) wouldn't run into the shore or moored boats and b) would miss our competitors. In fact another boat, much faster than us, heading towards us at great speed on starboard kindly called to say they would go behind us which meant going in front of another boat with about a yard to spare on each side. very impressive!

We sailed to Goat Island back to near Cockatoo Island, back to Goat and then around Cockatoo to two marks near Spectacle and Snapper Islands before finishing near the Balmain Sailing Club. The weather was cool but mostly sunny so we had a great day out. A few new crew to the Cat in Roger, Dave and Steve. Steve in particular worked very hard on the winches. Along with Julie and Dayna. But we couldn't keep up and were even passed by a Hood 23 - not a good look at all!

We specially like the tender service the club runs on race days. Dropped off and picked up from the mooring so no rowing and no dragging the dinghy around. Not that we can any more since it got stolen from the Club even though it was locked up. I am rather cranky about it as it was a nice, stable and sizeable dinghy if a little in need of tlc.

At the club there were bars, a band and a big prizegiving. We came last so didn't win anything, not even an oily oar. Unfortunatly the sausage sizzle had run out of sausages so we had a few beers and went home, tired but happy after a lovely day. I will post more photos if Roger sends them to me.

A Perfect Day - well almost

2006-10-24T14:12:00.000+10:00

The fourth ASCC Spring race day turned out to be rather fine. After a cloudy start and some strongish gusts we decided to start with a full headsail and one reef in th main. We crossed close to the start time again. Still not close enough but not too bad. The reach to Shark island was uneventful and alone again. Mercedes and Alcyone were getting set up to start at 12.30.

Once we rounded the island, on John's suggestion, we shook out the reef and had a lovely run to Grotto Point. The big winds from Saturday had left a bit of swell acoss the Heads but nothing good old Cheshire Cat can't handle. Skipper error saw us re-rounding the Grotto Point mark. Beating back to East Channel had the gunnels in the water and the odd grumble about the winches. New crew member Cat (well named for us) worked hard but isn't yet used to the brute arm strength we use.

By the East Channel mark Mercedes had caught up to us and we rounded just ahead as they overshot. Then they cruised past and left us in their wake across to Chowder Bay. With their better pointing ability both the big boats passed us by the Rose Bay buoy as we had to put in more tacks. While Mercedes increased her big lead we kept reasonably close to Alcyone finishing a few minutes later.

The sun was shining but it was still pretty cold with the maximum for the day only 18 degreees. After yet another delicious lunch (thanks Julie) moored off Darling Point we motored home giving Cat a go at the wheel on the way.

Still no results so we have no idea where we stand but know we are at least third in the Spring series. No pics as noone had a camera.

The Weather Bureau Got It Right!

2006-10-09T07:29:00.001+10:00

As predicted the wind swung round to the south and blasted over 30 knots pretty much right on time! Stronger than predicted though. In fact we saw gusts of 37 knots on our apparent wind gauge and Nic on Mercedes recorded gusts to 47 knots.

This graph is from www.seabreeze.com.au/graphs/nsw.asp after the event. If you click on it you can see it better without the black.

Dayna rang the weather number and reported a predicted 20-25 knot Southerly change at midday. So we reefed the main - one reef - and prepared to reef the jib as the wind picked up. At seconds after midday we slipped across the line with a gentle following wind of about 5 knots. I sensibly resisted the temptation to unreef the main and did not ask the crew (Julie, Terina and Dayna) to use the spinnaker pole to goose-wing the jib.

At ten past twelve, as we were about half way from Clark Island to Shark Island, the wind started to swing to the south and I got the crew to gybe the main. And then wham 25 knots of wind smacked us on starboard. No gradual increase, no time to get accustomed to increased wind strength. We started to reef the jib and then as the wind continued to gust higher and higher tried to hide behind Shark Island while the crew struggled to furl the jib completely and drop the main. Which they managed in record time bless them. And we beat a tactical retreat. It was a slow motor home. On the way we saw lots of waterways and police boats standing by to rescue people but there was surprisingly little carnage. Probably because most people were too sensible to go out in the first place. We were all wet from the waves washing over our port side - or half wet anyway - and we were glad to get to Balmain where the mooring was nice and protected from the worst of the wind..

We later heard that Mercedes did complete the course with very little sail up. But then she is 40 something feet long. Alcyone wasn't racing because Jenny is away.

As we rounded Yuralbin Point and into the relief of calmer waters we passed a double reefed yacht, 25 or so foot heading out towards the main harbour. It made me think of the C J Dennis poem The Traveller in A Book For kids:

As I rode homeward, full of doubt,
I met a stranger riding out:
A foolish man he seemed to me;
But, "Nay, I am yourself," said he,
"Just as you were when you rode out."
So I rode homeward, free of doubt.

Hooray we Won!!

2006-09-18T11:17:00.000+10:00

Finally we were first over the finish line! We beat Mercedes by about half a minute. Yes she starts half an hour after us but she's also much bigger. Alcyone came third a bit later. Given the debate about handicapping with such a small fleet we have no idea where we will come on handicap. And the fact that the person in charge of the racing is overseas it could be some time.

It was another spectacular Sydney spring day with sun shining and a nice breeze of 12 to 15 knots. It did cloud up after a while forcing us all in to jackets and jumpers but we had a good race. Another day with no start boat. Neil has been sent to Switzerland - someone's account?? - so Dayna had to decide the course again even though she is no longer on the ASCC committee.

We set off a bit after the start time of noon, partly cos Dayna was on the phone to the other boats telling them the course, and mostly cos I did my usual trick of getting too far from the start line and underestimating the time to tack.

We had the long beat to Lady Bay just past Watson's Bay, then a run back to Point Piper putting up the pole for the first time in ages and with a bit of difficulty but eventually successfully, then a beat back to Neilson Park and another run to the finish at Clark Island - just ahead of Mercedes. Dayna's double chocolate brownies sustained us.

We anchored next to Mercedes in Athol Bay for lunch. The crew surpassed themselves again with fresh oysters and prawns, moroccan chicken, smoked trout, beautiful cheeses, italian bread, bean and pasta salad, green papaya salad and artichoke salad. And strawberries! And wine. And beer. What more could a girl ask for.

On the way back to the mooring we rescued a speed boat full of boys who had broken down just between the bridge and Goat Island, a high traffic area and not a place to be drifitng. Why they didn't call the water police I don't know. Anyway we towed them to McMahon's Point and left them to it.

Then home tired but happy.

1st Spring Race

2006-09-06T16:00:00.000+10:00

Although it was a beautiful day Sunday was rather windy when we started alone at midday, again without a start boat. This time Neil kindly came out in the mastless (topless) Topknot to do starters honours but quickly had engine trouble and was towed back to the mooring by The James E Hill who happened to be out with skipper and ex-commodore Paul and Topknot's owner Laine on board. We hope soon the club will own a start boat.

Cheshire Cat headed for Shark island with a reefed main and jib but she was still a bit overpowered in the gusts. With Jenni sporting stitches from recent minor surgery and a hangover or two on board we decided to retire garcefully, take Jenni home and enjoy a lovely lunch on the mooring. We passed Alcyone and Mercedes who started at 12.30 and presumably completed the course. By the time we settled in back at Balmain the wind had dropped making for ideal dining conditions.

Of course once we'd washed up the wind had blown up again and the row to the yacht club proved exhilarating and a little nerve-wracking for Julie and Terina at either end of the dinghy.

Winter Series weekend

2006-08-25T13:00:00.001+10:00

The ASCC'S winter series was held last weekend. Two races a day over the two days with a raft up in between. Unfortunately the promised start boat failed to start (Grizzly was grizzly!) so we had to time ourselves.

Despite the perfect weather (our only complaint being that a few extra knots of breeze would have helped now and then) only three boats turned out. Us (with Anni, Julie, Terina and Karina on board and Dayna for Sunday), Maria in Holy Spirit and Jenni and Kelly in Alcyone. The first race from Kirribili to Taylor Bay was quick. The boats all finished in size order, which continued all weekend. Only the times on handicap will tell us who came where. There was some question as to wether Alcyone started early and Maria contemplated a protest but eventually it was decided that self timing made it unfair to object.

We decided to start the second race early and get down to Manly ahead of schedule. We didn't start too well as we were anxious not to have the motor running after the 5 minute cut off. Neil, on board Holy Spirit since Top Knot's mast still isn't replaced, says you can do a 360 turn as exoneration if you run the motor for longer. But we ended up struggling in almost no wind to the line and as a result had a very slow start. It took us ages to pass Holy Spirit so I suspect a third in this race is inevitable.

We anchored at Store Beach for a yummy lunch provided by the crew with Julie as the mistress in charge. Fresh seafood from the fishmarket followed by a chicken she had cooked in her brand new slow cooker. It was a triumph. Then we motored to Manly to drop off Karina and collect Dayna. We joined Holy Spirit who'd picked up a mooring at 40 Baskets for the evening. Neil planned to cook chowder and luckily for us the pot wouldn't fit on Maria's stove. In return for use of our galley we were fed too. Much wine and hot buttered rum followed on a still and lovely evening. I suspect a Neil plot to get the crew hungover for the next day.

Maria collected Karina for us the next morning at Many along with extra crew for Holy Spirit. The third race started off Quarantine and finished at Obelisk (one for the boys) and the final race started there and ended at Athol Bay after a very slow float around Clark Island as the breeze dropped. It picked up for Holy Spirit so they caught us up quite a bit at the finish.

We now await the results - Neil ? Dayna ??

Two Trophies and the Oily Oar

2006-07-08T12:45:00.000+10:00

At last night's ASCC annual dinner Cheshire Cat was awarded 3rd in the Spring Series, 2nd in the Combined Point Score and the wooden spoon award. Our nomination of fellow club member Maria for running aground and buggering her steering failed to convince the judges that our getting tangled in a lobster pot's buoy and line wasn't so bad. It happend when Claire and Anni were saiing up the coast from Sydney to Broken Bay and our curiosity got the better of us. I guess being towed into Towlers Bay at Pittwater in front of the rest of the club helped cement our win.

Anni and that oar.

Half the crew is off to the US for the Gay Games VII regatta. see www.sisterhoodlums.blogspot.com to follow our results.

Mad Dogs and ASCC members

2006-05-12T10:45:00.000+10:00

Mad Dogs and Englishmen go out in the midday sun but some ASCC members go out racing when the predicted winds are 20 to 30 knots. In our defence the forecast was that the winds would strengthen later in the afternoon and we expected to finish by 2pm or thereabouts.

Cheshire Cat started a bit late after making sure we knew how to reef the main and making sure all the lines were accessible and untangled.

After a comfortable sail from Towlers to Bradley’s Head we were walloped with strong winds coming out of Neutral Bay. We watched lots of other boats struggling and broaching as we rounded Fort Dennison and managed to avoid gybing for the run down to Rose Bay.

Rose Bay proved to be particularly difficult as the wind, gusting to 37 knots, funnelled straight across the harbour, knocking boats sideways and whipping the seas into a nasty froth and bubble. After rounding the Rose Bay mark several of the lugs holding the main in the mast snapped and we decided to call it quits. Turning on the motor and dropping the main we thanked Hughey (the first one not the second) for lazy jacks. Furling the jib proved a little more difficult as the sheets had wrapped themselves into a huge knot which aimed squarely at the heads of the brave crew. Finally all was secured and we motored home all the way being run down by Balmain yachts still sailing in the three island race.

We didn’t see Top Knot’s mast fall or Leap Frog run almost aground but we did see Alcyone, Jenny Handley and Kelly’s new boat, drop sails and turn on their motor just off Point Piper. I don’t think I have ever been so glad to get back onto the mooring where we had a cleansing ale and some lunch before an eventful row to shore. Thanks to two boys in a zodiak who were enjoying the conditions and looking for some fun we were towed to the Balmain Sailing Club after efforts to row into the wind to the pontoon near the Dawn Fraser Pool proved completely fruitless.

Unfortunately we were all too busy to take photos.

Racing in a Gale

2006-05-09T11:07:00.000+10:00

Sunday's ASCC race was held amid gusts over 40 knots. We did almost no damage but others in the race had a broken mast and a minor grounding amongst the damage. Only one of the 6 starters finished and that was the biggest boat. See Leap Frog's post for more detail and a wind graph for the day.

Racing with the ASCC

2006-04-26T20:05:00.000+10:00

We race with the Australian Sailing and Cruising Club (ASCC). This is what the rest of the fleet looks like after a great start.

Cheshire Cat on the net

2006-04-26T19:47:00.000+10:00

Here's our boat - a Catalina 30 named Cheshire Cat because since we bought her we started grinning a lot.