General

  Lorima, one of the leaders in carbon masts and boom manufacturing, joins the Wichard Group, which reinforces its position in the boating industry. This union is the result of the collaboration between Lorima and Sparcraft – one of the Group subsidiaries – for the rigging equipment supplied on the new foiled Figaro 3. Lorima has achieved a high level expertise in carbon technologies as well as a great knowledge of the ocean offshore racing, maxi yachts and shipyards. Thanks …

by James King Another year another Nationals. For a number of reasons we didn’t have a particularly large fleet this year, but by jolly did we have a competitive one. I got to watch the action from the back of the fleet and it was fierce. Small mistakes were punished. The first weather mark rounding’s can only be described as a dog show. For me it was a real privilege to get to sail in and amongst these boats, albeit …

Ten boats entered and forty-four sailors weighed in during registration. Adding the list of volunteers, the race committee, family and supporters to that number, LDYC witnessed an exciting congregation of many sailing enthusiasts over the long weekend. On Friday 27 April conditions were light and challenging and the race officer managed only one race. On Saturday conditions improved and four races were sailed. It was good tight racing through the fleet and by the end of the day one could …

by Richard Crockett This was a ‘David and Goliath’ race – one of extreme contrasts and a battle between big and small. The weather, as I suppose one has come to expect, played a tough hand to competitors, with a complete compliment of good running downwind, strong headwinds to put it mildly, and patches of very light or no wind at all. That’s the Vasco da Gama Race – full stop. Tough and unrelenting. That’s what makes it challenging, that’s …

by Malcom Osborne The 2018 Hobie 16 National Championships was held at one of its root venues in this country – Hobie Beach, Port Elizabeth. There was good participation of 34 from all parts of the country. On the first day, after the initial NW had eventually swung to the SE, the first race of the 2018 Hobie 16 Nationals got under way in very light breeze. But not without a general recall and the deployment of the U flag. …

by Marlize Rossouw This is the time of year that all the H23’ers look forward to as the Holiday 23 Masters brought a total of 18 boats together in the racing and cruising divisions. This event surely did leave room for racing, having fun and getting to know all the owners of the H23’s. With very little wind on the first day, the yachts still managed to have a good sail, ending at VCA (Vaal Cruising Association) with a funny …

Bernard Farmer took his Charger 33 to a stunning handicap win in the Vasco da Gama Ocean race between Durban and Port Elizabeth at the end of April. This was a very tough race with the fleet being clubbed by two gale force South Westerlies in excess of 40 knots. But this did not deter Farmer and his crew who took it all in their stride, knuckled down, and simply sailed hard all the time. At one point, according to …

Hout Bay Yacht Club hosted their 26th annual LTC Phoenix Admirals Regatta this past weekend. The regatta is one of the classic ocean sailing regattas in the South African yachting calendar. The event saw over fifty entries of both keelboats and sailing dinghies, and three days of beautiful sunny Cape Town autumn weather, with wind conditions varying from very light to fairly strong-wind sailing conditions. Hout Bay resident and businessman, Peter Roeloffze, has committed to the role of regatta director …

Vacant Position Sailing Manager/Trainer Hout Bay Yacht Club are offering an exciting job opportunity for someone to take responsibility for, and promote, their full sailing programmes including: • Youth Development Training • Controlling and increasing the racing calendar • Managing the use and maintenance of the clubs dinghy and keelboat fleet. The successful applicant will report to, and work closely with, the club’s Flag Officers. The successful candidate will require good organisational and communication skills in addition to personally conducting …

Hout Bay Yacht Club will be hosting their annual LTC Phoenix Admirals Regatta for the 26th year from 20 – 22 April. This prestigious annual sailing event is one of the classic regattas in the Western Cape Yachting Calendar. Founded in 1991, the regatta’s name has a rather interesting history: The Round Table organisation of Hout Bay decided to run a major fundraiser in 1986. The idea was to proclaim Hout Bay a “Republic”. The idea was daring and promised …

by Patrick Loydell There was a large, competitive Extra fleet that consisted of 15 boats on the water. This is by far the most Extra’s that I have lined up against during any regatta, we even managed to get our very own General Recall!!! Among the old (regulars) were three new faces, Gail Wheeler, Taariq Jacobs (managed to get a couple of race wins under his belt) and Sean Mackay . Hopefully we are going to build on these numbers …

by Malcom Osborne The 2018 National Championships for the RS Tera class of sailing dinghies was hosted by Pine Lake Marina at its Swartvlei Lagoon venue. The event attracted 17 boats in the smaller sail Tera Sport category and ten in the Tera Pro category. Participants came from as far as Richards Bay, with good support from Port Elizabeth and Cape Town, to boost those from Knysna, Mossel Bay and George. Knysna Yacht Club fielded 4 boats in the Pro …

by Neil Gregory The talk of the sailing season, The Seniors Pursuit Race, was sailed this past Saturday. With the entry list at 43 boats , a number of very prominent sailors were seen, Rick Nankin , Etienne Van Cuyck ,Teddy Kuttel, JJ Provoyeur and many others arrived to an immaculately prepared hall with all the prizes for the day on display. A special thanks to both Judy Provoyeur and Judy Alison for securing so many prizes and for setting …

by Paige Haddock What was predicted to be a light wind sailing weekend, with the forecast averaging between 2 to 3 knots, turned out to be just that. Light winds, but as eventful as only J22 sailors can make it. Racing started on Friday the 30th – Race Officer Ronnie Gurnell managed to get three races in before calling it a day. This was when the fun began; 3 boats did not make the start of the first race – …

Tactics to Win by Nick Craig Published by Fernhurst Books Orders & enquiries: books@sailing.co.za Gold medallist Saskia Clark writes in the Foreword to this book: “Boatspeed is what most sailors concentrate on because, if you are faster than the other boats, you are going to win! However most top boats in a class go at pretty much the same speed, so sailing a shorter distance than your competitors, or in less disturbed wind or waves, are also vital ingredients to …