At
last - the green shoots of the new season - Icebreaker has never seemed
so relevant

Chris Dodgshon
writes:
I’m please to invite
you all to the second IRC focused training weekend and IRC Icebreaker
Regatta to be held at Clyde Marina over the weekends of the 10th/11th
April and 17th/18th April 2010. Attached is the Invite and Entry Form
for the events which this year is being run under the banner of Fairlie
Yacht Club.
The Notice of Race and Sailing Instructions will be sent in due course
and will also be available from the Fairlie Yacht Club website. www.fairlieyachtclub.com
We will also be holding an IRC weigh-in on the 3rd April for which at
the moment, we have eight boats entered so the cost will be kept to
a reasonable level for those wishing to optimize their handicaps. If
you wish to take part in the weigh-in please give me a call (01294 607077)
and I’ll put you on the list. So with just under a month before the
start of the season it's time to get your boats in the water and head
down to Ardrossan and get your team in trim! Look forward to seeing
you all soon.
Official
invite .pdf
Entry form
.pdf
Royal
Yachting Association Scotland - More from Hamish
On Saturday 20th
March 2010, at 10.30am, for the first time in a long time the RYA Scotland
AGM goes West. The AGM will be held within Helensburgh Sailing Club.
This is the chance for members to come along and hear about the work
of RYAS with reports presented from all the development and performance
staff and the sub-committees on their activities in addition to the
business of presenting accounts etc.
The new CEO of RYA UK, Sarah Treseder will speak and there will be a
sailing demonstration in front of the club house by some of the up and
coming stars of the future. Lunch is provided after the AGM so if you
are interested please contact RYA Scotland office on 0131 317 7388.
This is your chance to hear what RYA Scotland has been doing and is
planning to do in the forthcoming year.
- Hamish Mackay
Chairman RYA Scotland
Unfortunately Chas
won't be able to go as if there is to be any chance of getting Troikka
down to Ardrossan for the weigh-in (see above) he'll need to be busy
in the boatyard. There is no doubt that the RYA does a vast amount of
anti-legislative good stuff on behalf of us all and we'd be stuffed
without it but it is a continuing low grade grumble of mine that the
youth activities are so narrowly focused on building the Olympic squads.
I would just like to see some discussion about how to keep the no-hopers
lower down the Olympic pyramid in sailing and ideas on how to help bridge
the gulf between dinghies and crewing on big boats. Sure it's up to
clubs but dinghy clubs and yachtie clubs for the most part are different
and most of us aren't making too good a job of that transitional
thing right now. If this is bollocks shoot me down but I hope some Clyde
yacht club members attend the RYAS AGM.
More
winter sunshine at Helensburgh

Is this a Heron?
No, it's got racks.


I wonder if those
pussies on the Holy Loch have started sailing yet
New
Holy Loch Supremo

The long departed
US Navy had nothing on this. Last week Sandbank awoke to discover that
Marineblast is the new Commodore of Holy Loch Sailing Club. Once he
gets his gold braid sorted there will be no stopping the Pipers now.
Perhaps he will have HLSC supplant the CCC as the prime Clyde club.
Who knows?
However before
that and in addition to the new FF travellers series which will include
the 'Marine Blast HLSC Regatta' (see previous announcement here) the
club will be running an FF regatta for Classics and Silvers on the 17th
and 18th April. This will be the third such event and includes a loosely
organised curry and pub crawl around Dunoon (possibly followed by loosely
organised bowels?). Entry forms available from the club website.
Meet
the Experts Yacht Club Road Show 2010
Following on from
the success of 2009 which we certainly heard nothing about, Henri Lloyd,
Hyde Sails, Tacktick and Spinlock will be offering yacht club members
the chance to hear the latest in product innovation, top tips for the
forthcoming season and information about new product launches. Experts
from the manufacturers will be on hand to answer members questions and
queries as well as offering invaluable inside knowledge on how to get
the best out of your equipment for the forthcoming season. The series
of free road shows will take the form of informal evening events with
drinks and practical presentations from the marine specialists together
with product demonstrations and the chance to win a goodie bag of manufacturers
prizes worth around £800. The road shows will take place in various
South Coast locations but of possible interest to us provincial plebs
is one happening in Largs SC on 19th March. Allegedly.
HSC
Winter Series
Neill
Ross
Nice pics here
from Neill Ross. Words from Graeme Busby. More
photos here
So much for global
warming ! It might be the coldest winter since records began but the
enthusiasm for getting on the water to go sailing show no signs of diminishing
as 25 dinghies took to the water for the second weekend of Helensburgh
Sailing Clubs winter series. The wind is still predominantly from the
east but in contrast to the overcast first week the sun shone and the
light to moderate winds gave all the competitors some excellent sailing
despite the air temperature being only a few degrees above freezing.
The wind was a little variable for the first race but soon settled down
in strength and direction. Jamie Noyes and Angus Grey-Stephens in a
420 narrowly beat Graham McCubbin consistent as ever in his Europe with
Paul Seamark also in a Europe in third. Competition in the toppers was
as close as ever with Rory Kilgore narrowly beating Iain Symons on the
line. The lighter winds have favoured the slower boats so far in the
series and overall Graham McCubbin's consistent sailing keeps him in
first place, Neil Rosie for HSC second in his RS400 and Paul Seamark
in third. The Toppers are enjoying some close racing Calum Wilson keeps
the over all lead with Rory Kilgore and Iain Symon tied for second place.
The next races are scheduled for the 7th of March, hopefully there will
some signs of spring with some more wind and higher temperatures.
Neill
Ross
Rolex
Commodores Cup 2010
Hamish MacKay has
sent in the following for your perusal. What about it?
There are two ways
to be considered for this year's Rolex Commodores Cup and these are
published on the RYA's website. Either enter the trials to be part of
the English teams or become one of the pre-selected teams. RYA Scotland
has the opportunity of putting forward a pre-selected northern team
as has happened in previous years. The event described as The Rolex
Commodores Cup is one of the most important international offshore competitions
for national teams under the IRC (endorsed) rating rule. The RYA's objective
is to select and develop teams to maximise their medal winning potential
at both this and subsequent competitions.
Each team in the
Rolex Commodores Cup 2010 will consist of 3 boats, one from each of
the following rating bands:
Class1 1.110 - 1.230 DLR not exceeding 200
Class 2 1.075 -1.119 DLR not exceeding 200
Class 3 1.025 -1.074 DLR not exceeding 215
From a Scottish
/ Northern perspective the small boat is easy to fill, typically a class
2 boat at the Scottish Series. Obvious choices are Corby 33, J109 etc.
Middle boat getting harder to fill, but still obvious choices: King
40 perhaps but this could also fit into the big boat class? It is recognised
not just in Scotland but the UK that finding a competitive big boat
is a challenge, hence the RORC s decision to create a cross over between
the middle and big boat rating bands.
The High Performance
Committee of RYA Scotland would welcome contact or notes of interest
from potential owners interested in being considered for selection/nomination
for the northern team, thereby forming part of the 4 team entry from
the UK. Contact can be made through the RYA Scotland office.