ORCV Melbourne Winter Series (MWS)

Cheery Brass for R5.

Well. The Brass are certainly bubbly jubbly today. I spoke with Rear Commodore Simon Dryden a while ago and this is what he said. "It seems this year we really are having a Winter series, with the emphasis on WINTER. This weekend's race is looking like being cold, but with enough wind to get you around the long course quickly, so you will be back in the bar, standing in front of the fire, before too long. The race is looking like a tacticians' party, with the wind going from the North through to the Sou'west during the race. The model from our friends at PredictWind looks fairly reliable as both wind models agree on the direction. Keep watching the website and we will keep you updated on the weather."

Simon then also added, "I will be on the Committee Boat this weekend, so come and say hello." Don't forget to rug up. Actually, I reckon drink up - nice, hot coffee.

PredictWind models for Sunday 15/08/10.

BoM Forecast for Sunday for Melbourne

Cloudy. Scattered showers. Winds west to northwesterly averaging up to 35 km/h increasing to up to 45 km/h during the morning.

BoM Forecast for Sunday for Port Phillip

Winds: Northwesterly 10 to 15 knots shifting westerly 20 to 30 knots during the morning then tending west to northwesterly 15 to 20 knots during the evening. Seas: 0.5 to 1 metres increasing to 1.5 metres during the morning.

The other person happy to see that will be Adam 'RocketMan' Mannix, who will get to go racing and have his 100% ORCV record kept intact. See Running with the Colts for the background on all that.

More on it all, right here, over the next little while....

The full MWS results to date are HERE.

You can still enter individual MWS races HERE and the M2G is HERE - remember that Cruising Divisions will be offered for the latter event.

 

 

By John Curnow and Simon Dryden

Thursday 12/08/10@1500hrs

Thank you to David Judge and Tony Dawson from Hoobo's for ensuring Steb had a ride and we, therefore, had imagery.
The Colts (Sydney 38s) are having their own fight within the battle - many thanks to Ullman Sails for providing the prize.

 

 

ORCV Melbourne Winter Series (MWS)

Happy, happy, joy, joy!

So the wind had started to kick in by now and these are the 'line honours boys and girls', as Steb put it to me. None were happier than Nutcracker to finish and head for home, but to do it with a Div2 Line Honours win, well, it capped the day off nicely.

Just before we get to the hero pic, I thought it would be pertinent to show the Fawkner Beacon chart from the day and that spike as the finish closed in, once again...

Just by the angle of heel alone, we can see that there were marvellous bullets around for everyone to play with.

Nutcracker got up for the gun ahead of INSX, pictured here to windward, who in turn had been having a stoush all day with Matrix, who we'll get to a bit later.

So then. First things, first - The Love Boat.

Leaping for the line.

The wind changes everything and in this one the waves are already like 1/2 to 1m and it hasn't been in for that long. Go back to one of the earlier pieces, like The Prodigal Son, to see what I mean. Flat water, sunshine and no haze over the CBD...

Ding dong all the way.

Now we're talking.

Now we're really talking....

Makes me cold just thinking about it.

So over the go and Rob Davis has already spotted Steb.

And hello to you, too.

Now these frames are about 1sec apart and this is the second with his hand up.

Awesome.

Even betterer! (Fourth)

Surfacing again and the hand never faltered. Cool.

Look at the way you can see the drops.

And yes. We do know this man.

He's Chris Furey.

And yes, he too is pumped with their win. Happy, happy, joy, joy!

Some more smiles from souls...

Cathryn Furey, next to Rob Davis, also spots our Steb.

Two other friends happy and joyous - sorry I don't know your names, but you know the deal by now...

So then INSX made sure the officials knew where she was.

From around the back of the Committee Boat, shoot up into the breeze and get that nose over the line, ASAP.

And then head home for a shower. Still some smiles left...

So as we say goodbye to INSX, who lead Div2 IRC by a mile, Now I mentioned earlier that Matrix had been going hard with INSX all day and they would be next, but you see, in order to do that, we have to look at Mille Sabords, too.

Milles Sabord makes her approach.

Now that's an approach. Wave height building too.

Another go and the spray goes even further.

Now this is why we had to get to Matrix via Mille Sabords - it is her bow sneaking into frame.

Incidentally, it's Beyond Outrageous in the background and we'll get to her in a bit, too.

316 Man still there on the rail.

Makes you ponder all the angles and distances between the three of them...

Reasonably close for these two.

Matrix's heady gets a shot of foul air and Mille Sabords begins her run into the mark.

No need for floss.

Not for them - I dare say they still have a lap to go... (pole's up).

Matrix slides through.

Now we just saw Beyond Outrageous heading up to the mark and then the Rocketeers arrive for their run in to the gun. Waves getting higher still.

Is it to be a skirt?

No. Tack.

NB. Matrix heading home having already put a slab in after crossing the line!

Get a bigger prodder and you'll finish even earlier.

Team BO like the idea too.

Heading home now. Chris Smethurst between shrouds and headsail looks happy to be on that programme...

A Ritchie Benaud.

Scott Esler straight down the keel line.

For the confab being conducted by Simon Brown with Dean Robson and Leith Hore, this also gets a super-honourable mention in the hero pic stakes. Also an awesome bit of water on the foredeck.

Wonderful 'Steb'.

OK. Another wonderful Steb.

Plenty of Larry from a 24 and bit metre stick.

Hhmmm. Nice wet foredeck (slippery dippery) and a saturated spinnaker staysail tucked in on the rail, as well.

Hey Dean, in the office with the red beannie, nice specs! Ru-rrrrowwww. Cool image too. Makes you want to say "OH YEAH!"

Here are those specs again! It's a good bow shot, as well...

Some of Steb's favourites of the day will be next.

The full MWS results to date are HERE. The next race of the MWS is Race Five - the Passage Race on August 15.

So. If you would like to go for a run with the Colts or any of the other sections represented by the Bay's best, you can. Individual entry for MWS races is HERE and the M2G is HERE - remember that Cruising Divisions will be offered for the latter event.

 

 

By John Curnow

Thank you to David Judge and Tony Dawson from Hoobo's for ensuring Steb had a ride and we, therefore, had imagery.
The Colts (Sydney 38s) are having their own fight within the battle - many thanks to Ullman Sails for providing the prize.

 

 

ORCV Melbourne Winter Series (MWS)

Begin the beguine.

Not the race, not the jokes, not the prompts to buy Steb's images and not even Cole Porter's icon (you can choose Ella or Juilo from the many who have covered it), but the weather that began to build in the final stages of R4 of the 2010 MWS.

So, as a direct result of the increase in pressure, naturally there were the kites that did some good things too! It all made a start, just as the final marks were rounded, which is exactly where this set is taken from. Of course, it kicked in even further after that, so stay tuned.

Unofficial hero pic - the Gannet - so I guess that makes it the runner-up... but it is a cool image, so you'll just have to indulge me.

Hhhmmmm - Me thinky not quite makey markey... Really cool 'Steb', however!

Schüss' bow wrong side of pin?

Close.

A little too close.

Shootus the tubus!

Getting some way back on. In the background is Horizon Sprint doing a 245T (Roundup).

OK - Bow down and back into it. Pin still close, eh!

Those rags about to give it plenty of Larry!!!

Mitchey and the gang getting back into it in the background.

Yee Haa! Here's the Larry!!!!!!!!! Bombora directly in behind Schüss.

Sensational capture of the water streaming off the hull.

Time to floss - Please.

Say anything here and it will take away from the image. Nice one, Steb.

Action stations.

About to get very busy.

Somebody was looking for a fast ride!

Audacious had gone around before Schüss - here they are on approach. I like this one because it really shows that the wind had already got stuck into the sea.

Nearly all of our HCOTW are still hiking hard.

Around we go and only just departing the fence.

Had it have been a coloured Bag, it would have been the hero pic, but as the thumbnail on the home page is too small to show it off, I simply chose to showcase this really great image right here. Also shows the ocean main off beautifully. (Diamonds are Forever, they are all I need to please me - etc, etc.)

Ninety Seven had gone around ahead of all three of them, here Frank Hammond is clear on where the pin is.

Alan Saunders with the wheel.

Mein Gott! Nifty (Neville Rose) is out of the slippers and smoking jacket and almost in front of the stick!!! John Weatherly on the rail looking at us.

Bombora, the sun, a 'Steb' and spray. That has to have been worth freezing the walls off a brass humpy for!

Oh yeah!

Woo Hoo - give it some or what.

There'll be some grinding involved in that one.

Swordy set about the return voyage.

You know, when you can't make your mind up...

... don't stress - just display both. BTW, it's Stampede.

Halcyon on the way up - Swordy, Stampede, Schüss and Audacious, go down.

Hhhmmmm. Toyota Hilux.

... is to stay with them around the track.

A true 'Steb' image.

"Water on the deck!"

Bow wave.

Stern wave.

Definitely shows that one is a wetter variety than the other...

Crew departing the rail as Wicked goes around.

Woody - "Reach for the sky".

Baby Bag.

Noice.

Text book.

Clockwork immediately in front of Stampede.

Magazine territory.

So Hush and Beyond Outrageous had a grand old time out there.

This was a great image.

This was sensational.

And this, well, I don't know about anyone else, but there's no point winning by a country mile. Close stuff always wins...

It keeps getting better!

Intensity.

Wonderful.

Sensational.

Busy.

Busier!

Skipper Tony Warren in the yellow Musto and our friend, Ian Lindsay, is in the office. You know, I thought they'd be unhappy to have a pick with strings in the drink displayed and they were. bet that won't be happening again...

Had this for the stern wave.

And this for the fishing.

And this because they're off.

Hush coming in.

All very controlled here.

And here, too.

Which is why all this looks good, too.

Not a lot to add to this image of Extasea.

Now that really is a classic image. Just love a good stern wave. Tony Bull with the kite. No gloves, so those 30 year-old ones must have finally died, eh?

Really brilliant - it's XLR8's bow and mark.

Smooth sailing for gold on the day.

No officials - no racing. Thank you team. Fantastic stuff here - sun on boat, ominous clouds in the background...

Look out - the real weather is on the way.

The full MWS results to date are HERE. The next race of the MWS is Race Five - the Passage Race on August 15.

So. If you would like to go for a run with the Colts or any of the other sections represented by the Bay's best, you can. Individual entry for MWS races is HERE and the M2G is HERE - remember that Cruising Divisions will be offered for the latter event.

 

 

By John Curnow

Thank you to David Judge and Tony Dawson from Hoobo's for ensuring Steb had a ride and we, therefore, had imagery.
The Colts (Sydney 38s) are having their own fight within the battle - many thanks to Ullman Sails for providing the prize.

 

 

Melbourne to Geelong (M2G) - 11/09/10

Cadence of Geelong - via Adelaide and the globe.

 

She joins Peregrine and Extasea, so far, as RGYC entrants in the various divisions of the 2010 M2G. What we're talking about is the Cole 43, Cadence, which was the fourth entrant in the Cruising with Spinnakers Division.

Her owner is Paul Douglas, who said to me, "Here is 'Cadence of Adelaide'. She is a Cole 43 and was built by Eastcoast Yachts, in 1985. We bought her in Adelaide and now she lives in Geelong, where we've been building a good crew over the Winter and getting her up to speed. In 2007, the previous owner circumnavigated the globe via the Panama Canal, so she's really well setup for cruising comfortably. We're doing well in the RGYC fleet, so we thought we might try something a bit further afield."

Excellent news Paul. Thank you for your interest and we look forward to seeing you out there for the annual Melbourne to Geelong race on Saturday, September 11, 2010.

Right then. You may wish to join Paul and the crew of Cadence and you may not want to have to organise a massive crew or get too busy to have a whole lot of fun. Solution - join the Cruising with Spinnakers Division, even if you have been in the Racing Divisions previously. Pretty Woman was the first to cross over for this particular event and now 2009 Melbourne to Hobart Eastcoaster racer, Biddy HuII, has shown up on the cruising roster, as well. Boats such as Ocean Safari, Vantage, Caledonia and Dream, could well do the same...

If you entered the entire MWS, then you're already automatically entered into this race too, but you do need to complete some more information for this particular race. You can also just enter the M2G race only, if you like, but I guess that means you're giving the game away about your favourite pastime after sailing - partying!!!

There are separate Cruising Divisions (kite and no kite) as well as a Cruising Series, which will incorporate the Passage Race (Race Five) of the MWS, which is on August 15. The M2G Notice of Race is ready for your perusal already and the Sailing Instructions are coming soon.

 

Click HERE to go and complete your online entry if you're already doing the MWS.

 

Click HERE to go and complete your online entry for just the M2G race only and it looks like this, below:

 

If you' ve got the boat tied up to the quay and think you should give it a run, then do. The M2G is a passgae race and if you do not want to be in with all the racers, even if you normally are, then go in one of the Cruising Divisions. While you're at it, get your clubmates to come along as well. Why? Party. That's why...

By John Curnow