Go “Beyond the Bay” and live the dream with confidence

Ideal for Cruisers and Racers 

Have you often thought about what it would be like to sail across Bass Strait, circumnavigate Tasmania or head off to Queensland or the Pacific?

It could be just around Westernport for the weekend, or around the many fascinating islands off Tasmania, or to venture further up the east coast to warmer waters in the winter months.

If you've contemplated joining fellow club members who venture out past the heads in various ORCV Ocean Races over the warmer months to Apollo Bay, Port Fairy, King Island and even further to Devonport or Hobart later in the year? Perhaps you dream of competing in the Melbourne to Osaka race.

If the only thing holding you back is the uncertainty of what you need to know to get your boat and crew ready, or the additional things to consider as a skipper, consider undertaking the Beyond the Bay mentored program.

The ORCV "Beyond The Bay" program is designed to give you the necessary information and practical skills to help you plan and complete an overnight cruising passage or participate in a race. This includes exiting and returning through Port Phillip Heads, with the assistance of a guiding mentor, and includes organised sailing and training events, including the Overnight Port Phillip Bay Passage.

Prior participants to the Beyond the Bay course have lived onboard throughout Queensland, competed in Ocean Races with one getting on the podium at Osaka and another winning the Offshore Championship. They enjoyed the program and it gave them a huge amount of confidence plus the opportunity to participate with support not far away.

By the end of the course, you will be able to:

• Describe how you would go about planning a coastal offshore passage
• Plan and carry out an exit and/or entry of the Port Philip Heads
• Describe how you would contribute to safe management of crew offshore
• Describe how you would contribute to monitoring conditions and weather forecasts offshore and/or at night, then manage the boat accordingly

Participant Requirements:

• Intermediate knowledge of sailing
• For skippers / boat owners you need to be able to berth and have good boat handling knowledge
• Have some knowledge and strong interest in weather, tides, basic navigation and radio operations
• Navionics Software on a tablet or iPad
• Boat owners/skippers will need to get their boats to Category 4+ and this will be covered very early in the Beyond the Bay course.
• Need to be a member of the ORCV (ORCV membership is included in the course if you are not already a member)

Course and Dates

The 2025 course is now open, beginning 21 May and finishing on 11 October. See the table below for session dates.

2025 Costs

All participants will need ORCV Membership which is included in the costs outlined below (if a non-member at the time of booking)
If a participant has a current Safety & Sea Survival Certification, there is a cost below that includes the course, membership (for non-ORCV members) and excludes the Safety & Sea Survival.
The costs outline below include all components as outlined above.

Adult Price (Non-ORCV Member)

• Non-ORCV Member’s fee: $1295 
• Non-ORCV Member who has a current Safety & Sea Survival certification $795 

Adult Price (ORCV Existing Member)

• Existing ORCV Members fee: $995 
• Existing ORCV Member who has a current Safety & Sea Survival certification $695

Youth Price (<25 years old & Non-ORCV Member)

• Non-ORCV Member’s fee: $825 
• Non-ORCV Member who has a current SSS certification $640 

Youth Price (<25 years old & ORCV Member)

• Existing ORCV Member’s fee: $695 
• Existing ORCV Member who has a current SSS Certification $500 

If required, you can pay by 4 instalments over a 6-week period via the TryBooking link above when selecting the PayPal option.