Three teams, ten races, one winner and a big lesson in dealing with adversity. This sums up the successful inaugural Noakes Youth Regatta which was conducted last month on the stretch of Sydney Harbour between Noakes at Woolwich Dock and Cockatoo Island.
In the first race of the day, sailed in a light morning westerly following the 10am start, Indian Ocean Adventurers, named after Ryan Storey and Clarke Carter who are in training for a 6,000 kilometre row across the Indian Ocean next year, almost dipped out of the competition when their Magic 25 was holed in a collision with Tassie Devils.
This became an important lesson in dealing with adversity for the young adventurers and the rest of the crew who were quickly taken ashore to collectively repair the “hole large enough to walk through” using plywood and Sicaflex.
“The collision could have marked the end of the regatta for Ryan, Clarke and their crew but instead they fixed it and went straight back on out the racecourse,” said organiser and regatta sponsor Sean Langman who knows all about applying bandaids at sea while the clock ticks having suffered damage to this Open 66 Grundig/AAPT on more than one occasion while speeding southwards in the Rolex Sydney Hobart.
The eventual winner was Western Force, named after Noakes Youth sailor Chani Rigby from Perth who was part of the Noakes Youth Young Endeavour crew when the tall ship acted as a support vessel to the Rolex Sydney Hobart fleet.
Western Force sailed consistently all day, winning nine of ten races including the double points medal race sailed in an afternoon sea breeze, as they and the other two teams battled the trickly tidal flow between the shoreline at Woolwich and Cockatoo Island.
“There was a lot of team spirit, it was about young people getting together for a day of fun with plenty of banter between the boats,” said 23-year-old Rigby.
Tassie Devils placed second and Indian Ocean Adventurers third.
The winning team automatically gains entry to the next scheduled Noakes Youth Regatta, to be held on Newcastle Harbour in a month’s time. As part of his commitment to stage these regattas, Langman will fly the winning team members to Newcastle from whichever Australian state they hail.
“The challenge is to make this a national competition, the idea being the more regattas you win the more you get to travel,” Langman said.
Later, many of the same group enjoyed a race around Sydney Harbour on a Sydney 39 as part of the CYCA’s Audi Winter Series and all took a turn on the helm.
“The aim of the weekend was to get a group of young people together and teach them teamwork and about having goals,” said Langman. “Having Ryan and Clarke with us as members of the Noakes Youth program and exploring their goal of spending three months at sea rowing in the Woodvale Challenge 2009 really impacted the group”.
Lisa Ratcliff
 Fast action in drug bust
A tip-off to the Customs Hotline resulted in the arrest of two men allegedly attempting to import up to 2kg of cannabis from PNG to a Torres Strait island earlier last month. An anonymous call provided information about the alleged $10,000 drug import.
The Thursday Island District office enforcement team co-ordinated a response involving the Australian Federal Police and Queensland Police.
Mark Porter, Supervisor Enforcement Operations Torres Strait, said initial investigations indicated the cannabis had been imported from Daru, PNG, by a banana boat and dropped-off on Australian territory at Tudu Island. Three Australians then allegedly travelled from Yam to Tudu to retrieve the drugs.
“It was an ultimately unsuccessful attempt to evade the scrutiny of government officers on Yam Island,” Mark said.
“However, working quickly, we were able to get an enforcement team into the area, investigate the report and help our police colleagues apprehend those allegedly responsible.”
The two-day operation resulted in the arrest of two men – an Australian and a PNG citizen – on charges associated with the importation. A number of other men are also under investigation and may also face charges.
Mark said the event was also a sign of the value and the strength of the Customs Hotline program in the Torres Strait.
“The community really are our eyes and ears when it comes to knowing exactly what’s going on,” he said.
With seven first places out of a possible eight on the last day, the Royal Yacht Club of Victoria has reasserted its domination of the Association Cup, Victoria’s oldest and most prestigious interclub keelboat event.
In retaining the Association Cup, a contest first held in 1907, the ‘Royals’ have lost only once in the past 12 years, to Sandringham Yacht Club, their arch rivals from across the bay, two seasons ago.
Provisional final points are the Royal Yacht Club of Victoria 13, Sandringham Yacht Club 20, Royal Brighton Yacht Club 42, Royal Melbourne Yacht Squadron 45, Royal Geelong Yacht Club 58 and Hobson’s Bay Yacht Club 59 points. Under the scoring system, each club drops the result from one division in each heat.
The bay racing yacht Executive Decision outsailed the bigger offshore racing boats in the IRC Division A, winning both races on corrected time. The DK 46 Dekadence (Phil Coombs, SYC) and Living Doll (Michael Hiatt, RYCV) were the only two ocean racers to gain a place on the final day. Executive Decision is a modified Adams 10 that carries a masthead spinnaker and was ably steered by Josh White for owner Geoff Botica.
Another double success, in fact, three wins over the twoday regatta, went to Surprise, a Borrensen 11m steered by Tasmanian Nick Rogers for owner, sea pilot Captain David Ellis who is currently overseas.
In the AMS Division A, Robert Hick’s Toecutter II was the third winner for the RYCV in heat three in taking out Division A, while fellow club boat Wake (A Lidgett) won heat four. Sandringham’s Simon La Peyre sailed Vapour Trail to victory in heat three for AMS Division B, but in heat four narrowly lost to the Royals’ Top Gun (M Peters/G Rowland), a result that gave the host club four winners in the final heat.
Peter Campbell
Gretel crewman Brian Northam dies in Sydney
Brian Northam, a member of the crew of Gretel, Australia’s first challenger for the America’s Cup in 1962, has died in Sydney after a short illness.
Brian was actively involved in Sydney’s yachting and maritime activities for most of his adult life, serving as President of the Sydney Heritage Fleet from 1988 to 1991. He also served as Chairman of the Australia Day Regatta Management Committee and was a Life Member of the Regatta.
Brian was a son of the late Sir William (‘Bill’) Northam who won Australia’s first sailing Gold Medal when he skippered the 5.5 metre class yacht Barrenjoey to victory at the 1964 Tokyo Olympic Games.
Brian was closely involved in the restoration of his father’s yacht to compete in the Classic Division of the 5.5 Metre World Championship held in Sydney.
In the late 1970s and early 1980s Brian was active in ocean racing, sailing his East Coast 31 Humdinger in two Sydney Hobart Races.
While he had retired from active participation, Brian maintained a close interest in the Sydney Heritage Fleet and the Australia Day Regatta. The Northam Family Trophy is competed for each year by young sailors in the Sabot two-up class.
Sydney’s yachting and maritime fraternity, including other crew of Gretel, attended a memorial service at St Giles Church, Greenwich.
Peter Campbell
 Dave Padden, a sailor with Dobroyd Aquatic Club sailed superbly to pick up gold at the NSW 2008 Radio Controlled (RC) Laser state championship held at Rodd Point in April.
Padden sailed consistently well, crossing the line first or second in 22 of the 33 races.
Club-mate Paul Derwent improved on his third position in each of the past two championships to pick up the silver medal while Larry Reedman, from the Sydney Maritime Modellers Club and second in 2006, sailed well in the variable conditions to take out the bronze.
A notable performance was that of Paul Martin from the Blue Mountains, a relative newcomer to the sport who held his concentration throughout the two days to finish fourth. Winston Hills sailor Graham Brown, the novice of the field with only a few hours ‘hands-on’ experience in the class sailed with the skill of an old professional and capped off a remarkable tournament with second in the last race to end up seventh overall.
“The best thing about this championship was the spirit in which everyone raced.” Derwent, president of the host club commented. “We were all trying to win each race but never at the expense of fun and fair play. This is a hallmark of RC Laser sailing and a credit to Owen Jarvis, the Principal Race Officer and all of the competitors.”
The weather had looked foreboding in the run up to the weekend but in the end turned on near perfect conditions giving competitors the opportunity to try out all three rigs.
“The winds were terrific and tested us throughout the two days,” remarked Padden. “On Sunday afternoon we were sailing with the large sails in light flukey winds. Tactics became important – in my case helped by local knowledge – particularly being able to pick wind shifts and where to sail on the course.”
The next championship event is the Victorian states to be held at Aspendale Gardens in Melbourne on the last weekend of May. The local contingent are already talking about a trip south to try and lift the trophy to return the Victorian’s feat of two years ago.
The RC Laser is one of the most popular professional level radio controlled yachts in the world. A quarter scale model of the iconic Laser dinghy, it was designed by renowned yacht designer Bruce Kirby and is sailed all around the world. According to Derwent, the advantages of the RC Laser are its oneclass design, its rugged construction and superior sailing performance.
“Another thing I love about the RC Laser,” said Derwent, “is that to travel to interstate regattas, we simply check the bag onto the plane just as we would a suitcase. It is that easy.”
Radio controlled sailing is a rapidly growing sport in Australia appealing to enthusiasts of all ages and skill levels. The boats are entirely wind-powered and the skills involved are essentially the same as sailing a full-size dinghy – ability to tune the boat, manoeuvre for position at the start-line, pick wind shifts, trim for boat speed and round buoys are all essential skills for the front-runners.
Cliff Bromiley
To join Dobroyd RC Lasers, contact Paul Derwent on 0416 855 626 or visit www.radiosail.com.au
Port Kembla gets ready for more cars
New infrastructure at Port Kembla will assist the port’s transition towards becoming NSW’s vehicle importing hub, according to Ports and Waterways Minister Joe Tripodi.
Three new projects will increase the port’s capacity to handle car carrying vessels and ensure efficient handling of vehicles coming into the port.
“Just last week, Hoegh Autoliners announced they would start transferring its car import trade to Port Kembla in June, five months ahead of schedule,” Mr Tripodi said.
One of the new infrastructure projects will see the extension of the port’s ‘105 Berth’ by 80 metres.
This will give Port Kembla three dedicated berths totalling 800 metres in length to accommodate up to three car carrying vessels simultaneously.
A new bridge to cross the coal and grain rail tracks will allow continuous operations of coal and grain trains at the port to remain unaffected by vehicle stevedoring.
The bridge will make a further 10 hectares of land available for motor vehicle processing allowing 30 – 40 per cent of cars to be processed on site.
A third contract for the construction of a security gate will further secure the port’s major checkpoint and increase safety to port users.
“Together, these three projects see Port Kembla stepping up to the challenge of being NSW’s major vehicle importing port,” Wollongong MP Noreen Hay said.
The bulk of car imports are due to relocate from Glebe Island in November.
Beehive early warning system
Meanwhile, Australia’s defence against swarms of exotic honey bees has been strengthened with the placement of a sentinel hive at Port Kembla.
“We can now detect straight away if any varroa mite jump ship,” Ports and Waterways Minister Joe Tripodi said.
Port Kembla is the latest international port to be targeted under the National Sentinel Hive Program, funded by Biosecurity Australia, and managed in NSW by NSW Department of Primary Industries (DPI).
Australia is the last major beekeeping country not to be infested with the varroa mite, otherwise known as exotic honey bees.
Under an agreement between NSW DPI and the Port Kembla Port Corporation, a local beekeeper has been given port access to regularly monitor the hive for any signs of varroa, tropilaelaps and tracheal mite.
Twenty seven locations around Australia were identified as high risk introduction points for exotic bee diseases, seven of which are in NSW, including Port Botany, White Bay, Newcastle, Mayfield, Goodwood Island, Kurnell and Richmond.
The program relies on the generosity of beekeepers who keep hives in the proximity of the targeted high risk areas to undertake the sampling using plastic strips impregnated with a miticide in combination with a sticky matt placed in the brood box.
In school yachting’s equivalent of the head of the river, St Leonards College came from behind with just metres to spare, to snatch a thrilling last leg and last race victory in the final of the Victoria Harbour Teams Racing at Docklands in April.
Going into the third and last race to decide the winner against their staunch rivals The Peninsula School the score was one race all.
And at the last mark with just 200 metres to sail, St Leonards who were the defending champions were looking down the barrel of defeat at the hands of The Peninsula School in the winner takes all shoot out.
 However, in some of the finest schools boat-to-boat racing ever seen in Victoria, St Leonards managed on the final up wind leg to narrowly out smart their Peninsula School rivals to clinch a come from behind first and second across the line to win by just one placing.
St Leonards Year 11 student Jacqui Gurr who was competing for the fourth time in this regatta including last year’s winning team steered one of the Pacer yachts with her year 8 brother Chris.
“We are all really happy with our win and I put it down to the four hard training sessions we did in the last two weeks,” Jacqui said. “We are a captainless team and like to think of ourselves as a champion team ”
St Leonards raced with two family crews, the Taylors and the Gurrs. The school has won the title five times in nine years and will go on to represent Victoria at the Australian national schools teams racing titles in Sydney next July.
“Sailing’s a great sport for the Bayside schools and our sailors have generated a very competitive spirit within the school,” said St Leonard’s principal Dr Roger Hayward who enjoyed watching the tight final from the comfort of the former Sydney ferry Lady Cuttler which was used as a viewing platform and teams base. Sydney 2000 Olympic gold medallist Mark Turnbull OA who happens to be a St Leonards old boy presented the winners trophies.
“It is fantastic to see sailing getting into schools and being taken so seriously!” Turnbull said.
Third place in the championship went to the fledgling young team of rookies from Woodleigh College who had the measure of St Bede’s College, needing only two of the three final races to secure third spot.
• The regatta is sponsored by Lend Lease’s Victoria Harbour and the City of Melbourne.
Unique, unreal, unusual & unbelievable! are probably some of the words that will be used to describe the interesting array of vehicles which will be on display at a Unique Car Show at the Royal Motor Yacht Club, Broken Bay on Sunday 15th June.
A bizarre event for a yacht club you might think, but boaties do have many other interests, and an enthusiasm for all things mechanical is certainly one of them.
“This is the first time an event of this kind will be held at the Club and the members of the RMYC’s Timber Boat Division are very excited with the amount of interest and applications we have received from people keen to display their vehicles,” said Captain Splinter (aka Tony Van Dyke). “There will be approximately 50 vehicles on display including everything from early 1900 model Fords, beautiful old motorcycles, Mustangs, a Maserati and maybe even a lawnmower!” added Tony.
The displays will be located in the lower waterfront car park at the Royal Motor Yacht Club, 46 Prince Alfred Parade, Newport – starting at 10am and finishing at 4pm. Entry is free and the public are welcome but will need to sign the appropriate temporary visitor form if they wish to use the Club Brasserie or other facilities.
For more information in regard to this event, please contact the RMYC office during business hours on 9997 5511.
Trans Tasman Challenge
RANSA members Mike Evans, Dave Giddings, and Lawrence Hinchcliffe were part of the winning team in the Annual Trans Tasman Challenge, sailed over eight races on Sydney Harbour in May.
Each team was comprised of three Clansman, two Dragons, and one Elliot, the latter being sailed by juniors from the RSYS Youth Programme.
The Regatta was sailed in fairly light WSW conditions and it was down to the wire for the final results with Australia winning by just five points. Australia has won the last three challenges.
 Heading north, slowly
“Going slow,” Westwind’s Chris and Gilli Dicker said, “is thankfully as much part of sailing as squeezing all speed out of the ship and winning races.”
After eight years of restoring Westwind (built in the 1930s by legendary Tasmanian boat builder Jock Muir) the couple, who won the Wooden Boat Association of NSW’s 2007 Hal Harpur Award, is heading north on the 35ft yacht after extended stops along the NSW coast.
Chris and Gilli have reached the Clarence River after two week’s cruising.
They make no excuse at the lack of mileage except to say “we are learning to listen to our inner voice which tells us when it’s time to move on”.
Lars Frostell
 Undoubtedly, Geelong’s Wooden Boat Festival this year was bigger and better than ever before as Australia’s maritime heritage was displayed both on the waters of Corio Bay and within the Royal Geelong Yacht Club marina.
Attracting the first interstate entries to the Whyte, Just & Moore Wooden Boat Festival of Geelong 2008, boats were sailed and trailed from Tasmania and South Australia proving the increasing popularity of the event.
Weather conditions were ideal, flat waters, light breezes and bright sunshine complimenting the crowd-pleasing Grand Parade of boats, races on Corio Bay and general displays on and off the water.
On shore there were demonstrations of rope-making, displays of boat building featuring many of Australia’s most prominent shipwrights and many other static displays.
Perhaps the most graceful craft on show was the fully restored former Tasmanian barracouta and cray fishing boat Storm Bay, owned by Tim Phillips of The Wooden Boatshop. Storm Bay was designed by Alf Blore and built in 1925 by Percy Coverdale at Battery Point in Tasmania and used mainly as a fishing vessel. Gaff-rigged with a topsail, fishing originally took place while the boat drifted under the double reefed mainsail.
Storm Bay features blue gum frames, Huon pine hull planking – some of her planks are a full length curved 52ft. With an impressive 15ft bowsprit, she was relaunched in 2006 after Phillips spent 10 years restoring her to her original condition as a sailing vessel.
 Another beautifully restored boat was Zoë Clair, a 38ft Commuter which was built in 1930 and has accumulated quite a history. The original owner lost his life in the 1930s using one of the ‘new-fangled’ motorised lawn mowers. During the 1939 to 1945 war, Zoë Clair was used for U-boat sighting along the east coast of America. She later had a skeg fitted to protect the propeller because, in the 1950s, her fisherman owner often became over-intoxicated and ran aground. Zoë Clair’s current owner, Andrew Barnett, purchased the boat in 1999 and shipped her to Australia as deck cargo.
Another old-timer to catch the fancy was the Couta boat Fancy. Built in the 1920s by Mitch Lacco, Fancy has an overall length of 24ft 3ins and was built specifically to win the Williamstown to Portarlington race. This, she promptly did. After a life of fishing she was wrecked in the creek at Queenscliff (Victoria) where she lay for many years. Brought to Geelong’s Western Beach for major repairs, the side wall of the Western Beach Boat Club rooms had to be removed to fit her inside for the operation.
Fancy was fitted with a truck engine and used for fishing before being purchased by the current owner, Paul van Prooyen. In 2005 she was completely restored from the keel up by Brett Almond keeping the original keel, planks, stem, stern and rudder completely intact.
Not all displays were big boats and, possibly, the scene stealer was the tiny 18-foot steam driven boat, Firefly. Originally an open 16-foot clinker built boat she had an extra two feet added to her stern, then fitted with a propeller shaft, a steam engine and then the boiler. With her ‘sunshade’ over most of her length, Firefly entertains the public wherever she steams.
Another small craft and looking rather like an oversized dinghy, the clinker built Penguin is 15ft long and powered by a 2-cylinder Stuart Turner two-stroke engine. Built in a garage in the Melbourne suburb of Williamstown in 1950 she was restored in 2002. Penguin is regularly displayed at interstate wooden boat festivals.
The 14ft carvel centre-board sailing/rowing dinghy, Chinook is fitted with a Stuart Turner single-cylinder engine and was built in 1951 by Andrea Goble, a young 19-year-old cabinet maker. Andrea used the original plans, Honduras mahogany planking and elm rib material. Her present owner, Andrea’s son Bernard, fully restored Chinook to her former glory in 2004.
Many other beautifully restored craft were on display including the oldest yacht still sailing in Australia The 45ft Huon pine gaff-cutter, Zephyr which was built in Port Adelaide in 1873 and was once owned by the Attorney General of South Australia. Zephyr actually won three of her first 15 races. A major refit was carried out in 1994.
These are just a few of the highlights of the impressive display of craftsmanship, history and tradition displayed at the Royal Geelong Yacht Club earlier this year. The next Wooden Boat Festival of Geelong will be held early in 2010. Will we see you here?
Bob Appleton
 AVCG Brisbane Flotilla benefit from CYCA SOLAS Trusts
Australian Volunteer Coast Guard Brisbane Flotilla is the latest recipient of a donation from the Cruising Yacht Club of Australia’s Safety of Life at Sea Trusts.
A cheque for $6,000 was presented to Allan Tennant of the Australian Volunteer Coast Guard (AVCG), to ensure that one of the flotilla’s vessels CG1 has its electrics and wiring fully refurbished to ensure its operationally viability.
CG1 has completed many hours of service for the AVCG Flotilla and assisted the yachting community in the vicinity of Moreton Bay on many occasions such as coming to the assistance of a dismasted yacht with eight passengers on board and seeing the safe return of all to Manly Harbour.
AVCG Brisbane is located in Manly Boat Harbour and services the boating communities who use Moreton Bay and the Brisbane River. AVCG area also covers the Port of Brisbane, Brisbane city river reaches, waters out to and around Moreton Island and the South Passage Bar between North Stradbroke and Moreton Islands.
Located in the largest recreational boat harbour (over 1,450 vessels) on the eastern seaboard, the 100 members of Coast Guard Brisbane respond to requests for assistance from some 300 vessels a year as well as monitoring marine radio emergency frequencies, undertaking vessel logging and providing public education programs.
AVCG Brisbane’s vessels also support community events including Brisbane’s popular Riverfire and will receive around 40 requests each year from the Qld Ambulance Service and Water Police to provide assistance.
AVCG Brisbane has three primary rescue vessels, which provide capacity to undertake rescue work in open waters up to 50nm seaward or to work in shallow bay and mangrove areas.
In the nine years since it was established, in excess of $430,000 has been donated to 15 organizations in every Australian state as well as the ACT.
This is the third Queensland donation; the first was in 2004 when RACQ CareFlight received a cheque for $20,000 to purchase an emergency beacon homing system, and the second was for $13,000 to Volunteer Marine Rescue Southport/Surfers Paradise to equip and outfit one of its new (in 2007) rescue vessels.
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