Wrap Up Point Yacht Club's Sangoma Cruise

Offshore: 26 - 30 December

A small fleet of adventurous yachties ventured offshore for the Sangoma Cruise hosted by Point Yacht Club.

The 80 nautical mile cruise had five keelboats entered to participate, with three of the yacht taking the first weather window on Boxing Day, the remaining two checked out to leave on 28 December to catch the South Westerly winds.

First to depart, Ocean Spirit helmed by Neville Bransby set the pace in the dying South Wester on Boxing Day. The enthusiastic team took 12 hours from Durban to Richards Bay. Hot on their heels, the spirited crew sailing on Therapy. And following them was the experienced skipper, Jon Marshall (Rear Commodore of Keelers for Point Yacht Club), on his yacht Majimoto. His crew was small catamaran sailor, Bart Fokkens who had never ventured beyond uMhlanga, clocking up his first overnight passage with the duo taking 18 hours to get into Richards Bay.

The second batch of boats kept an eye on the weather window, opting to wait for the 20 knots South Wester two days later. Round the World Clipper skipper, Craig Millar and his crew on Argo FY departed Durban at 9am. Keen sailor, Robin Hulley was due to sail with Millar on his yacht Mafuta, but as he was heading out the door at his home, his geyser burst, dampening his spirits and not allowing him to compete.

Argo FY had a gentle sail up to Richards Bay, having blown their kite shortly after getting out of the Harbour channel.

"We specifically chose the south Wester to sail up in as the whole team were keen to get offshore and fly the kite. A minute after we hoisted the spinnaker, it gently floated back down to the deck. We fished it back in, and after a debate onboard if our light weather kite would handle the conditions, we opted for the safer option of putting the gib out on the pole and goose winging it." Skipper, Millar said on his return.

From breakwater to breakwater, it took the Argo FY team 10.5 hours to get to Richards Bay, with only one gybe to enter the Harbour mouth as the sun was setting.

Both Therapy and Ocean Spirit had a quick turn around in Richards Bay, catching up on a bit of kip and then catching the North Easter back home before it switched to the South Wester that brought Argo FY up. Ocean Spirit sailed impressively with 11 hours on the clock back home, top speed reaching 17.4knots. The sleek Therapy notched up a top speed of 18knots.

Majimoto missed the window, waiting for Argo FY who were transporting their main sail, Marshall and Fokkens sadly damaged their main on the ride up. Both Argo FY and Majimoto had a day in Richards Bay to carry out a few running repairs before they took to the water on the second last day of the year.

At 6.30am, the two boats made their way offshore in a gentleman's race back to Durban. Argo FY surfed the entire way home, with Millar recording 21knots, pumping the tiller as he caught a swell and surfed his way to the impressive speed. The team made up of Millar, Ed de Lange, and Hannah and Rudi Fokkens made it back in 8 hours and 5 minutes.

"It was a great sail, the team are young, experienced and fantastic onboard. But what really was wonderful about this experience is all the chatter back on land that has been created. The more experienced guys have got the record books out, and have been reminiscing when they used to sail this route regularly. Loads of the guys have said that they are keen to participate in the next one. It is exhilarating to be offshore, and actually sailing somewhere, giving us an opportunity to stretch our legs." Millar stated.

The record set in October 1990 by Sun Tonic, a Royal Cape One Design was skippered by Peter Atkinson.

"And for the next cruise, we will most certainly fly our kite! And who knows, maybe we can get close to Atkinson's record?" Millar said.

Majimoto, with only the two sailors onboard came in sailing most of the way with only their jib up, but still managing to hit a few numbers over 15knots on the speedo. They got back into Durban a couple of hours after Argo FY just after 7:00pm, having been pummelled by the sea state in the howling North Easter.

The next big events this month at Point Yacht Club for the Keelers is the Sigma Series and then Bar Anniversary Pursuit Race for the dinghies.

For more info visit www.pyc.co.za or like the club's Facebook page.

Wrap Up for Point Yacht Club Flying Fifteen Nationals and Hobie 16 Regionals

Offshore Durban: 16 - 18 December

Three days of adverse conditions tested two small, competitive fleets of sailors competing in the Flying Fifteen Nationals and Hobie 16 Provincials hosted by Point Yacht Club.

In the Flying Fifteen Nationals - No strangers to being at the front of the pack in the magnificent Flying Fifteen class, Patrick Harris and Jeremy Kriek led throughout the regatta, impressively taking top honours in seven out of the nine races, finding it heavy going in the light winds on the final day and finishing second behind Anthony McMillan and Danish sailor, Lauritz Walsøe. Pushing Harris and Kriek throughout the regatta, Campbell Alexander sailing with visiting crew, Dr Stephanie Brown from the UK who scored six seconds, a third and a fourth notching up a second behind Harris and Kriek.

In the Hobie 16 Provincials, the father and son team of Peter and Matthew Hall dominated on the water. The Hall team won all but two races in their eight race regatta. They were chased by inland sailors, brothers Kyle and Justin Lambie.

The Flying Fifteens had the biggest fleet on the water in recent memory, with 11 boats on the water. For the regatta to constitute as a South African Sailing event, they needed 10 boats to start and finish two races. The class was agonisingly close, but it wasn’t meant to be. On day one newcomers to the fleet, Father and son team of Dominic and Marco Collett thought they had enough clearance but hit the sand bank. On the second day offshore, the heavy weather took its toll with Campbell Alexander taking a bite out of Greg Hurters boat, and Hurter and his crew, Michael Surgeson had to limp home. Collett squared took to the ocean for the first time, bravely flying their spinnaker but as luck would have it, a rogue Hobie 16 pitch-poled directly in-front of them, with the mast crashing down onto them, knocking Dominic on the head and into the water, earning him five stitches and sadly destroying their chances of completing a race.

Brown, who sails for Rutland Sailing Club in the British Midlands said, “The sailing was great fun and we were lucky to have lots of wind Saturday and Sunday. Campbell was a fantastic helm to crew for and the fleet was a high level of competition but very welcoming. It was lovely to see such strong support for the newer sailors. The warm waters and big waves were a wonderful change. Thanks to you all for a great trip!”

“Sailing was amazing, a tough race since I had close to no prior experience with FF15 and symmetrical spinnakers. Since I usually sail Lasers the whole event was one big learning curve. The fleet is strong but we had some good races!” enthused Danish sailor, Lauritz Walsøe.

The first day of racing was held in the bay, with conditions being hazardous offshore, with a short, sharp swell and high winds deterring Race Officer extraordinaire, Kevin Bingham. Four races were run in a blustery North Easter course. The second day, racing went offshore with the winds consistently around 15knots and over adding into the mix a bit of a running swell. Bingham got in another four races on Sunday. The entire fleet of Flying Fifteens however, disappeared early from the race track, leaving only the Hobies to sail in the final race on Sunday. On Monday, keeping an eye on the inclement weather enroute, the Hobies didn’t venture onto the water with a depleted fleet of Flying Fifteens gathering ahead of the spectacular midday storm. A strict Bingham gave both fleets a wounding results for not being on the start line, but fortunately with discards, the top sailors results didn’t take a huge knock.

Hobie hero, Garth Loudon only sailed the one race, with his brand-new crew member, his daughter Kristin. A delighted dad said, “Kristin finally showed interest in sailing, so we had a quick lesson on Sunday morning and entered one of the races. It was great to be back on the water again! We managed a second place in good winds. Peter and Matthew were sailing very well, was good to see!”

The next event for the enthusiastic fleet is the upcoming Bar Anniversary Pursuit Race that will be sailed in the harbour at the end of the month.

Results

Flying Fifteen Nationals

1 Patrick Harris / Jeremy Kriek 9pts, 2 Campbell Alexander / Steph Brown 19pts, 3 Anthony McMillan / Lauritz Walsøe 32pts. 4 Craig Campbell / Nhlanhla Phakathi 36pts, 5 Myles White / Estelle Buys 38pts, 6 Thomas Funke / Peter Funke 51pts, 7 Hannah Fokkens / Rudi Fokkens 64pts, 8 Greg Hurter / Mike Surgeson 65pts, 9 Iain Bowman / Jan Larkens 80pts, 10 Chris Coxen / Michael Boorman 82pts, 11 Dominic Collett / Marco Collett 96pts

Hobie 16 Provincials

1 Peter Hall / Matthew Hall 8pts, 2 Kyle Lambie / Justin Lambie 26pts, 3 Andrew Heathcote / Blake Davidson 26pts, 4 Mike Goodyer / Jennifer Goodyer 36pts, 5 Jethro Brophy Tintinger / Stephanie Goodyer 36pts, 6 Dylan Albert / Chad Stevenson 49pts, 7 Justin Butler / James Butler 49pts, 8 Wayne Smith / Kate Bain 59pts, 9 Dylan Lambie / Cameron Booth 64pts, 10 Garth Loudon / Kristin Loudon 68pts, 11Ruddi Rogge / Sven Paton 81pts

Lipton Cup 2018

Point Yacht Club

Offshore Durban

Sailing in Durban received the generous news from the Royal Cape Yacht Club, the victorious 2017 Lipton Cup winners, with the offer to host the prestigious event in warmer waters.

In a letter presented to the Commodore of Point Yacht Club, Greg de Beyer, Commodore of the Royal Cape Yacht Club, Vitor Medina graciously offered the opportunity to host the respected event offshore of Durban mid-year in 2018.

In Medina’s letter, he referred to the 2013 event sailed offshore of Durban, where Point Yacht Club finished second to a boat that was subsequently found to have been illegally modified.

Medina stated, “While Point Yacht Club was earlier this year, formally declared the winner of the Lipton Cup in 2013, your club had of course been denied the opportunity of defending the Cup in 2014 on your home waters. This unfortunate situation can’t be fully rectified at this stage.

“Royal Cape Yacht Club, in recognition of this unfairness of your loss to a non-conforming boat in 2013, is prepared to forfeit our right to defend the Cup in Table Bay next year and offer the 2018 event to your Club to host during the week following the MSC Week.”

In response, a delighted Greg de Beyer, Commodore of Point Yacht Club enthusiastically accepted the offer. “This offer has been discussed by our General Committee as well as our Sailing Committees and I can confirm that the offer has been eagerly and unanimously accepted.

“Point Yacht Club is firmly committed to promoting our sport in conjunction with other sailing clubs and organisations throughout South Africa. Whilst we never doubted the goodwill and common goal of the Royal Cape Yacht Club, we welcome this gesture and will do our utmost to ensure that 2018 event is a success and is undertaken in the spirit in which the gift was given to our sport.”

The helmsman for the Point Yacht Club’s Lipton entry, Richard Weddell, has had a somewhat dramatic Lipton campaign. Finishing a respectable fourth in his first attempt down in Simons Town in 2012, Weddell and his team then sailed magnificently offshore of Durban in 2013, finishing tie on points with False Bay Yacht Club, but due to a count back, they ended their regatta with the position of runner up.

“It is a bit of a bitter-sweet feeling, hearing this news. The guys and I worked so incredibly hard, leading up to the 2013 challenge, and the week of the challenge. We were honestly devastated at the result. It marred our enthusiasm in getting back on the water. The generosity shown by the Royal Cape guys is tremendously kind. This gentlemanly act certainly will inject a great deal of interest back into sailing, and specifically this historic event, and hopefully motivate many for the future.”

With this announcement, the Rear Commodore of Keelers is hard at work scheduling in trials to select the best suited team to challenge for the Royal Cape Yacht Club’s title.

Durban’s sailing community is abuzz with the gracious declaration from Royal Cape Yacht Club, offering the Point Yacht Club to host the 65^th Lipton Cup.

For more info visit www.pyc.co.za or like the Facebook page.

Flying Fifteen Nationals and Hobie 16 Regionals 2017

Point Yacht Club

Offshore Durban: 16 - 18 December

Mid - December, two classes will be heading offshore to compete in the Flying Fifteen Nationals and Hobie 16 Regionals hosted by Point Yacht Club from the 16 – 18 December.

Defending champs in the modern fleet of Flying Fifteens are Patrick Harris and Jeremy Kriek who keep raking in the awards, they will be back on the water in the hopes of being crowned yet again. In the hunt to topple them off the top spot on the podium are international specialist 505 sailors, brothers Thomas and Peter Funke. Other names to look out for will be Myles White and his regular crew member, Estelle Buys, they will be keen to perform as they start to focus on the Flying Fifteen World Champs in Ireland.

Campbell Alexander, who competed in the Laser World Masters in Split, Croatia recently, will be pairing up with Dr Stephanie Brown from England. The Brit sailor who is out here for a week long holiday, will be relishing the warmer weather out at sea and making a trip up to the berg. Brown was awarded a special seamanship award at the Charles Stanley Direct Cowes Classic Week this July. She was crewing on a Flying Fifteen Fram Freyr, holding second position when she witnessed a nearby collision. Giving up her second place, she assisted the concussed sailor injured in the collision. The injured crew member later received 24 stitches in his head at hospital.

Joining them on the water will be respected and highly competitive Greg Hurter, Hurter was victorious four years ago. Well known for his stealth mode, he is keeping his crew name under wraps in the build up to the event. Anthony McMillan will be hoping for a repeat performance in the first running of the Jonsson Cup, where he pipped Olympic sailor Dave Hibberd on the line. Both him and Hibberd didn’t sail the correct course, but it was a fabulous tight finish and McMillan will be concentrating on the race course card this regatta. Similarly, to Hurter, McMillan is not revealing who is crew member is. Nhlanhla Phakathi and Craig Campbell, who featured on the Bashboard for the Bart’s Bash and are keen to feature on the steps of the podium.

A strong family contingent will be gracing the course sailing on the magnificent classics. Newcomers to the fleet, brother and sister team of Rudi and Hannah Fokkens. Also, fairly newcomers, Father and son team of Dominic and Marco Collett venture offshore for the first time, having gleaned their experience sailing in the bay. Another father and son team, that of Rob and Iain Bowman will be back on the water after their superb craft got t-boned and had to get a bit of reconstructive surgery.

The Hobie 16 fleet is expected to have a number of hot shot sailors in town hoping to take to the water. Their challenge will be navigating the beachfront development currently taking place.

“The launching of the Hobies will be a bit of a challenge, but we are confident we will get the numbers on the water, and look forward to a colourful, fun-filled, competitive event.” Commodore for the Point Yacht Club, Greg de Beyer stated.

A number of big names will be taking to the water having competed internationally recently. Hoping to jet-propel his way to the front, Jethro Brophy-Tintinger has had a remarkable year, having competed in the Netherlands, topped the local log in the biggest sailing event in the world, Bart’s Bash and just touched down from being a part of the Volvo Round the World send-off down in Cape Town.

Joining him will be Garth Loudon with a young, new crew member. In the Durban offseason, Loudon represented SA in the prestigious Hobie World Cat in Germany. Loudon, together with Peter Hall took on the best of the best at the Hobie Multiworlds and Europeans 2017 held in the Netherlands. Hall will be sailing with his champ son, Matthew who has been turning heads in the Hobie 14 class.

For more info visit www.pyc.co.za or like the club’s Facebook page.

Inter-Varsity Match Racing Champs

Point Yacht Club

Inter-Varsity Match Racing Champs

Harbour: 1 – 3 July

Sailing into July, the Point Yacht Club will be hosting the inaugural Inter-Varsity Cup taking place in the harbour of Durban from 1 – 3 July.

Nine varsities will be taking to the water this weekend, with six of the teams entered shedding off their winter woollies and travelling from Western Province and Gauteng to compete in warm Durban waters.

Participating varsities are Rhodes University, University of Cape Town, Stellenbosch University, two teams from the University of Witwatersrand, Tuks with a combined team from the University of Johannesburg and University of Pretoria. The local teams comprise of University of Kwa-Zulu Natal Howard Campus and Durban University of Technology.

Match racing in sailing is when two teams go head-to-head against each other. The programme for events has been drawn with seven rounds of competition happening for the eight teams. Each round consists of four races. A famous example of match racing is the America’s Cup.

Competing on the same class of boat, each team consists of six sailors racing on an L26.  The course set by Race Officer, Kevin Bingham will be an upwind, downwind course with the possibility of either one or two laps. The start finish line will be set below the bottom turning mark, extending the first beat and final run to the line.

Team captains are Peter Marsh from UCT, Jonas Vijerberg from Rhodes, Alexander Ham from Stellenbosch, Kyle Boman for the combined team of UJ and Tuks, DUT will be led by Thokozani ‘DeaJay’ Latha, UKZN by Florence Marshall and Alison Bradfield and Ryan Robinson for the two Wits teams.

Officiating will be South African sailors, Ricky Robinson and Trent Bingham.

The Inter-Varsity Match Racing Champs is the precursor to the annual MSC Week, hosted by the Point Yacht Club, that takes place from 4 – 8 July offshore of Durban.

For more info visit www.pyc.co.za or contact the club on 031 301 4787.

The 2016 edition of the MSC Week

Point Yacht Club

MSC Week

Offshore Durban: 4 – 8 July

South Africa’s premier winter regatta, the week-long annual MSC Regatta now in its 40^th year hosted by Point Yacht Club kicks off offshore of Durban on Monday 4 July.

On the back of the highly successful Hobie 16 and Flying Fifteen Provincials, the much-anticipated sailing event incorporates the L26, IRC and Hunter Provincials along with the Micro-Multihull Challenge, and the MSC Racing Class.

Race Officer, Dave Rushton will have a busy time offshore organising the various classes. A maximum of 12 races will be held for the IRC and Multihull fleets and a maximum of 15 races will be held for the L26, Hunter and Club racing classes and only five races for the MSC Racing fleet. A minimum of four races for all but the MSC Racing Fleet will need to take place to constitute a regatta.

Confirmed entries are Container World in the L26 class. Tony Cockerill from Henley-Midmar and Dave Martinson from Witbank will be competing in the Hunter class. In the IRC Class, the lightning quick Southern Storm will be dusting herself off to participate under her new owner, Warren Clark. In the sports boats class we have the Fluid 180, PhattAss entered, together with Cabriole, a Beneteau First Class 8 and a Pacer 27 with youngster, Michaela Robinson driving.

In the micro multihulls old rivals, Bandit skippered by Sean Jones and Ladybird skippered by Andrew Dolloway are entered. Representing the Bluff Yacht Club, Andrew Murray sailing on Liquid Blue will be taking to the water in the MSC Racing Fleet.

Regatta Convenor Ron Pet stated, “The regatta is always a hit, both on and off the water. Teams travel from around the country to participate. A number of the teams use this as a tune up race ahead of the prestigious Lipton Challenge Cup that will be taking place in Cape Town later this month.”

“Loads of sailors have indicated their intent to compete, so we are eagerly awaiting their entries. Just in the IRC alone, we have Gregg Hurter racing Vasco finisher, Bellatrix and also the brand newcomer to the Durban fleet, the majestic CFM owned by Stuart Ritchie promises to be on the water. Wayne Smith, helming the multihull Crazy Diamond has had her out of the water and been modifying her bows, so it will be good to see her go up against Bandit and Ladybird.”

Durban truly is the place to be this winter, with three back-to-back sailing events of national proportion, the MSC Week concludes ten days of winter-bliss on local waters.

For more info visit www.pyc.co.za or contact the club on 031 301 4787.

Al takes the 2016 Vasco title in record time

Point Yacht Club

Vasco da Gama Ocean Race

Port Elizabeth: 25 April

Al Mount Gay Rum skippered by Rob van Rooyen goes one better this year, taking line honours in record time and claiming the handicap win in the 45^th edition of the Vasco da Gama Ocean Race hosted by Point Yacht Club.

The defending champ on handicap sailed a flawless race in a time of 2 days 6 hours 1min 22 sec, smashing the record by 56mintues and claiming the double when she arrived in Port Elizabeth yesterday (Monday) evening at 06:01pm. The team of eight from Cape Town were delighted with their victory, “We knew going into the race that getting the double was a possibility, we knew it would be a challenge but anything is possible. A double whammy, it really is wonderful.” an elated van Rooyen said as soon as he reached the moorings.

Continuing, he stated, “We were really disappointed when Yes Girl retired! They sailed a phenomenal race straight out of the starting blocks and into the lead. We were happy if they got line honours, we knew we could take them on the handicap, and our game plan was to beat them tactically. But once they retired, our tactics changed and we eyed out our next opposition, Bellatrix who at that stage were lying in third, behind us before Yes Girl made her way to East London.”

“We opted to sail using the currents, but once the sea state deteriorated, we came inshore. My team did fantastically, all things considering. One or two got seasick, but they dug deep and got over it. The more experienced guys handled the rough weather like champs.”

“Our average age, we worked out is 24 years on the boat. I just turned 30 and two of the other guys are 30. The youngest is 17. So, we are young, eager crew. We all have been sailing on and off together since I was about ten, so we know each other’s abilities, strengths and weaknesses.”

With the fleet getting dished all sorts of weather, being battered by lumpy seas, winds from all directions, van Rooyen commented, “Al was great. I think going into the race that is where we were better compared to the other guys. We have been prepping Al for the last six months and were extremely well prepared and managed to keep the boat in one piece throughout the heavy stuff. She was sailing like a dream. So I do believe we started at an advantage to the rest of the guys, no one else spent half a year readying their boat.”

With the upcoming Cape2 Rio race around the corner, van Rooyen highlighted, “We would consider doing a race like Rio but in all honesty, the Vasco is far more challenging. Yes, the race only last two days but the actual getting to Durban, and sailing along the SA coastline. This race is much more difficult that the Rio race, in my opinion. There is far more adrenaline in this short, burst down the coastline.”

The next boat to cross the line was Durban’s very own Bellatrix skippered by Gregg Hurter, who arrived just over three hours behind Al. The two pushed each other the entire race, down the coastline, both opting to stay relatively close to shore. As they neared the end, Al accelerated in the varying winds, expanding the gap between the two.

After 400NM, two boats diced it all the way towards finish line in the hopes of claiming third across the line. Only one nautical mile separated the two that were due in the early hours of this morning (Tuesday). Rocket, skippered by Herbie Karolius from Cape Town put in a fine display of sailing, having had to return back to sheltered waters, soon after their disastrous start. The Simonis 54 snagged the start buoy as they were heading through the line on the start on Saturday. After a battle to free it, they eventually cut the warp free and started their voyage only to realise that they in fact were dragging the start line’s anchor, which was slowing them down.

Hats off to the dark horse, Yes Girl from Cape Town, skippered by Gabriel Fernandes the L35 Mod looked to have the race wrapped up with a red ribbon, but as ocean racing goes, it isn’t over until you cross the line. In the proverbial all things happen in threes, Yes Girl certainly was dished a threesome. First, as they were heading to the start line, they got stuck on the ‘putty’, beaching themselves at low tide on the sandbank at the end of the marina. They then got themselves tangled around the start line when they got offshore, dragging it for some distance. And then the third and fatal blow to their race, their steering system packed up after the boat was pushed to the maximum late on Sunday, when they were forced to retire to East London.

Joining them in East London, the gorgeous Ray of Light also had to retire due to blowing out their head on their main sail in 40knots wind. Helmed by the husband and wife team, Heidi and Michael Kavanagh will be disappointed as they got brand new sails leading up to this race.

The remainder of the exhausted 16 strong fleet arrived in to Port Elizabeth with only one boat not being able to cross the lien in the allocated time, Izimoyo II skippered by Jasper van der Westhuizen just didn’t make the cut, as they battled with the challenging conditions the whole way from Durban to Port Elizabeth.

For more info visit www.pyc.co.za or like the Facebook page or follow it on YB Tacking

Flying Fifteen Nationals

Point Yacht Club

Flying Fifteen Nationals

Durban: 16 – 20 December

As the festive season approaches, a fleet of Flying Fifteen sailors will be heading offshore to compete in the Flying Fifteen Nationals hosted jointly by Point Yacht Club and Royal Natal Yacht Club.

Back to defend their title, the industrious team of Paul Changuion from Ballito will be driving hard with team mate, Tim Duguid from Morningside on Ffoxxoff in the hopes of reclaiming the title. But the battle will be on as the kings of the class, Highway’s Patrick Harris and Jeremy Kriek will be keen to dethrone the Changuion / Duguid combo. 

The commanding team of Harris and Kriek launched their brand new boat Ffigjam at last year’s Nationals, after a delayed start to their regatta, the masters in the Flying Fifteen class also had to literally bail from the course during the regatta. Point’s Rear Commodore for Dinghies, Myles White recalls, “As I remember Patrick and Jeremy missed the first race whilst still rigging their new ff, and had to return to port on the heavy-weather day as they hadn’t had a chance to fit any self-bailers, and the boat was carrying a few hundred litres of water in the cockpit, which they had to hand-bail.”

“My prediction, Ffigjam and Ffoxxoff are going to be duking it out for first and second, and should be out in front for most races. My money is on Patrick & Jeremy to win.” White states.

Adding to the mix, brothers Thomas and Peter Funke, who have had a very successful year in the 505 class finishing eighth in the world in the World Championships earlier this year, will be swopping their 505 craft to compete in the more traditional styled yacht. 

Returning after a busy work year, Campbell Alexander teams up with David Curtiss. Alexander commented, “I am hoping for heavy weather because I have a great heavy weather crew in Dave. We both have been off the water a fair bit this year, so I know we both are looking forward to being back. Just in time, I guess as I am turning my focus to the Laser Worlds in Mexico next year, so needing to dust off the cobwebs.”

A maximum of ten races will test the competitors offshore of Durban with Race Officer Rob Bell from Hilton only needing four races needed to constitute a regatta. Bell has the option for racing to commence in the harbour if the weather gets to blustery.

Leading by example, White will be teaming up with sailing partner, Estelle Buys. The two Mikes join forces again, helmsman Mike Wright and Mike Surgeson aka Mango Pip both from Westville are looking forward to pushing the fleet. As will Midlands’s sailor, Anthony McMillan sailing with Lorna Daniel. Another possible podium candidate is Vince Tiedt who will be sailing with Jim Rushton and his daughter, Hannah who are going to be sharing the duties at the sharp end of the boat. Expected to make their first appearance in the class are husband and wife team, Rob and Tracey Bowman, who recently took ownership of their Flying Fifteen.

White reviews, “The bronze medal is a bit open, if the wind is strong all through the regatta, Campbell should have this all to himself. In lighter to moderate winds I believe that those featuring will be the Funkes, Mike Wright & Mango Pip; Anthony McMillan & Lorna, and of course Estelle and myself. If we can earn a fourth overall, I will be ecstatic.”

Joining the magnificent twenty foot dinghies will be a number of catamarans keen to get some racing in ahead of the down time over the holidays. Included in the catamaran fleet is father and son team, Martin and Carl Zimmerman who plan on joining the fleet on their Dart.

A competitive and colourful bunch of boats are anticipated to get a run in at the upcoming Flying Fifteen Nationals that starts on the Reconciliation Day and concludes next weekend.

For more info visit www.pyc.co.za or join the Facebook group.

Point Yacht Club elects their Flag Officers

Point Yacht Club

Flag Officers

Durban: Tuesday 7 September

The Point Yacht Club has a new helmsman, Round the World sailor; Craig Millar has been elected as the new Commodore for the Durban based yacht club.

With an extensive competitive sailing CV; Millar has numerous awards, both in South Africa and internationally competing in Hunters, J22 and Solings. His most triumphant sailing achievement would be when he was the skipper for the Durban entry in the 2005/2006 Clipper Round the World yacht race, where together with his crew they came second overall.

“It is a great honour to be bestowed with the title of Commodore. I sincerely hope to share and grow the phenomenal sport of sailing, and encourage more people to come and be a part of it.” encouraged, Millar.

Second in Command, Kevin Bingham will fill the role of Vice Commodore, Millar’s right hand man. Bingham has earned his stripes being a frequent Race Officer for dinghy racing most Saturday afternoons either in the bay or offshore. His CV boasts SASCOC Protea Colours for Sailing Management, Optimist World Champs team manager when they travelled to New Zealand in 2011; Past Chairman for SAS KZN and Past President for the SA Optimist Sailing Class and to round it off; he is a recognised SAS Provincial Race Officer as well.

“I am extremely lucky to be supported by a man of Kevin’s calibre as well as the experienced and highly competent team of Rear Commodores.” concluded Millar.

Joining him will be Myles White, who is in charge of the smaller boats and takes the role of Dinghy Rear Commodore. White has over 4 decades experience sailing in Durban, preferring the exhilaration of racing in his Flying Fifteen. White has experience in all aspects of sailing, having competed in long distance racing, round the cans racing, and more recently favouring dinghy racing.

“After something like 40 years of membership I have now completed my first year on any Club Committee, and I am looking forward to applying some of the lessons I learned through Round Table and hopefully building on the recent success achieved in dinghy sailing at PYC. My objective is to get more boats on the water more regularly and for people to have so much fun doing it that they keep coming back for more.” enthused an optimistic White at the announcement.

Ron Pet will be looking after the larger yachts with his title of Keeler Rear Commodore; Pet’s love for the bigger yachts is evident with the amount of time he puts in as race officer on Wednesday night’s Twilight Racing and weekend offshore racing. Pet also is the hardworking man behind the scenes for the hugely popular MSC Week.

Retaining his position, Nik Albert stays on as the Youth Rear Commodore. Albert is a keen competitor himself in both the Hobie and Flying Fifteen classes. The keen Durban sailor has had a successful term with a number of youngsters coming up through the ranks, representing both Point Yacht Club and South Africa at a variety of events and Albert hopes to grow this.

Point Yacht Club has a fine team at the helm for the next cycle, with the recently elected Flag Officers starting to get into the groove of growing the sport of sailing in Durban.

For more info visit www.pyc.co.za

Rudy McNeill is crowned SA Laser National Champion

Point Yacht Club

SA Laser Nationals

Offshore Durban: 30 May – 3 April

Local lad, Rudy McNeill was in a class of his own when he was crowned the SA Laser Nationals champion on Sunday.

McNeill won seven out of the eight races that counted offshore of Durban, following up from dominating the KZN Open Provincials in Richards Bay the weekend before. McNeill is hard at work hoping to qualify for the Rio 2016 Olympics

After the regatta, a chuffed McNeill said, “I had good fun on the water. The conditions suited me perfectly. “

Continuing, he said, “From the moment I launched my boat off the beach on the first day, everything felt good. I got into my groove quickly and fortunately didn’t make too many mistakes over the four days and I am happy that everything fell perfectly into place. My fitness helped quiet a lot, but also with the local knowledge, with a typical south wester blowing most of the time, I could read the weather easier than a lot of the guys who were on the Durban water for the first time.”

“I went into the first race on the final day needing to keep other Rudy, Rudolph Holm from Pretoria behind me. The winds started off really light from the North East, but both Rudy and I prefer the big winds, so it was quite difficult. At one stage I was lying in eleventh. I can’t remember the last time I worked so hard, but I did it. I finished fifth but most importantly, ahead of Rudy. Once I had that nailed I knew I had won the title. I really was stoked!”

Vause Road sailor, Anthony Arbuthnot managed a 23^rd place in the four day regatta, competing against some of the best sailors in the world, including Colin Dibb who has a string of World Championship titles to his name. Arbuthnot top scored a fifteenth place in the ten races, he was racing in a highly competitive fleet including Australian Colin Dibb who has a fleet of World Champion titles to his name, Rudy McNeil who is hoping to compete in the Olympics and Thomas Baumgarti from Brazil.

Durban’s autumn served up a bit of everything for the Laser sailors, with a few races with winds exceeding 15knots, a bit of chop when the North Easter filled in, some light winds for the leaner sailors and perfect sunshine over the four days. Race officer, Tony Cockrell got in ten triangle sausage triangle races, with two races being discarded. On the third day the smaller 4.7 Lasers were sent home early as the breeze started to build nearing the 20knots, a bit too dangerous for the younger sailors.

Seasoned sailor and event organiser, Campbell Alexander who finished ninth in the main class said, “I think we can be very happy with the event. We had a variety of winds, the sailing was superb, and the setting was five stars. Everyone, from the highly competitive Olympic hopefuls to the more social sailors had a fantastic time on the water. Durban sailing is alive and well, and with all of the compliments we have been receiving from the Laser guys, our city is one of the best sailing venues in the world.”

In the Radial class, up-and-coming Dylan Long charged to the front. The impressive young sailor worked hard on the water, with each race the effort was evident as he pushed himself and his boat to the maximum. In the eight races sailed, he managed four firsts, two seconds, a third and a fourth.

14 year old Kai Leslie also dominated his class, the smaller 4.7 Lasers. The eager Cape Town tallied up an impressive log of six firsts and two seconds.

Results

Standard

1 Rudy McNeill (PYC), 2 Rudolph Holm (AYC), 3 Alistair Keytel (ZVYC), 4 Colin Dibb (FSC – Australia), 5 Thomas Baumgarti (YCI –Brazil), 6 Marcello Marcia (VLC), 7 Alan Keen (ZVYC), 8 Trent Bingham (PYC), 9 Campbell Alexander (PYC), 10 Michael McNeill (PYC), 11 Rowen Clark (PYC), 12 Lance Burger (ZVYC), 13 Anthony McMillan (PYC), 14 De-Wet Nel (DYC), 15 Byron Watt (PYC), 16 Ralph Thomas (ZVYC), 17 Andre Bestha (DYC), 18 Thomas Sutherland (ZIC), 19 Deon van der Walt (LDYC), 20 Clive Whitburn (VLC), 21 Myles White (PYC), 22 Nicholas Matter (HMYC), 23 Anthony Arbuthnot (PYC), 24 Andrew Russell (ZYC), 25 Rob Goulden (PYC), 26 David Curtiss (PYC) 27= Henri Frencken (PYC), 27= Brett Clark (VLC)

Radial

1 Dylan Long (TSC), 2 Calvin Gibbs (IYC), 3 Georgou Divaris (KYC), 4 Sam Lombaard (PYC), 5 Ruben Heard (ZYC), 6 James Hellstrom (GLYC), 7 Iliana Boura (VLC), 8 Dominic van der Walt (LDYC), 9 Jethro Brophy Tintinger (PYC), 10 Damian Muller (DAC), 11 Tyron-Lee De Jager (ZYC), 12 Andrew Walford (PYC), 13 Ken Holliday (ZVYC), 14 Megan Eccleston (WYC), 15 Peter Clayton (BSC), 16 Nicholas Forshaw (HMYC), 17 Emma Clark (VLC), 18 Mugammad Peters (DYC), 19 Ross Gaughran (PYC), 20 Tommy Madoda (DYC), 21 Alison Bradfield (ZLC), 22 Megan van der Walt (LDYC), 23 Nicola Burger (ZVYC), 24 Matthew Russell (ZYC), 25 Brendan Geraghty (BSC)

4.7

1 Kai Leslie (ZVYC), 2 Sarah-Jane Deary (ZVYC), 3 Elsje Dijkstra (ZVYC), 4 Megan Robertson (GLYC), 5 Frances Van Breda (PYC), 6 Hannah Fokkens (ISC), 7 Hannah Tiedt (PYC), 8 Kirsten Clark (VLC), 9 Gen Matter (HMYC)

ENDS

Cape Town sailors do well in the SA Laser Nationals

SA Laser Nationals

Offshore Durban: 30 April – 3 May

Three future stars from the southern suburbs of Cape Town sailed in the recent SA Laser Nationals over the May Day weekend in Durban.

The trio all had a sterling time on the water, raking in the medals, with Dylan Long being crowned Radial champion, Calvin Gibbs finishing only two points behind Long in second place and Sarah-Jane Deary finishing second in the 4.7 class, as the first girl in her class.

Long tallied up four firsts, two seconds, a third and fourth in the eight races that counted. A total of ten races were sailed in the Radial class, with two of them being discarded.

A really pumped and elated Dylan Long representing Theewater Sports Club, commented after the regatta, “I felt the competition was really good.  Anyone could have won; the regatta was still wide open on the last day. Over the four days there was some stellar wind throughout the regatta made it worthwhile and enjoyable.”

“The best moment of the regatta for me was winning the second last race as I worked as hard as I could to win that race. I pushed the boat and myself to the limits and was rewarded with the win. Every time I go out on the water, I learn a lot and I am really chuffed with how much I improved over the four days.”

Talking about what is next for this future sailing star, he said, “This was the last time sailing a Laser for a while as I am trying my hand at sailing the fast flying 29er. My next goal is to represent my country in this class at the ISAF Youth Worlds in Langkawi, Malaysia at the end of the year. I am looking forward to that challenge; it will be awesome as I will be sailing with my younger brother, Arin.”

Silver medallist, Calvin Gibbs sailing in the Imperial Yacht Club’s colours also had a fantastic time sailing on the warm waters in Durban. Gibbs narrowly missed out from gold by only two points. His score card ended with two firsts, four seconds, a third and a fourth.

Both boys attend Wynberg Boys’ High School. Adding to the long tradition of successful sailors from Wynberg, Old Boy Alistair Keytel had a brilliant time on the water, finishing third in the Laser Standard. He finished ahead of International sailors, Colin Dibb from Australia and Thomas Baumgarti from Brazil.

Damian Gibbs, father of Calvin and South African Sailing Western Cape Committee member enthused, “The 2015 Nationals was an excellent regatta, the kids enjoyed it immensely. Next time I hope to sail myself.”

Sarah-Jane Deary sailing under the Zeekoe Vlei Yacht Club burgee sailed superbly in the 4.7 class, finishing second overall behind fellow Western Province sailor, Kai Leslie. The Wynberg Girls’ pupil notched up five second places, two third places and a bronze.

Results

Standard

1 Rudy McNeill (PYC), 2 Rudolph Holm (AYC), 3 Alistair Keytel (ZVYC), 4 Colin Dibb (FSC – Australia), 5 Thomas Baumgarti (YCI –Brazil), 6 Marcello Marcia (VLC), 7 Alan Keen (ZVYC), 8 Trent Bingham (PYC), 9 Campbell Alexander (PYC), 10 Michael McNeill (PYC), 11 Rowen Clark (PYC), 12 Lance Burger (ZVYC), 13 Anthony McMillan (PYC), 14 De-Wet Nel (DYC), 15 Byron Watt (PYC), 16 Ralph Thomas (ZVYC), 17 Andre Bestha (DYC), 18 Thomas Sutherland (ZIC), 19 Deon van der Walt (LDYC), 20 Clive Whitburn (VLC), 21 Myles White (PYC), 22 Nicholas Matter (HMYC), 23 Anthony Arbuthnot (PYC), 24 Andrew Russell (ZYC), 25 Rob Goulden (PYC), 26 David Curtiss (PYC) 27= Henri Frencken (PYC), 27= Brett Clark (VLC)

Radial

1 Dylan Long (TSC), 2 Calvin Gibbs (IYC), 3 Georgou Divaris (KYC), 4 Sam Lombaard (PYC), 5 Ruben Heard (ZYC), 6 James Hellstrom (GLYC), 7 Iliana Boura (VLC), 8 Dominic van der Walt (LDYC), 9 Jethro Brophy Tintinger (PYC), 10 Damian Muller (DAC), 11 Tyron-Lee De Jager (ZYC), 12 Andrew Walford (PYC), 13 Ken Holliday (ZVYC), 14 Megan Eccleston (WYC), 15 Peter Clayton (BSC), 16 Nicholas Forshaw (HMYC), 17 Emma Clark (VLC), 18 Mugammad Peters (DYC), 19 Ross Gaughran (PYC), 20 Tommy Madoda (DYC), 21 Alison Bradfield (ZLC), 22 Megan van der Walt (LDYC), 23 Nicola Burger (ZVYC), 24 Matthew Russell (ZYC), 25 Brendan Geraghty (BSC)

4.7

1 Kai Leslie (ZVYC), 2 Sarah-Jane Deary (ZVYC), 3 Elsje Dijkstra (ZVYC), 4 Megan Robertson (GLYC), 5 Frances Van Breda (PYC), 6 Hannah Fokkens (ISC), 7 Hannah Tiedt (PYC), 8 Kirsten Clark (VLC), 9 Gen Matter (HMYC)

ENDS

Mossel Bay's Megan Robertson does well in SA Laser Nationals

SA Laser Nationals

Offshore Durban: 30 April – 3 May

Fifteen year old Megan Robertson from Mossel Bay has just returned after competing in the recent SA Laser Nationals offshore of Durban.

The hugely talented sailor competed in the 4,7 class finishing fourth overall and was the third lady in the highly competitive division. She finished ahead of highly experienced Frances van Breda who was competing on her home ground.

“The Laser Nationals was hosted at an amazing venue; the vibe was great and very welcoming. Going into the regatta I knew I was slightly overweight for the 4.7s but I took a chance because I got told there was a cold front moving up the coast. It never came.” The beaming, tanned lass stated.

“On the first day I did quite well, finishing the day lying second overall and still capable of getting into the top spot. Over the next few days my position dropped with the light winds causing me problems. The rest of the fleet was smaller and lighter than me and on the water, they moved quicker.” explained the young Curro pupil.

"Overall I didn’t do too badly, I finished fourth tied for third. Elsje had more first places than me, so she was awarded the bronze. But really, the best thing about the regatta has to be the venue, one of my favourites offshore of Durban.”

The previous week, Robertson competed in a warm up event in Richards Bay, the KZN Open Provincial Championships and came first there. “I absolutely loved Richards Bay. Again, the venue and vibe was memorable and the racing on the courses they set out was great fun. On the one day we got to sail offshore in heavy winds and big swells, I loved that as offshore sailing is my thing.”

Asked what she learnt from her week in KZN, she replied, “At Richards Bay I got taught the lesson of not thinking you are the best and learn from the more experienced guys sailing. That lesson helped me to win the regatta at the end of the day. And in Durban my upwind sailing improved tremendously through big swell and chop in light winds.”

The future star is now challenging herself, moving into the Radial class, “I'm now getting onto a radial and starting training towards qualifying for ISAF Youth Worlds. I have a few months to train as the big event is at the end of the year in Langkawi, an island off Malaysia.”

Results

Standard

1 Rudy McNeill (PYC), 2 Rudolph Holm (AYC), 3 Alistair Keytel (ZVYC), 4 Colin Dibb (FSC – Australia), 5 Thomas Baumgarti (YCI –Brazil), 6 Marcello Marcia (VLC), 7 Alan Keen (ZVYC), 8 Trent Bingham (PYC), 9 Campbell Alexander (PYC), 10 Michael McNeill (PYC), 11 Rowen Clark (PYC), 12 Lance Burger (ZVYC), 13 Anthony McMillan (PYC), 14 De-Wet Nel (DYC), 15 Byron Watt (PYC), 16 Ralph Thomas (ZVYC), 17 Andre Bestha (DYC), 18 Thomas Sutherland (ZIC), 19 Deon van der Walt (LDYC), 20 Clive Whitburn (VLC), 21 Myles White (PYC), 22 Nicholas Matter (HMYC), 23 Anthony Arbuthnot (PYC), 24 Andrew Russell (ZYC), 25 Rob Goulden (PYC), 26 David Curtiss (PYC) 27= Henri Frencken (PYC), 27= Brett Clark (VLC)

Radial

1 Dylan Long (TSC), 2 Calvin Gibbs (IYC), 3 Georgou Divaris (KYC), 4 Sam Lombaard (PYC), 5 Ruben Heard (ZYC), 6 James Hellstrom (GLYC), 7 Iliana Boura (VLC), 8 Dominic van der Walt (LDYC), 9 Jethro Brophy Tintinger (PYC), 10 Damian Muller (DAC), 11 Tyron-Lee De Jager (ZYC), 12 Andrew Walford (PYC), 13 Ken Holliday (ZVYC), 14 Megan Eccleston (WYC), 15 Peter Clayton (BSC), 16 Nicholas Forshaw (HMYC), 17 Emma Clark (VLC), 18 Mugammad Peters (DYC), 19 Ross Gaughran (PYC), 20 Tommy Madoda (DYC), 21 Alison Bradfield (ZLC), 22 Megan van der Walt (LDYC), 23 Nicola Burger (ZVYC), 24 Matthew Russell (ZYC), 25 Brendan Geraghty (BSC)

4.7

1 Kai Leslie (ZVYC), 2 Sarah-Jane Deary (ZVYC), 3 Elsje Dijkstra (ZVYC), 4 Megan Robertson (GLYC), 5 Frances Van Breda (PYC), 6 Hannah Fokkens (ISC), 7 Hannah Tiedt (PYC), 8 Kirsten Clark (VLC), 9 Gen Matter (HMYC)

ENDS

PYC Offshore Sailing

Point Yacht Club

Offshore Sailing

The Easter weekend was a busy patch for the more competitive sailors of Durban with three major events concluding around the country.

Down in Port Elizabeth, brothers Thomas and Peter Funke achieved their intentions of finishing in the top ten at the SAP 505 World Championships. Funke squared came eighth overall after eight races. They were the top South African finishers on the leaderboard, behind legends Mike Holt and Carl Smit from America who cleaned up with five first places.

The Robinson brothers, Ricky and Brennan representing the Royal Natal Yacht Club had a fantastic series, showing their dexterity on any sailing craft, finishing 13^th. Amanzimtoti’s Jay D’Engle sailing with Cape Townian Dewet Nel ended his regatta in 18^th.

In Durban, oodles of Hobie sailors took to the warm waters to compete in the Hobie Nationals. The bright and colourful fleet enjoyed superb conditions over four days. Race officer from Cape Town, Doug Allison got in eleven races. After a tense start to the regatta with three false starts in the opening race and a black flag being raised for the remainder of the day, the adrenaline junkies managed to roll in the results.

Taking honours in the main class, William and Lucinda Edwards from Knysna Yacht Club wrapped up with six first places and three second places concluding the four days as deserved winners. Iconic Hobie sailor and World Champion, Blaine Dodds competing with his gorgeous daughter Roxanne, tallied up four firsts and six seconds, settling for silver just two points behind the Edwards. Top local PYC members, Ewald and Ali Erasmus were in the top ten, with their seventh place overall.

Special mention goes to Aldino Gorlei, who recently celebrated his 80^th birthday, finished an impressive fifth in the Hobie 14 class.

Up in Richards Bay an impressive fleet of 14 large keelboats are safely moored after fantastic downwind sailing, they set sail from Inhaca Island in Mozambique on Good Friday in the long distance race to Zululand. Most of the entries used the event as practice for the upcoming gruelling 400 nautical mile Vasco da Gama to Port Elizabeth.

Taking line honours in the 25^th edition of the Inhaca Yacht Race, local entry from Zululand Yacht Club Zeus skippered by Don Voysey in a pacey 23 hours 16 minutes and 48 seconds followed by the Rear Commodore of Point Yacht Club, Jon Marshall sailing on Majimoto just half an hour behind Zeus. Marshall, sailing with his daughters and crewman Edrich ‘Lucky Eddie’ de Lange, were crowned handicap winners. Another PYC member, Greg Donkin helming Alkistis finished third in both handicap and across the line.

April continues to be a busy sailing season with the start of the Vasco da Gama Ocean Race on Saturday 25 April and the SA Laser Nationals taking place from Wednesday 29 April with close to 100 boats taking part.

For more info go to www.pyc.co.za.

Chatting to World Champion, Colin Dibb

SA Laser Nationals

Interview with Australian Colin Dibb

I have had the honour of witnessing Australian Colin Dibb carve up local waters at the previous SA Laser Nationals in 2012, the wizard on a Laser returns to his former hometown, Durban three years later to compete again at the 2015 edition of the Nationals.

“Growing up in Durban, I loved the summer holidays messing about in boats on Durban harbour. And the legendary PYC pie for lunch on a Saturday followed by racing. Fond memories!”

“My grandfather was a keen sailor nicknamed Skipper, he encouraged my parents to let us go sailing at a very young age. He taught us some great lessons in self-reliance.”

With a string of accomplishments that any competitive sportsman can only dream of, put Dibb on anything with a sail, he is bound to succeed. In fact, he has! The list of achievements includes representing both South African and Australia at the Laser World Championships. Dibb is a World Grand Master Champ and a World Masters Champ in the Laser class. He is also no slouch on a keelboat, windsurfer or four different dinghy classes.

“I’ve had the honour of representing both South Africa and Australia at the Laser Worlds, 10 years apart.” a relaxed Dibb states.

Having been stuck on land for a while due to a shoulder operation, the upbeat character said, “Yeah, it was just a shoulder repair. General wear and tear! The recovery is going much faster than expected but I still missed four months of summer sailing.”

“I’d describe myself as impatient, and persistent. Perhaps persistence is my strength, otherwise why would I still be trying to sail a Laser after 40 years.” he says with a chortle.

“Durban is right up there, one of my favourite places to compete. Racing downwind in heavy air. Exhilarating, fantastic! But so is spots like Fremantle, and many other places around the world. Each place has a certain charm, and challenge to it. That is what makes sailing so interesting. Every time you go out, it is never the same.”

“My sports have enabled me to travel a lot and meet some wonderful people and see some fabulous places. Sailing has taught me a lot, mostly about the environment. To be ready for any shifts or changes and that plan Bs are ok.”

Chatting about if the sport of sailing is growing in Australia, he enthuses, “The Aussie sailing scene is very strong. They have great youth development programmes and coaching makes for big healthy fleets.”

“I love gardening, especially on a free Sunday afternoon.” I hear a snigger on the line as he continues, “Just joking. Free time is something I don’t have a lot of. I put a lot of hours back into the sport that has given so much to me.”

“Without sounding too clichéd, I would have to say my proudest achievement was starting a Laser 4.7 development programme in WA. We have produced some World Champions and potential Olympians. It truly is a humbling feeling helping the future generation succeed in something I am so passionate about.”

Asked who he most admires, he stops to think, “I would have to say Laser sailors still competing in their 70s. That epitomises passion and commitment. Being active in the twilight years of your sporting life, phenomenal.”

Concluding the chat, Dibb says his favourite saying is sail like you mean it. A whole fleet of Laser sailors is looking forward to this respected sailors return so he can do just that.