Weekly Sailing Summary

KEEL BOATS

The second Ocean Passage race of the 32nd Sydney Short Ocean Racing Championship got away at midday on Sydney Harbour in a gusty westerly and finished in a sea breeze. Paul Clitheroe’s Beneteau 45 Balance scored the IRC and PHS overall win in the two-race series. www.ssorc.mhyc.com.au

Currently 112 yachts are expected on the two start lines on 26 December 2009 for the 65th Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht Race, a substantial increase on last year’s 100 starters and just four shy of the 60th anniversary fleet. http://rolexsydneyhobart.com/

Twenty-three year old Perth sailor Torvar Mirsky and his MRT team outsailed triple Olympic Gold Medallist Ben Ainslie and his TeamOrigin in the final of the 2009 Sunseeker Australia Cup 2-0 on the Swan River in Perth. http://www.australiacup.org.au/

Josh Junior and his crew of Matthew Steven and Chris Jones, representing Royal Port Nicholson Yacht Club in New Zealand, won the Musto International Youth Match Racing Championship in convincing style, defeating fellow New Zealander William Tiller and his crew, who won last week’s Harken International Youth Match Racing Championship at Pittwater. www.cyca.com.au

Yacht owners are reminded of the IRC customer service guidelines from the RORC Rating Office and Yachting Australia. IRC certificates typically take ten business days to process and if wanted sooner extra charges apply. www.yachting.org.au/

18 FOOTERS

Michael Coxon, Aaron Links and Trent Barnabas recorded their fourth successive win in the NSW 18 Footer Championship to hold an unbeatable lead in the series with just one more race to be sailed. More information at www.18footers.com.au

AROUND THE WORLD

Team Finland reported a whale strike in the Southern Ocean during the 4,700-mile race four from Cape Town to Geraldton, Western Australia in the Clipper 09-10. The whale surfaced close to the boat before diving down and giving them a well placed flick with its tail. A strong impact was felt down below and on deck but no damage was discovered. Meanwhile in Cape Town, Hull & Humber is preparing to start racing after repairs following a collision at the start of race four. The crew wants to reach Australia before Christmas. Cork, the other boat involved in the collision, is already at sea. The main fleet is expected in Geraldton around 14-18 December. www.clipperroundtheworld.com

Jessica Watson admits on her blog that she is a notoriously bad speller but that she likes writing. During her attempt to sail around the world she is passing the time reading, doing a little schoolwork and standing behind the dodger, wind and spray in her face watching the boat blast along. The teenager has been studying the charts for French Polynesia which is coming up next. www.jessicawatson.com.au

TRANSAT JACQUES VABRE

The Multi 50 Crêpes Whaou arrived in Costa Rica to take line hours in the Transat Jacques Vabre, with Safran following four hours later to win the hotly contested IMOCA Open 60 class. A huge, noisy Costa Rican welcome greeted Franck Yves Escoffier (FRA) and Erwan Le Roux (FRA), co skippers of the multihull Crêpes Whaou when they emerged out of the Caribbean darkness. www.jacques-vabre.com/en/

OFF THE BEACH & OLYMPIC CLASSES

Strong winds brought an early finish to the 2009 Sail Brisbane regatta with a number of classes decided in the final day’s one and only race. The northerly wind of 20 knots, with gusts up to 25 knots, and heavy swell, made life difficult for the more than 160 competitors who took part in the opening round of the 2009 Sail Down Under series. http://www.yachting.org.au/

Next in the Sail Down Under series is Sail Sydney, which will be held on Sydney Harbour on 5-8 December 2009. www.sailsydney.org.au

Competitors in Sail Melbourne are urged to enter by 1 December to avoid an increased entry fee. www.sailmelbourne.com.au

The second Training Camp of the Perth 2011 Emerging Nations Programme is underway with 11 athletes in Western Australia to further their Olympic dreams. Implemented as a world first sailing initiative in July 2009, the popular programme is already showing promise in identifying international sailing talent, increasing these elite athletes’ sailing skills and knowledge and assisting them on their way to success. http://www.perth2011.com

The Adelaide Sailing Club in conjunction with the South Australian Laser Association and Yachting Australia will host the 2010 Australian Laser Championships on 27 December to 4 January. www.adelaidesailingclub.com.au

Marking the end of the Finn's 60th anniversary celebrations, the International Finn Association announces the publication of 'Photo FINNish - 60 years of Finn Sailing', an extensive and highly illustrated volume compiled and edited by Robert Deaves, but largely written by some of the biggest names in sailing. www.finnclass.org

CREW HELD IN IRAN

On 25 November, Sail Bahrain’s Kingdom of Bahrain Volvo 60 racing yacht was stopped by Iranian navy vessels, as it was making its way from Bahrain to the start of the Dubai-Muscat Offshore Sailing Race. The boat may have strayed inadvertently into Iranian waters. Five crew members, all British nationals, are still in Iran and are understood to be safe and well. http://www.teampindar.com

ISAF RULE CHANGES

The International Sailing Federation announced that, as a result of actions taken by the ISAF Racing Rules Committee and the ISAF Council during the ISAF Annual Conference, several changes in The Racing Rules of Sailing for 2009-2012 will take effect on 1 January 2010. www.sailing.org

SMALL INFLATABLE DINGHIES

Quicksilver has created a new range of dinghies which are small, light and easy to prep-and-store – but they are still safe, stable and heaps of fun. The dinghies are constructed with four air chambers – two on the sides, one for the keel and another for the floor. The 200 Dinghy weighs 19 kilograms and can carry a 255 kilogram load and a 2.5 hp outboard, while the 240 Dinghy weighs 22 kilograms and can handle a 315 kilograms load and a 3.5 hp motor. Both dinghies roll up into a bag which is only one metre long.

FORTHCOMING EVENTS

Dec 5 – 8 -- Sydney International Regatta - Olympic Class regatta on Sydney Harbour www.nsw.yachting.org.au/

Dec 14 – 19 -- Asia Pacific Regatta, part of the ISAF Sailing World Cup, is a grade one Olympic Class regatta. www.sailmelbourne.com.au/

Dec 26 – Rolex Sydney Hobart http://rolexsydneyhobart.com

Dec 31 – New Year’s Eve on Sydney Harbour – Family fireworks at 9pm with the main show on at midnight. www.cityofsydney.nsw.gov.au/nye/

2010

Jan 21 - 26 –- Audi Victoria Week is the largest sailing regatta in Australia with over 450 yachts competing over the four days and plenty of shoreside activities take place for those not competing. www.victoriaweek.com

Jan 26 – Australia Day – Events on Sydney Harbour include a Ferrython, Awesome Forces displays, best dressed vessels competition, tall ships race,

174th Australia Day Regatta, Sydney Ports Jazz on the Water Concert. For details see www.australiaday.com.au

Feb 5 - 7 -- Melbourne International Boat & Lifestyle Show, Docklands. www.miblf.com.au

Feb 12 – 21 -- JJ Giltinan International Championship, Sydney Harbour, sometimes referred to as the 18 Footer Worlds www.18footers.com

Feb 19 – 21 -- The Melbourne Wooden Boat Festival will be held at the Docklands precinct on Victoria Harbour. www.woodenboat.com.au/mwbf2010

Feb 25 - 27 -- Variety Splash - Participants will travel a round trip from Docklands’ Melbourne Yacht Club Hotel, with nightly stopovers at Sandringham Yacht Club and Royal Geelong Yacht Club. www.varietysplash.org.au

Photograph: Sydney Short Ocean Racing Championship courtesy of Andrea Francolini