February 10 SPINNAKER - Evans Bay Yacht & Motor Boat Club

The SpinnakerThe official magazine of the Evans Bay Yacht & Motor BoatClubFebruary 2010Evans Bay yacht Beyond reports from peaceful, picturesque European canals, and from snowy coldLondon (Pg 14). The EBYMBC Paper Tiger fleet make their presence felt at the Nationals in Napier (Pg 3).Racing and Events CalendarFriday, 12 th FebruaryFriday meals restartFriday, 19 th FebruaryNew Member’s NightSaturday, 20 th FebruaryEast-West DashRacingConsult the online calendar atwww.ebymbc.org.nz/calendar.shtml

The SpinnakerContact DetailsClub office:Telephone: 04-939-4167Fax: 04-939-4168Office open roughly:Mon-Fri 9am-5pmSat 9am-1pmEmail address:admin@ebymbc.org.nzWeb Page:www.ebymbc.org.nzPostal address:PO Box 14-496,Kilbirnie,Wellington 6241Physical address:501 Evans Bay Parade,Kilbirnie,Wellington 6021Slip master / Bookings027-240-5109 or04-939-4172Clubhouse (members) phone04-939-4170Management committee contactdetails are on Page 12.The Spinnaker is produced bimonthly,contributions (writtenand photographic) are welcome.Editor: Alison Pritchard04-385-7347kokamo39@actrix.co.nzBlack & White AdvertisingBusiness card size $30Quarter page $50Half page $100Full page $150Bulk orders placed in advance:20% discount for 2 ads25% discount for 3-5 ads30% discount for annualcontractPlease call for colour pricing.The Spinnaker is printed byAdPrint60 Cambridge Terrace04-384-2844Next Issue – April 2010In this report I want to mention the work that has been going on behindthe scenes with club facilities. We had an ambitious programme of capitalexpenditure planned for this year to get facilities up to scratch. I ampleased to report that thanks largely to the hard work of our Club CaptainGordon, work is completed or underway on most items. There is moredetail in Gordon’s report later in the newsletter on the facilities items.Other completed items include a new computer for Vanessa in the officeand new covers for the 420 boats. Mancom will soon be reviewing the 5year plan developed last year and putting together a budget for the 2010-11 year. Feel free to speak to any Mancom members if you have ideas.Mancom started off the year by holding a discussion on strategic planningin January. We plan to review the high level objectives of the club andthen use those to drive the development of a strategic plan. Strategicplanning was last undertaken in 2000 so it seems appropriate toundertake another session now. We will be asking for input frommembers at different stages in the process so if you are interested inbeing directly involved, please let me know so we can include you in theearly stages. We are also looking for some input from our powerboatmembers so please contact us if you are keen to participate.While the club has been a little quiet in January, things will be back in fullaction when you are reading this. Social activities such as Friday nightmeals were well supported last year and we look forward to increasingnumbers this year. There are different caterers providing meals for a veryreasonable price with menus circulated by email in advance. If you arenot on the email newsletter list then you are missing out. On the sailingfront, we are back into scheduled racing, the academy classes are in fullswing and there are even some regattas on the horizon. We are lookingfor volunteers for the regattas so please make yourself known to Lynley orRick if you can assist in any way. If you are new to sailing or racing, aregatta is a great way to see how things work and get some tips from thebest. And if you are a powerboat member then we are always looking forvolunteers to drive rescue boats and full training is provided.I wish everyone all the best for a great 2010. You will get the most out ofyour membership if you get involved so if you haven’t been down to theclub in a while, please make it a priority for this year, we look forward toseeing you.Nikki JohnsonCommodoreCommodore’s ReportHappy New Year to everyone, I hope youmanaged to find some sunshine over theChristmas break. I hear it was in residence insome parts of the country if not in Wellington.Never fear, that must mean we are up for ourshare of great late summer weather – betterlate than never.- 2 -

The SpinnakerRegatta Report – Paper Tiger Nationals Napier 2010Every culture has its own myths and legends. No oneknows their origins, they are just passed from onegeneration to the next, often getting more embellishedas time passes. The Napierians tell a story with suchpassion that it is hard not to believe it. They tell of abenign gentle friend. Steady, constant and reliable,offering endless joy and fulfilment. Champagne sailingif you will. This then, is the much heralded andanticipated sea breeze, the breeze more regular thanthe arrival of the power bill or visa statement. Infairness the myth was partially proved. We did have abreeze of 8-10 knots from the direction you wouldexpect a sea breeze to come from. We were also lucky to be on the short course as the breeze didn’t lastvery long at all, which in turn made for lovely barbecue conditions later at the motor camp. Two racescompleted, Day One over.A different Day Two gusty NW 20 knots. Warm enough with a short lumpy sea saw Team Evans Bay allgoing well after day one continue into day two with high expectations. Aboard Rick and Jocko’s fizzy“Bluefin”, Andrew Dinsdale and Glenn Syman, along with Katie Hakes, Sparkles (Sam Sparks) and Nicoleleant a hand to Remy to get him back to the beach after an unfortunate coming together. Nothing that abit of ply won’t fix.Photographer Rachel Leathem (Rowdy’s sister) spent the day aboard a committee boat taking over 1,000photographs of Paper Tiger sailors in various states of ‘race face’. Glenn also took some great photos. Wereally are a photogenic bunch!!Day Three. Because of dredging operations we were given the bum’s rush from our race area by theharbour master. A cool 25 knot Southerly required the course to be set very close to Westshore/Bay Viewbeaches which meant the flat water was fantastic but the breeze very streaky. The results from both raceswere mixed with Team Evans Bay suffering quite a lot of damage including Jane (Pom Puss) with a bentmast, and Greg (Widget) with a broken boom. Alan (Happy Daze) had a steering malfunction to ruin hisday.Day Four and the final two races. Nothing yet decided with a lot of places at stake in the two teams for theInternationals over Easter. Breeze – what breeze? Very light shifty and patchy. As always happens thoughthe good guys always get it right.All in all a lovely regatta. Evans Bay doingwell with several making the teams forEaster. Evans Bay will be hosting the PaperTiger Nationals New Year 2011 so now is thetime to start looking for a boat.Rodger WilsonPT3028 SoonThe two symbols of the Republican Party: anelephant, and a big fat white guy who isthreatened by change. - Seth MacFarlane- 3 -

The SpinnakerBreastwork update completedThe main reason for the works was for the retainment of the fill behind the wall which would in placeswash out thru the rotting boarding. It seems that the same size of sand placed on the outside of the wall isthe same size of sand that was used to the Cobham Drive works, i.e. rock sized. Coming alongside atanything other than high tide is now a no-no, depending on how emotionally attached to your keel you are.Club Captain’s ReportA full on time for the Facilities team. At this time we are in the process of replacing the roof over toilet areaand the main office. In doing this we have to re pitch the flat roof to meet the new building requirementsand remove the bar cooler compressor cited on the roof so we will have this serviced at the same time.Stage two the lounge area will be completed in next year’s budget.Security lighting along the eastern side of the slipway has now been completed with the addition of heatsensors to control them. Lighting at the north and south end of the Black Shed has also been upgraded.The Black Shed has been redesigned and numbered thanks to Murray Thomas and several yachts notknown to the Club were found. This is featured in another report also in this issue (see opposite).We are in the process of replacing Neil Currie’s container on the slipway and will need some volunteers toremove and replace the roof structure. Please let me know if you are available to help.The existing hot points on the north and eastern walls of the slipway are also in the process of upgradingand at this time we will also install wiring for a sub-board in the new container.ManCom has approved purchasing two more cradles for the slipway with another one in the next financialyear. This will complete the replacement programme for the Slipway.We have had several enquiries from the trailer sailor members for secure storage for their auxiliaryoutboards. Space has been found in the back of the Black Shed along side the Travel Lift and thanks toTotally Marine who have donated an outboard stand, this facility is now available. When and if the stand isfull we will build a permanent structure. See Dale in the office for detailsThere are several small jobs to be done around the property and we are looking for volunteers so please letus know if you are interested.Thanks for all your support.GordonMost people would like to be delivered from temptation but would like it to keep in touch. - Robert Orben- 4 -

The SpinnakerThere are a number of boats and some propertywhich we can not identify the owners,Can the owners, or anyone knowing who theowners are, contact either Dale on 939-4167, orMurray Thomas on 970-4836.If the owners can not be identified by the end ofFebruary the boats and property may memoved to alternative storage.- 5 -

The SpinnakerPhilip Hartley 1924-2009“An Evans Bay Man”In the 1937-38 season when theclubhouse rested on piles, the sea comingup to the present day balcony, the younglad joined the Evans Bay Yacht Club withhis first P Class, Houdini, acquired fromthe Parkin family for the sum of twopounds. He kept the yacht at the familyhome in Balena Bay and sailed down tothe club for racing on Saturdays.IN 1939-40 season, trials were held for aWellington rep to sail in the Tauranga Cupcontest. He had sold Houdini before thetrials, but borrowed it back to enter andwon the right to represent, and sailed another P, Little Man in the contest.Yachts that came from Tauranga had no side bulkheads, there from the 1 st plans, all other Pshad side bulkheads from the 2 nd plans, much consternation, but all allowed to sail for the Cup.Nelson’s Ron Nalder won with two 1sts, three 2nds. Phil Hartley was second, two 1sts, two2nds, one 3 rd . 1941 and Phil bought a Takapuna Z class Manahu. He sailed this boat forthree seasons with crewman Les Simmons. 1944 saw him acquire his first X Class, Louie andhad til 1950 when the X Class suddenly became hot property and most owners startedbuilding a new hull for each season. Phil being no different, did the same, with Conquest1957-58 being his last wooden boat. Then came plastic boats with his being No 3 from theplug name Quest.He represented Wellington in the Sanders Cup at Auckland in 1959. Crew Lindsay McKenzie(main), Neil Shephard (forward). Next it was into keelers with the building of Ondine at thefamily property in Balena Bay, backbone and frames by John McDermitt, planked by HaroldSounders and finished by Phil and John. Started 1963 and launched Queens Wharf 1967, soldin 1970 and moved back onto something bigger when he bought a Carmen class hull,designed by Bob Stuart and built by Max Carter. Phil and John again fitted and finished theyacht on Evans Bay hard stand, sailing her in the 1970-71 season. He had great successwinning the “A” Class championship over the next three years. Next was the Spencer 30Odette, launched 11 September 1974 from Miramar Wharf, finished in the same yard as GrayMcKenzie’s Vintage. Both put into the sea the same day from the above site.The came Capella, a Farr 38 which he sailed from five seasons, when sold he had a fewlaunches for a number of years. After recovering from a heart attack and a bypass operationit was constant walking every day around Evans Bay, past yachts and sea that had lastlyconvinced him that yachts were going to be his thing again. So came Frid, a blue-hulledCavalier 32 which was changed over the first years from a ¼ tonner, a bigger boom with alarger mainsail made her more competitive, and gave the Cav more power upwind. Herevelled in the upwind conditions and won many trophies in the 3 rd division over the 7seasons with Frid. His great delight over this time was beating his long time friend and rivalPat Millar sailing Tabasco.He then was more than happy doing odd jobs on his son’s yacht Arbitare and sitting on racedays, offering advice and wise words when needed, while just itching to get on the helmupwind. He will be sadly missed on Arbitare, and all yachtsmen who listened to hisknowledgeable nautical words.- 6 -

The SpinnakerSailing Academy Quick UpdateAs usual, the Academy has been busy with courses all spring. We have completed two adultbeginners and one junior course, and are half way through another adult beginner and an adultintermediate course. All this activity brings in lots of new faces, and many of them are keen to keepsailing so please make them feel welcome in the club. Congratulations to the following people whohave passed their YNZ L2 during the spring 2009 season: Matthew Tolan, Janine Morris, JacquiAllen, Oliver Seiler, Cornelia Engelhardt, Simon Coggins, Jian Sun, Jono Nicholson, AlastairNicholson, Jongki Sohn, Sarah Dunckley, Patrick Fritzsche, Amy Tromans, Andrew Wright,Charlotte Young, Nick Axten, Simon Tankersley.Spring 2009 also saw the Academy establish a new regular event on the calendar. Every secondSunday, from 1pm to 4pm, we now run Sunday Social Sailing. This is simply a time whenAcademy boats are available for hire by any suitably qualified club member for fun sailing. Themain purpose is to encourage recent graduates to keep sailing, giving them more time on thewater and also a chance to meet and get to know other club members. After our sail we usuallyhave a sausage sizzle and a drink or two, and reflect on the wonderful time we have just had! Thefirst session of 2010 will be on the 10th January, if you would like to be added to the mailing list forSocial Sailing please just drop me an email. Those of you with your own boats are of coursewelcome to come and sail with us too - we often have destination sails (for example to OrientalBay for an ice cream), and may in future introduce a skills coaching aspect so it is a good chanceto come and have some fun outside of the usual racing programme!Other events organised by the Academy since my last update have included a tour of a Bluebridgeferry, a VHF radio course, and a tour of the NZ Rescue Co-ordination Centre and Maritime RadioHQ. These events and others before them have been very successful in involving both recentAcademy graduates and the general membership in club activities, adding to the community valueof the club and encouraging graduates to become full club members. Whenever practical we alsoopen these events to the wider club membership, please do support them and help make ourefforts worthwhile. Thanks to Murray Thomas and Rowan Hatch for their parts in running theabove events.A message to would-be trailer yacht and keeler sailors: the Academy has four sets of wet weathergear of varying sizes. We are making these available on FREE season loan to help you get startedif you want to sail on trailer yachts or keelers, please contact me to arrange this. Thanks to DarylMcGee for donating this equipment to us.Martin White, Sailing Academy Officereb.academy@gmail.comHAVE WE GOT YOUR EMAIL ADDRESS?The best way to stay informed of events, racing & general information is viaour irregular emails. Often this is our only avenue for issuing last minuteinformation, and we’d hate to think of you missing out. You can unsubscribeat any time, so to stay up with the play, drop Communications a line ateb.comms@gmail.comAntonym, n.: The opposite of the word you're trying to think of. - Unknown- 7 -

The SpinnakerPart 2, MOMENTS FROM THE CRUISING DIVISION, by Nev of MORETA.This yarn is about one of my first visits to the great Hopai sports day. Hopai is in the Pelorus Sounds and on theeastern side .The event is held on a flat stretch of pasture next to a tall stand of old man pines that protect thearea from the westerly that blows in from the Tasman. As a general rule it falls on the first Saturday of the NewYear and begins around midday. This gives people time to get there and anchor up.This was 1991 and my mate Bob of Gaffer fame and I decided that we would like to take both our boats to theSounds for a blast and a little holiday. Got all the food, fuel, water and of course the booze on board after a madrush that only got worse as the time to go got closer.Gaffer is a steely of some 34ft and designed by Nick Skeats .As you may have gathered she is a gaff riggedcutter. My own boat at the time was also a steely and 37ft but designed by Gerry Breekvelt as a mast head cutterand called Hobo. Both of these boats were built by us at home.We had made the decision to go on the 0430 tide and duly did so. By the time we got to Steeple Rock it was clearthat the little Mitsubishi in Gaffer was never going to get her to the Sounds. We had fitted a hydraulic drivesystem but there were problems and they were not going to be resolved in a few hours. We turned back and Hoboended up towing Gaffer back to the moorings.After some discussion all the provisions from Gaffer were transferred to Hobo and some sleep booked in. Wethen left on the afternoon tide. On board were Bob and his son Dion, myself and one of my boys, Bryan.There was almost no wind and Hobo had a 63hp Ford so motoring was no problem. About 30 minutes past KaroriLight the engine began to run a little rough so we throttled off. She promptly stopped. Managed to establish thatthe fuel filter was clogged and put on a new one. Problem solved. We motored on past The Brothers until theentrance to Queen Charlotte Sounds. At this point we decided to stay at a place called Copper Point. It was verydeep and the bottom was covered in fist sized rocks so holding was poor. The Sounds have very few lights in theouter parts and GPS was in its’ infant days. Not really a place to be moving around in the dark unless you knowyour way around.The next good tide for Cape Jackson meant leaving at 0230. Still no wind so back to the motor. Good progresswas made and we ended up at Hopai in plenty of time to get settled in. There were plenty of boats from Wellythat I recognized but in those days I didn’t know many of the people.The sports events were of a wide range. There was wood chopping and running races, from the100 meters rightthrough to a cross country. The long line at the gumboot throwing was testimony to its popularity. Some weren’ttoo happy though, such as the little boy who got the gumboot in the head or the chap who spent a lot of timegetting up and down trees retrieving gumboots. Other forms of laughter were available in the form of egg andspoon races along with traditional ones like sack racing and 3 legged races. This seemed to bring out a few ringinsthat had definitely been practicing for some time. The girls race being won by the same pair for a number ofyears [they were twins]. The 1500 meter men’s was a hit when the chap at the back cut across the track to catchthe leader but graciously let him cross the finish first. This brought about much clapping from the audience whoappreciated the man’s efforts not to be left out of the action.Refreshments were essential as the temperature rose into the low 30’s. Of course the favourite was always beer.This was purchased after paying a deposit on the jugs that had a sheep tag or similar on the handle. These jugsthen became of value to young entrepreneurs who would gladly return them at the end of the day for the reward.As one would expect, not too many got lost.The other long line was at the women’s loo. The men’s was never a problem , so a spy was stationed nearby andwhen it was empty some of the more adventurous chicks would use them. The blokes didn’t seem to mind as theyhad more serious stuff to do. This included discussing the stats of the latest outboard, where the best fishing wasand how to keep the beer cold, very important stuff.- 8 -

The SpinnakerThe day would end with the all important prize giving. These days they hand out the prizes and trophies as theygo along as some of the competitors have to leave early. The drive back to civilization is over a dirt road so notthe fastest. There were also several helicopters to one side and these were a source of great admiration by many.Especially the beautiful black Bell Jet Ranger. A barge also comes down from Havelock with as many on as canfit and this leaves as soon as the events are over as it is a bit of a haul back. Most of the boats departed for otherplaces while there was plenty of light still available. We decided to stay at Hopai for the evening. Dinner was theusual when you were too tired to get carried away with cooking, something from Mr. Watties.We had been invited to Northwest Bay by Tony Coard. There is a sheltered spot right at the end of the bay andseveral of the Welly boats were going to be there. I took this as an opportunity to get to know some of the EvansBay Yacht Club members. The weather was ok so off we went. We arrived late morning to find Wakarere,Contention, Omega and Ruawaka anchored and rafted. One of the guys came out in a dinghy to take the anchorand set it for us as he knew where all the other anchors were.A small alarm bell rang in my head as he seemed a little tiddly but was doing ok so we had no need to questionhis judgment. We had a 50lb plough and 60 meters of 12mm chain so we set it in fairly deep as the forecast wasnot too good. Then the customary stern line to the shore. This was tied to a large rock above the high tide mark[one only ties it below high tide once as it means getting wet to retrieve it]. This helped to keep the boats slightlyapart.The rest of the day was spent at Tony’s place helping to build a stairway and door entrance. Had a few beers anda feed while spending the evening getting to know the rest of the residents. We finally crawled into bed at someuncivilized hour.After getting up in the morning, which was closer to lunch than breakfast we all went off for a scrub in the damncold stream. Whoever said that it was refreshing is full of s!#t, it was freezing. The rest of the day was spentexploring the surrounding area. Of interest was a lonely looking cabbage that seemed to be saying “Eat me”. Sowe did. Also a pig, but we thought better of that. Right on the beach edge was a burnt out bach. It seems somegentleman was spending his weekends with the secretary there instead of his wife and she took exception to it. Sothe scorned one burnt the love nest to the ground. Seemed a shame as it was in a lovely location.During the afternoon I took the opportunity to inform the rest of the boats that I had to go to Portage the next dayas I was picking somebody up. This brought about some laughter and a few looks of disbelief, mostly because theforecast was for 35/40 knots out of the North West. After tea we gave them another reminder then went to bed.Yet again dawn came and we were ready for a new adventure. Had breakfast and began to prepare for ourdeparture to Portage whilst politely giving the neighbours another reminder that we were off. Not much actionwas apparent from the other boats so the assumption was made that they were under control. Dropped off thespringers etc and sent one of boys ashore for the stern line. All looked ok except we were slowly swinging ontothe rocks so we slowly motored forward while retrieving the anchor .This came out with a bit of persuasion theHobo way. That is, drive over it and break it out.This brought forward some mad scurrying that resembled an angry hive of bees. Any form of order seemed to belacking though. Something akin to an awareness that all wasn’t tickity boo was more like it. Bob’s instructionswere “Eyes straight ahead and don’t look back”. So they looked and I steered. It would seem that the only thingraining was pandemonium. The boat furtherest away from us was Wakarere. She promptly ran aground andOmega and Contention’s anchors were both pulled free. It would appear that as we pulled our anchor up it hadbeen over the top of the other two chains and we had lifted them up also. I had built a hydraulic anchor winch thatran straight off the engine crank so it really didn’t take any notice of two more anchors as it was a little over built.[I still tend to over build stuff]. Of course to add to the problem there was only one stern line and it was blowingin true Northwest Bay fashion- very hard. I did find out later that they did get everything under control again.There where mutterings about crazy people going out on windy days.We motored to Portage as the wind was 35/40 knots and behind us. We were constantly overtaken by willy wawsthat pelted us with heavy rain. Portage finally came into view, twice, as we went to the wrong place the first time.This was an error we were to make a few more times.- 9 -

The SpinnakerAfter tying up to the jetty I went off to pick up my passenger only to find that he could not get on the ferry as itwas full. He booked for the next day at the same time. We got fuel and a feed then moved over to Fish Bay forthe rest of the day and night. Holding was ok but needed plenty chain out as the wind was all over the place.Having plenty of chain out seemed to stop the anchor from slowly walking across the bottom but did take a littlegetting used to as Hobo was moving around a lot. Most of us went ashore for a walk on the rolling farmlandwhich has the road to Hopai going through it.The next day we picked up my co-worker Scott. We worked together at Pooles Engineering [Pooles was ownedby Hugh Poole of Port Nick’ and owner of Jet]. The plan was to make our way home to Welly as the weatherallowed. Both Scott and I were due back at work soon. As we left Portage in the late afternoon the wind moved tosouth and low cloud rolled in. As we came towards Maude Island we mistook a headland and ended up motoringinto a heavy southerly chop and against the tide in order to get out of the bay. The rising southerly encouraged usto seek shelter for the night. Thus we ended up on the west side of the channel between Maude Island and themainland .We set the anchor down between a mussel farm and the shore. The shore was steep and covered insmall stones but the holding was ok. We bumped the bottom once so pulled in a little chain and were ok for therest of the evening. Except for a long slow ground swell it was comfortable and out of the wind.Daylight saw us under way again. Through Allen Strait and on to Cape Jackson. There we decided to stay inQueen Charlotte or Tory for the night. Anapua Bay seemed ok as it was close to Tory entrance. As we motored inthere was a lot of fish showing up on my depth sounder, [it was one of the old rotating disc ones]. Out wentspinner and in came the kawhai and plenty to feed us. This seemed to annoy two young fellas who were trawlingin a dinghy but not catching anything. We anchored away from their very nice plastic boat so as not to upsetthem.That evening fish was on the menu. Scott and I had a few beers then into the rum until the wee small hours.Everybody else wisely went to bed. I can remember getting up before dawn to feed the fish and walking into theboom and almost knocking myself out. It was said that I muttered something about being “Too old for this s!#t”.They were wrong. I still do it on the odd occasion.The trip home to Welly was spent with me in the cockpit and Scott on the bunk and neither of us feeling too crashhot. Bob and the two boys got us home just fine. My input was to tighten the bolts on the prop shaft bearing asthey came loose off Sinclair Head and to back Hobo into the berth that now has Kokotahi in it.A few things that have occurred to me since then.1 Cook Strait is a lousy place to have a hangover.2 When you are departing from other boats that are rafted to you, get really insistent about informing themof your departure.3 When somebody says they are leaving, take notice. Even if the weather is terrible they just may do it.4 Even when you have been to a place before, it is still easy to get it wrong and end up in the wrong place.5 Don’t ignore the alarm bells in your head. They are often right and the knack to utilising them is to keepasking yourself what is it that has them ringing and investigate it until it goes away.6 And finally, if you want to shag the secretary, remember, you may end up living in the dog box, literally.Nev.- 10 -

The SpinnakerWhat does the Sailing Academy do for the club?Good question!Its a pretty hard one to answer too. Up until fairly recently I would have only beencapable of giving some sort of evangelical answer about how the Academy adds to thevibrancy and activity of the club, how it is the only way we have of actively attractingnew members and how it is worth investing money to achieve these things. All ofthese points are true, but it is difficult to quantify these benefits and really understandthe level of contribution that the Academy makes. But, after nearly 18 months ofrunning it, I reckon I can now explain it fairly clearly.So here goes...I said above that we add vibrancy to the club. Let me put some numbers behind that.On a typical week in our active season, there is a class of twelve students at the clubthree evenings, Saturday morning and Sunday morning. At three hours per session,that's 180 sailor-hours per week, without even including instructors!We also work hard to run other events -in 2009 Remy's Sounds Weekend saw56 people cruising Queen CharlotteSound in nine chartered yachts; we rantwo VHF radio courses for the generalmembership; our students attended theChristmas Party, Friday night meals,raft-ups in the harbour; and first-timeracers last year took part in the EBYMBCregatta, East-West Dash and the WinterSeries.In the past year we have establishedfortnightly Sunday Social Sailingsessions. At the end of each training course we ask our students to fill in a feedbackform, and one of the most common requests was for us to provide a way, other thanracing, for graduates of the Academy to continue sailing. Every second Sunday(weather permitting!) now sees about six or seven Academy boats out enjoying ourharbour, as well as a sausage and a beer in the clubhouse afterwards - so if you wantto join in either with your own boat or by hiring one of ours, you are most welcome!So does all this bring in new members?In the past five years, 43 new club members have been recruited through Academycourses and other activities, 12 of those in the last year alone. When you include boatstorage fees for those who own boats, this brings in well over $10,000 a year inadditional income which can then be re-invested in the club as a whole.Who isinvolved in theAcademy?Sailing AcademyOfficerMartin WhiteAcademyCommitteeSteve LuckinColin LeeMurray ThomasAmy CarsonRemy ThomassenLead InstructorsRemy ThomassenMartin WhiteMurray ThomasWarren RankinSteve LuckinAmy CarsonOther QualifiedInstructorsJonathon CorlettClarke CameronTim SherryJonti OldsHana MaguireVivian Christy-JonesHelen OrchardColin LeeAnd are these new members active in the club?Certainly a number are, myself included! Others are involved as instructors and on other committees, andtake part in club racing and other events. But there is room for improvement. The Academy has a number ofideas for this, including further development of our Learn-to-Race course, actively helping students findpeople to sail with, and the establishment of a roadmap for those wishing to become instructors. We alsoexpect to see improved results from our work this year, especially the establishment of Social Sailing.You can help us by being open to taking students out on your boats when asked, and by asking me or one ofthe other Academy committee members if you need some crew. Those of you with lots of experience mightlike to consider wandering round the rigging area offering advice to those of us who are still learning - I knowI'd appreciate it! And please try to be welcoming to new faces - it can be very intimidating walking into anenvironment where it seems that everyone else knows exactly what they are doing, and you don't have aclue!And finally...If you have any questions about the Academy, ideas for what we could do better, or want to get involvedplease don't hesitate to contact me.Martin WhiteSailing Academy Officer021 124 1443learntosail@ebymbc.org.nz- 11 -

The SpinnakerFrom the HouseWelcome back to the Club after the holiday period. I hope you found some sunshine where you were. Thankyou to the team who kept the club going over the break!As you will have read in the email from the Communications team, Friday Club meals will restart Friday,12 th February. That week sees the return of Mon Ami. Menus will be placed on the website –www.ebymbc.org.nz – as soon as it is finalised so you can see what is coming up. You will be able to bookfrom here too, so please utilise this where you can so we can ensure everyone gets a meal.The 12 th also sees the return of the Membership draw. This has been quite successful in that is has been wonfour times already by financial club members since it started. The most recent was the last draw of 2009which was won by Martin White. So - you know the drill - be financial and be there.If you are not receiving the brief and informative update emails – I suggest you do something about it. Justsend a message to eb.comms@gmail.com to be in the loop.See you on the water and in the Clubhouse.Cheers,LynleyRear CommodoreClub Logo ClothingWe already have a small range of clubclothing available for sale in the cluboffice, but frequently get requests forother items. If you’d like polo shirts,fleece tops, maybe even boxer shortswith the EBYMBC logo embroidered on,please contact Jane Thomassen ateb.comms@gmail.com. Jane will workout what’s popular & get some new gearin.New Members NightThis will be held on Friday, 19 thFebruary, kickoff around 7pm. Mealswill be available, please book byemailingeb.rearcommodore@gmail.com.Whilst there will be a presentationspecially for new members, allmembers are invited and it’d be greatif you could come down & makenewcomers to the club feel welcome,it can be a daunting place some times.If you’re a new member, you shouldreceive an invitation, if you have anyquestions, give the office a call on939-4167.2009 - 2010 Management Committee OfficersCommodore Nikki Johnson c/o 939-4167 Email eb.commodore@gmail.comVice Commodore Rick Martin Ph 021 241 7363 Email richard@gaultmitchell.co.nzRear Commodore Lynley Manning Ph 388 9522 Email lmrw@xtra.co.nzClub Captain Gordon Cooper Ph 0274 458988 Email ebymc.captain@gmail.comSailing Academy Officer Martin White Ph 380-6110 Email whites.nz@gmail.comCommunications Officer Jane Thomassen Ph 027 668 0286 Email eb.comms@gmail.comEvents Officer Mike Usher Ph 027 240 5109 Email mikann@paradise.net.nz- 12 -

The SpinnakerMultiple EventsWhew. The events team have had a busy time, Labour Weekend Sunday was the ever successful Old Salts, sadto see some of the old faces not attending now, some of whom must be sailing over the horizon. We need to getthe next generation to come along but many seem to be put off by the term of ‘old’, shame as it’s an excellentway to keep in touch with old mates.The Kids Xmas party was a rage, wall to wall fun, thanks to Dave Wilcock , daughters & friends who took on thetask of face painting, Fiona & Matt who conducted the games and held the attention of the children withmusical chairs, balloon popping game & statue dance, these were preceded by Mr Topper who kept his audienceamazed with his magic. Thanks also to the parents/ grandparents for their support in bringing a great variety ofdelightful food & to the Police launch Lady Elizabeth III, skippered by Sgt Dave Houston and his crew, that gotinto the spirit of things delivering the presents, distributing them and showing the young and not so youngaround the Launch. Thanks to Tottie for buying the prizes and Ann for the balloons and help in keeping up withall the to-ing & fro-ing of emails leading up to the event. It took a bit of organizing but well worth it when yousaw the kids faces. Thirty-six kids were present & the adults needs were tended to by Paul Vautier. Big thanksalso to Karman who came to the club rooms for a meeting of the Outriggers and got stuck into the laying out ofthe food and at the end was clearing up, many hands make light work, and it’s impossible to name all that didhelp, it’s a great club.December 5 th for the adult members was also a great night. The Shenanigans got people dancing away & lettingtheir hair down (my hair let me down some time ago, I think I got too tall for it, I started growing through thetop). Al got everybody involved in his quest to uncover one of the great mysteries of life, which is how manypieces of Hokey Pokey is contained in a two litre tub of ice cream, last time I saw him he was in the middle ofthe floor up to his elbows in the concoction (and I never did find out the answer). The lively music even got JohnSeggie dancing, complaining that if his knees were crook in the morning he was going to hold me to account forit. This was apparently no issue for Wade McGee, who in the later evening had us all enthralled by his trippingthe light fantastic with something that was a cross between Fred Astaire & the late Mr Jackson.The Bar person did not show (this was bit of a bar-steward) but again members got in behind and saved the day,comments of praise were made about the band, the food & the entire evening (which hopefully might make theticket selling easier nexttime).The weather at time ofwriting in late December,is appalling, all waiting toget down the Sounds,Murphy’s law operating.While we have a strongIrish theme to thisreport I am prompted toquote the old Irish saying“May the wind be at yourback not coming from it”.MikeEvents team(Ed: Here’s what washappening on the eventsscene back in 1968, theyreally did say “Ladies, aplate”).- 13 -

The Spinnaker‘Beyond’ in the French Canals by John WoolfFollowing a refit at Evans Bay and much help fromclub members, Wendy and I departed Wellington inMay’06 on Beyond a Departure 35 full keelmasthead sloop, bound for destinations in agenerally north westerly direction. Arriving inTurkey in 2008 we heard of people taking theiryachts into the European canal system and weretaken with the idea. We did the research anddiscovered that yachts could sail from the south ofFrance through rivers and canals via Paris to Calaison the English Channel (more photos on back page).allowance of 1.8m but we decided to give it a go anyway.With Beyond’s draft of 1.7m we were right on themaximum draft limit, as some of the canals weintended to pass through had a maximum draftThe French Canals were the highlight of the 2009 cruising season for us. It was a yachties holiday. Navigationis easy and you don’t have to worry about the weather. Also on the small canals you can just find a place thathas enough depth to get within a metre of the bank, drive a couple of tent pegs into the ground and that is youmoored for the night, allowing us to get out the bikes and explore the area. The great thing is once you havepaid the modest fee to the French canal authority, the VNF, the rest is free. No charges for the locks and youcan moor anywhere along the towpaths. Even the marinas on the canals are cheap by European standards andmany villages on the rivers provide a free pontoon where you can stay overnight.The canals are generally raised above the surrounding land so there is often spectacular views of the variedand beautiful countryside. The canals have been a visual feast, as has cruising through the Med but there isnot the space to write about it here.‘The plan’ having set out from Marmaris, Turkey at the beginning of May’09 was to cruise the 1,700nm westthrough the Med arriving at Port Saint Louis du Rhone in Southern France at the beginning of August, which wedid, then dropping the mast motor the 790nm North through the network of canals and rivers of France toCalais, put the mast back up, cross the English Channel and then up the Thames to St Katherine’s Dock Marinain London. The plan worked but it was too many miles in one season and we would have spent another year in theMed if time and funds had permitted.Having got into Port Saint Louis du Rhone we quickly made arrangements to lift the mast out, as the heightrestrictions on many of the canals is 3.4M. Right up until the last minute I intended to ship the mast by truckto Calais to make moving round on deck easier and not to have the overhang at bow and stern when manoeuvringin the locks. I had been told the cost would be Euro 400 – 500 ($930 - $1162) but a couple of hours before themast was to be lifted I finally got hold of the transport company to find it would be twice that! If it is onething I am, is tight. Rummaging through the skip bins round the boat yard we quickly came up with enoughsticks of wood to cobble together a suitable cradle for the mast. Out with the tools and much frantic sawingdrilling and bolting and the job was done. It isn’t uncommon for Europeans to pay hundreds of Euros to have aprofessional cradle made. We made ours in 4 hours for zero.With the mast out on deck of Beyond’ she looked like she’d sailed through a hurricane. It took us a couple oflong days to get the spreaders off, lace these together with the boom, spinnaker pole, standing rigging,halyards and anything else that would fit onto the mast, and to finalise the cradle achieving a pleasinguncluttered result.- 14 -

The SpinnakerNow we were ready to go. Into the first lock which allowed us to enter the mighty Rhone river with commercialtraffic, huge peniches (flat bottomed barges) up to 150m long and 5000 tonnes that move freight the lengthof France. The size of the locks (ecluses) reflect this.The first lock was a disaster. Although we had 10 fenders down, the ‘egg’ shape of Beyond, like most yachts,does not allow them the sit flat against the side of the lock (most canal boats and motor cruisers, have flatsides) so when we were being raised the boat twists with the inrush of water and is hard to control. The nextlock on the Rhone was worse as they are designed for large commercial vessels with no concessions for yachtsand the floating bollards are perhaps 20m apart meaning we could only tie onto one bollard amidships. ‘Beyond’twisted badly as we went up the 15.5m lift and ground the foot of the mast protruding past the bow, up thewall of the lock.Experiencing a blinding flash of the obvious I reworked the fenders using the smallest diameter onesamidships and larger ones nearer the bow to make the side of the boat appear straighter and laid the boardingplank on top of the midship fenders. What we really needed was some giant ball fenders at bow and stern butwe just made do with what we had. This together with tying off strongly to the floating bollard amidships tohold her flat against the lock wall and using bow and stern lines to control the twisting made these locks moremanageable.The largest of these locks on the Rhone raised Beyond 22m attached to one floating bollard with a giganticamount of water being pumped in at all points along the lock. The effect was as a giant washing machine.Further North it was a relief to get off the rivers into the Canal de Centre, one of the smaller less commercialcanals. The living was easy, fresh croissants and black coffee for breakfast, cruise through the countrysidefor the day which always felt slightly surreal and pass through a number of small manageable locks. Having tiedup alongside the towpath by evening there was another bottle of regional wine to sample. Wine is the only thingthat is cheap in France.The locks were always interesting. Flights (group) of locks were managed by lock keepers (eclusiers). Thesewere uniformly unsmiling, dour, taciturn men who had seen it all. But French men being French men, all thischanged on the hot bright day that Wendy went braless. The first lock we arrived at the eclusier greeted uswith a smile, helped us with the lines (never happened before) and chatted animatedly with Wendy in Frenchoffering helpful advice on the locks ahead. It took me awhile to cotton onto what was going on. The nexteclusier who manages 6 locks looked like he hadn’t smiled in a lifetime and was his dour self at the first eclusebut by the second was there to take our lines, his face winched into a smile. By the last lock he actuallyclimbed onboard, the better to chat with Wendy, as I was heading out of the lock. I managed to winch him offthe boat at the end of the lock. The next day with Wendy in her normal attire the eclusiers returned to beingunsmiling, dour, taciturn.The canals are sociable places and we met and consumed delicious French wine with many people we met alongthe way. Particularly though Fredric and Caroline who tutored Wendy in French in Marmaris, Turkey where wehad spent the last year. They contacted us in France and took us to their summer house, where we experiencedthe French way of life for a couple of days including a long lunch in the garden, and wine tasting in the Chablisdistrict rounded of with a game of Petanque in the evening. It is a medical fact that no Frenchman has everdied of a stress related illness. Businesses close for two hours in the middle of the day and the locks for onehour including the automatic locks! And everything shuts on Sunday.It was a big thing for us motoring into Paris in our own yacht. Before heading into the marina we putteredthrough Paris under the numerous bridges passing Notre Dame, the Louvre, and Musay D’Orsay before headingback to the Arsenal Marina which was smack dab in the middle of Paris. The Bastille was at the end of themarina and Notre Dame only a short walk away.- 15 -

The SpinnakerA number of Wellingtonians visited us on our journey including my mate Neil Gray and my sister Jennifer whojoined me in Paris while Wendy headed back to NZ for a month (arrival of grandchild number 3). It is special toshare these times with friends and family.Having explored Paris I headed off with my fresh crew for the final 250nm and 57 locks to Calais. Thehighlight of this passage was the 6km long Grand Souterrian tunnel, where we were towed through behind twopeniches by an electric tug. This tunnel was built using prisoner of war labour about 1802. Quite an experience.When we got to Calais Neil stayed an extra couple of days to help put the mast back up for which I am evergrateful.The statistics for the canal passage 788nm, 226 locks, about 8 lifting bridges, the Eiffel aqueduct, two tunnels(1km and 6km), ran aground more times than I can remember, towed off by helpful boaties 3 times.On a canal wall in LyonYes, that is a nuclear reactorTypical rural French canal- 16 -