Sail School September 2009

Wow! This must have been the best sailing school ever at the Tingira Boat Club!! After seeing all the fun to be had in Vagabonds on Sunday Sailing days, quite a few of our long-standing members decided to join in the fun.

As Margaret put it "I'm not going to sit there like a frog on a log. I want to be out there too."

So who signed up? Margaret, of course, closely followed by Jill and Kerri and Billie. Sid was the first man to confirm and Jill bulldozed Chris into it. (Secretly, I think he wanted to all along ....) Then Judy Sampson, fresh back from NZ, added her name to the list.

Our stalwart instructors for the course were Michael, Lindsay, Peter D and Peter L, Bob, Colin and our Fearless Leader Guy. We were also ably assisted by Guy Le Plastrier who helped when instructor numbers were depleted. And many thanks to Robert and Brian in the safety boat.


The first day was a beauty. Shame we had to waste a fair bit of it in the classroom. But we managed to get the swim in and the basic capsize without sails in shallow water.

The weather in the rest of the week wasn't so kind to us, with that mammoth dust storm and high winds causing swells up to one metre in the bay. Not the best for novices!!


THROWING A ROPE






Need a tow?

Then you need to learn how to toss a rope across to the safety boat crew.

And here are Chris and Billie doing a splendid job of it.

Margaret is coming to grips with the technicalities whilst Sid is striding up for his turn at the lassoo.

And you need to know your knots. The rolling hitch is a really hard one to master, particular when you are rolling about on a sail boat. This is the one that is used when you are about to get a tow.

Michael gives Jill some one on one instruction whilst Judy, Margaret and Sid sort it out for themselves.

TACKING AND GYBING ON THE SIMULATOR

Tacking and gybing skills can be practiced on land by placing the Vagabond on the simulator. This allows the boat to move around as though it was in the water. The instructor can simply stand beside the boat and explain how it works ... without getting wet.

Above: Judy and Jill get put through their paces and Sid and Billy take their turn at the tiller.

Now it's Chris's turn ...

Followed by Kerri ....

GETTING READY TO GO OUT
First rig your boat and then take to the water. The brave sailors rig their boats before heading off into the bay.





































AND THAT STORM ....
Salamander can barely be seen on the left and Chris and Jill's boat is hazy in the distance.

Not so hazy but those waves are pretty choppy.

Those waves are pretty high too. I just wish I could photograph the gusts of wind. Another photo of Chris and Jill's boat out in the storm.

But it cleared eventually and everyone went out sailing.It was a great week. Well done everybody! Now we expect to see you all out there on Sundays, enjoying the Vagabond Sail Days with the rest of us.

Alpha Bravo Charlie calling Xray Yankee Zulu

Just a couple of pics from Brian Sutton who attended the VHF Radio Course held at the Boat Club on 19th September.

Did you know that all owners of VHF radios on their boats now have to have a licence? Or that water police are checking up on you?

I hope you were one of the people who did the course!

Not paddling your own canoe

Wow! Sundays are fast becoming THE day down at Tingira!! Yesterday was pumping, so to speak!!

We started the day around lunch-time with a pre-sailing meal of bubble and squeak and toasted ham sandwiches. This was leftovers of the fantastic baked ham dinner that Peter and Kerri Deane cooked on Friday night. And it was just as good second time around!

Then it was time to start rigging up boats, as the tide came in.

Our new member Ted Upton has had his outrigger down at the Club for the past few weekends and this has brought in a great many non-members eager to try their hand at paddling a long canoe/dragon boat/outrigger.( I'm not sure of exactly the specification of Ted's boat but it requires six people to paddle, one of which must be proficient at shouting

"HO" at appropriate moments, at which time the paddlers switch blades to the other side.)

Yesterday we had seventeen children at the Club. 17!! That was fantastic!! Most of them too young for sailing lessons but all of them eager to get out on the water in a sailing boat. Mike Stephens brought up "Debbie Jane" and took out four at a time. Don Carmichael had "Hot Canary" on the water, also filled with eager sailors, whilst the rest of us used all the Vagabonds to take out a great many adult members and guests.

Our Sailing Master was delighted to welcome his daughter Monica and let her try her hand at the tiller. Monica herself was less than delighted when Peter Deane guessed her age at 17. (She's 26). Just wait, Monica! When you get to our age, ten years off your age is a HUGE compliment!!

Jill Ashton and Annette Sutton had sneak previews of sailing before they start their sailing course on 21st September. Talking of which, so many members have signed up for this course!!! Apart from Jill and Annette, Kerri Deane, Marg Calvert, Billie Cavanagh, Chris Ashton and Sid Cooper are all starters. Woohoo! I can see a ladies race coming up in the not too distant future!! (Sorry, Chris and Sid, I wasn't including you two in that comment!!)

It was too good a day to stop when night started to fall. Some of us diehards finished off the day with fish and chips at Chris & Jill's place, after watching yet another fantastic sunset from the Tingira Boat Club. How lucky are we???

Coffee at Coochie

Our intrepid Sailing Master decided that Sunday Vagabond Sailing was not enough for the merry crew at Tingira Boat Club so on Wednesday 26th August he decreed an extra sailing day.

Turning up at the club at noon, the tide was perfect.

Three boats went out initially ... Guy and Alene, Peter Lawson and Brian Sutton and our adventurous Treasurer decided to go it solo.

It was a wonderful day for a sail with light to moderate winds but a bit lumpy out in the bay. Guy and Alene surprised a dugong which surfaced directly in front of their bow. Luckily, Guy managed to dodge to one side and it swam alongside the boat. It was quite a large one ... nearly the same length as the boat itself.

We sailed out into the bay to check on Mick J's boat Sapphire which had gone a-wandering during the night. He had temporarily anchored her off a sandbar halfway to Coochie and all seemed to be well.

Having got that far, we decided to sail the rest of the way and found ourselves standing on the sandy beach near the jetty. Then we espied another Vagabond making its way towards Coochie. It was Colin and Michael, who had turned up a few minutes after we departed and decided to follow us across.

Standing on the beach, we decided this should become a regular event. Not necessarily on a Wednesday, just any day when the tide was suitable. And whilst I christened it Coffee at Coochie, Colin thinks Champers at Coochie or just plain XXXX at Coochie is a better name. What do you think?

PS While I think about it, here's a couple of pix of new additions to the Tingira Fleet. The hobi-cat donated by Gerry Fullerton for Club use and an outrigger which is currently being left at the Club so that members can take advantage of learning to paddle it. C'mon guys, give it a try!!

Big Day at the Boat Club

Sunday 9th August was an absolute screamer down at the Club. People came out of the woodwork, both members and potential members.
It was a glorious, sunny day. Hard to believe it's still winter. But that's Queensland ... beautiful one day, perfect the next. And that's our island!
We had all six Vagabonds out, with an instructor in each boat. Guy, Colin, Young Guy (aka Guy The Plasterer) and Bob all gave of their time to improve our sailing techniques.
The kayaks were put to good use by the many children and adults who were waiting a chance to sail on the Vagabonds.


And Paddy took out Gerry's cat for the first time. We really have to give a huge vote of thanks to Gerry Fullerton for donating the use of his hobi-cat. Now based at the Club, it's perfect for those of us who are not quite as nimble and find the Vagabonds a trifle difficult to move around in. Come down and try it!
Not to be outdone, Don sailed round from his beach with his own hobi-cat and the two catamarans took a great many people out sailing.


The day finished around lunch-time with our usual BBQ. We sat around in the shade, enjoying a lovely meal. Music wafted out of the open bar and we drank a toast to Ole and Irene, sailing up north in Nepenthe.
It's a hard life but members of the Tingira Boat Club are up to the challenge. Come and join us next sailing Sunday!!

Flinders Day on Coochie

A bunch of us went over to Coochie for the annual Flinders Day celebrations. Peter and Eileen Lawson took daughter Justine over in their boat.

Brian and Annette Sutton were there on Whimaway.

Robert and Judy Smith kindly took Alene and Guy along in Gadfly. We were all very impressed by the sandy beaches on Coochie.

Next time, everyone is required to bring back a bucket each so we can start our own beach here.

We were very impressed by the markets and found some top spots to eat also. Judy and I are both hoping we won the raffle which had a table and chairs, lots of alcohol (yay!) and a couple of wine bottle holders shaped like gekkos. Brilliant!!!

I got sucked into trying out Dragon Boat racing. Nobody told me I would have to paddle over 2km. That is seriously hard work!!

Colin and Bob sailed over on Tycho Brahe. They disappeared to the bar at the resort and came back to tell us it was all very fine.

Next year, how about we sail over en masse in the Vagabonds?

The Commodore's Ball

What a night!!! We had a full house - in fact, several members missed out because tickets were sold out early.

Next time, remember, we can only cope with about 55 people so be early! (We don't take bookings from non-members until we are sure all members have tickets if they wish to attend.)



We were all seated by 6.15pm and admiring the decor, provided by Ole and Irene.

Then it was on to the speeches. Commodore Ole welcomed us all to the Club and said he hoped we had a good time.




Phil and Guy gave up their time to work behind the bar. As a club run by volunteers, there are always people like these working behind the scenes to ensure we all have a good night. Thanks to both of them!!






The meal was a great success, as usual. Providore Barry, ably assisted by his lovely ladies, once again proved that he can't be replaced. Jocelyn made vichysoisse as the entree and Barry provided mini chicken roasts for the main course.





Judy made a dozen pavlovas for dessert. Huge, luscious and full of cream with a fruit topping, they finished off the meal lavishly.










Three international judges arrived from Denmark, England and Australia to judge the Belle of the Ball, won by Val. And not a hissy fit to be seen amongst the girls. Well done, Val!!!

Then it was on to dancing. Matt the Piano Man played all the golden oldies in his inimitable style and we danced the night away.

And Jill donned her boots to walk home!!!