2009 Ronstan Indian Ocean Classic
Sunday 1 November 2009
The disappointment of no fleet racing on Saturday did not perturb the sailors enthusiasm on a bright and blustery Sunday morning.
The 145+ entries eagerly rigged up whilst fuelling up on bacon and egg rolls from the canteen’s always ready BBQ.
It was with great relief that the Race Management team could announce racing would start on schedule for all fleets at 10:00am.
This event attracted an extraordinarily diverse fleet of sailors. From Optimist Bronze and Silver Sleet sailors, to Lasers, 420s, Skiffs, Sailboards, Flying 15 Keelboats to the incredibly fast and furious Cats (F18s, Tornados and Nacras). The Harbour Master commented he’d never seen a boat leave the harbour before at such a high speed and yet leave no wake. Well done cat sailors!!
Four races were completed on the offshore course, with the inshore course completing five races to the delight of the gathering crowd on the breakwater. A tremendous spectacle and advertisement for our sport.
The sea state proved remarkably benign following on from a day of 30+ knots. However the wind proved testing with significant shifts and changes in pressure. Only the observant sailors, those in phase with the shifts and nuances, gained success.
The Silver Fleet Optimists ("Budding Champions") completed their eight races under the watchful eye of Mike Davies and his team of volunteers who also managed to squeeze in a break for lunch, a rare feat for the RIOC! The Bronze Fleet Sailors had fun sailing and watching their role models compete in the Silver Fleet. Well Done Optis!
Following on from Saturday’s impromptu open entry Optimist Teams racing event, a great success, Sunday’s fleet racing was a welcome return to ocean sailing at its best.
Fremantle Sailing Club volunteers and staff combined with the willing helpers from almost all other metro and outlying Sailing Clubs provided a quality sailing experience to an enormous number of sailors.
The sponsorship from RONSTAN brought a smile to the worthy recipients faces and it is with great thanks and pride that Fremantle Sailing Club were able to continue their relationship with Ronstan to put on a successful event.
Saturday 31 October 2009
Unfortunately the Fremantle Doctor wasn't smiling on us and instead had decided to blow so hard that all racing today was abandoned.
Racing will resume tomorrow as per the racing schedule.
Some forward thinking by the FSC Race Officers and Dinghy Captain saw a series of team races in Optimists in the pond by the Junior Clubhouse take place to keep the crowd entertained. Twelve teams of four raced against each other to see who was the better group of sailors. Tornado Sailors versus Oppi Sailors, Laser Sailors versus the Cherub Team, Club against Club, Friend against Friend. It was a battle of skill and against the elements. With AB and Diego following the teams as the "Official Umpires" blowing their whistles at any infringements it was a crowd pleasing spectacle.
It was great to see the teams so eager to race, fighting over each other for their turn to do battle. Even at 4:00pm when they stopped racing teams were still eager to compete.
Well done to the Race Control Crew and the Support Boats who braved the cold to see at least some sailing take place.
Photos of the Optimist Team Race can be see here.
Coming Soon...
The 2009 Ronstan Indian Ocean Classic will be held on Saturday 31 October and Sunday 1 November at Fremantle Sailing Club.
The Ronstan Indian Ocean Classic is WA's premier open dinghy class regatta.
This year we're inviting entries from all dinghy classes. If you can get a fleet together, we'll run racing for you over the weekend.
We'd particularly like to see entries from classes that we haven't seen recently at the IOC. These include Minnows, Manly Juniors, Herons, Flying Elevens, Skates, Flying Fifteens, 125's, Sailboards, Hobie 16's and Formula 18 cats.
We'd also like to extend an invitation to our friends in some of the smaller clubs such as Maylands and Jervoise Bay - come and join us for a great weekend's racing.
If you have any family or friends who would like to be involved in the on the water running of this event please contact the Club as we'd love to have you on board.
