Volvo Round the World Racing Yachts
After the long sail from Cape Town
Powering down wind,
Surfing across the Southern Ocean
Resting now in the calm waters of Docklands, Melbourne.
Round the world stopover Melbourne
Tag: Sailing
Waning Moon – Night Sailing
Alone
at night
the sky full of the milky way
clear in the darkness
The sea black
the phosphorescence sparkling in the wake of my boat
as she cuts her way through the sea
the light autumn breeze providing her power
silence and darkness
The full moon of Easter has passed
in the last hours of darkness she arises
the waning moon
she sucks the sparkle from the sea
turning it into her own week ribbon of light
Our moods are joined as one
this my last night at sea
the waning of my adventure
dawn will bring my home port and another voyage finished
But like the waning moon
its a phase
in a little while a new cycle will begin
as with the heavens life is a series of cycles
some more spectacular than others
but cycles of the rhythm of life.
I conceived this poem sailing back from Hobart to Melbourne a few years past. It was a magnificent night and I was off Cape Shank heading west along the Victorian coast when the waning moon rose in the east behind me. The morning would see me clear The Rip and head for home.
Tassie (Tasmania)
I’ve looked at Tassie from both sides now
from in and out
and still somehow
Its Tassie’s illusion I recall
I really don’t know Tassie at all
(will apologies to Joni Mitchell)
I’m going to Tassie again
I place I can always go back to
find something new and beautiful
In Australian smallest State
An island State, part of an island nation.
Looking out across the blue clear waters that surround Tassie.
Looking in from coastal anchorages at
At storms rolling past
At the play of the light on the rocky shoreline
Looking in to tight harbour entrances
Sitting safe in historic ports
Travelling through beautiful wilderness
And a quirkiness that is only Tassie
Next month I’m going back to Tassie again
Taking the mighty Breva down for her second trip
I hope the sun never sets on my Tasmania adventures.
ISAF World Cup Sailing – Melbourne 2016
It was a beautiful early summer day and here I was a volunteer official on the finish line of the last round – the medal round – of the ISAF World Cup.
I know a little about race officiating but was a little nervous about such a big event as we waited at St Kilda Marina to pick of the other officials. My club the Hobsons Bay Yacht Club had provided our club boat to be the set the finish line and record the results.
Maria from Valencia (oh how I loved Spain) quickly assured us that we needed to just do as she said. Press the hooter when she said now, raise the flag when she said now etc.
She was a quiet woman but chatting away after fine tuning the reach angles and waiting for starts her experience was slowly revealed an on water official at two Olympics, Principal race offer for the TP52 series in Europe.
Great I just did what I was told, enjoy the racing and take some photos.
From the boat we had a great view of the start and the final rounding mark leading to the finish.
We were officiating 5 races all deciding the series for that class.
There was the Men’s and Women 470 class.
The Finn a hard boat to sail for big strong blokes.
The women’s laser radial and men’s laser the boats of single handed skill.
The last race the Men’s laser
A tightly fought race,
with a fairy tale end.
With Pavlos Kontides winning his first ever international series gold medal, having won an Olympic Silver Medal and many other placings in a decade of senior sailing in the laser.
S is for summer S is for sailing
Opening day of the sailing season
Summers on its way
Flags fluttering on a cool clear spring day
Slip the boat for a clean and scrub
S is for sanding
a coat of paint on the hull
getting the old wooden mast ready for a coat of varnish
spruce the old girl up
Summer is almost here