Sabre Sailing Association of Victoria

Below is the Victorian calendar for the upcoming season incorporating many events across the year.

* Also please note the Victorian AGM will be held on the 9th October at Black Rock Yacht Club from 9.30 All members are welcome to attend.

Vic Training Weekend 8/9th October

Its on again at Black Rock YC for the above dates Hear how to get the most out of your Sabre via the best in the fleet. Entry is free for all current members.

Change to Winter Series Calendar

Due to an issue with green algae, Lysterfield is not currently racing. As a result the winter series race for the 23/7 will be held at Albert Sailing club.

Winter Series Calendar

The winter series calendar has been published for 2011 with events across a large number of clubs. Look forward to seeing you at one or all the races.

2011 Vic States - Results

95 entries and a very well run series by Mordialloc SC in extremely trying conditions in which all races counted concluded 27 Feb .

Gary McLennan, multi Sharpie National champ from BRYC and after only one year in the Sabre, won narrowly from perennial champions Wayne Bates and Callum Burns. Although winning two races, current Australian champ, Chris Dance finished 4th due to having to carry a bad, for him, 18th in the first race.

It was great to see the quality of the Youth ranks with Jack Felsental and James McLennan, 2 members of the Australian Optimist team that competed in the Malaysian worlds finishing 1st and 2nd from Murphy McColl from Gippsland Lakes. Current Laser 4.7 State champ, Lachlan Imeneo finished 4th in the Youth div.

A number of 'new' Sabre sailors who haven't sailed for many years returned to sailing this series and achieved fantasic results...in particular Tim Van Der Veen (6th overall) and Colin White (12th overall) who borrowed brother Peter's boat. We even enticed renowned Mordialloc / Sorrento identity, Nigel Abbott to borrow a boat for the last day and not surprisingly, after a practice in the first race of the day, cracked a 4th...see you at Blairgowrie next Xmas Nigel.

Bring on the next Nationals at Blairgowrie...this time we will crack 100+ entries.

Vic States - Re Sail

Due to some rather ordinary weather last weekend, the Vic States are being re-sailed on the Sunday the 27/2. Sailing will commence at 10 am with aim to get 3 to 4 races in dependent on weather.

95 Entries so far for Vic States !

This makes it the largest fleet for a Vic championship in the 36 year history of the class. Any late entries ? Better get in quick !

2011 Sabre State Titles

The Sabre state titles will be held at the Mordialloc Sailing Club on the 19th and 20th February. Lets see if we can build on our 70+ last year.

Measurement for sails and foils will be held at Blairgowrie YS on the 15/1 at 12.

Sabre Calendar 2010/11

Sabre Training Weekend 9/10

Please find attached the Start time and agenda for the weekend. Training Weekend

VIC AGM - Sunday 10th October 9.30am

The victorian AGM will be held at BRYC on the 10th at 9.30am. This will be held prior to the commencement of training activities. Please feel free to attend even if your not attending the training weekend to see whats happening in our class.

Sabre Training Weekend 9/10 October

Its on again, the annual sabre training weekend at BRYC. For all those who would like register please click the below link. Key topics inlcude:- Boat setup, starting, boat handling, physical training, a champions view and much more. http://tinyurl.com/sabre-training

Each participant will also be teamed up with a
mentor for the season to continue the coaching journey after the weekend.

Winter Series 2010

Congratulations to Chris Dance on winning the winter series with consistence performances across all races. Close behind was Nick Mouat and Gary McLennan in second and third respectively who traded places with Chris over a number of races.

Sail at Cairn Curran

With the lakes all starting to fill in Victporia, a reggata is on at Cairn Curran on the 6 & 7th of November. Also includes a big swim event, triathlon and canoe/kayak racing. 2010_Cairn_Curran_Classic

Sabre Nationals 2011/12

While some time away, it has been annouced that the next Vic sponsored Nationals will be held at Blairgowrie YS. More details to follow in the future.

Sail Mordi August

The Sail Mordi regatta is on again this year. Date is the 28-29th August. Please refer to the below notice of race for more details or the MSC website.

Upcoming Events

Annual Training Weekend, Team Racing, Go for Gold Regatta. Stay tuned for dates.

Winter Series Calendar

Vic State Title Results 2010

Congratulations to Chris Dance in retaining the Victorian state titles this year. Racing was held across 6 races for the weekend, and little seperated the top 5 places with Chris taking the silverware on the last race. Full details attached below.

Sabre 2009 Teams Racing & Measurment Session at Mordiallic Sailing Club - 28th & 29th November

Teams racing is on at Mordiallic late November. The challenge is on to see if anyone can take the trophy away from Black Rock. This is a good chance to get some larger fleet action in preperation for National or States, as well as catch up with old friends. Measurment will be held on the Saturday morning starting at 10.30

2009 Victorian Dinghy Championship 14th & 15th November - Mordiallic Sailing Club

2009 Victorian Dinghy Championships will be held on November 14th & 15th 2009 inclusive. Organised by Yachting Victoria and conducted by Mordialloc Sailing Club Inc. For more information refer to the Mordiallic website. www.mordiallocsc.yachting.org.au/

Sail Sandy 17 & 18th October

For all those who want to blow out th cobwebs for the season in Victoria, Sail Sandy is on mid October. It is expected a number of the Nationals top ten will be sailing in the regatta. Refer to www.syc.com.au for more info.

Sail Mordiallic Regatta

Mordiallic is holding a regatta on the 29th & 30th of August. The regatta can be used for training, and people are encourgaed to bring there own coach. Refer attached NOR or the club website for more details.

** Note - Updated as at 20th June

Victorian Winter Series Calendar 2009

The series has been developed for 2009. This year 3 drops are allowed for the series. Please check all start times with the club prior to racing. Normal club race entry fees apply to all members racing during series.

Albert Sailing Club has the option for Sabre members to join for winter membership, and if available club storage. Please refer to website for more details.

Victorian championships prove popular

The 09 Vic champs took place at Gippsland Lakes Yacht Club at Paynesville across the Moomba long weekend. A great fleet of 51 took part which was superb given the 300km drive for the Melbourne based competitors. Five races out of 6 were completed - with the breeze arriving a little too late on the Monday to get the fleet away. Saturday saw a nice 15 knot breeze, with Sunday having 5-10 knots. Many competitors took their families down given the 3 day format and the renowned beauty of the Gippsland Lakes. With it having been a 15 year time lag since we last held a championship at Gippsland, we were certainly given a very warm welcome by the locals, and the regatta was also well supported with 10 local boats. One highlight of the regatta was the inaugral use of the 'Switchblade' junior sail by 13 yr old Jack Felsethal on the Saturday. Realising that the sail could not be used to officially gain finishing points in the series, Jack swapped over to a normal sail on the Sunday and pulled a 2nd and a 4th. ! That allowed the sail to be used by someone even younger - enter Luke Martin, who at 10 years old is surely the youngest ever Sabre sailor to race in a state championship.

There was great racing at the front of the fleet, with ultimate victory going to Chris Dance from Black Rock, with Blairgowrie sailors Alan Riley and Callum Burns in 2nd and 3rd.

Click here to download our Spring 08 Vic Association newsletter. Nine pages of news, coming events, sailing tips and photos. Click here

Congratulations to Chris Dance from BRYC for taking out the 2008 Sabre Winterseries. With a new boat just launched, he has to be one to put your money on for the upcoming Nationals series.

Following the decision of John Dixon to stand down as Victorian Measurer after a spell lasting a decade, we would like to welcome Frank Landy as our new measurer. Frank sails at Sugarloaf in Melbourne's outer NE suburbs. His contact details are:

Winter series races commence at start of May at BRYC, then lead on to Albert Park, Sugarloaf, Lysterfield, Geelong and Mordialloc. There is no charge for the Sabre Association but the conditions of the host club must be met ie paying winter membership, or a casual race fee. The drops for the series are as follows:-

To obtain a copy of the great photos taken by Russell and Peter Bates over the weekend, please refer to the following attachment. Vic 08 Title Photos

The state titles were held at Elwood Sailing Club on the weekend of the 23rd & 24th February.

The wind for the series was on the very strong side, and with four races to the series saw some tired bodies after the event.

Congratulations go to Wayne Bates for successfully defending his title against strong opposition and some very close racing. Full results of the event can be viewed below. Sabre State Titles 2007-08

The state titles will be held at Elwood Sailing Club on the weekend of the 23rd & 24th February. Dont forget to check the calendar to get your sails and foils measured ready for the event. The Notice of Race and entry form may be downloaded here NOR 2008

Note - If you have a new boat and its not measuered, you will have to do so prior to the event. Please contact John Dixon Vic Measurer to book in your time well in advance (refer contact info page for phone number).

The training weekend will be held at Black Rock YC on the weekend of the 13th / 14th October. Free for members and includes snags and bread for lunch. Note trainnig will cater for all levels so please come along. An entry form will be sent to members early Septemeber.

If you would like to join to take advantage of the trainnig and are not a member, please register via the Australian Home page via the "Update Membership Details" link.

The Vic AGM will be held on SUNDAY 14th October at 9.00 am. All members are encouraged to attend to voice there views in regards to the association &/or volunteer to help out.

While this year was noted for its lack of water at a number of venues keeping races and entrants down, we still had over 20 boats compete in the series.

Thanks to a drop or two of rain (finally), both Sugarloaf and Albert Park are back in action. Get back on the water to blow out the cobwebs for summer.

Please note - due to drought racing at Sugarloaf is cancelled. At this stage the winter series will recommence at MSC (August). We will update members if water levels change to allow us to go back to Albert Park or Sugarloaf.

The biggest Sabre fleet in a state championship in 14 years turned up at Blairgowrie over the weekend of 24 & 25 February to compete for the 2007 championship. 69 boats competed over the 5 heat series which was won by current national champion Wayne Bates from Alan Riley and Rob Hatnett. A lot of very tired sailors on the Sunday evening, but a great series with good wind - and just so many boats on the start line !

Invitation races & training session at Blairgowrie Y.S. on the 20th & 21st January 2007

Here is your opportunity to get some practice in for the upcoming state titles. There will be an invitation day at Blairgowrie with 2 back to back races starting at 2.45pm on Saturday. We expect 30+ Sabres. Sail & foil measurement will also be available at the club-house on Saturday from 10.30am-12.00.

On Sunday at 10.30, Wayne Bates will be conducting a Sabre training session - open to all Sabre sailors.

Blairgowrie also has normal club racing over the weekend with a twilight race at 7.00pm on Friday night, and a Sunday afternoon race at 2.45pm - for when too much sailing is not enough !

Due to excess wind on the 2/12, the teams racing event has been rescheduled to the 09/12/06 - (Still at Mordialloc Sailing Club).

Race teams will be made up of four boats each with the top 3 boats scores counting. If you don't have enough to make a team from your club, no fear, a number of mixed teams will also be made up on the day.

Teams racing is a good chance to get some large fleet experience and a great days sailing as well.

Racing for the day will be 3 short course races. Racing is expected to commence at 2.00 pm so be there early to ensure you are all rigged and ready to go.

Entry fee for the day is the normal visitor cost at the club which is around $10.

A Measurement Seminar will be held on Sunday 1st October at 11:00 at 2/15 Kearney St Bayswater.

The main purpose of the seminar is to train the Gippsland Lakes team so that they can can measure boats locally however any member is welcome to come and it may be especially interesting to members who are contemplateing or engaged in building their own boat.
John Dixon
Victorian Measurer
9729 1188

Free to Sabre Members. Coaching by National Champions and many more. Details to follow soon.

Congratulations to Wayne Bates on winning the 2006 Victorian championship...adding to his Australian title. It was a comprehensive win with 3 1sts and dropping a 3rd. Only 1 point separated the next 3 placings.

This year we broke with tradition by not holding the state championship over the Labour Day long weekend - in favour of a 2-day format. At this stage, we're tentatively calling the change a success, with our entry numbers climbing to 47 up from the average in the past 2 years of mid-thirties. We got 4 of the 5 races sailed - which meant that we not only had a 'series' but it also meant that competitors got to 'drop' their worst race in calculating their result.

We had to cancel racing on Saturday afternoon owing to the thunderstorm activity across the bay. For the rest of the weekend though, we had winds averaging around 15 knots and a nice big swell to provide something different for the many competitors that do most of their sailing on flat water ! All races were over 'short' courses of a triangle / windward-return / half - beat to the finish; with races lasting about an hour each.

The annual Secretary's trophy race will be held at Williamstown SC on Sat 21 Jan. This is competed for on an individual basis and is open to all sabre Assocn members.

Invitation to all sailors to attend a coaching and race day at Blairgowrie YC. Last year we had about 40 boats so lets make it even better. It is the peak of the Blairgowrie season and is a good chance to hear from our new Australian Champion, Wayne Bates on how to master the Sabre.

The Notice of Race is available for the 2006 State titles to be hosted by Black Rock YC on 25 and 26 Feb.

The championship is open to sailors from all states is being held over a normal weekend as a result of feedback from last year's titles.

Close racing over 2 heats in about 20 knots and big seas was enjoyed by all competitors last Saturday.

Positions changed frequently in both races but despite Wayne Bates winning both races, it wasn't enough to for Blairgowrie to retain the trophy won last year.

The Black Rock team "Oranges and Lemons" that won on 3 previous occasions was very consistent and won the event comfortably. Unfortunately John Dick had to pull out of the Black Rock team on Sat morning and as there was no Team Chic competing this year, Maree Early more than capably deputised for John.

The winning team comprised Maree Early, Barry Eastgate, Phil Johnson and David Wood.

A new perpetual trophy has been struck "The John Seeber Memorial Teams Race" trophy to commemorate John Seeber who died in August and who was heavily involved in the organisation of this event.

There will be 2 short course races with teams comprising 4 boats. The best 3 results of a team in each race count. Blairgowrie YS are defending but will get keen opposition from Black Rock YC who won the previous 3 years.

Multiple teams may represent their clubs but you should still attend if not in a team in which case we will put together scratch teams.

Note that Sail and Foil measuring will be conducted at Mordialloc SC prior to the teams race commencing at 10:00

The winter series has only one race to go and John Dixon has continued his form early in the series to hold an unbeatable lead...well done John.

The coaching weekend is open to all sabre sailors and is pitched at all levels of competency. The weekend is free and a free lunch is provided both days.

Sailors intending to participate on either or both days need to submit their details to Barry Eastgate by 30 Sept.

John Dixon has a commanding series lead and has been having very close racing at Albert Park with Phil Johnson and Fiona McCulloch.

The calendar for this Winter and next season has been updated. A PDF version is available for you print and post on your fridge door.

The 2005 State championship was ably hosted by Mt Martha YC over the Labour Day long weekend and was basically a light weather series. No racing was possible on the Saturday and we were fortunate to get in 3 short races on Sun and only 1 on Mon. Unlike in previous years, a drop was allowed with 4 races which with the variable weather, was needed by most competitors.

National Champion Alan Riley sailing 1564, "The Sea Drift Social Club" (where do these names come from) won his first State title to cap off what Alan descibed as his best sailing season ever.

Alan was tied with Barry Eastgate 1611 "Big Day Out" after 2 races with a win and third each, but Alan showed his class by going on to a 2nd and first in the remaining heats while Barry could only manage two fifths.

Perennial Veteran David Wood 1677 "First & Last" was third in his new Johnson boat 2 points behind Barry.

Fourth and Fifth places were decided on a count back with first season star, Andy McIntyre 1670 "Rocket Science" from BRYC placing 4th by virtue of a best placing of 2nd from Fiona McCulloch 1596 "Sealed Section" whose best place was a 3rd in the last race.

A count back also decided 6th and 7th with Phillip Johnson "Shearwater" getting the nod from Andrew Graham "Southern Aurora". Phil won heat 3 and led for part heat 1 until a couple of gremlins set in.

Congratulations to Andrew on what has been his best year since returning to sailing and Sabres...perhaps he starting to listen to Wayne's advice.

Racing was extremely close and until Andrew Little surrendered the lead which he had for most of the last race, there would been different winners for each heat.

At the AGM, members discussed various scenarios for conducting future State Championships.

The 2006 titles will be hosted by Black Rock YC but will not be on the Labour day long weekend. We will trial holding the titles over a normal weekend, probably in the 3rd or 4th week of February.

In order to encourage juniors into the Sabre, the 2006 State titles will cater for a 2 person crew division which will be inelligble for the overall championship.

Whilst there will be no age restriction, the expectation is that the category will comprise young sailors out of junior classes such as the Minnow, Sabot and Optimist to borrow a boat to experience the joys of Sabre sailing.