Go Fast, Ottawa

Go Fast Wrap Up talk - April 1st

2010-03-22T05:58:00.002+11:00

Dear Go Fast Friends and supporters:

We're back! Hard to believe it's over, but the Go Fast Ottawa I-14 team has completed our challenge in Australia. It was an amazing experience. You can see the day-by-day updates about the racing on the Go fast blog at www.gofastottawa.blogspot.com In the end your fundraising support helped support almost exactly half of the shipping costs for the boats to, and from, Australia, or just over $3,500. Simply amazing. The container arrived back at the beginning of March safe and sound.

We would be thrilled if you could join us at the Go Fast Wrap Up talk to help us wrap up the campaign. We have some amazing pictures, video, and and to hear about the adventure of racing against more than 100 boats in Sydney Harbour!

Go Fast Wrap up Talk
The 2010 International-14 Worlds in Sydney Australia
Thursday, April 1st, 1930 hrs
Nepean Sailing Club
East Room
Bring $2 for youth sailing.

This is part of the Nepean Sailing Club's Toonie Talk program. You can read about the program and all the fabulous speakers at https://sites.google.com/site/nscspeakersprogram2010/

The Last Post

2010-03-22T05:56:00.001+11:00

This is the final post that was made by Pornstar - it didn't get loaded up at the time, but here it is now for your enjoyment!

--------------

Pornstar here with my final report.

Yep, that's it - we are done. I'm writing this on the airplane wishing it would last and trying not to think of the cold/snow in Ottawa. We all had such a fantastic time. Great sailing, great company, great venue.

The second last day of sailing, we got our asses kicked. Three of the four Canadian boats in Silver fleet didn't finish. Only the Honeymooners made it around. The interesting part is that I felt we could actually handle the wind. If we were on our own we could do the maneuvers. All our issues came with traffic. With the wind and traffic, our timing was off and it was too much. We need to get more boats on the line in Ottawa to work on this one. A side note - the PRO (Principal Race Officer) told Sorta it was blowing 28knots sustained. I'm still not sure I believe it. It felt more like 18 "Ottawa knots" to me. All the talk about 'Ottawa knots' I've been hearing in the past from various people on the list doesn't make sense to me. If there is actually a difference, for me Ottawa wind is much more difficult for the same wind strength because it is way more squirrelly. Sea breezes are much more consistent. Waves are an entirely different story though... Mix some swells with some chop and add in some ferry wake and you have quite a mess. Fun though :-)

The final day was a great day for the Canadians in the Silver fleet. Blower and I started out well but lost Sorta/GG and Lokota/Gripper due to some team work issues. We were still all in the top 10 though. The best result was for Lawnboy/Andrew (needs a nickname) who finished 11th in the Gold fleet, just missing out on a top ten position.

After that, we quickly loaded the container and had our awards dinner at the Sydney Opera house. It was hilarious how fast the plates of food disappeared when literally attacked by a bunch of hungry sailors. Lots of food, lots of booze - good times... We also discovered that Sparky has a platypus fetish.

At the presentation, they announced that Toronto won the bid for the 2013 Worlds. Great marketing guys!

The next day we did some final tie-downs of the boats and masts then watched the containers get hauled away. Why is it that we guys like to watch heavy machinery in action?

The afternoon was free so I went scuba diving, GG went hiking, Blower/Sorta/ Undies/Gripper spent the day surfing and enjoying the beach. I joined them after my dive and got totally pummeled by the waves - tough surfing conditions. They closed the beach for swimming because the rip was too strong and they were tired of rescuing people - but it was still open for surfing...

Today I got in one final surfing session, returned my board then said goodbye.

Generally after something epic, I feel good about the experience, but at the end I'm ready to move on. Right now it is entirely different. I feel great about the experience and want it to continue on. Unload those containers! Today the wind is up - lets get back out there!

Pornstar over and out.

It's over

2010-01-12T14:47:00.001+11:00

We had a decent enough race to finish it off. The Silver fleet race started early, at 10:30 am. We were 5th around the first windward though and lost three boats throughout the race, all canadian - ouch! (But great work Honeymooners, Knee Trembler, and G-Force!) ah well, we all did well in the end. once we got of the water it was a frenetic afternoon getting the boats taken down, rinsed, dried, and packed into the container - we left there at 6:10 and raced home to get a shower and get on the ferry to get over to the opera house for presentation night. The evening was fun, with everyone dressed up a bit. Not a sit down dinner, but they came around with beer, wine, and food, so we at least got a little bit fed and and a lot drunk. I'm now a bit hungover, going to the beach to nurse it.
t.

Day 3 - Jan 10

2010-01-12T13:40:00.003+11:00

See entry below from Sorta (skipper of Knee Trembler)

Well, the bubble burst a bit today. SSE wind and lots of it. Sunny and we were first off. GG & I absolutely NAILED the start. Pin end on Starboard at nuking speed and no OCS. Headed for the preferred shore and had to tack, realising there was NO traffic to worry about and we were 3rd. Woohoo. Then up to second thanks to GG's superior trim on main and great tacking (lots of others dumping and not making it through the tacks). We were raked for nuking thanks to GG too (more beers I owe him). Got to the windward mark 2nd and rounded to hoist no problem. Took off like a shot and pulled away from all other boats chasing the leaders (GBR something). I think this is likely the fastest I have ever been on a skiff. Ran out of harbour so had to gybe and rolled it in to windward on the new side - over s or something. ANyway, all attempts at a quick recovery failed and we were soon chasing a time limit rather than the podium. Very demoralising. After the first cap, I looked back from the dagger board to see a line of upside down boats, eventually (sadly) also including PS & Blower. During the recovery almost got squashed by one of the infamous Manly ferries too - putzing around in the boat only to look up and see a wall of green steel not 20 feet away!! Yikes. We went in all sad (but not lost or squashed). Then realised most went in with about only 20 finishers. Steady wind during the first downhill was recorded by the RC at 28 knots. That's Sydney knots, so no real
surprise.

Sent Gold fleet out next and they showed us how it was done in two races - great to watch. LawnBoy & Andrew had a reasonable race given ww mark capsize and a broken trap line, Price Club and Dirty had an AWESOME second race finishing well up the order and Haywire and Fluffer were very respectable in their winds too.

Second Silver fleet race postponed till tomorrow. Side bar - the wind was recorded by RC at 18-20 for the Gold Fleet, so we really got hammered in Silver, which I am off to do now. Tomorrow last day - can't believe it is almost over. What fun.

cheers,
Sorta.

Day 2 Jan 8 - another view.

2010-01-12T13:36:00.002+11:00

Update from Pornstar(Brent) - also from Jan 8th, the same day as Sorta's update in the next post below.
"
So we didn't finish the last qualifier race. Near the end of the first downwind, our rudder cassette split open. Luckily we were close to the beach and were able to get it before it totally exploded. Lakota and Gripper broke off the tip of their daggerboard so we had a carbon/expoy party that evening. The rudder was fairly easy to fix since it was still in one piece. Just key it up, grind it open, fill and carbon. I finished it off by putting it in a plastic bag and drawing out the air with using the vacuum cleaner in the apartment. I thought I made it leaky enough but the vacuum over-heated and started smelling like burnt plastic. Oops. Oh well, it lasted long enough for the epoxy to kick.

The broken rudder put us way back, deep in Silver fleet. So the Canadian team has Lumber/CS, Lakota/Gripper, Sorta/GG, and us in Silver fleet with the rest in Gold.

The first race we had all Silver fleet Canadians in the top 10 (of the Silver fleet). But more significantly, Lawnboy (Cornpants) and Andrew (needs a nickname) pulled off a 2nd in the Gold fleet! And just to prove it wasn't a fluke, they got a 3rd in the next race. Way to go guys!!

Our third race started off as a disaster. We had some handling/timing issues at the start that sent us swimming before the start. Bad enough that we just made the the 6 minute time limit for crossing the start line. To cap it off, we swam again just after crossing. So by the time we actually got going, we were deep DFL, and the fleet was barely in sight. We got the boat moving well after that and started reeling them in, one by one managing work our way up to 23rd, but its not fun starting so far behind. The wind was up and the downwinds were a total blast. We were just flying.

The Honeymooners (Lumber and CS) now have two 2nds in the Silver fleet. Sorta and GG have recovered from their qualify woes and now have a consistent 8,7,6 in Silver fleet and Lakota/Gripper are up and down with boat handling/breakage issues.

G-Spot (Dirty Boy and Price Club) broke their rudder cassette in the third race so they got a DNF. There have been a lot of cassettes broken this regatta. From different builders too. They seem to be a bit under designed.

Yesterday was a 'lay day'. I couldn't do a scuba dive because it wasn't confirmed that we would have the day off until late the night before and everything was booked. So I saw some sights in Sydney and went surfing instead.

Two races today, first start 11:00.

Pornstar out

Day 2 Finals - Jan 8

2010-01-09T11:16:00.004+11:00

See below for update from Sorta - (Knee Trembler)

Hi everyone,
thanks for the encouraging words - LawnBoy (Paterson) is doing REALLY well and we watched as they had another great day today. Two races for Gold fleet but the usual multiple recalls for those keeners. Meant us Silvers
were late getting away not leaving the beach till 4pm or so. We definitely had the best of the weather with a lovely sunny day and winds from I guess 12-20 knots through the early evening. First away on the start, and a good beat from middle harbour towards Manly for the upwind. Paying to go in to the middle head cliffs big time and the usual dramas with ferries. We had a great race for the first one ending up top 10 again alongside PS & Blower and co. Then race 2 and we waited for what seemed like ages - re-learning our high wind parking techniques. Race 2 we did even better and think we were 3rd or 4th having had what is likley my best down wind kite run ever. Must have hit north of 20 knots, setting sun and doing well. One capsize but we were far enough ahead not to even loose a place!! Aching and happy now off for some food - glad it is a lay day tomorrow.
cheers all,
Sorta & GG

Breakdowns and breakthroughs

2010-01-08T10:05:00.006+11:00

Jan 6th: last day of qualifiers
wind was SSE 12, with gusts to 15. We were coming down the first downwind when i heard creaking from the back of the boat. Looking back, i saw that the 'cassette'(a kind of carbon sleeve that holds the rudder to the boat, was flexing with every turn of the rudder. ack. so we dowsed and headed in. it must have got cracked somehow, but we don't know how. Anyway that added our second DNF in the qualifiers, putting us deep in the rankings. Brent fixed the cassette overnight and we were ready to go the next day.

Jan 7th: First day of Finals races. (three laps, windward leeward) Wind ESE
Now firmly in silver fleet, our race was at 1300. Wind was less than 10 knots with flat water. Pretty similar to our normal conditions. Hilariously, all the Canadian boats in the silver fleet finished in the top 10. We come all this way, and we are STILL racing against each other ;-) After that race we went upstairs to our apartment and watched the Gold fleet race. We have an excellent view of the start line and most of the upwind downwind, with only the top part of the course hidden. Orange whip? had a great start off the pin end, and continued to work well all the way up the course. Around the first windward, when we saw the first chutes coming down, the Whip was in second!! A cheer went up from the balcony. We followed the battle all the way down the leg to the leeward mark rounding. Wind was getting very light now, no doubt frustrating for everyone out there.

Tactics : most people found a lift off the left hand shorelines, which had to be balanced with a little less wind in certain places. Downwind, we noticed that the shoreline down the right hand side of the course kept the wind for longer, and helped those boats that stayed in there for longer.

The Whip continued to work it around the course, first getting distance from the boats behind and then tryng to get ahead of Archie Massey, the leader. At the finish they were just 12 seconds behind the leader. Way to go!

Jan 8 status : It's about 10am now, with Gold fleet supposed to have two races, starting at 11. They have put up the AP for gold fleet as the wind is not looking good right now- very light. Weather doesn't bode well for a significant change, but there will be some sitting around while we wait for the wind to do something. Direction is still southerly, so if they do get some racing off, we'll have a great view from the apartment. There is talk of them having to use the designated lay day, which is set for tomorrow. ....

stay tuned

t.

Jan 6 update

2010-01-06T10:46:00.002+11:00

Hi Everyone - see note below from Brent (aka Pornstar)

Pornstar here,

Just saw an Ottawa Green box article in Google news. The disturbing part was all the snow in the picture. I don't want to go back! Sailing, surfing, partying with friends. I put a piece of plastic in a machine and money comes out. How can I make this last???

So our week of training before the event was great and needed, but we didn't have any high wind days. That has been hurting us now. We've blown our quest to be in the Gold Fleet. Yesterday's breeze proved too strong (20-25knots) for us so we missed the race and swam around in the harbour instead. Very frustrating, but we got some great video footage... I think with a bit more time we would be fine, but we just don't see this pressure in Ottawa.

We've been steadily dropping in the standings as the wind has gone up. Went from 76th to 82nd to now 86th out of 104 boats.

Haywire & Puppet Fluffer are doing well, except Haywire injured his foot falling off a dock. It only hurts when his feet are in the footstraps so he's hoping for flat water. Dirty Boy and Price Club are really keeping things together. They have a really good chance of making the Gold Fleet. Lakota has been having lots of breakages. We've been very lucky on that front. Our only issue has been losing rudder pins. (note plural!) We made the trek to a hardware store to get some tubing to make more. I figured one more per day of sailing :-). When we got back, we discovered that we broght two spares not just one so we didn't need to make the trip.

New Years in Sydney was awesome! Lots of fireworks and partying. Our patio is above (better view) than a restaurant that was charging $100 a head to sit on their patio. (great spot GG!). Lots of people were over, great times... A new nickname was earned. John Curtis is now 'Sparkie' and can only be described as an explosive squirrel on acid...

Blower, GG, and I went to the Oceanworld Marine Aquarium. It had a viewing tunnel and was filled with sharks, manta rays, sea turtles and more. We arrived in time for the feeding. It is done with divers, feeding by hand. Fun to watch, but also disturbing - especially the shark feeding.

Check out the attached pics. btw, we aren't actually that close....

This morning the wind is from the SSE, the water is flat and we are in the first heat. (Last day of qualifying racing) Time to go sailing!

Pornstar out,

qualifying day 1 report

2010-01-04T12:51:00.004+11:00

Link to official race report

Right now we're about to go out for the second day of qualifiers. The wind is NNE under 10 knots. Water looks flat. It's offshore from Manly inner harbour beach, and it's quite a beautiful sight to see all the chutes heading down toward the start line. (We're in the second start today ).

Haywire and Leith are ranked 21st with a 14th and 11th.
Dirty Boy and Price Club are ranked 56th with a 30th and 28th
We (Wet Exit) finished 76th out of 108, with a 36 and 39th.
Knee Trembler had a breakdown and was unable to race. All fixed and they are on the water today.

Best sight yesterday was rounding the top mark which was just off the cliffs of the north head, and bearing away in a good chop to head straight for the tall cliffs with waves crashing onto the rocks below. Safety boats patrolling back and forth to try to help anyone who gets in trouble. Pretty much had to gybe right after hoisting.

A note on qualifying process: Because the fleet is too big to race 108 boats together, they will have a gold fleet and a silver fleet for finals races. For qualifying, they pre-sorted the fleet into two groups of roughly seeded even talent. Then each group got two races. The fleet was ranked based on those results. The RC then again split the group into two :
1st place - yellow fleet
2,3rd - blue fleet
4,5th - yellow fleet
6,7th, - blue fleet
and so on. They then hold another race for each fleet, re-rank everyone, and then re-split everyone. So that is what we are in the last day of now. The Canadian fleet is looking roughly split between the two fleets.

Wind today is looking SSE. We will see how it goes!

ttyl!

The View

2010-01-03T12:49:00.003+11:00

Day 2 - midday update: We are watching the yellow fleet racing their first two races. Our amazing apartment has an excellent view. Too bad the weather isn't cooperating - it's misty rainy and cold (ok not that cold).

The RC got the first fleet (yellow) away after three general recalls. The fourth one was good - not even any individual recalls. The race, two windward-leeward laps, took just under an hour for the leading boat. The last boat is just coming down now, about half an hour later. From here it looks like the winner of this race was GBR 1530, Robert Greenhaulgh, skipper. Wind is still a light Southeasterly, but there is something at least. This fleet will start their second race, and we'll head out to get rigged.

t.

Day 1

2010-01-03T09:53:00.005+11:00

(photo by Undies)
Jan 2.
Day one: Briefing at 10 am. One hour of info, including a briefing from an official from NSW Maritime on the importance of staying away from the ferries. We are to stay 200 meters away from them in front, 30 m from each side, and 30 m behind.

The PRO gave us info on local dangers and safe beaches if we get into trouble. Turns out there are nudie beaches too (Lady Bay), so in his words " if you have to beach the boat and then feel like getting your kit off there you'll be among friends." He also went over the location of the racing in different conditions (mostly right in the middle of the harbour).

We were supposed to have a long distance race yesterday. They were going to do 6 staggered starts and one finish, so we all chose a start according to our own judgement of our ability. Racing was supposed to start at 1330. At 1300 the RC told us to stay on the beach and wait out what looked like an ugly thunderstorm. In fact it was just a heavy rainshower. But behind it was no wind. So we bobbed around under an AP for a while. It picked up an Ottawa sailable level, but still no action. The RC wanted it to fill in more. In the meantime they started us on a short race, downwind-upwind. It was massive chaos as everyone tried to get their chute up at the same time on the start line and fight for clear air. We got sewered. After that they ran a few quick practice races. We never got the LD race away. Quit at 1630.

Welcome party at the club in the evening. Thanks to the guys at the CDA, we have nice red shirts - made for a good sight at the party.

Today we start the qualifier races. We've been split into two fleets and will have one race each. After each day's racing they will re-sort us based on results and post new fleet splits. I don't know if they will also post results but check http://www.i14worlds.com/ to see. We're racing this afternoon. There's a bit of wind but it's rainy and foggy. We can't see across to Sydney.

T.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

2010-01-01T21:58:00.003+11:00

Greetings from Manly!

We're ready to go. Tomorrow is the Harbour Pursuit/Invitational race - it's set to be a tour of the harbour or three short races - we will find out which at the briefing tomorrow morning.

Things are going well so far. The shipping container arrived without problems, and everyone has been able to get their boats set up and go for a practice sail. A few of the Canadian boats participated in the team racing warm up event on the 29th and 30th. (photo above - by Kathryn). We're told that 105 boats have arrived and are registered - it's been impressive checking out all the different setups - no two boats are the same!

Sydney puts on a good show for NYE - so yesterday and today was generally just preparation and recovery time ;-)

There is some weather coming through, and wind conditions tomorrow are supposed to be NNW 10 - 15 with thundershowers. Later in the day the wind is supposed to spin to the south and go up to 25. Fun!

Will send more info as I have it. Others may also post to this blog to bring other perspectives. Stay tuned!

Tracy.

We're on!

2009-12-08T03:07:00.005+11:00

Thank you for your Support
The boats have been sent by shipping container, bags are packed, and our plans are set. Through our amazing club and supporters, we have raised over $3000 to support shipping our boats to Australia. To all of our donors and supporters, our sincere thank you!

We will be posting photos and commentary to our blog during the event, but nothing beats seeing it for yourself. So, if you are in the Sydney area between the end of December until January 11, 2010, come by the Canadian corner and say hello!

The Competition Schedule!
The event will be held in Sydney, Australia, based at the Manly 16ft Skiff Club.
December 28-30 - Measuring and Registration
January 2, Saturday Harbour Pursuit/Invitation Race
January 3 -6, Qualifying Races
January 7-11, Finals Races (9th is reserve day)
Follow our progress at www.gofastottawa.blogspot.com
Find more regatta details at www.i14worlds.com

Some of the fastest dinghy sailing in the world is aboard International-14 skiffs, those double-trapeze two-person dinghies that are very light, very fast, and notoriously fun to sail. In recent years the Ottawa-area fleet has grown to seven competitive boats, all part of the Ottawa Skiff Racing Fleet, sailing out of the Nepean Sailing Club (NSC).

Six NSC International-14 sailors are campaigning to represent the city at the International-14 World Championships January 1-11, 2010. With over 100 boats from all over the world, we expect a spectacular event, featuring team racing and highly competitive fleet racing.

The World’s presents a huge learning opportunity and a huge challenge. We hope you can join us on the journey!

Begging Bill will travel with the container to keep an eye on things.

2009-10-26T13:13:00.005+11:00

So it's all packed up! From 9 to 3:30 or thereabouts on Saturday the 9 Canadian boats, masts and gear got loaded and tied in. Haywire was mostly in charge and everyone else was mostly working hard.

At the last minute Begging bill decided he wanted to travel by boat and jumped into the container. Once he got in, he was appropriately secured as boat gear, and will travel thusly:

Poor guy. Wish him luck!!

Although plans can change, the current info is that the container will go by truck to Philadelphia, where it will be loaded onto a ship and go thence by boat through the Panama canal and over to Australia. We'll see the boat again on or around Christmas day, when we arrive to unload.

Done.

2009-10-25T06:22:00.000+11:00

Tracy Ross
oomla@yahoo.ca
www.gofastottawa.blogspot.com

2:15 pm and one boat to go.

2009-10-25T05:17:00.000+11:00

Tensions are getting high.
Tracy Ross
oomla@yahoo.ca
www.gofastottawa.blogspot.com

Status at 12:09 pm.

2009-10-25T03:14:00.000+11:00

Four boats and six masts are in. no angry words spoken yet. Definitely some complaints about farts though.
Tracy Ross
oomla@yahoo.ca
www.gofastottawa.blogspot.com

The container.

2009-10-24T23:41:00.000+11:00

We're here, and it's not raining, yay!
Tracy Ross
oomla@yahoo.ca
www.gofastottawa.blogspot.com

66 DAYS TO GO!

2009-10-24T01:36:00.004+11:00

SHIPPING UPDATE

It’s really happening. The 40 ft. container is sitting in the yard at RCYC ferry parking lot and tomorrow (in the rain) 18 A-type personalities will pack into it boats, sails, masts, gear, tools and spare parts. Nine boats are going from Canada (7 from Toronto and 2 from Ottawa). Peter Hayward, who has been working diligently to do the spatial planning and packing equipment plan, sent us this drawing earlier this week. He's been working with Chris Leigh, CDA President, who's been working with the shipping company, customs details, insurance etc- quite a task! Check this blog tomorrow for photos and more details from the site.

WORLDS UPDATE

Organisers are still expecting around 100 boats. Boats are expected from the UK, USA, Germany, Japan, Austria and of course Australia and Canada!

Of the 18 sailors comprising the Canadian contingent there are 6 Ottawa sailors headed to the worlds Australia. Four of us are taking two Ottawa boats, and two of us are crewing for sailors from Toronto. Here’s the current lineup:

CAN 594 – Tracy Ross (helm) and Brent Beninger (crew)
CAN 598 – Dave Bradly (helm) and Chris Gillies (crew)
CAN 601 – Leith Shenstone (crew) sailing with Toronto sailor Peter Hayward (helm) on Peter’s boat.
CAN 588 – Peter Viets (crew) sailing with Toronto sailor Matt Lusty (helm) on Matt’s boat.

FUNDRAISING CAMPAIGN UPDATE

Many thanks to recent and substantial support from Mike Lee and the crew of Shark Poop. Thanks also to local sailor Chris Hogisland who has purchased the Y-Flyer donated by Peter Souter. With this and other contributions, we have now raised just over $3000 to support shipping. Particular thanks to the NSC Board members who are supporting this, Fee the NSC bookkeeper who is keeping track of the funds, and Shauna and Margaret at the Ontario Sailing Association. This is absolutely tremendous and we are very thankful. The expenses are starting to really add up and this will be a huge help.

But wait, there’s more!! Just in time for the holidays, the Go Fast team will be putting on a SILENT AUCTION during the NSC awards night on November 28th. We’ll also raise money for Easter Seals during this event. Even more incentive for you to come out and celebrate the amazing racing that happens on here on Lac Deschenes. Mark your calendars today – NOVEMBER 28TH - don’t miss it!!

CANADIAN CHAMPIONSHIPS
Our final competition of the season was the Canadian Championships held September 26 and 27 and hosted by the Royal Canadian Yacht Club in Toronto. The RCYC put on a great event, complete with a tastefully decorated sail loft, an excellent meal, and even a steel drum player serenading the sailors after the competition!

Results here. Our top Ottawa finisher was Leith Shenstone, crewing for Peter Hayward aboard CAN 601, finishing 3rd. Way to go guys! Next Ottawa finishers were Dave Bradly and Chris Gillies in 8th. In fact, Chris sustained a knee injury on the Saturday night (he swears it wasn’t alcohol related) that put him out of sailing on Sunday, so Dave managed to rouse Morgan Cuthbertson to helm for Sunday. Morgan is an up and coming skiff chick who sails 29ers in Toronto. Way to go Dave, Chris, and Morgan!

Hot on their tail in 9th was Toronto sailor Matt Lusty with Ottawa sailor Peter Viets as crew. Unfortunately after a tough boom breakdown Brent and Tracy aboard CAN 594 had to forego racing on Sunday and head home early. (The boom is now fixed). Breakdowns continued with ‘the boobies’ Doug McGhan and Matt ‘Princess’ Davidge pulling a spinnaker fitting out of the bow which also prevented them from sailing the second day.

Breakdown note : Because they are built to be light and yet carry a comparatively huge sail area, these boats are somewhat prone to breakdowns. For the worlds we have all tried as much as possible to ‘bomb-proof’ our boats and have brought lots of spares to prevent breakdowns from limiting our time on the water. For example, if we break a tiller extension during a race, we have splints and tape out there with us so we can just splint the joint, tape it up, and continue the race!

Stay tuned for details on the container packing, the silent auction, and more!

Go Fast Gets Published!

2009-09-19T06:38:00.005+10:00

Campaign update: Our first media exposure! Many thanks to Ontario Sailor for picking up our story and including us in their August/September issue. Pick one up at your club today!

Training update: This weekend the Go Fast team is off to Toronto for training with Dan Cunningham, Head Race Coach at the Royal Canadian Yacht Club. We'll also be updating our measurement certificates and trying out some new sails. We'll also be at that club for the I-14 Canadian Championships next weekend.

Fundraising update: Our fundraising total is now near $2500! That is amazing. Thanks so much for your support! Stay tuned for more exciting events and Go Fast news this fall.

We are at 102 days and counting!

Cheers,
Tracy.

Fastnet Finish

2009-08-18T01:24:00.004+10:00

Final audio post from Dave Bradly, with the exciting finish to Fastnet 2009! Click on the link below.

Post 6

Well done Dave!

The maxi beast ICAP Leopard (pic here) won overall line honours, for the second year running. For a full recap visit BYM news here - link

Don't forget you can read more about the fastnet here: http://fastnet.rorc.org/

More from the Fastnet

2009-08-14T00:19:00.004+10:00

More blog entries from Dave Bradly, sailing the Fastnet race!

Post 4

Post 5

Below are photos taken by Dave's partner Kathryn just before the race!

Go Fast Ottawa goes faster on the Fastnet!!

2009-08-10T22:45:00.009+10:00

GoFastOttawa team member, Dave Bradly, is racing board a 60ft boat in this year’s world-famous Fastnet Ocean Race, which is a long-distance race along the south coast of England. The race has just started, and over the next couple days, we will be posting his live audio blogs as he completes the race.

The first blog postings are already up! Just click on them to listen.

Post 1
Post 2
Post 3

You can track his progress here:
http://fastnet.rorc.org/2009-fleet-tracking.html. Click on "Class IRC SZ" and then click on the boatname "Venemous" to highlight their position. As of right now they are about a third of the way complete.

Below is Dave's story about getting involved with this race:

"The plan for this started several years ago with a few beers and buddies as many good plans. Much later we find ourselves ready for the Fastnet Ocean Race on a CM Farr 60. This boat is a stripped out “racing maggot” of a machine with little or no compforts on board unless they can make the boat go faster.

The rest of the crew and the boat are UK based (although there is one member who is commuting from Switzerland for the training and the event). The boat is all carbon all speed and very large by comparison to the I-14 that I usually sail. Actually I could easily get my boat in the “dance floor” down below where all the sails are kept.

Only 6 pipe berths and one ring stove, a small toilet and de-salinated water is all we have on board, but the food is much better than on any race boat I have been on. At least one hot non-freeze dried meal a day AND bacon sandwiches every morning for breakfast – quite luxurious really.

We have shown our racing ability in several coastal and off-shore races already, with our main challenge coming from the professionally crewed TP52’s which we are able to beat regularly. This bodes very well for our upcoming race.

The Fastnet is an old school ocean race and has a pretty hard history with more than its fair share of dramas, breakages and dare I say it, even fatalities. We plan on the drama unfolding as we head west from Cowes on the Isle of Wight towards the Fastnet Rock off the south coast of Ireland, turning the corner and then hopefully hoisting one of the 6 spinnakers to head home at maximum speed. Home port being Portsmouth only 3-4 days after we start the 650 mile race. This is in a part of the world that is notorious for its huge storms and high seas being a large geographic funnel for both wind and waves towards the British Isles.

I am hoping to be able to send SAT PHONE messages back of progress so please follow the blog as this goes forward.

Thanks to all those that make this possible : my partner, Kathryn, my kids and all my family and sailing friends for the support along the way. More tales to tell shortly!!
Cheers,
Dave Bradly"

Learn more about the race here:
http://fastnet.rorc.org/

Regatta Report: Cassidy's Bay Invitational

2009-08-06T12:29:00.006+10:00

Photo credit unknown; in the photo are regatta winners Ian Hogan and Billy the Kid from Toronto.

With apologies to Matt "Princess" Davidge:

This weekend there were 8 Ottawa area sailors at an amazing regatta called Cassidy's bay Invitational. Based out of a beautiful family home on Howe Island, 18 International-14s were rigging in the back yard. Camping right next door, Lobster dinner, Steamwhistle kicking in a keg of beer; this was no ordinary regatta. Three days of fleet racing, including a 2.5-3hr 18 nautical mile Round Howe Island race was pretty epic as well.

Leith Shenstone, sailing with Toronto sailor Peter Hayward, placed 4th. Tracy and Brent were 8th, Doug and Matt were 9th. Maybe Dave and Peter could have held them off had they completed the regatta, but alas Dave had to miss sailing on the last day to get to England in advance of the Fastnet race (more on this below!).

We benefited hugely from the collegial sharing of information on boat handling and tuning. Dave Alexander of Alexander sails (2nd at the Germany Worlds) was also in attendance, helping all to set their rigs up, go faster.

Photo: Begging Bill enjoys a drink from the LD race winner's mug with Dave A. and Billy.

Huge thanks to Jason and Jen and their families for their organising and warm hospitality, the race committee of Steve Black and team, safety boats with Erin Ross and others!

Looking ahead:
We are at just 145 days to the Sydney Worlds!! We will all be training on our own for a while, with the next big event in September.

Meanwhile, Dave Bradly will be sailing the legendary Fastnet race starting August 8th on a beautiful 60 foot yacht. We will be following his progress using this blog. Stay tuned!

Tracy

Audio file test

2009-07-30T06:16:00.009+10:00

We are trying to see if we can post audio files to the blog, so we can have realtime audio updates from race sites.

.wav test

.mp3 test

stay tuned,

t.

Y-Flyer available for National Capital Regatta, August 15-16

2009-07-23T23:41:00.001+10:00

Recently the Go Fast Campaign received a very generous donation of Y-Flyer 1076 "Longtail" from Peter and Linda Souter. Serendipitously, this year's National Capital regatta hosted by the Britannia Yacht Club is also the site of the 2009 Y-Flyer Canadian Championships. Wow!

We really want to see this boat out sailing in that regatta. So we are sending out the word. Anyone interested in sailing her for this regatta, please inquire at oomla [ at ] yahoo.ca or through the form on this website. Sailing experience is necessary, but there is lots of tuning/setup coaching assistance available. The boat is in pristine condition, lying Nepean Sailing Club. Purchase inquiries also welcome.

Tell all your friends! Get in touch today before the opportunity slips away!

Training update: Nepean Sailing Club I-14 fleet went to Toronto for the RCYC Skiff Regatta. Good winds, sailed in the inner harbour! 'Blue Footed Booby', sailed by Doug2 and Princess, were the top-placing Nepean Sailing club Team in 5th. This weekend (July 25-26) teams are headed to Kingston Yacht Club for some heavier air training. Yeehaw!

Sail Fast,
t.

Free! Movie Screenings of "morning light"

2009-07-08T01:06:00.000+10:00

Wednesday July 8
4:30 pm and 7:30 pm
East Room, Nepean Sailing Club
Introduction by NSC’s I-14 sailors!
Galley open for food and drink.

Donations to the NSC's I-14 Worlds Campaign Welcome.

From Disney Pictures: "Experience a riveting and inspiring true-life adventure aboard the high-tech sloop MORNING LIGHT. Fifteen rookie sailors have one goal in mind -- to be part of her crew, racing in the most revered sailing competition on Earth, the Transpac Yacht Race. From start to finish, it’s a rollercoaster ride of emotions and physical challenges, beginning with six months of intense training. Only eleven will survive to race in the grueling 2,225-mile Transpac. Matching wits and skills against experienced pros and the unforgiving, unpredictable Pacific Ocean, these young men and women develop a powerful bond and prove how dedication, teamwork and an unyielding spirit can overcome the greatest of odds."

With less than 200 days to go, Go Fast continues to raise support!

2009-06-30T00:43:00.000+10:00

There are now less than 200 days until the start of the International-14 World Championships in Sydney Australia, January 1-11, 2010! The World's website is live, and we are all looking very carefully at the planning details. You can check it out too at www.i14worlds.com

(Photo credit: Luka Bartulovic)

Our FUNdraising activity continues to garner widespread support, for which we are very grateful. We have two major donations to report. First, back in early May, with the support John Curtis who donated a set of Tornado sails, and Steve Adolf who provided the critical transportation from Kingston to Ottawa, we received a major cash donation to the Go Fast Campaign from one of the Nepean Sailing Club’s founding members, Dr. John Walker and his wife, Violet. Thank you!

And then, last Thursday, the Go Fast team received the donation of a pristine Y-Flyer built and sailed in Sudbury by Mr. Peter Souter and his wife, Linda.
This mahogany and epoxy boat is the past winner of the North American Y-Flyer Championships and we’re hoping to have the boat sailing in this year’s Canadian Y-Flyer Championships taking place in Ottawa in August 15-16 as part of the National Capital Regatta. It’s a beauty!
(Photo: Peter and Linda Souter, with Y-Flyer “Longtail”)

We are tremendously grateful to everyone who has donated to our campaign so far. With your support, we have raised just over $1800 to date. Just for shipping alone, the latest estimate is for $2,500 per boat, so these funds will really help.

Our next skiff event is July 11-12 in Toronto for the RCYC Skiff Regatta. We will send a report on this regatta as soon as it happens.

In the meantime, check out this update below. The local O-town racing season kicked off June 5-6 with the Ottawa Skiff Grand Prix June 5-6. Go Fast sailors David Bradly, Chris Gillies, and Brent Beninger battled it out among a 15-strong fleet of International-14s.

Some great photos of the event, available here: www.kalu.ca

From the Ottawa Skiff Grand Prix website….(via www.osrf.ca)
“ Some 38 entrants competed in many shapes and sizes, but all had with one thing in common – their boats were high performance and very very cool. GREAT breeze on Saturday (peaking around 18 knots), sunshine and racing followed by FREE rum, beer, rock band and a great dinner. Did I mention all the free sh$t? Sponsors came good with goodies : Mount Gay, North National Outdoor Group (RS Dealers), The Chandlery, Sleeman, Competition Composites. Nepean Sailing Club played great host to this now well known event. It really is special to see the true collection of high performance machinery and neat people at this event. 49ers, I-14s, performace cats, Contenders, International Canoes, and a 29er. There were good winds on the Saturday with a few high performance "happenings" like a broken IC mast, broken IC seat carriage and a cartoon-esque hole through an I-14 main that was stangely shaped just like the crew!! 5 races Saturday and everyone was happy, wet and a little bruised as we hit the ramps for free rum, good dinner and entertainment. Sunday brought a much lighter breeze that was a huge challenge for the RC R Us team, but they managed to pull off 3 races and used absolutely all the real wind we had. Great series, hotly contested with results as follows:
Skiff A Fleet won by Fred Eaton & Ian Hogan (I-14)
Skiff B Fleet won by Oliver Moore (IC)
Cat Fleet won by Moyra Deans & Cabot Broughton (Hobie Tiger)”

Sailors at the Grand Prix also benefited from the coaching of Mathieu Debreuq, supported by the Ontario Sailing Association. If you want to brush up on your skiff sailing skills, check out the video here http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G2Fx7Q5IvS4

We have many more events coming up, so stay tuned!

See you on the water!

Tracy
CAN 594
www.gofastottawa.blogspot.com
Go Fast, Ottawa!

Wickford Regatta an early-season success!

2009-05-19T03:55:00.000+10:00

View Larger Map

What a weekend. Three days of amazing sailing on Narragansett Bay, combined with amazing hospitality of the Wickford sailing community.

The steady wind in the Bay provides highly valuable training. There are also excellent local sailors to share learning with - a not-to-miss opportunity.

Training day - Wind SSW 12 with seabreeze. Foggy in the morning and later in the afternoon. We were out for 2 hours. Basic boat handling for us, sail shape for others. We benefit from the services of US Sailing Olympic coach Skip Whyte. He is also the regatta chair so we are lucky to have him! The debrief is very useful.
Photo: Sorta and Price Club on Knee Trembler. Photo credit: Yarrow.

Regatta Day 1: Wind S 18 with seabreeze. Foggy S of the Jamestown bridge. It came north a couple times. A few races away and done. We started but couldn't finish them. Our focus was more on boat handling.

Regatta Day 2: Wind NW 12-15. Again, our focus is still on boat handling. At the close of racing, the consistency of Dave Bradly and Peter Viets on 'Knee Trembler' pays off and they take the victor's hardware, with Tracy and Ezra on 'Mr. and Mrs. Smith' a close 2nd. 'Epic' is 3rd.

A few of the big boat handling things we learned :

Tacking - stay crew weight forward, keep main powered up through the tack.

Bear away - Skipper stays on the wire. Don't forget to let off the vang.

Hoist, Gybe and Douse - Skipper stays out on the wire to keep the boat stable.

Our fleet.

We packed up and head home around 4, back to O-town around 2am. Exhausted, but happy.

Go Fast On the Road!

2009-05-15T22:39:00.001+10:00

Wow - what an adventure - and we haven't even been sailing yet!

Check out the photos here.

We are doing our first Training Regatta of the year - the Wickford Regatta - a long-standing regatta in Rhode Island, that attracts 14s, 505s, lasers, and more. To get there, we have an 8 hour drive from Ottawa. - We made a couple stops, one of which included an inspirational visit to the Volvo Ocean Race stopover site in Boston. These amazing VO70's have been around the world since we saw the boat Puma in Newport last August. So it's a nice coincidence to see Puma again this spring. And this time, we got to visit her up close, VERY up close...

Brent and I left Wednesday night - stopped in Winooski Vermont and were hosted by the gracious Chris - who put together a cocktail called a Scoflaw that was very much appreciated by 'begging bill', who had spent a tough 3 hours on the road.

Thursday we headed for Boston - spent the afternoon oggling at Volvo ocean boats.

'Begging Bill' was a hit, and he got himself a photo working hard on Puma. We are so grateful to the media team on Puma for allowing Bill to have this experience - Life at the Extreme is what the Volvo Ocean Race is all about - and in a way, so is sailing the 14s. He (and us) will take it with him to the Worlds in Australia!

Last night we arrived in Wickford and talked 14s well into the night with our wondeful hosts Tracy and Ezra. Begging Bill sat back and had a good old Narragansett lager to tie up the voyage.

This morning we are heading out for a training day! Wind is looking to be South 5-10!

Be sure to check out all the photos in the link above - more to come!

Stay tuned!

Tracy.

Go Fast Breakfasts a Tasty Success!

2009-05-05T01:46:00.000+10:00

Just wanted to thank everyone for making the Go Fast Breakfasts happen this weekend. By our count we sold a tidy 101 breakfasts. This was by far the most complicated event we have done so far, and it depended on your support. It was a very successful fundraising event for our 2010 Worlds campaign.

Many Thanks to...
Gene and the NSC Board for taking the risk to let us give this a shot.
Josh and Darren for teaching how to use the equipment.
Julie for setting up the reservation pages and the POS system and for sending the email to the members.
Fee for dealing with the accounting aftermath.
Jay and Nick for coming in at an ungodly hour to help us set up.
Dave, Kathryn, Chris, Clarissa, and Brent for bringing all their organizing, cooking, cleaning, and bulk buying talents to the table.
All the Launch crews, members, friends and supporters who came out to eat, buy, and donate more funds.

A few comments overheard during -

'i thought this was going to be a disaster, but you guys really pulled it off!'
'are you going to do this during haulout too?!'

Tonight is the I-14 fleet's first race night, and we are ramping up for our first away regatta in Rhode Island on May 15. So stay tuned for more creative communications coming forth!

Best,

Tracy

Launch Weekend Go Fast Breakfasts at NSC!

2009-04-29T22:14:00.000+10:00

Help support the International-14 skiff team going to their World Championships in Australia in January 2010. Join us for an amazing breakfast served up by the Go Fast team members!

When: Saturday May 2 and Sunday May 3, 7:00 am to 10:00 am

Where: Nepean Sailing Club, Dick Bell Park

What: Classic Breakfast - $8.50 3 eggs (scrambled), bacon, toast, oven-roasted potato wedges, plus coffee and orange juice. OR Hearty Oatmeal or Cereal (Raisin Bran) - $5 - with coffee and orange juice

PLEASE RSVP online so we have some idea of numbers:

Saturday May 2 : http://nsc.ca/galley/galley.htm
(ignore the green text if thedate is incorrect - this is for Saturday May 2)

Sunday May 3: http://nsc.ca/galley/regis.htm

Thanks to the NSC Staff, Board and Social committee, plus J+D's Galley for helping to make this happen.

This is going to be delicious, and a lot of fun! Hope to see you there!

Project update: Thanks for all your support to date! We are making progress in our fundraising, with about $1200 raised so far. Sailing is not far away, with the first race on Lac Deschenes starting on Monday and our first away regatta in Rhode Island Mid-may!

Tracy.
www.gofastottawa.blogspot.com

Spring Bling Jewellery Fundraiser Sunday April 26th.

2009-04-20T11:51:00.000+10:00

The daffodills are out, the birds are chirping, it's definitely spring!

That means presents for Mother's day, spring birthdays, and a little sparkle for yourself!

Join us at NSC's "Spring Bling" Fundraiser:

Fifth Avenue Swarovski Jewellery Show
Sunday, April 26 1pm – 4 pm
Nepean Sailing Club
Dick Bell Park
3259 Carling Ave.
Ottawa, Ontario
Canada K2H 1A6

No formal presentation, just great jewellery. Whether you are able to stay for just a few minutes or the whole afternoon, you will have the pleasure of taking your purchases with you when you leave.

15% of all sales will be donated to sending an underprivileged child in the community to NSC’s sailing camp, and to NSC’s GoFast team competing in Australia in 2010. Many thanks to fifth avenue and NSC's PR director Aura Dewitt for inviting us to participate.

You can preview all the great designs at www.fifthavenuecollection.com

For more information contact me through the email form on this site or nscpublicrelations [ at sign] nsc.ca

Tracy.

JC wrap up.

2009-04-13T21:52:00.000+10:00

Ken Alders (left), NSC Toonie Talk organizer,"Begging Bill"(centre) and John Curtis (right))

Great talk on Thursday night! I learned a lot about teamwork, sponsorship, obsessive equipment management, mentorship and more. Pornstar picked it up on video so anyone who wants can have a look.

Thanks to everyone who made it out!

Olympics Talk (April 9th): John Curtis

2009-04-01T00:37:00.000+11:00

It's been great to receive donations from people who want to help us get to Sydney for the I-14 worlds. The boats are booked into their shipping containers, and we are close to finalizing accommodation and flights. With everyone's generosity to date we have raised about $1000. This is fantastic, we are 10% of the way there!
There's still a long way to go to our $10,000 goal but I know we can make it.

How about coming out to this fantastic talk on April 9th? Everyone is welcome to this event and the points of interest go beyond sailing to Olympics, performance under pressure, amateur sport, and even travel!

Olympic sailor John Curtis will give us tips on how to prepare and do well at high-level events. John represented Canada at the Athens Olympics in the Tornado Catamaran Class in 2004, and will relate his experience leading up to and at the Olympics. John is currently training in the International-14 skiff and will be competing at the Sydney Worlds.

This talk will be useful to anyone who has ever dreamed of reaching the top of the podium in sailing. Of particular interest for younger sailors who are looking for that next step. John will visit from Kingston for this special event. Don't miss your chance to get inspired!

This talk is organized by the Nepean Sailing Club in support of the Club's International-14 campaign to have Ottawa represented at the 2010 I-14 World Championship in Sydney Australia. Join the journey at www.gofastottawa.blogspot.com.

Talk begins at 7:30 pm on Thursday April 9th at the Nepean Sailing Club. Bring $2 to support youth sailing. Donations to the Go Fast Campaign welcome (tax receipt for $25 or more)

Nepean Sailing Club
Dick Bell Park
3259 Carling Ave.
Ottawa, Ontario
Canada K2H 1A6

Wow, Australian Wine!

2009-03-24T01:48:00.000+11:00

More than 50 people, plenty of non-NSC members included, came out to the Nepean Sailing Club on Saturday evening to experience what Australian grapes have to offer. Headsup - Viognier is the new white, and there was a very big Syrah that I WILL be going back to!

The event was organized by Pat from the NSC's social committee, and many thanks to her and the team for making the Go Fast Campaign a recipient of a donation from this event.

Not only did we have sommeliers Debbie and Patti from Savvy Company give some tips and insight on each of the seven wines, but we really got into the 'spirit' while surrounded by images and memorabilia from from the Australian High Commission and Kathryn's adventures in Australia!

Kathryn kicked off the night by introducing the members of the Go Fast team to the assembled audience. We closed off the night by showing the I-14 video by Brent.

Thanks to everyone who came out to make it such a grand success!

Fundraiser: Australian Wine Tasting this Saturday!

2009-03-16T13:46:00.000+11:00

Contrary to Monty Python, Australian wine is not for hand-to-hand combat anymore!

The NSC's great Social committee and Board have taken up the mantle of our campaign and organized this very fun event! Open to everyone, members and non members.

Join us!

Wine Tasting at Nepean Sailing Club Sat March 21st at 7:30 pm. Price - $35.00 per person - includes 7 Australian wines, Australian style appetizers, sommelier on site to answer questions, and literature about Wine tasting. Any excess funds raised will be donated to the Go Fast Ottawa International-14 Campaign to aid in their journey to Australia. Register on-line by noon on March 20.
http://nsc.ca/galley/regis.htm

Galley will be open for hungry folks and All NSC wines including that of the event will be available by the Glass after the Tasting .

First Go Fast Talk a success!

2009-03-14T01:46:00.000+11:00

What a great event last night. Thanks to everyone who came out to hear about getting started in Racing. Excellent information shared. Events are rolling fast and furious now, upcoming we have winetasting, more talks, and more! stay tuned!

Project Profile Package now available

2009-03-10T14:04:00.000+11:00

If you'd like to find out more about our Go Fast, Ottawa project, you can download the project profile document in PDF here (~500k) (link).

Or if you'd just like to oggle some nice video of I14, check out the work of our Toronto comrades from their recent training trip to Miami.

I can't wait to get sailing.

Go Fast Launch and Talk March 12th

2009-03-08T05:25:00.000+11:00

Last night we launched our Go Fast Ottawa campaign at the Nepean Sailing Club with some good food (thanks J+D), drink (Thanks J), plus some excellent music by Trevor Finlay and Alain Tremblay. I'm also pleased to report that we got our first donations to the project!! In all we raised just over $100 last night, which is an excellent start.I had the chance to speak with many of the sailors from the club and get some great ideas for taking the Go Fast campaign forward.

Last night we also launched our profile package, which is a more detailed overview of the project. You'll be able to download an electronic copy shortly.

Next up: Thursday March 12th 7:30 pm NSC East Room - "Everything You ever wanted to know about sailboat racing but were afraid to ask."

Got the competitive spirit? Some say there is no better way to test and improve your sailing skills than to race. But how to get involved, or to step up your competition, all without breaking the bank in these challenging financial times? From becoming a valuable crewmember, to the joys of racing your own boat, to campaigning on the regatta circuit, we will share information and start a discussion on the wide, wide, world of sailboat racing. If you're just starting out, or if you have a wealth of experience to share, come on out and get your game on! Thursday March 12th at 7:30 pm, Nepean Sailing club, East Room. (Led by Dave Bradly, NSC Fleet Captain, Peter Juryn, NSC Sail Training Director, and Tracy Ross, NSC International-14 World Championship Campaign Fundraising Coordinator.)

Come and join us!

One week 'til Go Fast Friday

2009-02-28T07:30:00.000+11:00

Go Fast Friday
Friday March 6
Nepean Sailing Club
Dinner 6pm
Entertainment 7 onwards

This will be the Kick-Off event for Go Fast Ottawa, Nepean Sailing Club's International-14 Skiff 2010 World Championship Campaign. It's a great way to beat these 'rain on snow' blues.

Put on your Party Shirt and come down to the club to join your friends!

Dinner - You'll need to register-I'll fwd the link next week, along with menu - sure to be good!
Musical Entertainment - You can also join us after dinner for musical entertainment - Trevor Finlay www.trevorfinlay.com
Go Fast Supporters will receive a little something special.

I'll send more details next week, but set aside the time to join us on Friday! (And don't book anything for early Saturday.)

This is open to non-members too, same price for dinner or, if you come just for the party there'll be a small cover of ($5-7tbc)

Spread the word.

Cheers,

The Go Fast Team

Bushfires.

2009-02-10T15:54:00.000+11:00

As tempting as it is, this is no time for jokes, gentlemen.

Today Google Australia published a flash map of the wildfires that are overtaking Victoria State, which is in the south east part of the country, south of Sydney. They are extensive and some still aren't under control.

We are deeply sorry for those in Australia who have lost everything. We will come back to the Go Fast plans, but for now please consider donating funds to the Australian Red Cross who have launched a campaign to support the tragedy.

Click here to donate to the Australian Red Cross.

Thanks.

Party Schedule

2009-02-05T16:23:00.000+11:00

PARTIES are the backbone of any serious sailing organisation (seriously). We already have four exciting Go Fast Events planned for the next few months, even before we get out on the water. Mark your calendars today!

March 6 : Go Fast Friday : We will join one of (Nepean Sailing Club’s) NSC’s famous Friday night events at the NSC with musical talent and more. This will be the Kick-off event of our Go Fast Campaign, and we WILL kick off in style. Call ALL your friends and get them to come on down to the party!

March 12th: Toonie Talk : Everything you ever wanted to know about racing but were afraid to ask. Join Dave Bradly, Peter Juryn and me at the NSC for a virtual tour through the world of sailboat racing. Useful resources, networks, links, and ideas to help make your life on the racecourse more fun.

April 9th : Toonie Talk: International High-performance racing and the Olympic Experience. John Curtis went to the Athens Olympics in the Tornado Class, was the force behind getting Queen’s University’s Sailing Team into the American MAISA college league, and placed 2nd at the 2008 North American International-14 Championship. He has competed in many, high-performance events. All that and a nice guy, too. He will give his perspective on what it’s like to attend the Olympics, tips on how to prepare and do well at high-level events.

WOW! This is a real coup! John Curtis lives in Kingston Ontario and will be coming up to Ottawa especially for this event. This will be of use to everyone in all stages of racing, come and check it out.

May 2nd and 3rd: Go Fast Launch Breakfasts – come and get it! Get your hot breakfast served to you by one of the Go Fast Team members, that is!! From 7:00 am to 10:00 am on both Saturday and Sunday of Launch Weekend the team will serve all the hungry NSC boat launchers with a tasty array of eggs, bacon, toast, and of course COFFEE. Open to everyone who wants to get up that early.

Sailing Schedule 2009

2009-02-05T16:21:00.000+11:00

The 2009 Sailing Schedule is starting to take shape! The Canadian Dinghy Association (the Cdn I-14 association) has posted the 2009 schedule of sailing events leading up to the 2010 Worlds. We need to have our container bid in by May 1st, and then the first regatta is our very own Ottawa Skiff Grand Prix. And then its train, train, race, train, train, etc. until October and Thanskgiving when the boats get loaded into the shipping container in Toronto. Where are we going to find time to party? (I think we will find some time)

Make a Charitable Donation

2009-02-05T16:06:00.000+11:00

Great News! The Sport Alliance of Ontario has approved our application through Ontario Sailing to have the Nepean Sailing Club International-14 Fleet’s 2010 World Championship Campaign approved as a charitable cause.

Whew. What that mouthful really means is that if you wish to donate more than $25 to the effort, we can have a tax receipt sent to you.

With your donation, you will be helping Ottawa sailors to compete in high-level amateur competition on the world stage. We have already begun our fitness training (much needed) and equipment upgrades (our own expenses). But the boats will have to be shipped to Australia by container, at a cost of at least $2,000 each boat. We also need race coaching, and are planning to attend training regattas this summer. Our goal is to raise $15,000 to cover shipping and coaching expenses. Your donation will be hugely valuable and help us to get to Australia.

How to donate in-person at the Nepean Sailing Club bar – At the till during bar hours, you can contribute by cash or cheque (Made out to the Nepean Sailing Club) or credit card. Don’t forget to complete the form “Appendix C”, with your signature and address details. This is the only way we can ensure that you can get your tax receipt. In about 2 months time, you will receive a tax receipt from the Sport Alliance of Ontario through the mail. Hold onto it! (A replacement receipt is $5)

How to Donate long-distance : Download and print the “Appendix C” form,
Here in WORD
Here in PDF (Adobe Acrobat)

and then mail it, with your check (don’t mail cash) to :

Nepean Sailing Club
Dick Bell Park
3259 Carling Ave.
Ottawa, Ontario
Canada K2H 1A6
Tel: 613·829·6462

We don’t have online payment set up, but contact us by email or through the form on this website and we will be sure to find a way to make it easy for you to contribute!

Thanks everyone so much for all your help. Thank you too to the Board and staff of the Nepean Sailing Club, plus Ontario Sailing, and the Sport Alliance of Ontario who have helped this to happen, and who have agreed to manage the funds for this important event!

The Poster

2009-02-05T15:57:00.001+11:00

The Go Fast, Ottawa poster is now up at the Club. To download a copy for your bedroom (er, office), click on the image to expand, and then right-click and choose 'save target as.'

Go Fast, Go Fun

2008-09-30T12:56:00.000+10:00

Some of the fastest sailing here in Ottawa (Canada) is aboard International-14’s, two-person dinghies that are very light, very fast, and notoriously fun to sail. In recent years the Ottawa-area fleet has grown to seven competitive boats, all part of the Ottawa Skiff Racing Fleet , sailing out of the Nepean Sailing Club.

In January 2010, Ottawa area sailors will represent the city at the International-14 World Championships near Sydney, Australia. With over 100 boats from all over the world, we expect a spectacular event, featuring a long distance pursuit race, team racing, and highly competitive fleet racing.

It will be the adventure of a lifetime and we want you to join us! The Sydney area is a very special sailing venue. With serious wind, beautiful scenery, and adrenaline-driven sailors, it has high-ranking status, especially with skiff sailors. The World's presents is a huge learning opportunity. We have just over a year to build our skills, equipment, and funds in order to be ready.

We invite you to follow our progress through this blog and the events associated with GO FAST, OTTAWA. Our plan has two goals :

· Enrich the quality and enjoyment of sailboat racing in the Ottawa area through talks, articles, and race training, and

· Raise funds to support the cost of shipping the boats to Australia. The boats will be transported to Australia by shipping container. We expect that the shipping costs will likely be around $10,000 well beyond the normal costs for travel to a regatta.

Thanks for stopping by, and stay tuned for an exciting year!

Go Fast, Go Fun,

Tracy.