This year, as there were many afternoons when conditions were unfavourable for sailing, we completed far fewer races than average this season. Also, some of our most active sailors were recovering from surgery and unable to race.  We were also unlucky with keel boat sailing, mostly due to weather.

Working with the MSA and the West Hawk Sailing Centre, we had a very successful Manitoba Juniour championship again.  Thanks to all those who volunteered to help make that event such a success.

The FYC Dinghy Racing Series

We ran a total of 25 races in the series this year, less than half as many as last year.  19 skippers participated, including 5 women.  We recorded 125 dinghy starts, an average of 5 boats at each start. This year, six skippers won at least one race: Wendy, Sharlene, Craig, Phil, Penny and Kevin.

Our races picked up a bit in the later part of the summer after a very slow June and July.

Falcon 2025 Dinghy Championship

11.1 The scoring system is as follows: The Low Point scoring system of Appendix A for “series longer than a regatta” (Rule A9) will apply to all races official club races completed in the year, of which 15 races will be required to be completed to constitute a series. A boat’s series score will be the total of her race scores, excluding her 16th best score and all those below it.

Two skippers completed 15 or more races, and one who completed 14 was still competitive in the FSC Dinghy Series.

 

There was some discussion of adjusting the rules to reduce the number of races to be counted in years when we run fewer races.  We established the standard of 15 races to count many years ago to encourage participation in dinghy racing.  It has been successful in rewarding those who race often with better results in the championship than occasional racers.  Even though this season we had exceptionally few races, the rule of 15 still worked out.  Changing the minimum to 12 or 10 this year would not have changed the results.  There is no need to change this aspect of our rules.

There was also discussion of allowing dinghy racing on keel boat racing days to count toward the championship. We established the rule that keelboat racing days would not include official dinghy racing to maximize participation in keel boat racing.  This worked out for the first couple of years, but now keel boat races are more focussed on performance, and less on participation, so dinghy racers are not as frequently invited to sail on keel boats.

This year, such a rule would have allowed six to nine additional dinghy races to count toward the championship, which could potentially have brought more dinghy skippers up to the minimum. The AGM should vote on changing our rules to allow dinghy races to count on keel boat racing days.

Most Improved Sailor

Each year, we watch with interest the progress of sailors as they learn to manage their boats in a variety of conditions.  We celebrate this progress by naming one “Most Improved Sailor” every year.

The most improved sailor for 2025 is Amanda Jeninga.

Results for 2025 FSC Dinghy Series

1. Sharlene

2. Wendy

3. Phil

2025 FSC Keel Boat Series

As the weather was not very cooperative on keel boat racing days, we were only able to hold two keel boat racing days this season.

Scoring for keel boat races is based on each boat’s results for half the total number of races in the series, rounding upward for an uneven total.

Our methodology for rating the very different boats is limited by the available data; one boat is not rated with any handicap, other boats have ratings, but they may be based on different equipment, for instance some are rated for a spinnaker.  We use the available numbers.

Five skippers participated in the KB series. We completed a total of five races, so “at least half” represents three races.  Four skippers completed at least three races to qualify.

KB starts:         

Charles              5

Al                        2

Ian                      5

Garth                 5

Adam                 4

2024 KB Series Results:

1. Charles
2. Garth
3. Ian
4. Adam