Last weekend we held two days of Melges 24 practice in anticipation of this Saturday's  Friends of the Bay Regatta.    All proceeds go to the Friends of the Bay whose mission for over 20 years has been to preserve, protect and restore the ecological integrity and productivity of the Oyster Bay / Cold Spring Harbor estuary and the surrounding watershed.

Friends of the Bay is a natural fit for us at Oakcliff and our efforts to be a 'Clean Regatta Site'.  We ask sailors to bring their own reusable water bottles & not throw anything in the water.  Even asking people to bring their own snacks / sandwiches helps in reducing the amount of waste generated.

SIGN UP, RSVP, PRACTICE
If you haven't already signed your team up to race: Click HERE . We have all 6 Melges registered and if we are overbooked then we will enter additional IRC or Classics.  These will be raced only as demand dictates.

Once you have your team together and confirmed through the Oakcliff Office, the Melges will be available for you to practice with at 2pm on Friday.

Following the regatta, there will be dinner and a band at Sagamore YC with Dark & Stormie's the featured drink ($35/person)  Reservations are a must and need to be in BY WEDNESDAY email: captmike5@hotmail.com 

 

The Shield's Districts are being held at Seawanhaka this weekend.  There will be between 12 and 18 boats on the starting line and we have 4 boats available for our supporters to race in this important regatta. 


Saturday evening sailors and their guest are invited to Seawanhaka's "Cuba Night", a Tropical themed evening with dining al fresco, live island music under the stars and other authentic entertainment. An evening ticket ($45) includes all festivities except your Mojito tab. 

Please RSVP in advance by emailing Regatta Chairman Wayne Marciano:  Waynett@earthlink.net

 To download NOR

If you would like to race an Oakcliff Boat please sign up on line .  For questions email: race@oakcliffsailing.org

RESEARCH:
The Webb Institute night was an excellent evening and the Oakcliff Sailing Center turnout was strong, so strong that both the presentation and the dinner were sold out.

After a brief cocktail reception, Seth Cooley and Doug Slocum introduced concepts of drag, displacement, trim tabs and interceptors to an enthralled crowd in the lecture room.  The whole group them moved to the towing tank where Seth ran a model down the tank in a variety of conditions and wave patterns.  Dinner after was a lovely elegant affair - bottom line Webb Institute is a gem and just over the hill from Oakcliff.

ENGINES
From the scientific to the practical.  The next day, an Oakcliff team attended a Caterpillar Engine seminar.  While they reported that they felt it was a lot like school they also came away with some useful lessons. First and foremost it is important that your Racor fuel/water separator is checked regularly.  If the water gets too high it will be sucked into the fuel system and reduce your power under load.

Especially in this area of the country, a full service should be done in the fall so that the engine is not sitting all winter with bad oil or excessive water which could allow algae to grow in the tanks.  If this is done properly you should come put of the blocks fast and at top RPM. 

Ideally a written care plan should be created and followed for each engine.  This needs to include engine hours as well as any unusual occurrences which will help for major service calls.

The Spring Classics finished on Saturday with Oakcliff Sailing Center's Anne Caie and Dolphin receiving trophies.

 

Congratulations to: Ronnie, D3, Carl & Family, Joseph, Lauren, Roxy, Richard & Marla, Melissa & Justin, Karl & Eileen, Herve, Karen Brown (of Sonnet fame), Jason & Julie, Doug, Morgan, John, Herve and everyone else who raced aboard these boats this spring.

Also a thank you to the PRO / OA / Jury Chair / Handicapper /Master of Ceremonies / person who makes this all happen... Hunt.

The classics will now sail most Thursday evenings until the Fall Series begins September 11th.  Sign up on the calendar page at http://www.oakcliffsailing.org

 

The YRA-LIS Match Racing Championship being held July 24th has spots available:
To register for the Taylor Trophy


Dave Perry's Youth Match Racing Clinics are coming to Oakcliff.
For more information.


Video of last weekends Melges 24 Practice will be posted here shortly:

Melges 24 Practice Videos