Greetings!
As promised we have moved to bi-monthly newsletters, but this one is a corker. Read below for the final grade 5 wrap up and an exciting announcement regarding acorn Jeff MacFarlane's winter plans. Also, Christin and Jacon are working on a great new updated Website. Get a sneak peak by clicking HERE. So gather your friends and family around the warm glow of the computer and tell them of all your great Oakcliff memories which you are thankful for and while you're there ...feel free to drop hints that Oakcliff Gear should be on your Holiday wish-list. :-) |
| Time of Giving - Time to Donate! |
 | | Don't Just Lay There... Donate! |
2011 has been a spectacular year - we have had great success on the water, but we couldn't have done it without our supporters. There are still quite a few of you who have not made your 2011 contribution, so don't dally, make your donation today.
We have big plans for next year, but we we need your donations to make them happen. Click Here - to make your donation of $500 to $5000!
As a special 'Black Friday' Promotion - you can become a supporter this month and it will count for 2012 too.
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Situation Breakdown - Match Racing
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In our last Grade 5 we had an interesting situation. Andrew BLUE and Jamie YELLOW were coming in towards the finish on starboard jibe. Andrew was carrying a penalty. The Race Committee was not aware of the penalty. Andrew attempted to luff Jamie and kill his penalty. He initiated this before entering the two boat length zone and then realizing he wasn't going to clear the penalty he bore away into the zone.
Jamie crossed the finish line between Andrew and the finish pin and slightly ahead. The RC signaled his color, Yellow. As Jamie was almost clear of the line he snagged and dragged the finishing mark. Andrew seeing this did his penalty. The umpires did not see Andrew do this. Andrew then sailed clearly back to the course side of the line and did another penalty turn and crossed the finish line, which by now was dragged significantly out of place.
There were no flags flown by either competitor nor by the umpires. There were no official protests (red B) flags flown either. The umpires and RC conferred and the situation was discussed at length in the debrief. As promised here is the summary of the situation.
Yellow was entitled to room to finish. The definition of finishing doesn't require a boat to sail all the way across, just to break the plane... but you are still not allowed to hit either end of the line. Touching a mark is only signaled by the umpires. A "Y-flag" does nothing in this case. When a boat touches a mark and the umpires see this they shall fly a blue or yellow flag.
Assuming they noticed the boat towing the mark, they should have indicated that they saw this by signaling a penalty for Yellow in which case it would have offset the Blue penalty and the boat that crossed the finish line first, still yellow, would have won.
If it was determined that Yellow hit the mark because Blue did not give her room to pass on the correct side AND either of the boats had flown a Y-flag, then the umpires should have indicated this by flying Blue. It is not required that they also fly a yellow flag for touching the mark as it is considered one incident and the umpires would determine that Yellow should be exonerated from touching the mark due to an infraction by Blue. This would have also had Yellow winning.
As it stood - there were no flags flown by the competitors nor were there any flags flown by the umpires. Yellow won. Three ways of getting to the same conclusion.
Tidbit: Did you know that you ARE allowed to hit the anchor line of a mark as long as in that case you do not make contact with the actual boat or the mark? Unfortunately for Match 40 sailors it is rare that you touch a mark or a committee boat's ground tackle without towing said mark or boat. Oh Sugar! :-)
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Match Racing Wrap Up - 60 & Sunny
| Congratulations to winning skipper Bobby Martin and his Marblehead + Koko team, for winning the shifty and competitive final Grade 5 mentioned above. Jamie Ebeneau was second followed by Anthony Pulgram. All 6 teams had their work cut out for them as the level of competition was very tough. At the end of the day we reminisced about the awesome season we've had here at Oakcliff.
Speaking of awesome seasons, the Match Racing for Classics sailors have had a beautiful run. Hunt gets out there and runs so many races in 2 hours that I'm surprised that the sailors aren't dizzy by the end. Granted the rules are a bit fluid but the racing has become more and more competitive through out the season and everyone does have fun. A great pick-up game of match racing where you can try new moves and combinations. It is so successful that next summer we are going to schedule our very popular Tuesday Match Racing Drills on select Sundays as well. This way if you can't make it out during the week you can drill on Sunday and then dovetail into the Match Racing for Classics. Add a picnic and it will be a 'smashing day darling'.
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Schedule for 2012 - Check it Out!
|  We have the tentative Oakcliff 2012 Schedule Note that we have added more winter seminars. We will also be announcing some trainings to be held in Manhattan soon. New, will be more Grade 4 events as well as full and intense coaching in the fleet racing on Wednesdays. Finally our most popular match racing drills will also be run on the weekends. In the coming weeks this schedule will be uploaded to the web site so by the end of the year you will be able to start reserving your spots. |
I hope you have had fun reading this newsletter and we all hop you have a Wonderful Thanksgiving!
Sincerely,
Dawn Riley
Oakcliff Sailing Center |
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Your Christmas List Starts Here!
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 | | Lots of Great Gifts |
| Oakcliff's Retail Store is open for all of your holiday needs. Supporters get 20% off every item. We have a large assortment of fleece and soft shell jackets to keep you warm through the winter.
 Looking for stocking stuffers? How about a t-shirt or Gill sailing gloves, an Oakcliff hat, or Dave Perry's Match Racing Playbook. These are all items under $20. If you really value that special person in your life give them the security of a Spinlock life vest. We know from our Safety at Sea training as well as from the stories of the Rambler 100 capsize that these vests are truly life savers. Now that is a special gift!
Stop in the store, call 516 802 0368 or
email Bill to place your order. |
| FINANCIAL SEMINAR ON THANKSGIVING |  | | Hunt will move his very popular financial seminar from Saturday to Thursday - THANKSGIVING - morning. Why not bring your visiting friends and family to learn from the master. The Turkey takes 6 hours to cook anyway. |
Acorns & Saplings Wanted!
|  | Next year the Acorn, Sapling, and Offshore Programs will be fully integrated and much more intensive than the first years.
If you know someone that might be interested in being a part of the 2011 team, click here for more information. Follow the Student Programs link to acorns or saplings. You can email Jacon with any questions.
Oakcliff's training programs are a great opportunity for everyone and these signature programs are unparallelled for boys and girls, men and women between the ages of 14- 30.
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| Jeff Becomes a Mighty Oak! |  |
Acorn Jeff MacFarlane raced the Ker 11.3 in seven double-handed races, logging just under 3,000 nautical miles with a race record of 4th, 1st, 2nd, 1st, 2nd, 3rd, and 1st. He reported "I am very pleased with the knowledge and opportunities that Oakcliff has given and bringing my dream of racing single-handed around the world closer to a reality." And commenting on his winter plans "I am very happy to announce that I will be running Brad Van Liew's Open 60 "Le Pingouin" for the Caribbean season. We will be racing in the Caribbean 600, St. Maarten Heineken Regatta, and the St. Thomas Rolex Regatta." This is what Oakcliff is all about. We are training the next leaders of this sport. Jeff will be keeping us informed of his progress throughout the winter. And a THANK YOU to all of you supporters. This is what your donations help to create.
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