How Sails are Designed and Made, And How the KSL 505 Spinnaker Was Designed

Posted in Uncategorized | Comments Off on How Sails are Designed and Made, And How the KSL 505 Spinnaker Was Designed

Fall Training – Toronto Ontario – Weekend Summary

The Toronto 5o5 fleet came together for a 2 day training camp Sept 28/29. Hosted by OHCC, both days delivered 15+ knt winds out of the East and made for a great fall event. 

The first day was sailed primarily in the Outer Harbour boundaries with flat water, 15knts  from the north east, with gust 20+ knts and the offshore shifty conditions made for challenging wire to wire reaching conditions and a chance for the boats to compare upwind depowering techniques. 3 boats participated, with Ali in the OHCC coach Rib taking videos. By the end of the day the team were spent, with Simon and Conner winning the contest for time in the water.  The gang had a meaningful de-brief at the club and moved on to the Auld Spot where we were met by past 5o5 sailor Peter Hale , having dragged himself to the bar (on crouches!), where we had a few beers, dinner, and swapped stories. 

Peter Hale 

The second day the fleet ventured out beyond the shelter of the outer harbour and into the big easterly waves on the lake. Consistent 15 to 18knts with 3 to 5 ft waves made for ideal 505 conditions! The fleet was joined by crews Drake and Patrick, bumping the boat count to 4 plus coach Rib. Plenty of upwind and reaching practice, with all four boat progressively getting faster as the day progressed.

Big shout out to OHCC for hosting and providing use of the coach Rib, which made for a bigger, better and more importantly safer event. Shout outs to Ali and Shona for making he trip in and proving great insights.

Other links to the weekend:

https://photos.google.com/share/AF1QipPY1ngLWoyc1SW6cU8UwTdf0MXmM5TbIZT2uPYUfoMr51VjDvNbTo6JYFVEWEx0xA/photo/AF1QipN9iwKqd-BxAih28XUA9uFSr2ggrCFrzLV7C1k?key=VGpTM0psSEdIRU5BOGhYOUt6VWt0RGl5Y0tUSlhB

https://photos.google.com/share/AF1QipPY1ngLWoyc1SW6cU8UwTdf0MXmM5TbIZT2uPYUfoMr51VjDvNbTo6JYFVEWEx0xA/photo/AF1QipMhZg1MI8Cb_VZ807WFSaONjG9Ncei-BD4A9hg?key=VGpTM0psSEdIRU5BOGhYOUt6VWt0RGl5Y0tUSlhB

Posted in Uncategorized | Comments Off on Fall Training – Toronto Ontario – Weekend Summary

2024 Canadian 505 Championships – Regatta Report

This years Canadian national 505 Championships was a true reflection of the exciting new ‘vibe’ that is happening here in Eastern Canada: Big fleet, Five Out-of-Towners, and Family teams (partners, kids/parents). Most notable was the huge range of ages from hot young sailors to John Moss on RC committee boat who actively raced 505 in the 70s.

Being Canada, winters come early and the weather gods thought it would be a good idea to remind folks that the seasons are changing. A cold front arrived Saturday morning and stayed for the entire weekend. It meant for some cold, wet and windy conditions, that even the famous Californian teams would be pleased with.

Sailing in breeze requires a different mind set and with time, the comfort zone becomes more established. And it is conditions like this is where dreams are made of, but it was also a time to test how strong your boat is put together. The winter repair list became quickly evident, both major and minor.

Being the national championships, the Ottawa Fleet took the opportunity to combine the event to acknowledge retiring sailors. We bid farewell to John Bryant who over the years has schooled us all on tactical racing and how to make a boat go fast in light shifty conditions. And the team of Chris Gilles and Clarissa Bush, who were major fleet builders, event organizers and a wealth of knowledge of the 505 class. Clarissa was also a former top female skipper at NAs a few years back.

Of course, it wouldn’t be a proper regatta without a lovely dinner and exhaustive de-brief session following each day. After hot showers, and warm clothes: the fleet settled in to an enormous dinner and chat. Long time sailor Ali Meller, and now the owner of the Kingston Sail Loft, was a competitor and it was pleasure to have a sail maker join us because it brings the discussion of sail trim to a whole new level.

As for results, in true Canadian fashion it was a three way tie for first place. Maybe we say sorry too much but mathematically it had to boil down to the young guns of Luke Strickland and Christian Voyer in third place, and the husband and wife teams of Shona Moss and Stephen Lovshin in second and Dave Adams and Debbie Ashby taking first.

And finally, a big thank you to Marie Gendron for organizing the food and dealing with all the hidden tasks of running a regatta. Rob Voyer as chief cook. And of course the event would also not be possible with our amazing spokesperson Paul Place and president of the Canadian 505 Association. We would not be the fleet that we are without all these amazing people.

This concludes our season. We end on a note of promise and excitement for next year. The NAs are coming to Kingston next August, which has spawned chatter about actually “training” for regattas, what to get loved ones for Christmas presents, or who can we get into a boat and reunion tours by former teams.

Sail flat, Sail Fast……Send it.

For results: https://nsc.ca/nsc_racing/fanfare/results/fanfare-2024-results.htm

Posted in Uncategorized | Comments Off on 2024 Canadian 505 Championships – Regatta Report

Got trailer……Well Travel

It is so exciting seeing the next generation prepare for the future of 505 sailing.

Congrads to Luke and Christian for their forward thinking and getting ready for their next 505 adventure.

But of course we cannot over look the support of Rob Voyer (father of Luke) for overseeing the project and building something that is going to be safe and solid on the highway because we all all have our war stories of breakdowns on the road.

(Also a big shout out to Nepean Sailing Club for donating the chassis. Their support of dingy sailing is very much appreciated.)

Posted in Uncategorized | Comments Off on Got trailer……Well Travel

LAKE SUNAPEE YACHT CLUB INVITATIONAL

Author: Marie Gendron

Nine 505 teams participated in the Lake Sunapee Yacht Club Invitational in NH, USA on August 24-25 with four of those teams coming from Ottawa: Luke Strickland and Christian Voyer (the sons team), Larry Strickland and Rob Voyer (the fathers team), Debbie and Dave and Marie and Andrew Gesing.

If you think that the winds are shifty on Lake Deschenes you have not sailed on Lake Sunapee. Lake Sunapee that is surrounded by small mountains, so it offers lake racing at it’s “best”. This is another way of saying lots of crazy shifts, lots of opportunities to catch up or lose it all.

The winds were very light, we were lucky to get in three races on Saturday, thanks to the responsive race committee. 


Somehow, the top sailors always find their way to the front of the fleet in lake or ocean racing
conditions. Gate starts were in place and racing was close.

The regatta was won by the local sailors and regatta organizer, Duane Delfosse and Mike Hull with 8 pts, second place with also 8 pts, Paul Taylor and Sol Marini and 3 rd place with 9 pts (the legend himself) Tom Kivney sailing with this time with John Ingles (the 2023 ECC regatta organizers).


NSC’s Luke and Christian , sailing Jeff Boyd’s blue boat, placed 4 th only 2 points form 3 rd
place, with a 3 rd , 6 th and 2 nd places. Thanks to Andrew Gesing magic, Marie and Andrew place 2 nd and 5 thbut dead last in the 3 rd race.


LSYC was a very nice club, with over 100 years of sailing activities and a superb view on the lake and onthe Sunapee Ski Hill. The Start and the ILCA fleets were also part of the event.

Duane found billet to all the Canadian teams. The regatta provided t-shirt to everyone, an all-you-can-eat superb buffet dinner.

Report by Duane

Lake Sunapee Invitational

On August 24-25 nine 505s convened at beautiful Lake Sunapee in New Hampshire for the Lake Sunapee Invitational.  Three classes were invited, Star boats, ILCA (Laser) and 505s. This was the second of two multiclass events sponsored by Lake Sunapee Yacht Club, the other being a Viper and Flying Scott event this past spring.   Teams travelled from Ottawa, Massachusetts, Rhode Island and Virginia to race 505s this weekend. 

Weather for the weekend was warm and sunny, however the breeze was not as reliable as is usually the case in late August on the lake.  On Saturday the RC got off the first two races in a shifty northwest wind.  Conveniently, between races the breeze decided to shift 60 degrees to the left for a west southwest third race.   Despite the shift to the left, the right typically paid for pressure, but there was often a starboard tack header as you approached the weather mark.  It ended up that overstanding the starboard tack layline proved to be a winning strategy as the pressure differential was more substantial than the angle.  Tom Kivney and John Ingles were on top of the shifts and lulls winning the first race, followed by Marie Gendron/Adam Gesing and Luke Strickland/Christian Voyer.  Race 2 saw sailors become more familiar with the conditions.  Paul Taylor and Sol Marini took the gun followed by Delfosse/Hull and the Huebner team, Amie and Ted.  Race 3 in the new breeze proved to also be a “go right” theme, but the middle and left at times looked tempting. The fleet was stretched out at the first mark. Delfosse/Hull were consistent to take the gun followed closely by Luke Strickland and Christian Voyer in second, and Paul Taylor and Sol Marini in third. 

Sunday looked weak from a forecast standpoint, and unfortunately the meteorologists were correct.  We waited until just after 12:00 before we heard the cancellation signal.  There was some vindication for this decision because the fleet of Sonars that had planned to race in the afternoon were also shut out.  Winning the event on a tie breaker was Duane Delfosse and Mike Hull.  Second went to Paul Taylor and Sol Marini who had speed and precision throughout the event.  Third went to Tom Kivney and John Ingles.  It should be noted different teams won each of the three races.

I have been following the progressive improvement in recent events (in both the US and Canada) of Luke Strickland and Christian Voyer.  They placed a solid fourth in a new boat that they just acquired from Jeff Boyd counting a 2, 3 and 6.  That 2 was nearly a 1, and on lake Sunapee anybody can score a 6!  They will be a force in the future!

Lake Sunapee Yacht Club found housing for all asked for it, and the contestants seemed to enjoy the scenic beauty of Lake Sunapee.   Make this event a priority next year!

Results:

https://yachtscoring.com/event_results_cumulative.cfm?eID=16853

Posted in Uncategorized | Comments Off on LAKE SUNAPEE YACHT CLUB INVITATIONAL

2024 Eastern Canadian Championships Report

The 2024 Eastern Canadian Championships will be remembered for the high wind sailing conditions. Racing was cancelled after one race on Saturday, as the wind speed reached 30 knots. Three races weresailed on Sunday in 15 to 23 knots of wind before the breeze built to the point that the RC sent sailors in. Twenty teams, including 15 sailors under 25 years old, participated in the event hosted at Kingston Yacht Club on August 10-11.


Ali Meller (who moved permanently to Kingston this year) sailing with Kyber Lovshin won the event placing 1 st in 3 of the 4 races series. Two USA teams place 2 nd and 3 rd , Duane Delfosse/Mike Hull in 2 ndand Thomas Kivney/Gordon Russell in 3 rd .

During the awards ceremony, Ali told the story that when he started sailing the 505 back in the 70’s he was mentored by John Moss (Shona Moss-Lovshin’s father and Kyber’s grandfather) and now he was able to win this event with the help of his grand-child.

The top youth sailor (Under 19 years old) was Sabina Bartlewska from Toronto, racing with her father Robert. The top female skipper was Debbie Ashby from Ottawa, who placed 5 th overall sailing with her husband Dave Adams. The Storer brothers from Ottawa both U19 sailors placed 13 th overall and 1 st youth team.


Jeff Boyd high light the effort and success of Shona Moss for the recruitment of younger sailors in the class. Jeff said that he had never been to a 505 regatta were parents ask him for advises.
The Canadian Class would like to thank Jeff Boyd for the organization of the event, Bill Visser the Race committee chair who did a fantastic job with his RC team, the Kingston Yacht Club and its manager Tom Wilson for their hospitality.

NB: Ali Meller (who is a Kingston Sail Loft (KSL) partner) was racing with a prototype KSL 505 Spinnaker. The spinnaker is a full triradial design with all panels arranged to line up warp threads with the loads radiating out from the corners. Kyber reported that it was very easy to fly.

Sailed: 4, Discards: 0, To count: 4, Entries: 20, Scoring system: Appendix A

RankSail NumberYacht ClubSkipperCrewR1R2R3R4TotalNett
1st8841KYCAli MellerKyber Lovshin1.03.01.01.06.06.0
2nd8930LSYCDuane DelfosseMike Hull4.02.03.02.011.011.0
3rdUSA 9005HYCThomas KivneyGordon Russell3.04.04.03.014.014.0
4thCAN 8821KYCJeff BoydMartin ten Hove5.05.02.06.018.018.0
5th8696NSCDeb AshbyDave Adams6.06.05.05.022.022.0
6th8987MBSCPeter ScannellTed Huebner2.01.021.0 RET4.028.028.0
7th8587NSCPaul PlaceAlexander Tong8.07.07.09.031.031.0
8th8850OHCCDouglas WatsonAlex Taylor9.09.06.013.037.037.0
9thCAN 9028NSC/BYCMalcolm MacGillivrayDevlin Lovshin21.0 RET11.09.07.048.048.0
10thCAN 7606OHCCRobert BartlewskiSabina Bartlewska10.08.021.0 RET11.050.050.0
11th920NSCMarie GendronDavid Browne7.013.011.021.0 DNC52.052.0
12thCAN 8442NSCThomas AdolphStephen Adolph21.0 DNF14.08.010.053.053.0
13th7773NSCThomas StorerNathaniel Storer21.0 DNF15.010.012.058.058.0
14th8753OHCCConor MorrisonDrake Morrison21.0 DNF17.014.08.060.060.0
15th9138OHCCMarek BalinskiSteve Lovshin21.0 RET10.013.021.0 DNC65.065.0
16th8260 (and 005)NSCJoel VoyerSiqi Zhang21.0 RET12.012.021.0 DNC66.066.0
17th138NSCLuke StricklandChristian Voyer11.016.021.0 RET21.0 DNC69.069.0
18thCAN7605KYCLuca ManningAdam Gesing21.0 RET21.0 DNC15.021.0 RET78.078.0
19thCAN 8951OHCCHannah AbushJoshua Abush21.0 DNF21.0 DNC21.0 DNC21.0 DNC84.084.0
19th9186NSCShona Moss LovshinEvania Lovshin21.0 DNF21.0 DNC21.0 DNC21.0 DNC84.084.0

R1

Start: Start 1, Finishes: Place

RankSail NumberYacht ClubSkipperCrewPlacePoints
18841KYCAli MellerKyber Lovshin11.0
28987MBSCPeter ScannellTed Huebner22.0
3USA 9005HYCThomas KivneyGordon Russell33.0
48930LSYCDuane DelfosseMike Hull44.0
5CAN 8821KYCJeff BoydMartin ten Hove55.0
68696NSCDeb AshbyDave Adams66.0
7920NSCMarie GendronDavid Browne77.0
88587NSCPaul PlaceAlexander Tong88.0
98850OHCCDouglas WatsonAlex Taylor99.0
10CAN 7606OHCCRobert BartlewskiSabina Bartlewska1010.0
11138NSCLuke StricklandChristian Voyer1111.0
12CAN 9028NSC/BYCMalcolm MacGillivrayDevlin LovshinRET21.0
12CAN 8442NSCThomas AdolphStephen AdolphDNF21.0
127773NSCThomas StorerNathaniel StorerDNF21.0
128753OHCCConor MorrisonDrake MorrisonDNF21.0
129138OHCCMarek BalinskiSteve LovshinRET21.0
128260 (and 005)NSCJoel VoyerSiqi ZhangRET21.0
12CAN7605KYCLuca ManningAdam GesingRET21.0
12CAN 8951OHCCHannah AbushJoshua AbushDNF21.0
129186NSCShona Moss LovshinEvania LovshinDNF21.0

R2

Start: Start 1, Finishes: Place

RankSail NumberYacht ClubSkipperCrewPlacePoints
18987MBSCPeter ScannellTed Huebner11.0
28930LSYCDuane DelfosseMike Hull22.0
38841KYCAli MellerKyber Lovshin33.0
4USA 9005HYCThomas KivneyGordon Russell44.0
5CAN 8821KYCJeff BoydMartin ten Hove55.0
68696NSCDeb AshbyDave Adams66.0
78587NSCPaul PlaceAlexander Tong77.0
8CAN 7606OHCCRobert BartlewskiSabina Bartlewska88.0
98850OHCCDouglas WatsonAlex Taylor99.0
109138OHCCMarek BalinskiSteve Lovshin1010.0
11CAN 9028NSC/BYCMalcolm MacGillivrayDevlin Lovshin1111.0
128260 (and 005)NSCJoel VoyerSiqi Zhang1212.0
13920NSCMarie GendronDavid Browne1313.0
14CAN 8442NSCThomas AdolphStephen Adolph1414.0
157773NSCThomas StorerNathaniel Storer1515.0
16138NSCLuke StricklandChristian Voyer1616.0
178753OHCCConor MorrisonDrake Morrison1717.0

R3

Start: Start 1, Finishes: Place

RankSail NumberYacht ClubSkipperCrewPlacePoints
18841KYCAli MellerKyber Lovshin11.0
2CAN 8821KYCJeff BoydMartin ten Hove22.0
38930LSYCDuane DelfosseMike Hull33.0
4USA 9005HYCThomas KivneyGordon Russell44.0
58696NSCDeb AshbyDave Adams55.0
68850OHCCDouglas WatsonAlex Taylor66.0
78587NSCPaul PlaceAlexander Tong77.0
8CAN 8442NSCThomas AdolphStephen Adolph88.0
9CAN 9028NSC/BYCMalcolm MacGillivrayDevlin Lovshin99.0
107773NSCThomas StorerNathaniel Storer1010.0
11920NSCMarie GendronDavid Browne1111.0
128260 (and 005)NSCJoel VoyerSiqi Zhang1212.0
139138OHCCMarek BalinskiSteve Lovshin1313.0
148753OHCCConor MorrisonDrake Morrison1414.0
15CAN7605KYCLuca ManningAdam Gesing1515.0
168987MBSCPeter ScannellTed HuebnerRET21.0
16CAN 7606OHCCRobert BartlewskiSabina BartlewskaRET21.0
16138NSCLuke StricklandChristian VoyerRET21.0

R4

Start: Start 1, Finishes: Place

RankSail NumberYacht ClubSkipperCrewPlacePoints
18841KYCAli MellerKyber Lovshin11.0
28930LSYCDuane DelfosseMike Hull22.0
3USA 9005HYCThomas KivneyGordon Russell33.0
48987MBSCPeter ScannellTed Huebner44.0
58696NSCDeb AshbyDave Adams55.0
6CAN 8821KYCJeff BoydMartin ten Hove66.0
7CAN 9028NSC/BYCMalcolm MacGillivrayDevlin Lovshin77.0
88753OHCCConor MorrisonDrake Morrison88.0
98587NSCPaul PlaceAlexander Tong99.0
10CAN 8442NSCThomas AdolphStephen Adolph1010.0
11CAN 7606OHCCRobert BartlewskiSabina Bartlewska1111.0
127773NSCThomas StorerNathaniel Storer1212.0
138850OHCCDouglas WatsonAlex Taylor1313.0
14CAN7605KYCLuca ManningAdam GesingRET21.0

Scoring codes used

CodeDescriptionPoints
DNCDid not come to the starting area21
DNFStarted but did not finish21
RETRetired21
Posted in Uncategorized | Comments Off on 2024 Eastern Canadian Championships Report

PAST EAST CANADIAN 505 CHAMPIONS

1966 KC 1926 R. Scheider

1967 

1970 US 3240 Chuck Angle

1971 KC 3338 David Court-Hampton, Phil Tillman

1972 KC 3338 David Court-Hampton, Phil Tillman

1973 KC 3339 Rick Hewitt, Colin Blandy

1974 KC 4583 Rick Williamson, Malcom McHattie

1975 KC 4645 Peter Wood, Steve Potts

1976 KC 5905 Richard Storer, Phil Tillman

1977 KC 5606 Mike Geew, Richard Geew

1978 KC6068 Mike Agrell, Dave Jones

1979 KC6910 Simon & Hugh Lewis

1980 KC6910 Simon & Hugh Lewis

1981 KC6910 Simon & Hugh Lewis

1982 Peter Wood, Peney Easterbrook

1983 KC6910 Simon & Nick Lewis

1984 KC6910 Simon & Nick Lewis

1985 KC6910 Simon & Hugh Lewis

1986 Renka & Adam Gesing

1987 KC7354 Renka & Adam Gesing

1988 KC7354 Renka & Adam Gesing

1989 KC7354 Jeff Boyd & Ian Eskritt

1990 ? – may be not contested

1991 KC8011 Brian Farnand, Hugh Morrin

1992 Jeff Boyd, Mark Rutherford

1993 Jeff Boyd, Gord Crothers

1994 KC8264 Jeff Boyd, Martin Ten Hove

1995 KC8264 Jeff Boyd, Florence Boyd

1996 Not contested

1997 CAN8264 Jeff Boyd, Martin Ten Hove

1998 CAN8264 Jeff Boyd, Martin Ten Hove

1999 CAN8442 Hugh Morrin, Michael Hoffman

2000 CAN8264 Jeff Boyd, Peter Gifford

2001 CAN8264 Jeff Boyd, Florence Boyd

2002 CAN8264 Jeff Boyd, Martin Ten Hove

2003 Jeff Boyd, Danielle Boyd

2004 Jeff Boyd, Rachelle Boyd

2005 Jeff Boyd, Pat Ware

2006 Steve Adolph

2007 Jeff Boyd, Rachelle Boyd

2008 Jeff Boyd

2009 Jeff Boyd, Rachelle Boyd

2010 John Bryan, Ron Hughes

2011 Ian Torrie, Leith Shenstone

2012 Jeff Boyd

2013 Marg Hurley, Christian De Champlain

2014 Jeff Boyd

2015 Marg Hurley

2016 Marie Gendron, David Browne

2017 John Bryan, Ron Hughes

2018 Jeff Boyd, Martin Ten Hove

2019 – 2023 Not contested

2024 Ali Meller, Kyber Lovshin

Posted in Uncategorized | Comments Off on PAST EAST CANADIAN 505 CHAMPIONS

40th Anniversary Newport Regatta Report

On July 13-14 eleven 505s convened in Newport, Rhode Island for the 40thAnniversary Newport Regatta that also served as the New England Championship.  Teams travelled from Ottawa, Toronto, Western New York and Florida to compete with a host of other classes including everything from 12 Meters to F-18 cats.  You know that when 12 Meters are involved, the quality and quantity of food is certainly improved!  Mount Gay Run was the primary sponsor, and so the Saturday party didn’t disappoint.

Weather for the weekend was not so stellar as we might have hoped with rain and thick fog keeping sailors shore side until noon on Saturday.  Eventually we got off two tricky races in SW breeze 5 to 12 knots after which the sun came out.  Peter Scannell and John Dunilea (aka “Irish”) sailed quite well to win the day with 4 points.  Following closely behind the Irish were Ethan Bixby/ Ted Huebner and Craig Thompson/Adam Wolnikowski both with 5, and Macy Nelson/Chris Brady with 6.   

Sunday looked to be set up for a classic thermal from the SW, but it took a little bit of time to push the morning northwest flow out of the way.  Racing got started a little late and three races were completed in 5 to 12 knots.     With line starts for the weekend, and a long line set for a large fleet of VX1, you had to gauge the distance to the line carefully.  Duane Delfosse/Mike Hull sailed consistently and won the day with 6 points followed by Craig/Adam and Luke Strictland/Christian Voyer each with 9.  With 5 races completed and no throw outs, Craig and Adam’s consistency won out with 14 points.  They retained possession of the Kivney Bowl for yet another year, much to Craig’s wife’s disappointment.   Second were Ethan/Chris with 15 followed by Delfosse/Hull and Peter/John tied with 17.  It should be noted that 5 different boats won the 5 races.

An underlying and extremely positive story for the weekend was how Luke Strictland and Christian Voyer upped their game throughout the event.  Before and after sailing each day, Christian and Luke were asking a ton of great questions, and through that effort they were able to figure out their issues.  Their series line of 7, 5, 5, 3,1 was not an accident, but specific and targeted improvement!  I think the final piece of their puzzle was the discovery that a couple of screws had backed out of the centerboard (beak to CB connection) causing the board not to gybe.  The whole fleet pulled together to help the young team.  Hats off the university students from Ottawa as they made a mark in Newport!!

A second happy story was the arrival of Will and Bill Platt with their vintage Lindsay.  Last year they hit a rock and tore off the transom.  This year they were all repaired and got around the course fine with big smiles!

https://yachtscoring.com/event_results_cumulative.cfm?eID=16615

We’ll post some pictures if we can find some.

Posted in Uncategorized | Comments Off on 40th Anniversary Newport Regatta Report

Who are these guys?

Posted in Uncategorized | Comments Off on Who are these guys?

3rd Annual Eastern North American Training Regatta- Kingston Ontario

Report from Dave Adams:

There is no question about it, travelling and participating in regattas is key to a successful 505 career. There is no substitute but sometime you just want to try stuff out in a “sorta” race environment and that is where a training regatta shines.

Every year we gather in Kingston to do just that. It is a weekend of drills, practise starts and long on-shore debriefs. They are majic!

A big thank you to the Boyd family, Steve Yates on power boat, Ali Meller coaching and Renka Gesing and Marie Gendron for organizing. Also a big shout out to the Canadian 505 Class Association for subsidizing the costs. This is an investment that pays off because we had two new boats show up!

Report From Renka Gesing:

The training event at the Kingston Yacht Club was an unqualified success — a good deal for participants, great coaching and great training for all the different levels of sailing experience, a pizza dinner arranged by Florence Boyd, and wonderful sailing conditions.

Clinic fees were a good deal thanks to the Class subsidy that covered rental of the coach boat and gas. The fees were $40 for the “older” folks, and $30 for those under 25. Out of the 16 participants, almost half were in the younger group. 

The youngest sailor was 15-year-old Luca Manning, who skipped for his grandfather, Adam Gesing. He was thrilled with the experience: “As an inexperienced sailor, this weekend was a very enriching and valuable experience. I learned so much about everything that has to do with sailing, from tactics to boat handling. There wasn’t a negative thing that I can say about it, except for it not being long enough. Another great value of this masterclass has nothing to do with sailing directly. I got to meet so many new people with great stories and experiences to share. The 505 community is truly an amazing thing that I am very glad to be a part of.”

The youngest combined crew were teenagers Evania Lovshin and Cameron Laing. Then there were the parent/son or daughter crews. It was great to see two new boats from Toronto’s OHCC. We welcome to the Class Hannah Abush and her father Joshua, and Drake Morrison and his father Conor. Another father/son team was Steve Adolph and Tommy Adolph. Yet another young newcomer to the class was Yunus Akcor, who crewed for Douglas Watson.

There was some representation from wife/husband teams: Deb Ashby with Dave Adams, and Shona Moss with Steve Lovshin.

Coaching was also a family affair. Jeff Boyd and his daughter Danielle joined Ali Meller to head up the sail training. The mornings were spent with boat setup, the afternoon sailing multiple shorter races. The three jumped in and out of the coach boat, driven by Steve Yates, to share their sailing prowess.

I sadly remained on shore but was happy to see such a successful event.

Posted in Uncategorized | Comments Off on 3rd Annual Eastern North American Training Regatta- Kingston Ontario