Well - we can’t complain about the wind this summer! It’s been great with a huge number of sailable days, mostly Easterlies (not the best direction for Conifer Grove, but great for Eastern Beach, Takapuna, Orewa, even Mission Bay etc). Most of the latter venues are OK to sail in any tide, so there’s no excuse for not getting your sailing-fix regularly!

So far we’ve had Day 1 and 2, with a good turnout of 55 competitors on both days! Additionally, a number of sailors missed Day 2 because it unfortunately clashed with the Course-Slalom Nationals in Christchurch, so the total number of sailors so far is aroundD 80! Day One was held at Pt Chev, with a south-easterly giving extremely variable wind conditions, with the wind varying from 4 knots to 24 knots! The shortboarders struggled in these conditions (apart from Shayne "how does he do it" Bright, who was right up the front in all 3 races!) Day 2 at Eastern Beach was slightly better - the wind was around 10 to 13 knots, but a few light patches made it interesting......and a couple of 27 knots "squalls from hell" resulted in a lot of DNFs especially in Race 2. There were around 12 overseas IMCO sailors competing, which was great for everyone. They are over in NZ for Sail Auckland, and it gave a lot of locals a good chance to see how we compared with the overseas Olympic hopefuls.

North Sails CITY of SAILS DAY 3 - will be at Conifer Grove on Sunday 21st Feb, briefing at 12:00. See y’all there!

These were held at Lyttleton over Feb 4-8. There was a good attendance of around 70 competitors, with good wind and exciting racing on all days. Hamish Bayly and Neil Piebinga fought a close battle, with Neil having more speed in the stronger conditions due to his larger physique. It all came down to the last round, which due to the strong wind was run as a downwind slalom round. Both contenders made it through to the final of 8, but in the tension of the moment Neil and 2 others were over early at the start and were disqualified, leaving Hamish Bayly to pick up his 3rd Course-slalom title. Also well-placed were Aaron Smith, Shayne Bright, and Aaron McIntosh who impressed everyone despite leaving his IMCO and jumping on borrowed gear, Barbara Kendall blitzed the women’s field and most of the men, finishing 13th overall!

The Manukau Windsurfing Club will be hosting the F42 Nationals again this year, at Conifer Grove over the weekend of March 20th and 21st. This year the Nationals are sponsored by the "New Zealand Windsurfer" magazine, and we are grateful for their support. Registration will be from 09:30 on Saturday 20th, with briefing at 11:00am on both days. Don’t forget that there will also be a Sports Class - in other words, this event will provide great racing for all levels. The $60 entry fee will provide great fun, a T-shirt, and a filled roll and drinks each day.

Some of you have neglected to pay your subs yet........could you send it now please??!! The Manukau Club membership remains the same at $30 (without the affiliation fee). You pay us $30 plus your choice of WNZ Full ($20) or affiliated ($10) member. (Note: You may affiliate directly with WNZ, but we prefer you to do it thru the MWC.) I expect that everyone will at least want to pay the $10 to keep their NZL numbers for racing.

It’s a pretty full calendar, with the popular Round Rangi Race on March 7th, then the North Harbour Masters Games (open to everyone) on March 13/14, then the F42 Nationals on March 20/21. The final day of the North Sails City of Sails will also be at Conifer Grove on April 4th. (This unfortunately clashes with the Youth Trials, but we can’t postpone it - there are simply no other reasonable alternatives.

A new windsurfing holiday company, with trips arranged to Tenerife, Fuerteventura, Tarifa, Rhodes, Karpathos, Barbados, Margarita etc. Phone 01273-746700,

FOR SALE:

AHD 300 course-slalom race board. Outstanding performance and handling in all conditions, robust, exc resale value. Approx $1,000 below retail at only $2,300. Call Arthur (09) 537-0343.

Blakes Spirit with 4.7m sail. Great learner board, good for your familiy to learn on. Good condition, only $500 complete. Phone Bob on 524-0884.

Sonic 275 slalom board, very good condition. A selection of Tuttle box fins (390 to 300mm). Complete only $700 ono. Phone Arthur (09) 537-0343.