NOR for Kerikeri Family event race.
The race details can be downloaded from here.
13th March
I hope you all enjoyed your delivery sail from Waitangi to Opua. We had a nice little breeze and the incoming tide helped us home.
I wanted to say a big thanks to all the parents who are able to volunteer their time either before or after sailing and help me get the kids out sailing and packed up.
Next week sailing is on from 3-6pm as per usual.
We will do the Flying V drill play ball tag and learn to sail backwards.
For the teenagers we haven’t seen you for ages. Put down your PlayStation for 2 hours and come out for a sail. I will make sure we leave 2 420’s for you to sail and when you get out there I can swap you in for a sail in the splash.
See you there
2017
Youth Sailing Regatta
2016
It was great to see so many BOIYC and OCC sailors out on the water on Sunday in probably the best racing breeze we have had for two months.
We are hoping to see more boats out on the water for our next regatta on the third of July. I have a confirmed starter from Russell boating club And with any luck we might get some KCC sailors joining us as well. So talk to your friends at school, teams racing circles and your coffee groups and let’s make it a regatta to remember. Remember to bring your Red Sox to celebrate Sir Peter Blake.
We want to see the following boats entered:
Monohulls mistral, sunbursts, 420, 29er, any other 2 handed monohulls
Multi hulls,Hobie 16, tornado and any other awesome 2 handed catsOk so here we go
Tonight single handed training 330-630
we are expecting some good wind and the plan is to do some match racing.Thursday two handed training 330-630
We will be running hoisting and dropping drills working on boat handling with a spinnaker/gennaker you might want to use this night as a practise for the Red Sox 2 handed regatta. All welcome including sunbursts.Friday learn to race group 330-630
Again our focus is having a fun night on the water and we will set up some America’s cup style sprint races with reaching starts and finish.Saturday 2-5 all classes coaching
I have some family visiting so I’m hoping to move our session to this afternoon slot. For those that come on a Saturday let me know if this works? You might have time to go mountain-biking in the morning.
Sail anything you want (a good chance to practice with your team mate for Red Sox 2 handed regatta 3 July. The focus will be on tight mark roundings rules and we will hear some protests in the debrief.Sunday am 9-12 learn to race group
We will be working on pointing (sailing up wind close to the wind) and sailing by the lee (sailing as low as you can without gybing down wind.) as well as throwing in a bunch of fun games, lollies and general good times on the water.
Sunday pm race briefing at 1pm first race at 2pm finished by 4pm
3 races scheduled to count towards our winter series points. Races 21,22,23 of the series.
Tuesday next week 330-630 single handed
Match race training again!!
Tonight single handed classes 330-630
talking thru the golden skills poster and other tactics on the water.
Discussions around what priorities to make with decision making tasks.Thursday 2 handed sailing 330-630
I will run a briefing and set up for windward leeward sprint races with the focus on tactics and staying between your opponent and the mark.Friday go racing group! 330-630
Discussions around the mental game of sailing, what to think and how to plan ahead before each mark. Sailing is a game of chess and we need to plan 2 moves ahead.Saturday 2 coaching for 1 and 2 handed 1030-130
Tactics again!!! And looking at some speed testing and adjusting rig tensions.Sunday go racing group! am 9-12
Sneaky tricks at marks and the start finish line.Sunday pm racing 1-4
The turn out has been great for winter series racing and we are seeing more parents on the water sailing with their younger kids or in their own boats. We still have more club boats available for Sunday racing so come and join in.Tuesday single handed coaching 330-630
Speed testing
I look forward to seeing you all during the week.
Good sailing and fair winds.
Robbs Hielkema
Sailing Coach and Yacht skipper
021858897
Skype: robhielkema
Sailing Coach and Yacht skipper
021858897
Skype: robhielkema
6/4/2016
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14/3/2016
Hi team
This week we are on for Thursday 2 handed coaching.
We are all go for Friday learn to race group.
Saturday am, I’m going to spend some time at lake Manawai to try and convince some kids to come sailing in the ocean with us.
Saturday pm there is a match racing regatta at Opua yacht club in their club 420’s. I encourage fathers mothers and their children to join in on the fun and fly the flag for bay of islands yacht club. Registration is 330 racing from 4. There will be heats and sudden death until the finals.
Dinner and a band at the club afterwards.
Sunday am is learn to race group
Sunday pm I will run racing, we will be low on numbers with many of our starling sailors in Auckland with regattas. Please email or txt me if you are keen to race on Sunday so I can prepare. I might tow a boat out to the race course and join in on the racing action. Parents come and race, club boats are available so don’t be shy.
Also here is some information about youth class training good info and will help everyone to understand the next step. In competitive sailing after/at the end of your starling career..
http://www.yachtingnz.org.nz/
Here is the performance pathway including ideal ages and weights
http://www.yachtingnz.org.nz/
Less competitive less expensive opportunities also available!!! Talk to me and we can set goals.
Robbs Hielkema
Sailing Coach and Yacht skipper
021858897
Skype: robhielkema
OCC Junior Sailing is alive and well charging ahead with a
enthusiastic bunch of junior sailors! 2014
OCC Youth Sailing is very much alive and well! To all our active youth sailors ‘please send in your news’ to tell everybody what fun you are having and what you get up to at Youth Sailing
Sir Peter Blake 2013 Regatta
The regatta is sailed in the first weekend of December in the superb sailing waters off Torbay Auckland. It hosts the most commonly sailed centreboard dinghy classes in NZ. Conditions were fine on day one, gusting 15 knots, day two showers in the morning clearing by midday, gusting 15 knots max . Overall race results 5th place for Horima Neville competing in the Green Fleet Starlings. There were many newer more equipped Starlings out there that came back in beaten up and broken, but Horima kept on charging on finishing on a strong streak. This shows the value of racing to the best of your knowledge and sailing spirit. OCC congratulates Horima whom showed a competitive edge and sportsmanship, this is exactly what Sir Peter Blake would have wanted to see in New Zealands sailing youth. As in his life, his values and his passion for sailing. OCC is proud to have Horima being apart of the youth sailing program and thank his parents Trina and Russell Neville for their continued support for all the OCC youth sailors.


Opua Cruising Club Youth Sailing Reports
10/7/11 Youth sailing and racing program
I went down the hill as fast as I could. I was eager to get there and see the new starling. We got the starling because Jono wants us to go in sailing regattas and sail against kids our age. The splashes are really to big for us kids; usually only adults sail them but we still have fun on them. Wewere fund-raising for three starlings but we got them given thanks to Mrs and Mr Potter, Mrs and Mr Devlin and Mrs and Mr Crawford. When I got down to the youth sailing shed Jono asked me if I wanted to try out the new starling and I was really exited to do so. So I started rigging up the new boat. It is really different to the splashes. First the cockpit is really deep, the mast has side stays, the boom is low, it has a really tall mast for the size of the boat, and its made out of wood not fibreglass. We went and launched the boats. I had never sailed a starling before and how it sails is also a bit different, it can’t reach as high as a splash and I know that because I was pushing one of the splashes up into the wind we had our sails pulled in the same and my sail started to flap before the splashes. I might be wrong but that’s what I felt. Also the floor vibrates because the floor is also the bottom of the hull when splashes have space between the bottom of the hull and the floor. I also capsized and found out that the boat fills up with water and I lost my bailer to make it worse.I really enjoyed my first time on a starling and thank you once again Mrs and Mr Potter, Mrs and Mr Devlin and Mrs and Mr Crawford for making this possible for me and my mates at youth sailing.
Rebecca Gmuer-Hornell
3/7/2011 youth sailing and racing program
another wet and windy day out on the water, good to see some keen kids out there.very good starts to the races. some great things to come from this, some new boats in the pipe line, watch this space.
Jono
29/6/2011 Kawakawa Primary School learn to sail
Final class, amazing how 6 weeks disappear. today the kids each got a blast on a splash, they really enjoyed it and they are all keen to continue sailing. I must say again, a big thank you to Ian Templeman, Les and Chris Alderton with out you this wouldn’t have happened, and a big thanks also to the keen well behaved kids from Kawakawa Primary School, your welcome to come to sailing any time. that’s all from me, see you kids on Sunday.
Jono
26/6/2011 youth sailing racing and learn to sail
great morning out on the water. fantastic to see new kids keen to give it a go even if it is raining,
well done Sam Marsh for racing on the big boats this afternoon
Jono
22/6/2011 Kawakawa Primary School learn to sail
Fantastic afternoon on the water, had a lot of tacking and gybing practices, a great bunch of kids who are keen to sail. also thanks to all the help from Les Alderton and Ian Templeman couldn’t do this with out you
Jono
19/6/2011 youth sailing racing program
Windy gusty day, a lot of sailing upside down but some very exiting racing. very impressed at how far these kids have come in the past six months. some interesting tack-tics and starts are improving a lot. keep up the good work . Jono