YOUTH SAILING FOUNDATION NEWS

It has been a busy time for the Youth Sailing Foundation (YSF) since the last update. As many of you would have already seen the Elliotts are now proudly sitting in their berths front and centre to the Club ready for the summer ahead. As of the last update the fleet of Elliotts were in transit from China and I can say they finally made it with a fair bit of relief. After taking delivery of the container, we carefully unloaded the boats and gave them a close inspection ensuring they had arrived without any issues. From there the hulls, keels and rudders were positioned in rows to commence the sanding, priming and antifoul process. A big thank you to Andrew Smith and the team at AJ Marine Services for their efforts and patience in dealing with the delays and weather. Once the bottom work was complete it was time to mate the keels and rudders to the hulls before hitting the water. As with anything boat related this took some time and patience. Each boat was turned up the right way and placed into a modified shipping cradle before being towed to the crane. Here the keels and rudders were fitted and checked before being placed in the water. It was great to see them finally in the water. Unfortunately, we were not immune to the Covid delays which pushed back the delivery date of the mast container from New Zealand. During these delays a refurbished 40ft container was sourced, fitted out and placed on the hardstand and will be utilised as a base for all YSF on-water activities, including sail and PFD storage, general maintenance and a meeting point for all sailors. Other Club assets such as stand up paddleboards and sails for Southern Investigator will also be stored here. Big thanks to Board Member Keith Finch and Rapid Haulage for their generous forklift usage and for making sure all the containers made it to the CYCSA. It was full steam ahead once the mast containers arrived at the Club. From there one mast was dressed with the standing rigging, stepped and several test sails were conducted. This was a time consuming process but ensured each following boat was set up correctly and as identically as possible. Many hands made light work of the task and a big thanks to Tim Cowen who was not only supplying the Doyle Sails but was leading the commission process of the fleet as Greg Elliott was unable to travel from New Zealand due to Covid. The last piece to come together was the sponsor branding expertly done in very blustery conditions by Club sponsor, Daytona Signs. With a host of delays outside of our control it was great to get the six Elliotts on the water just in time for the Club’s Opening Day celebrations. Each boat looked great with their respective sponsor’s branding and looked even better with a big group of young and eager faces on board. As of writing the YSF has had 46 youth sail the Elliotts and the inaugural Summer Squad has started training on Friday evenings. With plenty of interest starting to accumulate from the videos and content the Club has been creating in partnership with Down Under Sail, I can see it being a busy summer ahead. I am looking forward to the wide and varied opportunities the YSF and the Elliott’s provide and hope to see a few members put their money where their mouths are in the coming Members Sprint series. I’m sure there will be some stories for the next Groundswell. As the saying goes there is no ‘I’ in TEAM and I have to thank everyone who has been instrumental in helping me over the last few months getting the Youth Sailing Foundation up and running. See you on the water.

Dale Geddes YSF Head Coach