Safety Beach Sailing Club NEWS 6th May 2026
Presentation Night - 30th May
Booking line is now open, please make sure you book BEFORE Thursday 28th May to secure your place at the table.
VOTE NOW!
VOTE NOW!
VOTE NOW!
After a busy season, we are getting close to Presentation Night and now is the time to nominate your choice for:
- Club Person of the Year
- Junior Club Person of the Year
Recognition from your peers doesn’t get any more special than being voted Club Person of the Year.
If you’ve ever thought about acknowledging someone who truly makes a difference around the club, now is the perfect time. This award is presented on Presentation Night, and the recipient(s) are chosen by your votes.
There are many deserving individuals—most of them working quietly behind the scenes—so take a moment to recognise the people who help make our club what it is.
Send your nominations and a short reason why you nominated that member to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
A volunteer is needed to clean the trophy cabinet at the club before presentation night. It can be done any time before 30th May. Please email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. if you can help.
Happy Mother's Day
Did you know our club has just over 150 female members, and a large percentage of them hold the very special and privileged title of Mum.
This Sunday is a special day to celebrate all the incredible mums in our club community. We’d like to wish each and every SBSC mum a wonderful Mother’s Day. We hope you enjoy being celebrated and spoiled—you deserve all the fuss that comes your way.
Happy Mother’s Day to all our SBSC mums! 🌷💐
Junior Sailing Program
Hi All,
We forgot to thank a couple of people last week............
1/ David and Deirdre Snooks, through Snooks Catering, have been incredibly generous in sponsoring the weekly Kiosk Award over many years. Their support has created a special connection between our junior sailors and the excitement of being recognised for their efforts. The Kiosk Award has become a much-loved part of the program, and without their contribution, something truly special would be missing. Each week, recipients are thrilled to receive their award and are often eager to spend it immediately, creating a lasting memory of their day at the club. A huge thank you to David and Deirdre for their ongoing support and for helping make the junior sailing experience so memorable.
2/ A huge thank you to Stuart Scott for stepping in as our unexpected first responder on the final day of junior sailing. To finish off the season, the juniors headed off on an adventure sail down to the Safety Beach jetty, where cupcakes and juice boxes were waiting as a special treat. With a strong northerly blowing, a few of our sailors reached the beach well before the support crew arrived with the refreshments. As several dinghies came hurtling towards the shore at impressive speeds — with kids screaming in a mix of excitement and panic — Stuart just happened to be passing by on his Sunday morning walk. Suddenly finding himself front and centre of the action, he jumped in to help catch the incoming boats as they hit the shore. The kids spilled out laughing and in disbelief that they had just experienced some of the fastest sailing of the entire 18-week program. A huge thanks to Stuart for his quick thinking and willingness to jump in and help until the support crew finally arrived, cupcakes in tow.
We recently sent a survey to all families who participated in the program and, when collated, we will be excited to share the overwhelmingly positive feedback. Many families have already expressed interest in returning next season, which is fantastic news for the club.
If you would like to be involved in next season’s program, we’d love to hear from you.
We’d also like to encourage any business owners within the club to consider sponsoring the program. Our goal is to provide branded merchandise, such as t-shirts and hoodies, for the kids next season. This would be a great opportunity for your business to feature on gear that the kids will proudly wear both at the club and out in the community.
If you’re interested in getting involved, either as a volunteer or sponsor, please contact us at
Fiona and the team
Keelboats
I’m back from cruising the Bay of Islands with Amanda and Ewen and of course Elaine. (She’s still in Auckland visiting her sister and brother-in-law.) It was immense fun. The world’s best cruising ground, and L’Esprit will be racing there next January. Envy.
I look back to my final Rugby match at thirty-five for the Towcester club in England. We were about to return to Australia and I would never play again. Elaine and the kids were on the sideline, watching in horror. I had decided to put everything I had into the game regardless of exhaustion, injury, even death. I was hooker, so delighted at the opportunity for legalised violence. I remember after a kick by us the phalanx of their forwards charging us, the ball in the hands of their biggest and nastiest Centurion. I remember the look of surprise on his face when I launched at him and buried my shoulder in his guts. He dropped the ball forward and we got a scrum.
So it was on Sunday for the last race of the Summer season. I looked forward excitedly to the strong winds, the cold, the rain, greenies washing over me, the pain of my 76-year-old bones hiking out like a teenager. The adrenaline-fueled joy of it.
Then ‘they’ abandoned the race. Rightly so as thunderstorms has been predicted by the BOM. So we went to Niels’s place for coffee instead.
See you at Presentation on 30th May.
John Nicholas
South Pacific Adventures Await
Hi all
We just wanted to say thanks for letting us come and play this summer season we had a ball .
We left Sunday morning 6.30 am in a majestic sunrise to see us off.
First stop Eden to clear customs then straight out to Lord Howe Island. We will do a few days there.
Next stop New Caledonia for a week or so. From New Cal we are heading to Fiji for the season.
Late Oct we will then leave the cyclone belt and head south to the Bay of Islands NZ where we will fly the SBSC flag at the Bay of Islands race week in January. We will see out the NZ summer season which at that point we will head back to the South Pacific somewhere.
I want to say a big thanks to Jeff and Jen from our sister ship Tumi that helped us out heaps with the compliance side of things getting L'Esprit registered and cleared to leave Aus. Also to Mark and Di for sharing their invaluable experience and advice on cruising the South Pacific .
Thank you so much.
I will keep you posted on our travels. Thanks all, enjoy winter and see you in a year or two
Cheers
Rick Rogers, Slaggers, Stoops, Kimbo, Mike and Lynda
At the time of writing this, L'Esprit were last spotted tied up to the wharf in Eden!
L'Esprit 6.30am, before leaving the local waters for their adventures
Keelboats Winter Series
The Winter Program has now been published onto the club website and can be viewed Here.
It is just over two weeks to the first of this year's Brass Monkey Races so make sure you get your entry in ASAP - Enter Here
SYC Commodore's Challenge
Held on Sunday 17th May 2026. Commodores from around the bay are invited to select their best team of female sailors to take part in a competitive one-design racing event. Your team may comprise of 4 or 5 female sailors. All competitors must be current members of the club they will be representing, and each club may only nominate one team. All races will be sailed on SYC's fleet of J70s for this regatta. This is a great opportunity for any of our female sailors to take up. Commodore’s Challenge
ORCV News
AN EVENING WITH TRISTAN GOURLAY
Tristan recently made history by setting a new Australian record for a solo, unassisted, and non-stop circumnavigation of the globe aboard Blue Moon II through challenging conditions, mechanical failures and even an onboard fire. His voyage is a remarkable story of skill, resilience and determination.
Join us on Wednesday 20 May 2026 as Tristan Gourlay, Australia’s fastest solo around the world sailor, shares his story, from breaking his Dad Ken's original record-setting journey set back in 2007, to their 2025 Melbourne to Osaka race, and the challenges and highlights of his incredible solo circumnavigation. Seating is limited, so we encourage you to secure your place early to avoid missing out. Click here to book your seat.
DOUBLE HANDED BAY RACE
Entries are still open for the Double Handed Bay Race that returns on Sunday 17 May 2026, a 22–24NM bay course starting near Royal Melbourne Yacht Squadron. You can form a team of 3-4 boats and compete for the Entire Perpetual Teams Trophy. In 2026, it also counts as Race 2 of the RMYS Two Handed Winter Series. Click here to enter now.
APOLLO BAY RACE
Sail in company on the Apollo Bay Race on Saturday 23 May 2026. The perfect race to come and try ocean sailing. This 52NM Category 3 race features a 6am start and daylight run along the Great Ocean Road, finishing at Apollo Bay. Perfect for sailors building offshore experience or stepping beyond the bay. Click here to enter the race.
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