The organisers from Sail Sydney have said that they would be happy for the Formula Class to be involved.
www.sailsydney.org.au/
This is a four day regatta based out of Rose Bay in the middle of December.
I know Rose bay isn't the most idyllic spot for racing but it could be a way to get another regatta in the calendar without having to organise a race committee.
What do people think?
It would be fantastic to be involved at Sail Sydney....I live very close to Rose Bay and want nothing more that to race there, but I believe Formula in Rose Bay would be very difficult. Still never say never....
we raced mistrals there sometime before Sydney 2000 and we were confined to Rose Bay dodging 49er's yet little kids in optimist were out on the harbour! wasn't ideal.
I sailed out of Rose Bay twice last week in a NEr on a fw board & 10.0
It's pretty tricky sailing & staying in the zone for sailboards. I sailed all the way up to Watsons Bay and all the way down to Rushcutters Bay. Easiest of course is to stay in Rose Bay, but the area is not very big. The ride down to Rushcutters via Double Bay and under Clark Island is fairly easy, and almost doable in one tack were it not for the wind shadow of Clark Island. Upwind I went around the windward side of the Islands, one tack back to Rose Bay. Upwind from Rose Bay is trickier though: the sailing area gets pretty narrow. Tacking upwind towards Watsons in the passage in front of Vaucluse is relatively easy but downwind is pretty hairy considering the chop, boat wake and heavy sailboat traffic. The wind is also pretty gusty and shifty, so not a relaxing ride on a 10.0 in shifty and gusty winds ranging from anywhere between 10 and 20+
In all it's a pretty unique sailing area with spectacular views but it's pretty tricky to sail considering the zone restrictions, gusty and shifty wind and the very heavy and diverse traffic esp on weekend days (sailing boats of all sizes, motor yachts, those wacky tourist speed boats, sea planes...)
I love Sydney harbour and would like nothing more than to race Formula there, but in summer it is just too dangerous. That said, I think Rose Bay is fine for Race-boards and Windsurfer One Design + BIC's.
Woollahra Yacht Club has about 20 WOD sitting in the racks (mine included) + Sydney Uni use it as a base...It should be a strong windsurfing club with loads of kids sailing, but it needs someone to motivate and organise everyone....there really is a ton of potential, just needs some energy injected...
hey Brett--I agree, and would be happy to be part of that effort once I move to SYD permanently. for now, cheers from DC
I suppose the real question is, do we want another formula regatta on the calendar?
If only it was that simple. May be a strange question, but is there any part of Sail Sydney that could be held on Botany Bay?
also for what it's worth--for the North Americans in SanFran last July we raced FW and Kite racing on the same upwind/downwind 2-mark course, except sometimes with a longer downwind leg for the kites. worked very well--alternating each time between 2 back-to-back fw and kite races.
Sailing at Clontarf yesterday afternoon I had a conversation with Niall Kinch about the ISAF grade one Sail Sydney event. It sounds like a fantastic event and a great opportunity to promote Formula Racing. He mentioned also that in conversations he'd had with the organises, there is the strong willingness to accommodate the windsurfing and kite racing on Botany Bay instead of Rose Bay.
www.sailsydney.org.au/
With rummers circulating of reducing the number of regattas in the NSW Series this coming season, participation in Sail Sydney strikes me as a bit of a 'no brainer'!
As the president of Stormriders Windsurfing Club I'd support any move towards involvement in the Sail Sydney event and I believe a proposal to be involved should be a matter that's raised at the next Stormriders AGM 
http://www.storm-riders.com.au
