The News, Culture and Practice of Sailing woodenboats
in Australia, New Zealand & The South Pacific.
The 2025 Centenarians Rally
Emotional Storytelling - The meta-communication of the clip, characters and setting, shapes how people connect with it - Hoana’s birthday provided a story, the Rally participants, the Sydney Harbour sailing, the representation of her young crew and the snippets of history provided by the interview against the backdrop of a historic clubhouse satisfied the criteria of emotional storytelling - we can claim success on that one.
Wild & Free
One of my favourite moments of the journey was on the second day when we were steaming around the southern capes in rare mirror-flat clam, hot summer conditions were we stopped for a lazy lunch and a few drinks in New Harbour and went swimming and diving. After a glamour day, we saw this as a perfect opportunity to drop some cray pots in off the Breaksea islands. The red glow on the battered westerly facing rocks was amazing as we threw the pots overboard on Sam’s strategic calls.
The Centenarians Rally 2025
The idea has taken a life of its own! We now have an enthusiastic Committee dedicated to the task, and the Centenarians Rally is mooted as a bi-annual October event, taking turns with the Club's well-established Gaffers Day. An approach to the Australian National Maritime Museum saw them seize the opportunity with both hands.
Fidelity to the Demands of the Sea
Halvorsen boats hold a special place in the hearts of many Australians. Halvorsens were renowned for their innovative design, quality vessels, and distinctive styling.
HOANA, One Hundred
My partner is convinced that my demanding mistress has a mind of her own. When told the engine needed removal, she said, “Of course! She wants new Bling; her big birthday is coming up!” After letting that statement settle into its rightful place on the astral plane, I informed her of my horsepower foible. “Safety First,” was the cut through response.
Not long to wait
It was Martyr who suggested the present-day course to the Fastnet, of a similar distance to the Bermuda Race – 615 miles. This established a trend in offshore races of that length, spawning the Sydney-Hobart (1945), China Sea Race (1962) Middle Sea Race (1968) and more recently the RORC Caribbean 600 (2009).
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