It’s shaping up to be a busy and exciting few weeks at HHSC! With two major regattas on back-to-back Sundays in August, we’ll need all hands on deck to make them a success. From helping on the water to running the BBQ and welcoming visiting sailors, volunteers are essential to keeping our events safe, fun, and a great fundraiser for the club. Please mark the dates, sign up, and join the team effort that keeps the club thriving.

From the Commodore

Regatta Volunteers Needed!

We’re hosting two major regattas this month and need your help both on and off the water:

• NSW Optimist Travellers Trophy – Sunday 24 August

• Winter Interclub Series final – Sunday 31 August

We expect strong turnouts of visiting sailors and supporters. These events are excellent fundraisers through BBQ/canteen sales. Please mark the dates and lend a hand if you can! Read on for the link to volunteer in the ‘Optimist fleet’ update. A shout out to Luke Ryves for desliming the boat ramp already!

Safety Dance! No more slippery ramp 📸 Jason Chai

Try Your Next Boat

We’re planning a ‘Try Sailing Day’ for senior Optimist and Teens and Tweens sailors ready to transition to their next boat (e.g., ILCAs/ Lasers, 29ers, and windsurfing) in early September. We’ll have boats available to try, and experienced sailors to provide advice and support. There will also be a question and answer session for parents covering topics including purchasing a boat,  participating in club racing, and regattas. Look out for the date confirmation via fleet Whatsapp groups.

Club Racing 

Results are now posted for the Frostbite winter series. Congratulations to Zac Howell (ILCA 6), Emma Thompkins (Optimist) and Sijia Deng (Optimist) for taking out the first 3 positions in the series, and to Thomas Malorey and Thom Pearson for competing in Zests and receiving their official T-shirts, making them part of the club race fleet.

The series successfully gave sailors the chance to get out on the water during our off-season, though weather conditions had a big influence on the results. When the wind held steady, the Australian Yardsticks provided a fair reflection of performance. However, when the breeze dropped mid-race, slower boats were left at a disadvantage. To help address this, I’ll be modifying the sailing instructions next year to allow slower boats additional time to complete the course.

2025–2026 Club Calendar
Next year’s calendar will be published on the website soon and featured in this newsletter—stay tuned!

Learn2Sail

Off for new adventures 📸 Emma Thomas

Upcoming Learn2Sail camps 

All holiday camps and Try Sailing sessions are now open for registration via the events page.

Camp Schedule:

• Monday 29 September-Friday 3 October 2025

• Monday 8-Friday 12 December 2025 (Teens & Tweens only)

• Saturday 20-Tuesday 23 December 2025

• Monday 12-Friday 16 January 2026

• Monday 19-Friday 23 January 2026

Please help us promote our Learn2Sail and Teens & Tweens programs by circulating this flyer through your school, sports, and community networks:

Have family or friends who would like to try sailing? They can register for one of our free Try Sailing sessions being held on Saturdays at 9:00-11:00am on these dates:

• 30 August

• 13 September

• 25 October

• 8 November

• 6 December

• 31 January

• 7 February

• 14 March

The links above are ‘Facebook Events’, so please ‘like’ and ‘share’ with your family, friends, and community groups.

Optimist Fleet

While it's been chilly in Sydney, young Luca De Giosa has been racing in 40-degree heat on Lake Garda!

Lake Garda storm📸 Alessio De Giosa (Coach Atlantis Academy)

Key August Dates:

• Sun 24 Aug – Traveller’s Trophy at HHSC 

Register: https://www.optinsw.org.au/events/292013

Volunteer: https://volunteersignup.org/EFPPH

• Sat 30 Aug – All clubs training hosted at HHSC
  

• Sun 31 Aug – Winter Interclub series final at HHSC

Volunteer: https://volunteersignup.org/DDL9R

Volunteer role descriptions: Volunteer Role Descriptions

We’ll need everyone pitching in to host these events successfully, please help out and make our visitors feel welcome!

Follow NSWIODA on Instagram and Facebook for the latest updates.

OptiChicks Returns!

In September, we’re excited to host the OptiChicks Weekend - two action-packed days of fun, racing, and the legendary sleepover! Registrations are open - don't miss it! Registration numbers are strong, but please share the Facebook Event to help spread the word.

ILCA Fleet

Applications are open for the 2026 ILCA 4 Solidarity Program, for female sailors aged 13-16 on January 1, 2026: ILCA 4 Solidarity Program

Regattas

• Youth Sail Queensland, 22-27 September 2025: https://www.sailingyouth.org.au/youth-sail-qld/

• Youth Sail NSW, 1-6 October 2025: https://www.sailingyouth.org.au/youth-sail-sa/

• Inaugural Double Bay Regatta, 11 October 2025: Inaugural Double Bay Regatta 11th October

• NSW & ACT Coast Championships, 18-19 October 2025: https://laser.asn.au/

• NSW & ACT Open, Youth & Masters States, 15-16 November 2025: https://laser.asn.au/

• Oceania & Australian Open & Youth, 1-8 January 2026: https://www.auslasernationals.com.au/

Newsletter

Have a great photo from recent events? Share it with us via the club’s Photos WhatsApp group, joind via the community.

Contributions and feedback for the newsletter are always welcome via: newsletter@huntershillsailingclub.org.au