Winter season ready to set sail

This Saturday sees the opening of the winter season at the Rarotonga Sailing Club. Commodore Barry Warner and patron Bob Boyd will formally open the season using the spot between the junior sailing and the afternoon racing programme to welcome all sailors and supporters back to the formal racing programme.

While those passionate about sailing have not taken the break between seasons, other sailors will be looking forward to getting back on the water and competing in their classes.

The junior sailing optimist programme has been booming along, with another bunch of keen young sailors learning to sail under the enthusiastic coaching of Junior Charlie and Teau McKenzie.

When joined by the existing Green Fleet sailors and the more advanced sailors in the fiberglass optimists there’s tons of action down at Muri every Saturday morning!

Highlights for this season will be the South Pacific Teams Racing Championships in early July when sailors from Australia, New Zealand, Aitutaki and Rarotonga will contest this teams racing event.

The opportunity to increase the sailing skills and special rules knowledge for this discipline is a great development tool for our young sailors.

The crowning event for the season will of course be the 70th birthday of Rarotonga Sailing Club in August.

The club expects to see a lot of familiar faces from long ago for the week of celebrations and looking forward to going down memory lane with them.

The event will include special sailing events, not least of which is the World Electron Championships. The electron is a radio controlled yacht which has been sailing here in the Cook Islands now for 15 years by a group of enthusiasts.

See you at Muri this Saturday.