News

Yachting New Zealand is pleased to welcome two new Sailability groups as Non Commercial Members: Sailability Taranaki and Sailability Wellington.

The official ISAF film of the London 2012 Olympic Sailing Competition is available to order on DVD now.

The first book about Sir Peter Blake for younger readers Sir Peter Blake was a New Zealand hero – sailor, adventurer, leader and environmentalist. With the passing of over 10 years since his tragic death, the time is ripe for children and young adults to know more about his life and legacy. In The Story of Sir Peter Blake, award-winning author Tessa Duder tells Sir Peter’s life story for young readers, revealing what made him an inspirational leader and sailing legend.

It is an exciting time of the yachting year – event announcements, local yachting now in full swing and Awards recognition for many deserving yachties. Heading into the festive season I’d like to wish everyone a happy and safe Christmas whether cruising or racing. If you happen to be parked in a nice bay somewhere on our fantastic New Zealand coastline take a minute to remind yourself that we all need to continue to actively protect and preserve those magic spots for all recreational users – at Yachting New Zealand we certainly put it high on our priority list.

Here’s a look at the up-coming sailing related events around the country for the next couple of weeks. See the YNZ on-line calendar for full details of these events and those on in January and beyond. Don’t see your event in there? Don’t miss out on some free promotion for your sailing events by adding them to the YNZ on-line calendar here.

With summer kicking in and a lot more people getting out on the water it is timely to remind boaties to keep an eye on others out on the water. For those of you yacht racing, remember “Rule 1.1 Helping Those in Danger – A boat or competitor shall give all possible help to any person or vessel in danger” This is also a good rule for anyone else out on the water, cruising, fishing or otherwise if you see someone in danger, stop, see if you can provide any assistance and contact Coastguard on *500 from your mobile phone. Report all serious incidents requiring assistance on VHF Channel 16.

Sailability Auckland held their annual have a go day on December 1st, and despite the rescheduled date and conflict with other community events, 16 new sailors turned up to embrace the opportunity to try sailing.