YACHTING

Evening Star, Issue 21381, 7 April 1933, Page 6

YACHTING

A YACHTSMAN’S DIARY. Sell Memorial Shield and Vauxhall JDup races, April 17. North-east Harbour Club s races, [April 17. _______ FLOTSAM AND JETSAM. S. Algie is at present getting his speed boat Miss Lenore ready to defend the C. W. Sell Memorial Shield on Saturday. Swallow capsized on her moorings during a recent gale and broke her piast. All the Vauxhall yachts were afloat during the week-end, getting in some good practice for the cup race to be Held to-morrow. It Is pleasing to learn that Captain E. R. Nicholas is recovering from his Jong illness, and is home again. The model yacht races which were pot sailed at the Portobello regatta will be sailed at Macaqdrew Bay on Easter Saturday. Further entries will be received.

Kelvin has changed hands and is undergoing alterations to her cabin and ptern.

It is understood that Iris, an Invercargill 14-footer, will be brought to Dunedin and placed on the O.Y.C. roll. Renown, a Puketeraki fishing boat, has , been purchased by George Kellett, well known as a Sanders Cup skipper. The boat was brought to her new moorings in the boat harbour on Sunday. She is 38ft in length and has a beam of Bft, while a five-horse-power heavyduty engine provides the power. Agnes capsized off Grassy Point on Saturday, while sailing to Port Chalmers. The flood tide and the fresh southerly breeze caused unfavourable conditions, and trouble ensued when the boat touched the banks. Timely assistance was given by the Nees brothers, who rowed out to her. Agnes was not damaged. A SENSELESS PRANK. There are apparently some irresponsible and thoughtless people about. On 'a recent Sunday someone opened fire, apparently with a high-powered rifle, at the Vauxhall Club’s starting buoy. Several boats were in the vicinity at the time, and it is fortunate that no one was injured. The buoy was punctured in two places. EASTER RAGES. On Easter Saturday the Broad Bay Boating Club will conduct a series of yacht and motor boat races. There will be events for the following classes:— Yachts —12ft 6in and under (bye miles), under 20ft and over 12ft 6in (four miles), 20ft and over (six miles). The power boat events will also include races for speed and outboard boats over a four-mile course. The big yacht race will again be sailed over a channel course from Broad Bay’to Quarantine Island and back. In the evening a dance will' be held in the Portobello Hall. , Motor boats will be handicapped on declared speed, and ijle attention of boat, owners is drawn to the following resolution: —“ Any variation under the declared time or over the declared speed will automatically disqualify, any competitor, and if, in the opinion of the judges, any boat be considered guilty of inconsistent running such boat may be disqualified.” Entry forms and a chart of the course may be obtained from all club secretaries. Entries close on Thursday next. THE COUNCIL. An important speech on the newlyformed New Zealand Yachting Council was given by Mr 0. A. Moller, chairman of the Wellington Provincial Yacht and Motor Boat Association, and Wellington’s councillor on the council, at a gathering of twenty-five of the executive and officials of the Plimmorton Boating Club on March 24 (states an exchange). Mr R. L. Button was in the chair. Mr Holier stated that the failure of the Sanders Cup in the past was mostly due to deferred action, and this was due to tlio short meeting of conferences, and the fact that at each conference there were new delegates unfamiliar with the work of the previous conference. Want of continuity from year to year was, in short, the trouble. The New Zealand Council, said Mr Moller, had appointed delegates. At the present time the council would be much further on but for the fact that it was holding up things in the hope tjiat Auckland would join the council. “ New Zealand yachtsmen say to Auckland,” said Mr Holler, “ ‘ We ask for equ.al representation, and .after that anything you are likely to propose in the interests of the sport we are prepared to accept.’ We simply say, f Come in and help us lay down rules and regulations that will make future contests a worthy memorial, to this man whom we commemorate fay the Sanders Cup * With regard to the Cornwell Cup, Mr Moller said it was founded by the Takapuna Club and not the Auckland Association. The position there to-day was that the Cornwell Cup had been particularly well managed, though there was a little trouble over rule 3, a difference which lasted two years, but had the New Zealand Council been in being, ono week would have finished it. The difference between Auckland other New Zealand associations could have "been finished in one meeting if the New Zealand Council had been operating, instead of going on for twelve months. Yachtsmen did not seem to know that the New Zealand _ Council stood only for intercolonial, interprovincial, and interport matters, and was not going to concern itself about club matters. “ Frankly, I feel that in Auckland there has been a good deal in the way of'clouding the issue there, which should not be,” stated Mr Moller. The New Zealand Council was a body of men representing' the provincial associations, but it would not be their own judgment that they would give on any matter —they would be instructed by their associations. The Wellington Association was composed of three delegates from each chib. These clubs instructed their delegates to the Wellington Association, and the matter went from the club delegate to the association, and from the associa-

tion to the delegate on the council, and' the delegate recorded his vote on the council as one of five provinces. The Auckland Association had in tho past favoured a New Zealand Council, except that it wanted representation pro rata. This was not acceptable to any association, except Auckland, and that was the only stumbling block which prevented the council from being a unanimous body. The fact that Auckland had not given the moral support it should have, and the fact that it brought down a boat of the restricted type for the past two years was not complimentary to the memorial tho province set up for Lieutenant Sanders, and of which the New Zealand yachtsmen wished the conditions revised. The council was imbued with the best ideals, and the local clubs would have a resume of all the business of tho council before it was finally adopted, so ■plat every club would have a say as to what should not and what should be the rules of the council. That was_ :n effect the main aspiration of the New Zealand Council, as given to the committee of three that was set up to prepare a rough draft of the constitution. With regard to the Press, Mr Holler said ho would like to refer to “ the wonderful assistance that lias been given the sport of yachting throughout New Zealand, but particularly to the accurate reporting as done by ‘ The Post ’ nnd ‘ Dominion ’ in this city. So well had the reporting been done that these reports can almost bo used as authentic in the work of the association. Especially are we grateful tp the Press for the publicity given to the boys’ classes under the jurisdiction of the Wellington Provincial and Motor Boat Association.” .... . . . A sub-committee was appointed at the last dominion conference, consisting of Messrs A. 0. Moller (Wellington), G. R. Curtis (Canterbury), and W. 0. Martin (Otago), to draw up a constitution for tho council. Each member of the sub-committee was to draw up a separate constitution, and these were to be welded into one. Mr Martin has now completed his portion of the task, and has forwarded a draft constitution; the main clauses of which are as follow : “The objects of the council shall be: fa) To further the interests of yachting and motor boating generally; (b) to foster and control all interport and interprovincial sailing and power boat racing contests in the dominion; (c) to adjudicate upon disputes referred to the council bv any affiliated, association or affiliated club or any body conducting any recognised interport or interprovincial contest, the decision of the council to be final. “ The council shall consist of yacht and motor boat associations, representing the provincial districts (geographical) of New Zealand, which have affiliated, provided that, in the event of there being no association constituted in any provincial district, a recognised yacht and motor boat club representing such provincial district may affiliate. “ Representation shall consist of one delegate from each affiliated association or affiliated club.”I