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Melissa Yeomans

Celebrations for Good Luck

I am lucky to not just sponsor members of the Australian Sailing Team with our Liros Rope but to call some of them friends.   Last night was the Good Luck Farewell for Nath and Goobs or awesome 49er duo.  Yes it meant heading up to Wangi for the night but it was well worth it.  Nath and I for a while before we bought the business were the sole employees.  Goobs and his big brother and I sailed against each other when we were like 12.  Which is how Matt introduced me to people last night haha.

It truly is something special to be able to support friends in the way I am able.  Nath and Goobs also put together the PROtect Tape kit for 49ers for us.

They were no doubt surprised we made the effort but it was well worth it as they are only here for a few days before heading off to compete at London 2012.

Last night the boys were celebrated in style with a poem, some heckling and just a lot of proud friends and family.  Many of their family in fact are already over in Europe getting ready to support them over there.  Due to the Sydney International Boat Show I will be in Sydney and cheering as loudly as possible. I know I won’t be alone in this.

Two guys I have known for a long time.  Two great down to earth blokes.

Go you good things!  And yes Nath – #AussieSailorsRock

Staying the night in Wangi I got to wake up to this view…  Awesome.   No wonder these guys love our sport so much!  Look at their home ground!

The Poem:

Last nights version was slightly modified to suit Nath and Goobs. It was well read. Here is the original:

Green and Gold Malaria
by Rupert McCall

The day would soon arrive when I could not ignore the rash.
I was obviously ill and so I called on Doctor Nash.
This standard consultation would adjudicate my fate.
I walked into his surgery and gave it to him straight:
`Doc, I wonder if you might explain this allergy of mine,
I get these pins and needles running up and down my spine.
From there, across my body, I will suddenly extend –
My neck will feel a shiver and the hairs will stand on end.
And then there is the symptom that only a man can fear –
A choking in the throat, and the crying of a tear.’
Well, the Doctor scratched his melon with a rather worried look.
His furrowed brow suggested that the news to come was crook.
`What is it Doc?’ I motioned. `Have I got a rare disease?
I’m man enough to cop it sweet, so give it to me, please.’
`I’m not too sure,’ he answered, in a puzzled kind of way.
`You’ve got some kind of fever, but it’s hard for me to say.
When is it that you feel this most peculiar condition?’
I thought for just a moment, then I gave him my position:
`I get it when I’m standing in an Anzac Day parade,
And I get it when the anthem of our native land is played,
And I get it when Meninga makes a Kiwi-crunching run,
And when Border grits his teeth to score a really gutsy ton.
I got it back in ’91 when Farr-Jones held the Cup,
And I got it when Japan was stormed by Better Loosen Up.
I get it when Banjo takes me down the Snowy River,
And Matilda sends me waltzing with a billy-boiling shiver.
It hit me hard when Sydney was awarded the Games,
And I get it when I see our farmers fighting for their names.
It flattened me when Bertrand raised the boxing kangaroo,
And when Perkins smashed the record, well, the rashes were true blue.
So tell me, Doc,’ I questioned. `Am I really gonna die?’
He broke into a smile before he looked me in the eye.
As he fumbled with his stethoscope and pushed it out of reach,
He wiped away a tear and then he gave me this stirring speech:
`From the beaches here in Queensland to the sweeping shores of Broome,
On the Harbour banks of Sydney where the waratah’s in bloom.
From Uluru at sunset to the Mighty Tasman Sea,
In the Adelaide cathedrals, at the roaring MCG.
From the Great Australian Blight up to the Gulf of Carpentaria,
The medical profession call it “green and gold malaria”.
But forget about the text books, son, the truth I shouldn’t hide.
The rash that you’ve contracted here is “good old Aussie pride”.
I’m afraid that you were born with it and one thing is for sure –
You’ll die with it, young man, because there isn’t and cure.’

 

Melissa Yeomans

Man Ship proves popular at Sanctuary Cove

Another year up at the Sanctuary Cove International Boat Show is done.   This has to have been our best in years with the people we spoke to having not only knowledge but enthusiasm for our products.   This makes the time for those of us on the stand pass so quickly.   A huge thanks to Mark Gray for helping set up the stand and work out with us how to fit it all in the space.   For two years now Ben King has flown in to help us as well.   We could not do it without Ben, not only is it the extra set of hands but his knowledge is invaluable.

Many of the people we spoke with were owner builders.  I hope you share with us on our facebook page your progress.   For those whose contact details we have for Man Ship Quotes we will be in touch shortly.   Please ensure you have a look at our Quote forms as to what we require to make this process as quick and painless as possible.  Man Ship is all Custom made and was extremely popular this year at the Sanctuary Cove International Boat Show.

Man ship Marine and Hardware Co. Ltd, is a well known and respected manufacturer of chandlery and hardware for the international boatbuilding industry and watersport market since 1982.  Man Ships expanding product line includes stainless hatches, stainless portholes, stainless dorades, aluminium boat windows, and yacht fitting.  With skilled craftsman Man Ship Marine are experienced in producing one-off orders in stainless steel (304 or 316), Aluminum extrusions, Aluminum Castings, Zinc and Bronze Castings.

Up next for the DeckHardware Team will be the Sydney International Boat Show.   This year we will be on stand 316 in Hall 3 next to the stage.   We will have a big team assisting us this year on a nice big stand so make sure you stop by and see us!

Sanctuary Cove International Boat Show 2012 (SCIBS) – Visitor numbers in total were up 1.6%, coming in at 37,094 over the four days.

For more information on DeckHardware visit www.deckhardware.com.au

Melissa Yeomans

Getting ready to head north to Sanctuary Cove

Just two weeks till I head north to Sanctuary Cove for the Sanctuary Cove International Boat Show.   Once again Ben will be joining us from Tassie which will be great to catch up!  There is so much to do to get ready for a boat show in another state.  We are so lucky to have someone like Ben who is willing to fly up and join us to help out.

It will be a big show for DeckHardware as we have a fair few new brands.  DeckHardware will be showing Drainman, Houdini, Sanol and TBS for the first time in Australia!

Check out the new DeckHardware brands: Drainman, Houdini, Sanol, TBS non slip

Most of the stands are almost finished with Man Ship Hatches and a few others getting their final touches at the moment.   We are busy putting together our catalogue disks as well which all takes time.  Extra business cards have already been ordered too.  The next two weeks will fly past in not time at all!

Lets hope the show is a great success for the industry!

Melissa Yeomans

Marketing that catches the eye!

The Bus StopSitting in the passenger seat of a car it is easy to sometimes drift off and watch the world go by.  Today as we stopped at the set of lights I was caught by surprise as I looked at the top of the bus stop!

I could not believe my eyes!  What a fantastic marketing idea!  Talk about grabbing all my attention.   Well done NT and Virgin Australia.  At first you notice the billboards then you realise that the seat looks like rocks!  What an effort you have gone to.

As some one who is always trying to think up things for my business I am loving this idea.   The bus stop certainly made me smile, stop and talk about it and even take a photo.  Nicely done!

Melissa Yeomans

CHS Sailing Regatta is over for another year

The 46th Combined High Schools Sailing Championships (CHS) in conjunction with 34th Australian Secondary Schools Sailing Championship and 37th NSW Secondary Schools Sailing Championships.   An event that tested all those in attendance, competitors and race officers alike.  What was with that weather!   Breeze, No Breeze, pouring rain and boiling hot!   From Freezing in the rain to crews going swimming and capsizing on purpose or being capsized by other competitors during the postponement!

Watching the sky above Lake Macquarie proved a tricky read for Race Officers and competitors resulting in several postponement’s and a day abandoned.    Wouldn’t it have been nice to have a Noreaster!

Watching the skill levels of some of the sailors out on the water was fantastic.  It was great to see so many different classes being sailed so well.  In particular the leading Flying Eleven sailors who I enjoyed watching sail extremely well.   Along with watching people sailing something new to them or giving a regatta a go.   I hope you all enjoyed the new experiences.

With the inclusion of Allen, TBS and PROtect Tape to our range of Liros Rope we are now in a position of being able to supply a support van to local Regattas.  Our first trial of this was the CHS at Belmont.  I could not have done it without the assistance of Rhys and Georgia Llewellyn, Goughy, Liz Gazzard, Greg and Emma Harris.   Thanks so much for your help in keeping the van company!  Special thanks to Rhys who helped re rig a couple of boats along with Georgia, Kate and Emma who took time to write and draw on my whiteboard to be displayed in the van.   I learnt a lot about how to manage the van at regatta’s in the future.   It was a fantastic experience and we will be doing it in future.   So keep an eye out for the newly stickered DeckHardware van!  Thanks Rhys for putting the stickers on.
Special Congrats go to Georgia for coming Third in the Laser Radial  plus Emma and Susie Milton coming Third in the Aust Girls Division. The Narrabeen Lakes Sailing Club was represented by 6 fantastic young women who did so well!

Congratulations to all competitors and especially to the Division winners.  Year 6 and all High School Students make sure you put this in the Calendar for next year!   It is a great event to meet sailors from other classes and perhaps sail something you would not normally compete in.

Here are the links to all the photo albums on our facebook fan page.  I hope you enjoy all the photos.   There is video yet to come.  A huge thanks to our DeckHardware supporters / assistants Liz Gazzard and Rhys Llewellyn who assisted in getting so many photos from different locations during the regatta.

Race Results

Image Links:

CHS last Race from a second RIB   

Last Race of the CHS from the RIB

CHS Race 3 from Shore and Finish Boat

CHS Race 3 from RIB

CHS Race 2 from Shore

CHS Race 2 from the RIB

CHS Race 1 from shore

CHS Race 1 from the RIB

Melissa Yeomans

Another birthday gone

Over the weekend I celebrated another birthday.   Not sure that celebrated is the word though.   I spent it with friends out on the water which was a nice way to do it.   I was lucky enough to be surprised by a friend who was over from WA as well!  Being the only day off last week it was a really nice way to spend the day.   How nice is the view at the end of the day!

The breeze from the South around 15 knots with some stronger gusts certainly had us on our toes with plenty of action on the water.   Plenty of capsizes and unfortunately one broken mast.  They almost managed to sail home as it was bending but we ended up towing them the last little bit when it completely broke.   Nice boat handling!

A few of the Heron Sailors were missing crew and decided to go out one-up which was fun to watch in that breeze!  They did an awesome job especially the young girls!   Nice work girls!  I am about to load the videos to our YouTube page.

I made myself a yummy cheesecake to celebrate and it went down very nicely for lunch with those who joined me.   There was a plain vanilla/lemon one and a cherry with chocolate base version.  Big thanks to Goughy, Liz, Kate and Ben who dropped in even though they weren’t sailing!!!

There is so much going on at DeckHardware at the moment.  I really need to duplicate myself I think!   Phil is back in the office for the week before he heads off yet again this time to Melbourne!   Then when he gets back he will be at the Access Worlds and I will be at the Combined High Schools Regatta.   So much to prepare to get ready!   Lots of signage and stock to pack.    Oh and yeah we are also still working on website as always.

Did I mention Sanctuary Cove International Boat Show is coming up?  Good friend Ben is coming up to stay in the house we have rented to help us out for the second year on the stand!  Thanks Ben!   There is a bit of work involved in getting ready for this one with sooooo many new brands to show off!  I can not wait!

ps.   Don’t mention the Manly game last night….

Melissa Yeomans

DeckHardware supports CHS Sailing

CHS Sailing posterWe are extremely excited to be involved in this years CHS! It is a regatta I loved as a high school student and I am glad I can now be involved as a sponsor. This is an event we have looked at sponsoring for years so it is fantastic to now be involved. I met so many friends at CHS and have so many good memories from on and off the water.  From our perspective not only are we sponsoring an event that features a variety of classes but it is also an event that this generation of teenagers will remember for life.  That is something very special to be a part of.

I hope this generation are as lucky as I was and enjoy the experience as much as I did.   I hope they make great friends and memories which will be the stories they tell in years to come.   My friends and I often tell the stories that were our CHS experiences.

Press Release:

The Notice of Race is now available for the 2012 Combined High Schools/ Australian Secondary Schools Sailing Championship to be held on the 10th April to 14th April 2012 at Belmont 16’ Sailing Club.  The event is sponsored by SLAM in conjunction with DeckHardware.

To be eligible the Skipper and crew MUST be students attending an Australian Secondary School. The regatta is open to all classes and sees entries from many classes including Sabots, Flying Elevens, Lasers, 13’ and 16’ Skiffs, NS14’s, Herons, 29ers and in the past has also seen the entry of sports boats and small yachts. This is one of the highlights for many who compete in the regatta as it brings together teenage sailors from all classes giving them the chance to meet and experience other classes.  Many of Australia’s well known sailors will agree that the CHS as it is known was a highlight of their teenage years.  The event showcases some of Australia’s top young sailors and past winners of the event include current Olympians and Volvo Ocean Racers.  America’s Cup Champions have also competed in the CHS as Teenagers.

The races are sailed on the same course in five divisions making for very exciting racing and exciting viewing for the adult spectators:
Div 1 Monohulls & Yachts
Div 2 Medium Monohulls
Div 3 Multihulls
Div 4 Slower monhulls
Div 5 Sailability

The Combined High Schools Sailing Championship in 2011 had over 140 boats entered. The 2011 Championship was eventually won by Alex Chittenden and Tom Potter sailing their 13ft Skiff ‘Sheads’ from Middle Harbour 16ft Sailing Club (NSW). Chittenden and Potter displayed good speed and tactics throughout the regatta which saw an array of different breezes.

The final placing was not confirmed until the final race of the series where Chittenden placed second, which was enough to secure the title. Second overall was Harry Price and Nick Connor (29er) and a further 3 points behind was Sarah Parker and Alicia Watt on their Flying 11 ‘Wave Runner’.

For more information on the 2012 event visit Belmont16s

The DeckHardware Facebook Event

Melissa Yeomans

Animus is actually sailing!

Who’s turn will it be this year? We will have to wait and see. After all you have to be in it to win it!

Two years ago Animus missed the Adams 10m Nationals due to a broken mast, this year it looked like we would miss out again. Animus has not sailed this season due to work commitments and doing the Nationals just went into the too hard basket. With no regular crew and some maintenance required there was a lot to do. This is when Live Sail Die stepped in and asked what it would take to make sure we made it to the Adams 10m Nationals at Lake Macquarie.

After calling one of my regulars Tom Freeman who has sailed with me since the Flying Eleven days we decided to give it a go at putting a team together. He made a few calls and managed to get a mate of his who he sails Farr40’s with as well as match racing in the youth fleets. Dave Chapman was in which makes three.

It was then that I called Big Dave Nelson. Dave was part of the winning crew back in 2002 when Animus was known as SSV under the ownership of the White family. I was part of the crew then along with my father Phil Yeomans and Dave has sailed with us on many occasions since.

My good friend and Two-handed partner in crime Kate Cooper was in “if we really needed her” even though she should be finding a new place to live. I did try and now with just 5 days to go Kate is definitely in.

This is where the internet came into play with Facebook and 12′ skiff sailor Brad Greenrod saw that I was putting a team together and sent me a message that he was interested. We now have a crew!

Next step was to get Animus up to Lake Macquarie and looking at Seabreeze a week delivery would have been very wet bashing into strong Noreasters. So Sunday morning with the help of my father and our shorecrew (Mum) Animus arrived at the lake. It was a very long motor without much breeze. I managed to take just a couple of photos during the trip. If you have never been into the Lake check out the the video on the Adams 10m Website. I did not take any photos or video going up the channel this time around as we were warned by the Coast Guard twice that several boats had to be pulled through the day before. In fact they had already had three that morning and whilst we were going through a smaller boat along side was not paying enough attention and ran aground. It is only about 1.2 to 1.4 metres deep in parts at high tide so it is a bit of an experience to say the least when your draft is 1.8m. Let alone the rushing tide through such a small channel.

So Animus is now at LMYC ready to compete in another Nationals. This is something I have done since I was a kid as my Uncle and Father have sailed the 10’s my whole life and now I do. It is always remarkably close racing with as many as half the fleet a good chance when they are having their good day. Ben Nossiter after roughly 20 years of trying finally claimed victory at last years titles. Animus is out defend our title, the ‘Pat Carroll Memorial Trophy’ for the first placed timber seat yacht. However as we have proven in the last 10 years just because we have timber seats does not mean we won’t be up there at the front of the fleet.

Who’s turn will it be this year? We will have to wait and see. After all you have to be in it to win it!

Melissa Yeomans

Crew’s Red Hot Regatta

After an AP of 3 hours we were able to go out and compete in 3 races with the wind flicking from 155 to 175 to 200, for each start. By now the wind had abated to 15-25 knots in the puffs with rain at times. This was hard sailing in the short chop making upwind conditions difficult. The girls did well to get the weight as far out as possible considering there was no toe rail to keep them onboard.

During the June long weekend MHYC sent a team to compete in the RMYS Women’s Keelboat Regatta.  This was in response to a generous invite from the owner of the Adams 10m Rollercoaster, Ken Simpson. We brought our own Spinnakers (3), Mainsail and #1 Genoa to make sailing on an unfamiliar boat slightly easier.

The three days of the regatta provided a range of testing conditions:

Day 1 The weather today, 5 degrees Celsius (coldest June day for 13 years), wind 2-4 knots and thick, blanketing fog.  Visibility was no more than 1000m at the best of times.  Often no more than 100m with a runabout appearing on the course from Williamstown, which is on the other side of the bay, lost and having no idea where they were.  The breeze was swinging between 40 odd degrees, with no chance of setting a course.  After nearly 4 hours floating around the race officials decided to pull the pin for day.

Day 2 Again the crew were up bright and early, for our 7am briefing with John Hurley.  However the weather was now proving a handful with gusts reaching 40 knots from the south-west forcing a delay in racing.  We went for coffee with one of the Melbourne sailing teams that were competing in the event.  After finding out racing was still delayed we then decided to do the girlie thing and head for the Markets.  Liz, Rosie, Kate and I walked a little further as they decided if they could not go for a sail on Rollercoaster they would go for team bonding at Luna Park on the Rollercoaster.  Unfortunately the Rollercoaster was not operating so back to the Yacht Rollercoaster for hopefully an afternoon of racing. After an AP of 3 hours we were able to go out and compete in 3 races with the wind flicking from 155 to 175 to 200, for each start.  By now the wind had abated to 15-25 knots in the puffs with rain at times. This was hard sailing in the short chop making upwind conditions difficult. The girls did well to get the weight as far out as possible considering there was no toe rail to keep them onboard. The fleet was mixed with the main competition coming from Salamander III (Adams 10m), Horizon Sprint (Radford 10.9), Alien (Lidgard 11m) and Hush (Cavalier 35).  That night we all watched the Wallabies play England in the Motel Lounge Bar and continued our team bonding, with our English members of the crew.

Day 3 Race one saw us use all three spinnakers, starting small and ending up with the big masthead.  It was great to see how fast the crew had become in the Spinnaker hoists as well as being able to read the sailing instructions.  This saw us getting the gun in the first race of the day.  The racing was as close as ever with only seconds separating some of the fleet.  With many headsail changes between the #1 and #3, Kate is now very experienced at headsail changes not having done any prior to the event.   We were able to get three races in, breeze 10-18 knots with the occasional gust of 25.

Following Monday’s racing, the crew enjoyed a sit down dinner presentation with many prizes and a great attendance of approx 200 competitors and friends.   The evening was hosted by the RMYS Commodore who announced during the night that next year’s event would be known as the Australian Women’s Keelboat Regatta.

Congratulations to the overall winner on VYC Hyperactive (J24) Kirsty Harris.  Our overall results were VYC 5th, AMS 2nd, IRC 2nd.  We were also awarded best start trophy for one our starts.  A great result using a borrowed boat sighted for the first time 1.5 hours before the start of the first race.

I would like to take this opportunity to thank John Hurley for his Coaching and support during the regatta, the next thankyou goes to the MHYC members for their very generous support at such short notice. Thanks to all the companies who supported our raffle efforts including the Sydney Swans and DeckHardware Australasia who supplied our major prizes. Special thanks to my parents, Robyn and Phil for driving down with my sails.  A very special thankyou to Nigel Holman for the loan of his inflatable vests making the sailing more comfortable as we were required to wear lifejackets in this event.

Thanks also to the team pulling together with minimal training on Animus – Jen Rezek – Main, Liz Gazzard – Trim 1, Julie Hodder – Trim 2, Rosi Winn – Pit (plus everything else usually done by mainsheet hands in Sydney), Kate Cooper – Bow and Mast.  And to Qantas thankyou for finding Julie Hodder’s sailing gear, her bag had decided it did not like the Melbourne weather and that the regatta should be held in Cairns.

During the Regatta we enjoyed incredibly close racing with Salamander III. It is hoped that they will be able to join us in Sydney for the next MHYC Ladies Day, as we will be able to arrange an Adams 10m for them to sail.  We all had great fun and I encourage all Sydney women to think seriously about taking part next year.  As well as competing in the Women’s events on Sydney Harbour, they are always great fun.

Photos