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NAT SQUIB RIVER RACE REPORT SUNDAY 7 th JANUARY 2024

Writer's picture: Sie Kee LauSie Kee Lau

WOW……… attached is a great video taken by our multi tasked and multi

talented new Chief Instructor / Assistant Chief Instructor of the PSC Squibs

leaving the marina to race on the river , showing his good skills with a camera

as well as giving instructions how to sail with their years of experience teaching

at PD marina


PSC are about to launch their LEARN TO SAIL courses including DISCOVER

SAILING ( 2 hours ) INTRODUCTION TO SA ILING ( 2 days ) and the original

ADVANCED CREWING TECHNIQUES (2 days ), designed to help those who can

sail but are a bit rusty brush up on their skills

WATCH THIS SPACE

5 of of our 16 UK imported One design Nat SQUIB 19 ft keelboats came out to

race , however even on our beautiful clean waters it is nice to have wind to go

with the sun

The five comprised Rear Commodore Yasid a leading film maker of superb

documentaries with his friend as crew in Ratatosk a mythical Norsk squirrel

and usually known as The Squirrel , then ZOMARK ( Zoe/Mark the first owners

children ) sailed by current and new owner Alyson crewed by Mark s son Oli

visiting from UK who learned to sail on the boat at Wardringfield in beautiful

Suffolk with our senior member/guru Rainer Kloberg as tactician , Oli is a Sea

Scout Leader and we will put him in touch with Com Hilmi the Malaysian Sea

Scout Head, then new members Bill and April Danyduck from the US sailing

the clubs Second Wind a gift by the family of our late member Martin

Grantham , another boat with history , the first owner was a UK Vice Admiral

and the presented the club with a numbered oil print of the boat racing in UK

then Recaa 2 formerly Tom the cat and the Commodores first Squib to be

purchased in the Royal Burnham Yacht Club bar, owner MJ sails with his 2

children Khesh and Rhisi great Opi sailors in their own right ( championship

material ) and members of our BERUANG junior sailing club , sporting a brand

new mainsail made by Lonton and Gray in UK which arrived in the latest

container ,

Sadly missing were our Squib regulars Ramasamy Menon in Lady VG in

Langkawi with his Dehler 38 VG Offshore and Harro Koopmans and Peter Van

Acker who sail Peach 2 currently awaiting a new shroud wire from UK , both

the recently arrived Squibs are sold making 16 in all , we hope to have have

10 racing regularly

Making up the numbers was PSC Commodore Jeremy sailing Cabaret 7 with

regular crew Epee,as acting Race Officer , PSC have introduced new more

sophisticated courses instead of the long flog out to SELAT Port hand mark on

the fairway to West Port. On this day it was a close reach out , Squirrel led the

way and established a 60 meter lead over Cab 7 with Second Wind close

behind , to avoid a single course home we sail over to the north shore to round

an apparently useless pole, Cab 7 under close hauled spinnaker sailed through

the Squirrel and into the distance ,Zomark Second Wind and Recaa fought it

out behind some with some without spinnaker

With Cab 7 looking nervously behind the wind dropped with holes

everywhere , then it filled in from ahead close reach which enabled Cab 7 to

sneak over the line with the others not far behind ….. and it rained too , Having

derigged the boat the Commodore retired to the club veranda to watch the

fun as with a building adverse tide and a low wind directly down the river all 4

boats tried desperately to reach the line never more than 70 meters away , to

an observer happily enjoying a hot milo out of the rain the Commodore

remarked to himself on the standard of sailing which was a tribute to how far

the Squib fleet has come that they kept at it for more than 45 minutes , the

problem without answer was to get close in left you under the wind shadow of

the club house tacking out was okay but tacking back took you back where you

stated , the race was cancelled but Zomark was in front from Second Wind

Recaa and the Squirrel

Our thanks to our instructors Lan and Etah for waiting in the rain for the boats

then under the mandatory outboard motor came in before retiring to the

clubhouse to discuss the race with a hot drink rather than a cold beer !

At this point the Commodore and Race Officer who has now completed his 6

months recovery treatment from non Hoskins lymphoma a type of blood

cancer involving 6 chemo cessions and 23 Radiotheraphy cessions would like to

thank those at PSC who have supported and encouraged him with his

recovery in particular Brother Ramasamy Meno who has faithfully joined every

Sunday race so he was never alone

A life experience like this has caused the Commodore to realise how

important enhancing the facilities and what PSC can offer is for the future of

our sailing club ,a lot of work and effort but establishing the Beruang Junior

club, finding the right instructors ,getting our Byte dinghies complete and

taking on the large space of the cafeteria to be renamed THE INSANITY

LOUNGE after its Patron , so so sad that 2 of our members yachts suffered

major damage on the RSYC pontoon due the uninsured barter trader coming

through

In closing a nice anecdote in a recent radio interview an a yacht club member

advisesd his favorite sailing moment was sitting in a chair on deck reading a

book and sipping a G and T , quite sensible so what is your Ccommodores :

driving a nice cruiser racer like BLUE ANGEL upwind in force 5/6 with the spray

flying , what a sensation , a former Commodore of the RORC once described

ocean racing as standing under a cold shower tearing up GBP 100 note and the

best moment when he finished , but don’t we sailors in our little Squibs love it


Jeremy Camps, Commodore PSCS





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