So there is a Singapore Moth Association now

Well with 8 moths now in Singapore, we felt it was appropriate to formalise ourselves and create an association and work out what we want to sailing/racing wise. So over many beers at the pub we created our fledgling association with me being nominated as the President.

Probably best to give a breakdown of our fleet.

4 Mach 2s
3 Bladerider X8s
1 Assassin

We also have a range of ages and both sexes represented. It is great that we have a Singaporean junior on the Assassin at 15yrs old. He even plans to go to the Belmont Worlds which will be a great learning experience for him.

There is an Assassin dealer in Singapore with a second one sitting in the box as "stock". An ex-mothie from Perth is considering getting back into the class and even attended our meeting and set up our facebook page. So we could be 9 boats soon...

So if you want to see what is happening in the world of Singaporean mothing, you can "like" us on facebook by searching for "Singapore Moth Association".

Inaugurial Singapore Moth Nationals being tentatively planned for early Dec when the NE monsoon swings into action. Who knows how may could be on line, could be in double digits by then!

Drag Racing...

...at 2 knots.

Western Circuit finished up a few weeks ago and last race was a drag race between Robbo and I punching into a strong outgoing tide while trying to finish in the dying breeze and get back to the bar for a beer. Was thrilling stuff at 2 knots whilst we balanced side-by-side down the run, just what mothing is all about.

But the regatta was a good showcase for the moths in general to the rest of the sailing community in Singapore. Though the winds tended on the light side, gave Paul and Nick a chance to learn their boats and get some on/off water coaching from Robbo and me. Most races were a mix of foiling and lowriding. With some strong tides, usually outgoing, and the breeze going the opposite which meant some of the angles were horrible. 1 race it was quicker for Robbo to pinch straight at the mark lowriding with the tide directly behind that it was for me to foil due to the extra distance and 'orrible angle.

Robbo beat me in more races than I beat him, but because he missed 2 races on 1 day being super-coach for the keelboat trials which meant he had to swallow a DNC. So I walked away with Mumm Champagne. That was a nice prize, but not sure that 100m of 10mm polyester rope is going to be useful on a moth...

But the 8th moth in Singapore arrived this week. X8 from Dubai has been shipped over and means we have a chick sailing amongst now!

Just need some good breeze for a change. Watching all the Euro youtube clips and kicking myself that I had to cancel at the last minute due to work commitments. Grumble.

Oxygen Masks Will Deploy From The Boom...

...For those times when the wind craps out or some big yacht steals the breeze away.

1st weekend of Western Circuit saw some 50 boats out and about racing. This is the biggest yacht regatta in Singapore, and the first time there was enough boats for a Moth division. We managed to get 5 boats registered out of the 7 in Singapore (with another 2 in transit).

Wind was patchy and variable with the strong tides and passing clouds making a big impact. Probably had a max of 12 knots, but most of the time 6-10. And for a moth sailing amongst the yachts, they certainly can suck up whatever air there may be on the course and you really did need oxygen masks at times!

So we managed to get 3 races done. Robbo and I raced amongst ourselves, whilst the others are in learning mode and tried their best to get around the course and stay out of harms way. Robbo got 2 wins, and I got one. Races were won by who managed to stay on the foils during the first leg and were able to get out of the brutal 2-3 knot tide. Robbo unfortunately had the edge over me, need to work more on this marginal stuff.

First race I didn't do myself any favours when my high-tech electrical tape covering the high-tech bunghole came off before the start. Was wondering why it was hard to take-off and where all the sloshing noise was coming from when on the foils. Back to the beach for the long drain out before race 2...

Race 2 I managed to get to the top mark just before Robbo and catch a gust with some massive pumps and foil away whilst Robbo sat stranded waiting for the next line of breeze.

Race 3 had a painful low riding leg to the finish punching the tide. Could hear the gurgling of the tide in the gantry making it sound like you were going fast albeit lowriding, but any look at the shoreline was demoralising as you were fairly much holding station.

All in all a good day and attracted a lot of interest. Had a couple of tyre-kickers after the race, so hopefully this translates into boats.

2 more weekends to go. Next weekend is distance racing for everyone else, whilst we do our own thing with some short course racing.

Moths Flying In From Everywhere

Well our little Singapore fleet has exploded in numbers! There were 3 of us at the start of the year, Robbo, Will and myself. Well now we have 8! Guess we should start creating a Singapore Moth Association...

So I sold my old bladerider to Birdman and got a new Mach2 in time for the Dubai worlds. 2 Mach2s landed last week. 1 has hit the water, only to be greeted by an awesome sub 5 knots post rain storm wind. The other will be on the water this week as he only just moved to Singapore over the weekend. Good planning, get the boat to the new place before you get there, hehe.

Now some local guys in Singapore have taken up the Assassin dealership for Asia and have rigged up their boat in their loungeroom. Not sure if that was good planning, lack of a girlfriend, or an indication that there really is nothing to watch on tv, but they will be moving the boat to the club shortly.

And to make sure it isn't a blokes club, a young English lass has bought a second hand X8 and it will be winging its way over in the next weeks.

So all happening. Next month is Western Circuit which is one the big regattas on the Singapore calendar with assortment of yachts and beachcats out and about. Moths have been invited and hopefully we should attract a few more people who find that there is a lack of racing action here.

Why don't you have the worlds here?

Well that was the question posed by the wife on the weekend. We had headed up to Koh Samui in Thailand for her birthday and were having a lovely lunch in Bo Phut. But nice to see she is on the moth program.

Well...

It was a very nice 15-20 knots the whole weekend from the west with no waves. And in a place the better half will certainly have fun relaxing on the beach and having massages.

And there is a big gap in the calendar between Jan11 in Belmont and Aug12 in Garda.

But something to ponder for the ever growing Singapore fleet. We have 2 Mach2s arriving in July making us 6 strong. Happy days. Maybe we should go on tour and join the Samui Regatta held every June.

Weekend Tooling Around

Breeze been great lately. A nice 8-12 ESE most weekends which runs sort of parallel along the shore. And with the ships blocking the waves, super flat for blasting.

Since the worlds been playing around with foil settings to try and get the most out of it all. Worlds were sort of a "she''ll be right" set up, but I only had the boat for 2 weekends beforehand and was sort of distracted by getting married.

Well finding that my changes is seeing the boat coming out really nicely and being really stable. Not too much back and forth body movement or ooching required which is cool.

But don't have too much to measure against as Robbo hasn't been sighted due to all the preps for the Youth Olympics and Asia Games, plus Will only just recovered from his bad ankle injury. And the new guy Andy is just trying to get into the boat and keep it upright. So all I know is that boat just feels nicer to sail, so that must be good?

And the boat is rather wicked looking with the black tramps. Despite being in the tropics, they don't feel any hotter and sort of reduce glare.

Singapore Fleet Growing!

All of a sudden heaps of interest and new boats coming. Start of the year there were 3 boats, then I got my Mach 2. So need to get rid of the Bladerider. Well only really looked to sell that once the Mach 2 got delivered and after my honeymoon/worlds. As soon as that sold to a Brit ex-pat earlier in the moth, then I find out we have another 2 boats coming. Means our little equatorial fleet could be 6 boats soon! Woohoo!

The new boats will be owned by a British girl in her 20s and an Aussie guy re-locating. Bladerider and a new Mach2 respectively.

And the "sailing club" is loving it. "Sailing club" (called Mana Mana) in hyphens as it is really a beach resort with hire boats and windsurfers available, with a nice beachfront bar & restaurant.

We sort of muscled the moths in during the Volvo stopover. Mana Mana sort of had the 2 local moths & the 2 Puma moths turn up on their doorstep with us asking if we could rig up for the day there and leave the boats overnight as the top mark of the inport race was just off the beach. Well, nearly 18 months later the moths are still there.

Great spot for moths too. Grass rigging area under palm trees, and nice sandy beach for launching. Even have undercover parking when not sailing. And the beach is really steep with no waves. Waves sort of don't exist in Singapore. Can have the tip of the mast on the beach and right the boat and the foils won't be near the bottom, and even though the tidal range is large, no issues ever with depth. Can really freak out the people in the restaurant by foiling within a couple of metres of the beach and then capsize it in style.

So if all goes well, could have a Singapore Moth Nationals by year end...