Those contemplating..
Had my Ka7.1 race up like Martin, though all dialed in and full, was enough but had to pinch a little when wind would drop off a bit and then dig deep when you got a good gust to keep laying as much ground deep as possible. Was a slight increase in wind strength at St Kilda end, but not too much, and if you have your sail bagged out to start with, you will have room on your boom to outhaul it on the water if you feel the need.
Ricketts to Green Pt I did in one leg and threw in a couple of gybes just to pretend going thru Gate there. Back foot was sore by the time I past Sandy but pushed on a another leg to off St Kilda but gybed as I approached the obvious shipping channel markers. DO NOT enter the channel!!! Another gybe on inside off the obvious St Kilda Baths / Pallace Theatre at Sth end of Marina wall and out again. Final gybe off Nth of marina sea wall end and into the Zu though finish will be a bit further Nth away from Kites.
Trek across long beach with gear to Zu finished us off, needed a water as a bit hot with the helmut on.
Below is un-edited data from online Ka72 reader, includes a bit of a warm up run at Ricketts before we set off so actual total distance I sailed is 23 km in 33 min. I put in 5 slow gybes and slogged it a bit to get back on the plane, as your feeling pretty spent after a long leg gripping your boom.
2 Second Peak (kts):?30.23
5x10 Average (kts):?27.75
Top 5 5x10 speeds:?28.8
Top 5 5x10 speeds:?28.54
Top 5 5x10 speeds:?27.86
Top 5 5x10 speeds:?26.89
Top 5 5x10 speeds:?26.64
1 Hr (kts):?12.72
Alpha 500 (kts):?13.02
Nautical Mile (kts):?24.79
100m peak (kts):?29.13
Total Distance (km):?28.85
Tips/Safety
Don' sail out further than your prepared to swim your board downwind back to shore, know what your capable of.
Keep checking your view down wind thru sail and around front of mast for other craft on reach as you need to give way.
Beware the Mussel/Oyster? beds in Beaumauris bay if you happen to abort to Mentone /Charman Rd
Have your downhaul rope easily accessible eg so you can un-do it to de-rig in event of sea rescue. Some bases allow you to store it inside base before you connect to uni/cup, disconnecting such on the water is a challenge at times and hinders the rescue of you and others. Those familiar with self rescue and keeping your gear together as you do it or even in the event of a broken mast you want to get D'haul pressure off asap to save mast sleeve.
Self Rescue rough guide..
if you don't know self rescue try this in deep water...you are your best chance by being prepared, don't rely on others as trying to find someone up to their neck in rolling / chop / swell from a boat is not easy with out air support. And remember GPS/mob signals don't work all that well when submerged, so get back on your board once your sorted., store them in zip lock sandwich bag before putting them in waterproof case for added protection.
Remove boom first and tie its outhaul to back strap, undo cam zips if applicable, no need to disconnect base at any time, release D'haul, tie a few half hitches to mast with it to keep it on the base for now, go to head of sail and roll it up, thread sail thru Harness line/s, fix boom outhaul rope to sail clew and fix to rear strap again, thread mast top/bot' thru same H/lines, secure other end mast top/bot' with outhaul as well, throw boom/bundle over mast base onto deck. Stay with board in any case, ditch the rest if you have too, though a rashie stretched over the boom head can make a jury rig and or help rescue see you in rolling swell.
Practice sailing deep of the wind, try these tips..
-mast track back a little so you don't nose dive as much into backs of waves.
-boom slightly up and harness lines fwd' a little to help stance and trim of sail at right angle, also allows you to sit in the harness more and rest the arms a bit.
-back strap/s inbound a little to help with stance and fatigue.
-0.5-1m2 larger sail to be able to stay powered up off the wind
Good Luck!!!
Pretty similar to me Spotti. I sailed a bit higher than you as I had no power with my sail way over downhauled. Gybed earlier for Green Point than you but the rest was similar until I put in an extra 2 gybes at the end when I went too early for the Zu and could not go deep enough to clear the breakwater.
Man you were fast with that sail on my mast 
!!!!
Thanks Spotty and Martin,
Some good feedback and some very useful tips !
Forecast for Saturday looks very promising at this stage 15-20 Knots south-southwest all day.
Please be aware that the Green point start is also a great option if you feel you don't have the fitness, skills or the right gear.
The top 3 riders from Bonbeach and from Green Point will all get their name on the Trophy.
Let's hope the forecast holds up !
Just another tip, Spotti and I went inside the cardinal marker at Quiet corner, we both know the area pretty well and where the rocks are. If you are unsure of the Ricketts/ Beaumaris/ Black Rock areas then make sure you stay outside the cardinal marks (the big posts) as there are many reefs in the vicinity that can be a hazard if the tide is low. Take notice of this when going through the gate off Ricketts and stay outside the cardinal mark that indicates the safe water right on Ricketts Point. There is also the Anonyma Reef offshore between Black Rock and Sandringham yacht clubs, never gets super shallow but to be safe sail either to the seaward or land side of the 2 cardinal marks that show the ends of the reef, not between them.
I would just advise to stay seaward of all the cardinal marks to be safe.
Select to expand quotemr love said..
Just another tip, Spotti and I went inside the cardinal marker at Quiet corner, we both know the area pretty well and where the rocks are. If you are unsure of the Ricketts/ Beaumaris/ Black Rock areas then make sure you stay outside the cardinal marks (the big posts) as there are many reefs in the vicinity that can be a hazard if the tide is low. Take notice of this when going through the gate off Ricketts and stay outside the cardinal mark that indicates the safe water right on Ricketts Point. There is also the Anonyma Reef offshore between Black Rock and Sandringham yacht clubs, never gets super shallow but to be safe sail either to the seaward or land side of the 2 cardinal marks that show the ends of the reef, not between them.
I would just advise to stay seaward of all the cardinal marks to be safe.
So is that a cardinal marker that we gybed around at Sandringham during the Breakwater to beacon?
Is this race in Victoria Australia or in France? ..........poster suggests it's in France ! 
Jerry, That mark was an isolated danger mark, there is a small reef right underneath it. The poles like those ones at Ricketts South with the cone shaped markers on top are Cardinal marks. Depending on the configuration of the triangular cones it tells you where is "safe water" . The cones configuration divides the water around the post into 4 quadrants so you need to know where north is to use them. Most of the ones we come across on our race pretty much say stay on the seaward side of them. The only area we really need to worry about is Ricketts as we will be well offshore most other places.
Rick, Melbourne is the Paris of Australia!!!
Select to expand quoteAUS767 said..
I think ALL finishers from Bonbeach should get their name on the trophy :-)
This is good idea. We should do this to recognise the successful windsurfers of this event. WV will fund this.
Select to expand quotemr love said..
Jerry, That mark was an isolated danger mark, there is a small reef right underneath it. The poles like those ones at Ricketts South with the cone shaped markers on top are Cardinal marks. Depending on the configuration of the triangular cones it tells you where is "safe water" . The cones configuration divides the water around the post into 4 quadrants so you need to know where north is to use them. Most of the ones we come across on our race pretty much say stay on the seaward side of them. The only area we really need to worry about is Ricketts as we will be well offshore most other places.
Any chance a map can be show to highlight these markers and where we should sail?
http://parkweb.vic.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0020/600392/new-boat-swim-zones-brochure-June-2013.pdf
Steve, the page that has Ricketts on it shows the 2 cardinal marks I am talking about, we need to stay outside these so the gate at Ricketts needs to be set accordingly. Apart from that if everybody observes the 200 meter 5 knot zone then it will be sweet.
Oh, and on that same page just north of those 2 cardinal marks you will see a green mark, starboard lateral mark, want to stay seaward of that as well.
That corner is probably the only spot likely to cause any issues if you stray too close, the rest of the race everybody will be far enough out.
So we all know that those freeride and slalom sailors are going to be stepping up into the mix. But, what about all those guys and girls that find themselves tacking, gybing, spocking and looping amongst the guys that go fast... What will they be doing during this event!?
Well, Im stepping up! Im going to lay it down in front of the big guys!
Lets get the wave sailors and the freestylers involved!!!
I cant wait! Lets get reckless and show up these guys!!!
It's important that we sort out any bugs and issues with tracking you may have before the event, so if you are thinking of registering in the next day or have already registered, please install and configure Followmee a per the instructions on the website. Once the app updates you position and you can see it in the map, you can then disable it untill the race.
jerzyfilatow.wixsite.com/home
Here is something interesting about Followmee.
Up to 7 days after the race you can download your tracks from the followmee.com website.
If you have Google Earth installed on your PC, you can download it in KML format.
Opening the KML file will plot the course you took directly in google earth, and then you can replay it like a flyover. (a bit like the flyover on the portphillipdw website).
You can also do the same with the tracks the others took and compare your routes!
Cool Huh?
Select to expand quotesflack said..
So we all know that those freeride and slalom sailors are going to be stepping up into the mix. But, what about all those guys and girls that find themselves tacking, gybing, spocking and looping amongst the guys that go fast... What will they be doing during this event!?
Well, Im stepping up! Im going to lay it down in front of the big guys!
Lets get the wave sailors and the freestylers involved!!!
I cant wait! Lets get reckless and show up these guys!!!
I'm doing it on freestyle gear from Bonbeach - as long as 20 knots+
Not big on Facebook?
See all the updates as they happen at the link below. Works even if Facebook is blocked at your work.
jerzyfilatow.wixsite.com/home
Neat Huh?
Hey Jerzy, In you instructions you say set the Followmee user name as portphillipdw but you can't as the name is already taken???
Don't try to register a new name. Just enter it in the existing name field. With the password : downwind
All participants will be in the running to win the major prize - Severne Turbo twin cam sail!
Thanks Zu, Starboard and Severne for putting this up!
There will also be heaps of other smaller prizes and give-aways!
We will be drawing the sail numbers out of a bowl, and if we call out yours YOU MUST BE THERE to collect it in person, or it will be re-drawn.
The odds are very good that you will come away with something!!!!!
The crew from WV, The ZU Boardsports, AWA and the event sponsors have been working very hard on the planning for the Downwinder from Bonbeach to St Kilda.
Unfortunately the weather forecast for this weekend does not suit. The Southerly wind direction would spread the fleet out more than our support craft from Life Saving Victoria could handle and that it would majorly increase the effort required on the entrants. To ensure we can have safe, exciting and fun event, we have decided to postpone the event to another date. We will be looking at alternative dates over next week.
Should you not be able to make the next event window, please contact wvtreasurer@gmail.com for a full refund.
Please stay tuned for future updates!
