Regatta 2003 – JOG racing returns to Broken Bay

by Ron Farley on 16 Dec 2002 JOGNSW has teamed with RPAYC to relocate the annual JOG/Super 30 Regatta from Port Stephens to Broken Bay. The new format for the Regatta means that it will now be a Safety Cat 4 event, making the Regatta an attractive proposition for many of the smaller yachts racing in the Sydney area.

The event, to be known as Regatta 2003, is planned for February 12th – 15th 2003. Regatta 2003 will decide the 2003 Australian Super 30 Championship and the 2003 NSW JOG Championship. There will be four days of racing – two short ocean races and two days of windward/leeward racing.

“I am very excited about this event, the racing at Port Stephens has always been very close, but the Broken Bay venue opens up the event to many more yachts,” said current Australian Super 30 Champion, Martin Hill.

Competing yachts will be based at RPAYC and a round of social activities are planned at the Club following each day’s racing. The party atmosphere will culminate in the Presentation Dinner to be held on the final evening of the Regatta.

Yachts competing in Regatta 2003 will be handicapped according to their JOGA (Junior Offshore Group Australia) rating. The JOGA Rule is used to handicap yachts up to 9.7m (31’9”) Length overall. JOG racing originated in the UK in 1950 and Australian fleets developed soon after. The racing is extremely friendly, new entrants to the sport are encouraged with hospitality and advice.

Super 30 is a division within JOG, providing a rating where the performance 30 footers such as the Bull 9000’s, Mumm 30’s and yachts built to the Mount Gay 30 rule can race using their masthead spinnakers.

The JOG division suits production yachts up to the 9.7m size limit, with Young 88 and Holland 30 designs being very popular in the fleet. There are also a number of purpose designed JOG yachts racing in NSW including the David Lyons designed Max, Possum Express and Critical Path, and the Laurie Davidson designed Gingerbread Man. Some yachts such as the Cape 31 and Robinson 950 fit equally well in either division.

The new Sydney 32 is expected to rate competitively under the JOGA rule, with at least one of the new owners indicating an intention of entering his yacht in the Regatta.