Hi all

Sorry for being so quiet of late.....a fair bit's been happening
behind the scenes. So here is the news.


* Stormriders/Windsurfing NSW have become firm supporters of the Wally
class, partly because they were so impressed by the way everyone who
turned up for the states had a good time. They have decided to get
their own fleet of Wallys for racing when it's too light for Formula
and Slalom, and for teaching days. Wind Surf 'n Snow is looking to
stock Wallys in the shop again. Excellent news, and thanks to those
who turned up for the states for kicking it along.


* WINDSURFER JUNIOR. The AGM of the Australian Windsurfing Association
has decided to approach the AYF to get the Windsurfer (probably with
4.5m and 6m sails) declared the national class for juniors under about
17 year (when they will progress to the RSX).


* NATIONALS 2005/2006 at Hamilton Island were cancelled. I apologise
for not keeping people informed, but I wasn't told about the
cancellation either. 'Nuff said.


* NATIONALS 2006/2007 will NOT be cancelled. A proposal has gone to
Batemans Bay Sailing Club for an event to be held over four days
around the Australia Day weekend, January 25-28. The news is that the
club likes the idea, but we're still waiting for confirmation.

Batemans Bay is an outstanding sailing venue, with two caravan parks
and a resort on the beach where we'll be racing. We should know
whether the event can be held there within a week or so.


* Winter Racing # 1. Dobroyd Aquatic Club is racing on the first
Sunday of each month. The first event saw half a dozen boards, with
Roger "the shift-picking legend" Crawford top sailor of the day. This
series is so hot it's even getting sailors from interstate!


* Winter Racing # 3. There's interest from Newcastle about some winter
racing up their way. Would anyone be interested in the Brass Monkey
regatta at Long Jetty on Tuggerah Lakes on the June long weekend? It's
your typical winter regatta.....a mixture of everything from Lasers to
Hobies in a friendly little "country" club.

An alternative is the long drive to Tamworth for the Keepit Cool
regatta the same weekend; camping in the clubhouse, Akubras and Slim
Dusty on tap. Hmmmm. Maybe Tuggerah would be better.


* Winter Racing # 2. We're looking for entries for the Windsurfing
NSW Midwinter regatta on 20 and 21st July at Marmong Point in Lake
Macquarie. I may be able to arrange accomodation at the south end of
the lake.

This is a Windsurfing NSW event, and the association (lead by Brett
Morris) has become a firm support of the Windsurfer One Design so it
would be great to show our appreciation by turning up.

Getting into the midwinter theme, an apres-ski flavour with lots of
glauwine and schnapps could be a good idea.


* The "Not a Wally" Worlds. The big European windsurfer manufacturers
have realised the error of their ways and are now returning to
Wally-style boards. Leading the way is the Exocet Kona. It looks a lot
like a Wally but is much lighter, a bit shorter and wider, and has a
"duck tail" to improve planing performance. We have trialled one with
a 6m Wally rig and it's a little bit slower than a Wally in light
winds (so far) but a very nice board.

Tor from Exocet is very interested in the Wally class, because he is
an old Windsurfer champ and a firm believer in our style of sailing.
The Exocet is adopting similar rules to the Windsurfer One Design for
their first "world" (international) championship, to be held in
Thailand in November. Charter boards are available and at least a
couple of Wally sailors are thinking of going.

Exactly how the Kona will go as a board and class remains unclear, but
it can only help the Windsurfer One Design class if we are once again
part of a worldwide longboard movement rather than just being a bunch
of relics riding dinosaurs (so to speak).


* A small bunch of Windsurfer One Design enthusiasts has been tracked
down in South Australia. They could form a kernel to recreate the
class down there.


* Windsurfers are being used for a junior programme in Esperance,
Western Australia. They are looking to get some 4.5s and some newer
boards to replace their worn-out ones.


So with official approval, boards back in the shops, interest in SA
and WA to join the current fleets in Victoria and NSW and the
Queenslanders and even a worlds in a similar board, Wally's World is
looking good.


REMEMBER - 20th and 21st JULY FOR THE MIDWINTER REGATTA AT MARMONG
POINT, LAKE MACQUARIE.