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No Clubhouse  -  Plenty of Spirit

Port Macquarie Yacht Club is not unique in being without a clubhouse, as there are quite a few similar yacht clubs in NSW, however it is unique in having run yachting competitions continuously for some 43 years, and with the exception of during Covid time, staging both offshore and inshore competitions without interruption over that entire period.
Mon 13 Oct 2025

After promising only disappointment, a great day’s sailing & unusual result

An excellent fleet of seven yachts lined up for last Sunday’s delayed start Port Macquarie Yacht Club  River “B” race sailed between the Settlement Point and Hibbard ferries.  Pre start the day promised little with insufficient breeze to allow a start, until, almost on cue a zephyr of breeze at around the designated 4.5 knot minimum required sprang up, and a race start was enabled.
Tue 30 Sep 2025

Ancient Order Resuscitated

With a grappling hook only, a pike and sword being unavailable, popular Port Macquarie Yacht Club sailor Basia Dworak was inducted into the mostly forgotten Order of the Pike Sword and Grappling Hook, in front of a small gathering of crew from Kookaburra 2 and Cool Change, onboard Kookaburra 2, prior to last Sunday’s Ocean buoy event.
Mon 22 Sep 2025

On a fine afternoon

The start of Port Macquarie Yacht Club’s river “A” race run last Sunday 14 th of September was delayed two hours, resulting in “golden zone” sailing conditions. For the five yachts that turned out to contest the event all the world seemed in tune on that fine afternoon, as they lined up for the start in around 12 knots of northerly breeze.
Wed 17 Sep 2025

Celebrating Charlie Nichol - and our Handicapper

He’s some cool dude, and is like “the little engine that could”. Seldom praised, but an integral part of the glue that holds the yacht club together, club handicapper Ken McDonald took the spotlight after the first leg of last weekend’s Port Macquarie Yacht Club’s Charles Nichol trophy event, which was run in the pursuit format.
Wed 10 Sep 2025

The Sunday Philosophy School

Was it Proust, or was it Dennis Connor, who said, once we renounce the truths, we will never understand sailing? It has been similarly expressed by many. A pessimist scrawled on a changing room’s wall, “The wages of sin is death with a curse, but with sailing, of course, it can always get worse.” written perhaps by a sailor feeling the inequities of an unfavourable wind shift. Of course in sailing if you’re an optimist, your truth is “Luck is a Fortune”.
Sat 06 Sep 2025

Folie à deux

Folie à deux,  translates loosely as a condition where two closely associated individuals share similar delusional beliefs. One can only wonder why every sail boat jointly owned does not carry this name. Perhaps this became apparent when the Cygnet 20 of that name, the tiniest boat in the fleet, and sailed by its co-owners,  showed a clean pair of heels to the Port Macquarie Yacht Club fleet in last Sunday’s scheduled river race from Settlement Point to Dennis Bridge and return.
Tue 01 Jul 2025

Wouldn't have missed the day for quids

Sunday June 22nd saw the final race in the current ocean sailing season. After a disrupted season which saw numerous abandonments, skippers’ hopes were high when the seven day forecast was for an 8 – 14  knot wind range on  a lazy half meter swell. Those checking the forecast would have seen little change in the forecast swell, but a progressive falling away of wind strength.
Mon 23 Jun 2025

How many legs make a long river?

With the Mercury dipping and Instagram videos of snow falling on the adjacent range, Port Macquarie sailors presented in multi layered sailing apparel for last Sunday’s scheduled PMYC long river event from Settlement Point to the Dennis Bridge mark and return.
Wed 18 Jun 2025

King's Birthday long weekend sail

While sailors were well rugged up at the start of last Sunday’s PMYC offshore event, some skippers thoughts were further south where Port Macquarie Sailors Fiona MacManus, Hannah Walmsley and Alison Woolstenholme were experiencing gale force conditions while competing in the Australian Women’s Keelboat regatta
Thu 12 Jun 2025

The savvy mastery of light airs sailing was on full display

A sharp eye for picking wind lines and the savvy mastery of light airs sailing were on full display in Sunday’s Port Macquarie Yacht Club “river A” event. The event which the Officer of the Day, wisely changed the course from “river B” was run in breezes ranging from zero to five knots, and an initially surprisingly strong run in tide.
Mon 02 Jun 2025

After we crossed it didn’t seem that bad after all

“We were surprised how easy it was” was the comment from one of the newer skippers after PMYC’s ocean buoy event last Sunday. With a major runout after heavy rain on top of the usual tidal outflow, the Port Macquarie bar, muddied and angry appeared somewhere between menacing and hazardous when viewed from onshore or in the channel. Fortunately wise heads on the first boats to venture out radioed to the fleet, that a course well to the north provided a safe crossing.
Tue 06 May 2025

A Handicapper’s Lot

“Our feelings we with difficulty smother When the handicapper’s duty’s to be done– Taking one consideration with another– The handicapper’s lot is not a happy one.” With apologies to Messrs Gilbert & Sullivan, this was the predicament facing Port Macquarie Yacht Club’s handicapper when after the abandonment of last Sunday’s scheduled ocean buoy event due to atrocious bar conditions, a replacement river course was sailed.
Thu 24 Apr 2025

An anything but average sail

“…Day after day, day after day We stuck, nor breath nor motion; As idle as a painted ship Upon a painted ocean" The widely known verse from Coleridge’s Rime of the Ancient Mariner was beginning to be the experience of yachts competing in Port Macquarie Yacht Club’s Long Ocean Triangle event last Sunday 6 April 2025.
Tue 08 Apr 2025

Ra Ra Raz

Members of the local sailing community with long memories would remember Razzamatazz 2’s arrival in Port Macquarie in the early 1980’s. Owned jointly by PMYC life member Les Boaden, and Kevin Brown, the modified Farr 1104 “Raz” contested numerous Pittwater to Coffs series, and Pittwater to Lord Howe series, while dominating local yacht racing scene for many years.
Tue 25 Feb 2025

A river race with the full gamut of conditions, and optimism rewarded

The meaning of sailing as a sport has been debated ad nauseam over the years. A refuge, an emotional escape, a cold analytical exercise to name but a few. Or perhaps as on show last Sunday, when four yachts only fronted up for the scheduled “long” river event from Settlement Point to the Dennis Bridge and return when the great choreographer (weather conditions), optimism rewarded.
Tue 18 Feb 2025