SAIL RACING FOR ALL
Junior Sailing
Speers Point Amateur Sailing Club (SPASC) is an accredited Australian Sailing Discover Sailing Centre with several certified dinghy instructors, providing kids with a safe and supportive facility to practice and develop sailing skills.
Unlike other clubs, we don’t push kids into racing before they have the ability and maturity to enjoy it. We have a series of programs designed to incorporate fun, games and adventure to develop the fundamental skills of sailing. Our objective is to fully develop the foundation skills of sailing before racing is encouraged.
Juniors begin their sailing journey using club-provided equipment (boats and lifejackets), and progress to being independent sailors over about two sailing seasons, where equipment can be hired from the club or juniors transition to using their own boats. We have club boats available for all the family to enjoy sailing on our beautiful Lake Macquarie.
The club pathway diagram below shows the path options available at Speers Point Sailing club. We encourage kids to get involved as assistant instructors and instructors as the best way to learn something is to teach it.
Membership
To participate in our junior programs, the participants will need to be a member of the club. Junior Membership is $100. Once your membership is confirmed, you can register for our junior courses.
The $100 membership is for the child participating. Should the whole family like to join the club family membership costs $350.
You may use NSW active kids vouchers to pay for membership and our courses.
Handbook
We have gathered information, frequently asked questions, and resources into our Handbook for New Junior and Youth Families.
Junior Courses, Coaching, Race Series and Regattas
Step 1: Start Sailing 1 & 2
For kids aged 8-16 years with no or minimal sailing experience
The juniors in this program progress through two levels to learn fundamental dinghy sailing skills. They will build confidence on-water, confidence in themselves and have lots of fun! The program is deliberately designed to give the juniors time to develop the foundation sailing skills, build friendships and learn lots. The kids learn through games and activities on and off the water. Club boats and lifejackets provided.
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18 x 3 hr sessions
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Mid-October 2023 to mid-March 2024: Every Saturday morning.
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Program Fee: $300 (or $200 if you bring your own Optimist, O'pen Skiff or Laser)
Syllabus: Principles of sailing, learning the names of the parts of the boat, rigging the boat, launch and return, tacking, capsizing, reaching, close hauled sailing, knots, understanding weather forecasts, gybing, rights of way, running, sailing a circle and sailing a triangle.
Step 2: Green Fleet
Now it’s time to learn to sail around a course and become a little more independent! Learn new skills and be introduced to sailing around a race course.
Green Fleet is where the juniors move towards being independent on the water. You’ll be amazed at just what they achieve on their own on the water, and you’ll see this transfer into life!
Juniors will gain independence and become more responsible and resilient. Green Fleet focus is again on fun and creativity, to teach introductory racing skills and extend the skills already learnt. Through spending time on the water with friends and having fun in boats, they’ll also become active club members.
Green Fleet introduces kids to racing in a fun and game-sense delivery, with modified rules, challenges, activities, and even adventure races if the winds are fair! Green Fleet juniors are encouraged to use their own boat. If your family is not ready for boat ownership, the club has a couple of boats available for hire at a reasonable fee.
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18 x 3 hr sessions
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Mid-October to mid-March 2024: Every Saturday morning.
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Program Fee: $300 (or $200 if you bring your own Optimist, O'pen Skiff or Laser)
Syllabus: Better sailing, wind shifts, sail trim, gusts and lulls, gunwale capsize recovery, start tactics, centre-board position, racing rules, roll tacks, roll gybes.
Step 3: Silver Fleet & Adventure Series
Silver Fleet is a mixture of adventure sailing and racing for kids that have completed Green Fleet but are not interested in racing every week.
The aim of this program is to grow sailing foundation skills through coaching during the racing and adventure sailing activities and keep kids interested in sailing through other fun activities. We hope to incorporate some exciting non-sailing activities into this program like building a camp, making a fire, kayaking and more…
The sailing program will alternate each week with racing one week and adventure sailing the next and also encourage participation in Open Skiff Regattas. The Silver Fleet will race with the Gold Fleet on Saturday afternoons, however, the Silver Fleet will sail a shorter course (so they don’t feel slow). The Silver Fleet will also be encouraged to participate in local O’pen Skiff Regattas (there will be no Silver Fleet Program on these days).
Silver Fleet focus is on fun and creativity, to teach racing skills and extend the skills already learnt. Through spending time on the water with friends and having fun in boats, they’ll also become active club members.
Syllabus: Better sailing, wind shifts, sail trim, gusts and lulls, sailing standing-up
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18 x 3 hr sessions
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Mid-October to mid-March 2024: Every Saturday afternoon.
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Program Fee: $200 (or $300 if you require to charter a Club Boat)
Step 4: Friday Junior Twilight Coaching Program
The Friday Twilight Coaching Program provides an entry point to junior racing with a coach on the water to provide advice before, during and after the race. Each session consists of a coaching session, adventure sail, or participation in a club race. When possible, game-based learning will be used in the coaching session.
This Coaching Program held on Friday evenings during daylight saving. Eligible classes are: Optimist, O’pen Skiff and Laser. Sailors can charter a club boat or bring their own.
Our Junior Friday Twilight Coaching Program is designed for competent junior sailors aged 10 to 17 that have completed the Green Fleet Program or who can demonstrate competent sailing foundation skills in winds of 12 knots or more.
Syllabus: Better sailing, wind shifts, sail trim, gusts and lulls, sailing standing up, steering without the tiller, race starts.
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10 x 2 hr sessions
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Season 1 - October to December 2023 Every Friday Evening
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Season 2 – Mid-January to March 2024: Every Friday Evening
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Program Fee per Season: $100 (or $200 if you require to charter a Club Boat)
Step 5: Junior Race Series (Gold Fleet)
Junior racing is held on both Saturday afternoons and during Friday Twilights. They are two separate series and known as our “Gold Fleet”.
There is no coaching permitted during the racing however there will be a few coaching clinics before or after racing throughout each series. Sailors requiring coaching should register for the Friday Twilight Coaching course.
Sailors are expected to be competent, know the rules and have their own boat, although club boats may be available for charter. Eligible classes: Optimist, O’pen Skiff and Laser (Optimists Excluded from Friday Twilights).
Friday Twilight Series
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2 x 30 Minute Races
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October to March every Friday Twilight
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Program Fee: $100 (or $300 if you need to charter a Club O’pen Skiff or Laser)
Saturday Afternoon Series
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1 X 40–60 Minute Races
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September to April every Saturday Afternoon (unless there is a local O’pen Skiff Regatta)
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Program Fee: $90 (or $300 if you need to charter a Club Optimist, O’pen Skiff or Laser)
The Lake Mac NSW O'pen Skiff Champs 2024
The Australian O’pen Skiff Association have agreed to hold an Annual O’pen Skiff Regatta at Speers Point Amateur Sailing Club and have confirmed the 2024 Lake Mac O’pen Skiff Regatta will be held from Saturday 27 to Sunday 28 January 2024.
This O’pen Skiff Regatta at SPASC provides a fantastic opportunity for SPASC Junior Members to participate in a large sailing regatta involving around 50 participants.
JUNIOR PROGRAM Sponsors
SPASC acknowledges and appreciates the generous support of Lake Macquarie City Council and the following sponsors of its Junior Sailing Program:
