Revival at Onerahi

“The key to keeping it running - is someone who is focused on keeping it alive.”

An initiative to boost participation and get more people out on the water has seen a revival at Onerahi Yacht Club over the past eight years. 

The idea of creating a laser fleet with a price cap of $1500 was born out of a pub discussion between a few mates who were keen to get their kids into sailing, and also get back out on the water themselves.

Although the division doesn’t exist in the same form anymore, the club has retained the mentality of ‘if it floats and has a sail, join in.’

The all-inclusive philosophy appears to be working, with a strong fleet of centreboard sailors across a wide range of classes that regularly attend weekly club days.

It is quite different to the club Bruce Yovich joined in 2006.

The former club commodore and vice-commodore says when he joined, there was just one keelboat race on the club calendar a year.  

Bruce was one of those men in the pub, who realised that in order to have participation you need to have a fleet to begin with.   

“We shot out and brought 15 lasers. That was the beginning really,” says Bruce.

The division eventually phased itself out, because as Bruce says – when you get competitive, who really wants to sail a dunger.

But it did however gain an initial response that drew people in to have a go and get out there, and prove that a club can be lifted up again with a few simple ideas.

It also set a benchmark for participation in any kind of boat, no matter what the condition.

“Club level sailing doesn’t have to be the best. It’s about developing a love of the ocean and gaining confidence on the water,” he says.

He attributes the revival to a strong focus on grass roots sailing, getting kids involved, and also having people willing to drive the club forward.

“What a good club needs is a few people who are willing to put in the work and effort and make things happen. You can see the effects of that here at Onerahi. The key to keeping it running is someone who is focused on keeping it alive,” he says.

Bruce has done his time on the club committee as vice-commodore and commodore, and now remains a club member.

On a good night, Bruce says around 40 sailors turn up to race centreboards.

These range from lasers to OK dinghies, mistrals, contenders, a bazooka trimaran, p-classes, optis, sunbursts, and enterprise dinghy’s.

“From pretty much nothing we’ve now got quite a fleet of boats,” says Bruce.

Onerahi Yacht Club will host the NYA laser and P-Class championships alongside their own club championships on March 22 and 23.

Bruce says all are welcome to participate.