Wiarton Yacht Club

Wiarton Yacht Club Wiarton Yacht Club is a social , cruising and racing no fee club based at the Wiarton Marina we host BBQ,s , pig roasts, potlucks and information evenings.

Wiarton Yacht Yacht club is based at the Wiarton Marina, but is not affiliated with the Marina, we are a social, cruising and sailboat racing club with no fee,s. The Marina kindly gives us use of the Clubhouse for our indoor events.

A few photo's from the 2020 WYC Invitational.
09/15/2026

A few photo's from the 2020 WYC Invitational.

Old pictures of the WYC Canada Day sail past 2001
09/14/2026

Old pictures of the WYC Canada Day sail past 2001

09/14/2026

I know A.I. is controversial, but I could not resist, so I posed the question, (Using PHRF for sailboat racing on Colpoy's Bay, Wiarton, Ontario, Canada?) Does anyone who has sailed here have any views on this? we all know that PHRF is not perfect, but it gets us out racing.

The answer I got.
Standard PHRF-Lake Ontario ratings fail to accurately handicap boats in Colpoys Bay near Wiarton because flat water removes wave drag and cliff-driven gusts create extreme acceleration swings that regional formulas ignore.

Flat Water and Boat Momentum
• Removes Chop Penalty:
Standard PHRF ratings assume open-water chop. Chop slows down heavy displacement or older cruising boats.

• Flattens the Field:
In the flat water of Colpoys Bay, heavy boats keep their momentum easily. Their standard handicap rating gives them too much time allowance over lighter, faster boats.

• Upwind Advantage:
Heavy boats tend to point higher and stall less without waves, outperforming what their assigned numbers predict.
Escarpment Puffs and Shifty Winds

• The Cliff Effect:
High bluffs along Colpoys Bay act as a wind funnel. They compress and drop violent, unpredictable gusts down on the water
• Acceleration Wins:
Lighter boats with modern fractional rigs accelerate instantly out of a dead hole and power through heavy puffs.

• Over-powered Rigs:
PHRF assumes boats are sailed at peak efficiency. In highly gusty conditions, boats with massive sail-area-to-displacement ratios spend half their time over-heeled, rounding up, or constantly dumping the mainsheet to survive.

• The Under-rated Cruiser:
Conversely, a stiffer, lower-performance boat with a high righting moment can stand up to the sudden gusts without changing sail trim. On flat water, this stability lets them track perfectly straight, occasionally causing them to sail well above their conservative PHRF prediction

• Tacking Angles:
In a protected bay, land masses twist the wind, generating massive headers and lifts. Boats that tack quickly and accelerate instantly out of a turn will easily out-sail their rating.

• Reaching Traps:
If the bay constraints force the race committee into permanent reaching legs rather than true windward-leeward legs, boats with large overlapping genoas will utterly crush modern, non-overlapping sportboats—rendering the base PHRF numbers useless.

How to Fix Local Rating Issues
• Local Adjustments: Talk to your club handicapper to apply local adjustments for sheltered, puffy inland/bay venues.
• Review Rig Settings: Ensure your boat utilizes adjustable backstays, vangs, and traveler setups to handle rapid depowering.
• Scoring Methods: Switch to alternative Time-on-Time (TOT) formulas that reward boats handling extreme wind range transitions better.

Few more old pics from the 2006 season.
09/13/2026

Few more old pics from the 2006 season.

2006 Wiarton Regatta memories.
09/11/2026

2006 Wiarton Regatta memories.

Found an old CD with photos and results from the 2006 Invitational regatta, will post some photos when I get them sorted...
09/11/2026

Found an old CD with photos and results from the 2006 Invitational regatta, will post some photos when I get them sorted and cleaned up.

1974 photo of Gleek, a 26 foot Vic Carpenter boat after a PhotoShop restoration., Thanks to Jorge Albuquerque for the or...
09/11/2026

1974 photo of Gleek, a 26 foot Vic Carpenter boat after a PhotoShop restoration., Thanks to Jorge Albuquerque for the original.

Mark this on your calendar. Pot luck, Jam night and maybe Karaoke
09/10/2026

Mark this on your calendar. Pot luck, Jam night and maybe Karaoke

More photos.
09/10/2026

More photos.

Shows how close the racing was last weekend. Left to right, Frisky-Kirby 30, High Voltage-J27, Bad Attitude-Carpenter 28...
09/10/2026

Shows how close the racing was last weekend. Left to right, Frisky-Kirby 30, High Voltage-J27, Bad Attitude-Carpenter 28, Spad-Carpenter 30, Orange Krait- Chaser 29 Mod.

Address

827 Bayview Street
Wiarton, ON
N0H2T0

Telephone

519 534 1301

Website

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