Reviving Small Boat Sailing with Simple Boxy Boats

Wazzup Pilipinas!

Sailing has become so affordable and user-friendly it is drawing more Filipinos to join a growing international interest in taking up the hobby and sport that is virtually a perfect fit for the country’s archipelagic environment.

International and local collaboration of companies and individuals involved in sailing and boatbuilding, including Hyde Sails International a British company that makes sails for sailboats whose main factory is in Cebu, Duckworks Boatbuilder’s Supply of the U.S, Broadwater Marine of Australia., local boatbuilding materials suppliers such as Zamboply Marine plywood, Pioneer Epoxy and Polymer Products, Inc. has brought about the popularity of the Oz Goose sailboat, designed by Batangas-based Australian designer Michael Storer,  has broken down the myth that sailing is only for the rich.

This collaboration was brought about by the Philippine Home Boatbuilders Yacht Club or PHBYC, a group of boating enthusiasts that promote affordable boating and sailing through do-it-yourself wooden boats. 

So far, over  40 Oz Goose sailboats have been built in the three island groups of the Philippines from scratch using boat plans, built to order from authorized builders, and most of the produced during Family Boatbuilding Weekends (FBW), the signature event of PHBYC, wherein families or groups assemble an Oz Goose from a prefabricated kit.

The boxy looking boat is easy to build and sails well with 3 persons, but is best sailed with one or two people onboard, making it a great platform to learn how to sail. Its shape gives it a lot of stability and is empty of water when righted from a capsize, (To find out more when the next FBW would be, feel free to follow PHBYC’s facebook group page and the Open Goose Sailing Boat Group).

Long time sailing enthusiast, Peter Capotosto, Commodore of the Taal Lake Yacht Club said, “The cost to build 10 Oz Geese, is the same as the cost of bringing in two Olympic class sailboats (Laser dinghy) and surprisingly it performs just as well especially for new sailors. Without a doubt the Oz Goose has more bang for the buck.” Mr. Capotosto said.

The unique coming together of international and local boating experts and suppliers leading to the rising popularity of the Oz Goose class in the Philippines is unprecedented, And could be the hope for the future of Dinghy sailing here, According to Mr. Capotosto; “We organize monthly races at TLYC and the increased participation of old an new sailors in the Oz Goose class has increased exponentially after we had an FBW there last month” Mr. Capotosto added.

Sailing clubs around the world are trying to emulate what PHBYC has done to revive interest in small boat sailing. According to boat designer Michael Storer:  “We still have a long way to go to get mainstream interest in small boat sailing in the Philippines, but PHBYC is making progress, schools have expressed their interest having sailing as a varsity sport and our maritime academies that produce sailors that know little about sailing are beginning to appreciate how small boat sailing and boatbuilding can significantly add to the seamanship knowhow of their cadets.”

The Oz Goose is made from 5 or 6mm marine grade plywood, and lumber, assembled with epoxy. While the sails that move the boat can be made by the builder from materials like polytarp or tyvek, professionally made dacron sails can also be purchased locally from dealers such as Las Pinas based Monsoon Marine.


Please check Wazzup Pilipinas Facebook fan page for more photos.

Safety on the Water
Anyone can learn how to sail, and PHBYC has always been an advocate of safety on the water by wearing a personal flotation device (PFD) being responsible and respectful to the environment and advising people when to expect you back when going on extended boating trips.

About PHBYC
The Philippine Home Boatbuilders Yacht Club (PHBYC) is a local community sailors, boaters and amateur and professional boatbuilders that help people get into boating and sailing economically through boatbuilding. Plans for building all kinds of boats are available online and the materials to build them are readily available locally. Established in 2006 PHBYC helps its members by giving advice on sourcing materials and boatbuilding techniques, all they ask in return is for people to pay forward what they’ve learned to help grow the fleet of homebuilt boats.

Contributed By: Roy Espiritu /PHBYC

Conquer Big Days with Berocca!

Wazzup Pilipinas!

A fast-paced lifestyle is often filled with physically exhausting and mentally-draining activities. For spirited men and women, Big Days can mean the challenges they go through every single day – the rush hour traffic in the morning, beating deadlines and targets at work, while having enough energy to go to the gym or go out with friends after!  And a great way to conquer big days is with BEROCCA everyday!

Celebrities Kim Chiu and Paulo Avelino, like many of us today, also lead very active lifestyles.  For them, every day is a Big Day, each with their varied commitments aside from very demanding production schedules for TV shows and movies.  Kim also does Muay Thai and trains for triathlons, as well as helps out with their family business, and still goes out for occasional trips abroad with family and friends.  Paulo on the other hand has a passion for riding motorbikes, works out to maintain his physique, all while making sure to have time for date nights.  The two have enough energy to keep a healthy balance of work and “me” time with the help of Berocca.

That’s because the Vitamin B-complex in Berocca helps release the energy from the food we eat, and we need to replenish especially when doing physical challenges or even when under emotional stress.  Berocca’s combination is unique because aside from Vitamin B-complex, it also has vitamin C plus calcium, magnesium and zinc that is clinically proven to give increased physical energy and mental sharpness to help you conquer Big Days.
And now, for only P22.50 SRP, the new Berocca singles pack can help give you the extra energy and mental alertness that can beat deadlines and juggle schedules.  Grab it now in all major drugstores nationwide!

Once you’ve tried it, share your experience on how you Conquer Big Days to get a chance to win an exciting day with celebrity endorsers Kim Chiu and Paulo Avelino as they go about conquering their Big Day, and also appear with them in Umagang Kay Ganda in May. Three (3) weekly winners will also be selected, based on who visualized “Big Days” in a great way, and will win a “barkada” adventure package, starting April 1, 2018.

To join, simply make a public social media post (Facebook, Instagram) from March 1 to April 20, 2018, on how you Conquer Big Days and include the hashtags #BeroccaPH and #ConquerBigDays.  Winners will be notified via private message to their social media account.  They will have 48 hours to respond.  In case there is no response from the winner within 48 hours, the Berocca Team will choose another winner.

So be bold enough and share how you #ConquerBigDays with #BeroccaPH online to win these exciting prizes!

Conquer Big Days with Berocca!

For more information, find Berocca on Facebook (www.facebook.com/BeroccaPh) and on Instagram (@BeroccaPh).
Check out and share the Berocca experience with the hashtags #BeroccaPH and #ConquerBigDays.

Multivitamins and Minerals is the generic name of Berocca Performance.
Per DOH-FDA-CDRR Permit No. 052 s. 2018

Education Chief Highlights Need to Contemporize Culture, Arts with Sci-Tech

Wazzup Pilipinas!

Department of Education (DepEd) Secretary Leonor Magtolis Briones recently emphasized the importance of contemporizing culture and the arts with science and technology to further advance the educational system in the country.

The Education chief noted this during the ribbon-cutting ceremony of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and Philippine World Heritage Sites Mobile Exhibition last February 26 at the Bulwagan ng Karunungan, DepEd Central Office in Pasig City.

“If we only concentrate in catching up with science and technology, but forget about our history, culture and the arts, then where will we get our soul? Our soul as Filipinos come from those and these make us distinct and different from other ASEAN member-countries, even as we have strong similarities,” Briones said.

She further mentioned that the arts and design, and sports tracks under the K to 12 curriculum are equally important as the mainstream academic and technical-vocational-livelihood tracks.

“We have to make them aware that it pays to be a writer, a dancer, a designer; it pays to be in ‘art.’ And it also even pays to be a boxer,” she added.

Mobile exhibitions
Briones conveyed her gratitude to the National Commission for Culture and the Arts (NCAA), which provided the Department with four mobile exhibits to be used in promoting awareness on ASEAN and the Philippine World Heritage Sites.

“We look forward to showing and sharing these exhibits to different regions, especially to places where these exhibits will be most informative and will bring greater awareness. But we should not limit ourselves only to the urban centers but in many other schools, which we are not even aware of and in areas where there are continuous challenges to our identity,” Briones stated.

“We see these exhibits as one of the windows of the world for ASEAN through fascinating in diverse cultures to our friends in Asia, who share many similarities to our own culture and at the same time offer many, cultural places that are uniquely their own,” DepEd-International Cooperation Office (ICO) Director Margarita Consolacion Ballesteros said.

The mobile exhibition panels include: Southeast Asian Art and Culture (ideas, forms, and societies); Foodlore and Flavors (inside Southeast Asian Kitchen); Celebrating the Source (water festivities of Southeast Asia); and Living Landscapes and Cultural Landmarks (World Heritage Sites in the Philippines).

The exhibit is open for viewing to all DepEd employees, students, and the general public at the Bulwagan ng Karunugan, DepEd-CO until March 9, Friday, and will be toured to the 17 DepEd Regional Offices, and selected Division Offices and schools within the year. During the exhibit tour, 53,265 ASEAN Primers, given by the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA), will be distributed to students. Moreover, 150,000 printed copies of the ASEAN Charter, given by the DFA as well and translated in Filipino, Cebuano, and Ilokano, will be distributed.

“The Philippines can be proud of the diversity and wealth of our culture molded through the centuries by the many influences that have touched our lives, which gave us a nation with unique culture identity,” Ballesteros concluded.