Commodore’s September Newsletter
Dear Members, 1st September 2023
Congratulations to Richard Jennings who will be our new Rear Commodore. Richard lives locally to the Royal Windermere Yacht Club. He has been a Member of the R.W.Y.C. for 10 to 12 years and is one of our stalwarts of the Safety Boat Teams. He leads by example, doing over 75 duties every year. He is currently President of the Cumbria Soaring Club and is used to Public Speaking. He joined the Management Committee at the Annual General Meeting of 2022 and contributes positively to discussions in Committee. He currently leads the Group of Flags and Members’ Representatives on the Management Committee, meeting prospective Members. Finally, Richard is always welcoming and friendly to Members of the Royal Windermere Yacht Club and Visitors.
August proved to be another mixed month with ever changing weather. Frequently, there was not enough wind, with the following weekend having too much wind. However, those who sailed on the good days, had some excellent racing. On a number of evenings, racing was held within the Bay with some exciting courses laid out by Steve Bewsher, our Race Officer. The Traditional Belle Isle Race, which was held on Bank Holiday Monday morning, was enjoyed by many Members. The Junior Members Fleet was hotly contested with James Ashton and James Kay winning. The Adult Fleet was won by John Richardson. It was great to see so many Members enjoying the Race. In the afternoon, the Flying Fifteen Fleet, Dinghies and
17 Ft Fleet, had some very close racing, with boats finishing within minutes of each other. August finished with the Bank Holiday Weekend and the start of the 17 Ft Race Week. The week was very successful. Monday saw some great sailing with a record turn out of 18 Seventeens’. Tuesday saw 15 boats on the Start Line with a difficult strong westerly wind, giving crews, challenging conditions. On Wednesday, sixteen boats were on the Start Line. This is probably the greatest number coming to the start line in the recent past. On Wednesday, following the Bank Holiday Weekend, Zoe produced an excellent Buffet.
Our thanks this month, go to our regular Safety Boat Crews. The Club is run by volunteers and needs Members to help out doing Safety Boat Duties.
It is apparent, that some people, with safety boat experience, are not “stepping up” to do their share of volunteering to do a duty. If you think you are able to help, please look at the Duty Roster and VOLUNTEER. There are plenty of spaces to fill for the last three months of the Season.
Training:
The Monday Junior Races were well attended by three girls regularly. They were: Lula Cook; Lillian Ainscough and Amelie Aston. Our activity weeks have gone well this Summer. Matthew Daly and his team have worked hard to provide great water sports activities. The Youth Sailing Club starts again and runs on into the Autumn. Our thanks also go to Zoe Broughton who keeps the “training on the road”, fielding difficult questions and solving puzzles which the Training Programme often “throws up”. Training is still running and busy throughout September and October, with Adult R.Y.A. Sailing Courses and Power Boat Courses running.
Training (Continued)
The Club is going to put on the discounted PBL2 Courses again, however if you take one of these discounted courses, the condition is, that you do three duties within this Season or next. We will also be putting on some Club Safety Boat Courses at the end of this Season and at the beginning of the next Season. These will not gain you a recognised qualification, but are being held to help people with rescues and learn more skills. Look out for the dates and information which will be emailed out soon.
Guests
Members’ guests are always welcome at the R.W.Y.C. Please make sure you sign in your guest/guests in the new Signing In book, which is in the foyer. Guests do not have to be signed in for Social Events. A Member may sign in three times in a Membership Year, after which, they will need to pay for the same guest for a further three times.
Day Fee per Person/Boat = £10.00
Weekend Fee per Person/Boat (Saturday and Sunday) = £30.00
Week Fee per Person/Boat (Monday to Friday) = £50.00
September Calendar:
2nd September Commodore’s Day – Hog Roast and Water Challenges.
9th September – R.N.L.I. Race Counting for All Fleets. This is an important event, please support it
by either sailing or coming to the BBQ.
16th September – Flying Fifteen Dinner.
23rd September – Dinghy Dinner.
14th October – Dinghy Open – Solo Northern Series and GP14 Northern Bell.
Please, as usual, book in with Zoe in plenty of time. There is always a deadline date for
Bookings, don’t miss it!
An Early Warning to those with Trophies:
Trophies need returning to the Clubhouse of the RWYC before 10th of October 2023.
Penny and myself are looking forward to seeing you at the Royal Windermere Yacht Club.
With Best Wishes
Nick Aubrey (Commodore, R.W.Y.C.)