Commodore’s Message

Commodore Denis Martinet

會長孟憲庭 “La vita fugge, et non s’arresta una hora”

Quite the appropriate sentiment from this ancient Italian sonnet. My two year tenure is coming to an end – and what a ride it has been! Certainly not your usual fare; a challenging journey, unlike any other in recent memory. Stop. Start. Open. Close. These and many more edicts have punctuated our lives, and still do, giving rise to hope and despair, at times in equal measure. Yet through it all, the Club has perdured. Management and staff, committee members, all worked tirelessly to ensure our Club and its three locations could always remain a haven for all our members and guests. And this is quite an achievement, when one must juggle aforementioned pronouncements with people’s fast eroding patience! To all of you a heart-felt thank you for persevering, for delivering very high standards in difficult circumstances. Merci!

Life goes on, auguring better days, more fun Club days!

May witnessed our yearly peregrination to Tin Hau, to pay our respects to the Sea Goddess, and bring about her blessings on our Club, members and staff! And it must have been auspicious as this coincided with a welcome return to our water sports after a long interruption. On that news the suckling pig was promptly dispatched to all corners of the Club and was succulent by all account!

Our big return on the water, albeit a wet, even chilly return for both the Tomes and Nations’ Cups – large fleets, great costumes with 18 different countries represented and a worthy winner in Scotland, second time round too, for one of our more senior member Mike Burrell and his gang of kilted crew! Tomes Cup winner Zephyr is possibly on his way to snatch the Top Dog Trophy – more detailed reports on both races inside Ahoy.

9 June will see our EGM and as I step off, I urge you to take the time to select and empower the team of directors who will take you on the next leg of our Club journey. You will have received from the Nominating Committee (NomCom), a list of candidates it is putting forward. Making abstraction of the Officers, who by and large are well known to you and will provide continuity, as chair of NomCom, I would like to draw your attention to the two candidates for General Committee, Judy and Ben. Our continued objective has been to identify youth, diversity and active participation. Youth to present a more dynamic and progressive outlook in keeping with our changing environment and membership trends; diversity to achieve wider representation in our elected bodies and participation as a mark of active and selfless involvement in the Club’s core sporting activities. Please do consider them favourably as they are both needed in bringing new blood and impetus to our elected bodies.

Thank you all for your trust and support over the last two years – as I edge into the sun set, I expect to do so in style with the St. James’s Place Sunset Series starting 10 June.

Membership Update

Over the last two years, the Club has been experiencing record levels of membership applications. Currently, there is a wait list of several months for ordinary membership. The Membership Committee has been pleased to note that the quality of applicants has been uniformly high, reflecting broad interest in sailing, rowing and paddling sports in Hong Kong.

To ensure continued high standards, the Membership Committee and General Committee have made a few changes to the admission criteria that will take effect from 1 July 2022 for all applications received by the Club on or after 20 May. The main changes are (i) extending the required period of sailing activity to one year and (ii) setting the minimum required sailing experience at 60 hours (preferably including racing) and the minimum required rowing /paddling experience at three races and 27 rowing or paddling sessions.

In addition to these minimum criteria, the Membership Committee takes into account all factors that support the applicant’s interest in the Club’s water sports activities. These factors include the applicant’s lifetime sailing, rowing and paddling history, boat ownership, volunteer activities and training courses. Priority will be given to applicants who have engaged in racing, race management, volunteer duties.

The Introductory Scheme has proven to be an excellent path to membership. The Scheme provides prospective members a onetime opportunity to enhance their ability to meet the admission requirements with the assistance of a Club mentor without paying an entrance fee until they are admitted to membership. The Scheme’s original nine month term has been extended several times by a few months in recognition that participants’ ability to gain the experience necessary for membership was curtailed by the Government’s restrictions on sporting activities during the pandemic. Effective from 1 July 2022, the Scheme term has been permanently extended to 12 months.

Anthony Root

Chairman of Membership Committee