www.tbyc.org • Edition 3
The temperature has started to drop and winter seems to be just around the corner waiting to pounce - but what a great summer we have had! Hog roasts, Caribbean steel bands, rum punch, barbecues, comedians and wine tasting – TBYC has seen it all this year. Thanks to everyone who supported the social events throughout the summer, I had a great time and I hope you all did too! We have a number of events
Tickets cost £10 for adults and £8 for cadets up to the age of 15. Tickets are limited so be sure to book yours quickly before they sell out. All booking details are on the club website and on poster up in the club. How do you fancy eating and drinking your way around the world for just a tenner? New for 2010 is the World of Wines Night on November 20th. For one night only you can taste specially selected wines from around the world. Tickets will cost £10 per person and will include all wine tasting and food. Keep your eyes peeled for details on how to book. No events calendar would be complete without the festive season included. The Christmas party will be on December 11th and we will of course be ringing in the New Year in style at the club. Booking details will be available for these soon. 2010 has been a great year for socials at Thorpe Bay Yacht Club with a diverse range of events across the previous months. Thank you to everyone for their support. Without you there would be no event!
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I am hoping to continue my position as social rep for 2011 and will be welcoming Alix Dell who will be helping me plan and arrange more fun and exciting events for the year. I would love to hear any feedback, good or bad, from anyone who has been to any of the events this year. What were the best bits, and what could have been done better? If anyone would like to get involved in any way please do let me know. It could be anything from new ideas for events, to helping sell tickets, to helping with planning or even decorating the club for the night. All help is greatly appreciated and welcomed. Kylie
planned for the next few months taking us right through to 2011. I would also like to say thank you to Jo and her team. Without them I would be lost and no one would be fed!! The annual prizegiving sailing supper is back on November 13th, and this year you could be in with a chance of winning an iPod Nano, so get your tickets quick! With so many great sailing achievements made this year it will be great to see so many of you along to collect your prizes.
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The Club has space for approximately 265 dinghies and catamarans plus assorted tenders and kayaks. Summer Sailing and Storage During the summer sailing season – April to October – the dinghy park plan is posted on the noticeboard in the main lobby, together with a list of allocated spaces. If you own a dinghy or catamaran and have paid the relevant storage and sailing fee, you are allocated a space for storage between April to October only. To promote cohesion amongst the various classes, dinghies are usually stored alongside boats of a similar class. It is acceptable for dinghies and cats to move spaces in their respective rows by swapping with another of a similar class providing both owners agree which may make access more user friendly especially where road trailers are involved.
For those who require a space Before bringing your boat into the dinghy park, please contact the dinghy park representative – details are on the web site and main programme giving details of your class, sail number and email address. Providing there is room, then a space will be provided upon payment of the relevant fee. This also applies to Kayaks and Windsurfers. Each year we do find one or two boats, launching trolleys and road trailers where space has not been requested or approved and in some cases the boats appear to be abandoned. Thorpe Bay Yacht Club is an affiliated club to the RYA and we follow the guidelines of the RYA in dealing with abandoned boats, trailers and masts etc as well as unpaid fees.
Space in the dinghy park is at a premium, so we do ask owners to keep to their allocated spaces rather than expand sideways.
There are some straightforward objectives and responsibilities to having a space in the Dinghy Park:
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Winter Sailing and Storage The cruisers and Sandhoppers are laid up in the dinghy park between November and March each year and available space is reduced by half. All dinghies and cats which are not taking part in the Winter and Icicle series are required to remove their boats immediately after the planned date of the End of Season Trophy Race. This date can be found in the Sailing programme, web site or on the notice board in the lobby. Apart from removing you boat, please ensure everything else associated with your boat is removed and leave your space clean and tidy. To enter the Winter and Icicle series, entry forms are placed on the web site and notice boards and entrants are selected on a first come basis. Please remember, there is no winter storage available unless participating in the Winter and Icicle race series. The only exception to this is for the Pico fleet who may pay a storage fee to be under or on the racks. There is not room to store all the Picos and again permitted storage is subject to how quickly forms and fees are submitted. Accurate details are required for both summer and winter sailing especially with sail numbers as this data is required by the race results officer to formulate the race database.
The summer season is now at an end - and what a summer it has been! The bar has had some wonderful success - congratulations and thanks must go to Martin Swindon, our Bar Secretary, and his team of Gordon and Lorraine who have produced bumper sales and served more members than ever before. The summer introduction of guest beers, Peroni lager and a vast array of soft drinks has made it the best yet! Throughout the summer the Commodore’s Bar has been stocked with soft drinks and snacks for the cadets, giving them their own area both during the day and on Thursday nights - this has proved to be a great hit. Overall this season we have changed all the wines - bringing in top quality favourites chosen by the members at our wine-tasting evening and then presenting the wines at lower prices than our 2009 stock. Generally because of our great attendances, we have been able to introduce new lines and generate bumper sales without price increase since early 2009. We have absorbed both a VAT increase and a duty increase. This is all down to members’ support! Many members have enjoyed birthday, christening and anniversary celebrations at the club, bringing friends and other members to enjoy our hospitality and great atmosphere. When you have a reason to party, give TBYC a go - just contact Kylie or myself for availability and an events proposal form. Our prices are still the same and represent great value for such a venue: TBYC Main Bar TBYC Commodore’s Bar TBYC sail training room for meetings and conferences
£75 per event (100+ people) £50 per event (40 people) £30 per day
The TBYC kitchen has gone from strength to strength. Jo and her dedicated team have provided food for all, and during this year have surpassed previous years for quality food and opening hours that better suit the sailing activities we all enjoy. Jo has attracted many new lunchtime members as word spreads about the great food and wonderful facilities the club has to offer. This year the club has been very busy both on and off the water as we buck the trend of decline and ditch the recession for a truly great experience of being a member of this premier Essex club. We can look forward to the winter knowing that sailing will be well supported and the bars will be full of members and friends enjoying food and drink together.
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Another great cadet week for the Barracuda Group. We started off with twenty-eight and finished the week with thirty-two, having learnt lots of new seamanship skills combined with the important ingredient of fun, and lots of it. The Barracudas are the next group up from the Stingrays and spend the whole session on the water covering many different activities. The entry requirement for this group is a minimum of TBYC Stage 2 plus a lot of time in Pico and/or club racing. Each year the Barracudas are oversubscribed, and preference given to those cadets who have qualified at stage 2 and who put in a regular appearance at the Pico and Club race events. At this level we hone boat handing skills to provide a much higher level of confidence on the water. The week was action packed with lots of new techniques being introduced at our morning brief and then practiced during the day on the water. We started off on Monday with some practice starts by only using the signal flags with no hooter. On the third start, everyone now understood what the brief was about with sixteen Picos just off the line as the class flag was dipped which was great to see. This was followed by two upwind/downwind races with a difference, in that each boat had to sail backwards on the downwind leg. After lunch we had our traditional ice cream race to Ocean Beach. Thanks to Beverley and Vanessa for standing on the beach for an hour waiting for 16 Picos to tack upwind against the ebb tide - but it was worth the wait! The race back from Ocean Beach was fast as the wind picked up. The scheduled raft races had to be postponed as the wind swung round to the North West.
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On Tuesday our brief covered how to set a race course together with an introduction to rudderless sailing. Racing commenced - again with no hooter - using a box course with rudders lashed on the reaches. Two triangle races later and off to the beach for a well deserved lunch break. The wind swung round to the south - ideal for raft racing. After a quick brief on the beach Martyn and Nick ferried the two teams of boys versus the girls out to the rafts. Sails raised and a dash for the beach with plenty of infringements but no penalty turns required. The boys won the first race by a barrel. On the second race the girls were first back to the beach so the result was left at one-all. Back into the Picos and two obstacle races which comprised of crews walking around the masts, penalty turns and capsizes. Wednesday’s brief covered helm/crew communication. For the two sausage races which followed, the helm was blindfolded on the upwind leg with some interesting comments coming from the young crews especially as the hooter was kept in the bag for the starts. After lunch the treasure hunt - all afloat was completed with two more triangle races. The brief on Thursday was all about sailing without a dagger board to develop a better understanding of the use of foil settings - upwind, off wind and downwind. The seamanship race was completed after a restart to relay the marks. This race is designed to put all the previously learnt skills into one event which comprises of a box course with first leg (and start) sailing backwards, second leg rudderless, third leg (upwind) blindfolded helm, fourth leg reaching without a dagger board and backward across the finish line. After several DSQs for peeping (for lost blindfolds - sorry guv, my eyes were really closed) the worthy winners were the girl team of Sophie and
Genevieve who completed each leg correctly. After the seamanship race we did a final race to Jubilee Beach with long tacks against the westerly wind. A short break for refreshments and a fast downwind race back.
At the prizegiving on Friday, all Barracudas received their cadet week medals and mini trophies were awarded to the winning (Red) team of Madeleine Thomason and Lucy Brown, Madeleine Hopper and Lucy Overae, Abi Cotgrove and Laura Cotgrove. The Seamanship trophy was awarded to Sophie Boygle and Genevieve Bailey. For the most improved trophy, it is always difficult to make a judgement because by the end of the week everyone had developed a much higher confidence with boat handling and racing. Having looked at the individual race results over the five days, the most improved trophy was awarded to Ben Warrington and Maddie Shields. The trophy for the overall winning Pico based on the results from all races from Monday to Thursday was won by Madeleine Thomason and Lucy Brown.
For Friday we covered the main rights of way rules in time for the end of week race where all Barracudas have a chance to compete with the Racing Shark group. Before this race the rafts were captured by the Stingray Group by two of their team leaders swimming out to the rafts with long tow lines. For the fourth year running the Barracudas were defeated as the ever determined Stingrays wanted to have their day on the rafts. All the Barracudas put in a fantastic performance in the End of Week Trophy race with three boats being in the top ten Picos with Madeleine Thomason and Lucy Brown coming in second, Michaela Burrage and Alex Thomason sixth and Ben Warrington and Maddie Shields ninth.
Next year we hope to see the boys taking more of the silverware home! Our thanks to Shaun Christian and Nick Cotgrove for Race Officering from Polly; Red Rib of Nick Elmore, crewed by Rod Watson, Mary Lloyd, Kevin Soane and John Laliberte; Eyre Rib of Martyn Eyre and crew with Adrian and Sue Bunting taking the photos; and Michael Lloyd for instructing from a Pico. For next year we are increasing the maximum entry for Barracudas to twenty Picos to give more opportunity for Stingrays to move into the next group. Mike Thomason
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For this years “Senior” group in TBYC Cadet week, team leaders Rupert Snow and Ian Little tried to combine the good parts of the old Racing Group and Sharks group from previous years. The main focus of the group would be still be racing but Rupert would organise a couple day trips out, round the bay in Sandhoppers for a spot of piracy and swashbuckling. On the racing front however, we were delighted to have the assistance of Dave Hall, winner of many National, European and World Championships, and an actual world class sailing coach, clearly a significant step up from Rupert and Ian shouting instructions at the unfortunate kids!
birds started tweeting, the grey clouds parted and the sun came out. The tone was set for the rest of Cadet Week 2010. Three races on Monday afternoon saw early showings from Alex Farrall in the Laser Radial, Alex Gibson and Will Arney in their RS500, Millie Little and Jessica Bunting along with James Arney and Helen McKeown showed consistency in the Picos, George Warrington and Greg Watson along with Alex Warrington and Harvey Turner showing the value of their training in the Cadets. Tuesday dawned if anything brighter and lighter than the previous day and saw the fast cats and assymetrics along with the Fevas and Lasers shipped off to Leigh in the Sandhoppers along with Rupert for a day of piracy and other shenanigans. Whilst this worked well on a practical note (the weather was wonderful and many loved the experience) there were several in this group were not as interested in sailing the Sandhoppers or exploring the estuary as expected – ironic as it was due to this group that we had merged in the first place. It was superb to see so many owners feel confident enough to jump out of their boats and leave the cadets to sail them independently – very brave! Huge thanks go to all who lent their precious boats for the event, they were a massive boon.
Day one started in what has now become traditional fashion: just a bit too much wind for everyone to be comfortable, waves just big enough to climb aboard and further spook the unsure. Attempts to start with a spot of “follow the leader” with a mixed fleet of Lasers, Picos, Feva and the wildcards of Sprint 15’s, Prindle catamaran, RS 500 and 29er proved “fraught”. Boats with fully battened sails tend to exhibit a binary performance profile; either the sail is pulling like crazy, or it is completely stopped, so the fact that any follow-my-leader type activity was completed is a testament to the skills of the participants. Thankfully lunch intervened with Rupert calming his nerves with a sweet tea (in reality, a sugar bowl with a dash of tea.) Even as the sandwiches were being consumed, the wind eased and the
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Meanwhile back at the racecourse with the Picos and Cadets, training started in earnest under the expert guidance of Dave Hall. After a few false starts eventually a line of boats was set-up behind Seasafe 3 (the trick apparently and disappointingly for some, was to not crash into each other). A few practice starts under the beady eye of Dave with Steve Hopper’s video camera, and it was lunchtime again. No sweet tea required this time. After lunch three races saw the Cadets of the Warringtons, and this time along with Findlay Cullender and Matthew Lloyd posting good results, in the Picos Vicky Little and Roisin Browne began to get into the groove along with Robyn Murdoch and Jessica Chapman.
Thursday dawned – still warm still, still light winds all the fleets were back together albeit with three separate starts. More practice with Dave, practice starts, tacking on the whistle, follow-my-leader and more, even the Cats practiced starting the Sprints obviously risking expulsion from the regular Sprint Fleet. In the Slow handicap fleet the usual suspects again made the running this time joined by Charlie Metcalf and Liam Soame. In the Lasers and Fevas Alex Farrall again showed the way with Bob Binnendijk, David Murdoch, Max Duce and Alex Nevin all getting a look in. In the Cats and Fast Asymmetrics Alex and Will in the RS500 continued to dominate, with Will and Patrick in the Dart 16 and increasingly Jack and Ben Farringdon began to get it all together. Wednesday saw the Picos and Cadets disappear off with Rupert to Leigh in the Sandhoppers, and the Lasers, Fevas and fast boats back in the training seat with Dave. This group had a fantastic day and loved the adventuring as well as the opportunity to sail in keel boats, which made sense as they had not had the opportunity before and were not, in the main, as fanatical about racing. We had also abandoned the idea of making these races that would count towards the series and I think the idea of using this as a ‘day off’ might be the way forward in future. Splitting the fleet into two sections eased the problems of speed differentials and saw the Lasers and Fevas combined, for starting practice and more and the Cats and Fast Asymmetrics practicing separately with Chris Pym. Lunch again came and went without any calls for sweet tea, and racing commenced in the afternoon, with Alex Gibson and Will Arney in the RS500, and Will and Patrick Shields in the Dart 16 emerging as the front runners in one fleet, and Alex Farrall stamping his authority on the other fleet. Behind Alex Bob Binnendijk, Max Duce and Thomas Metcalf all swapped places. In the Fevas, Jonny and Peter Snow battled with Athina and Isabel Duce with some of the closest racing of the week.
Friday saw the End of Week Trophy and “Grand Showdown” between Alex Farrall and Alex Gibson and Will Arney, who both had perfect records of all first places. Whoever won would win the week overall. In the event the race was a light shifty affair plagued by holes in the wind. Nevertheless Alex Farrall managed to post another first place from Alex Warrington and Harvey Turner in the Cadet and Max Duce in his Laser 4.7. In the end a worthy winner in Alex Farrall and the end of a great Cadet Week. In the end there was more “racing” than “sharking” but we make no apology for that. Having Dave Hall around was just too big an opportunity to waste. An enormous debt of thanks is due to Dave Hall and Steve Hooper for all their help, use of Steve’s rib and videocamera and Dave’s excellent de-briefs each night; thanks also to Chris Pym, Tye McKeown, Paul Farrall and Tony Clarke in the rescue boats and the ladies on the Committee Boat, Linda Snow, Lisa Farrall and Sally McKeown. Ian Little and Rupert Snow
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So the summer sailing season has now passed us by. and it must be reassuring to them to know that there Looking back, there were many incidents to mull over. I are people who will take time to lend a hand when won’t mention the Sandhopper sinking too much as I’m things get tough. sure Barry and co. have milked that one to death! This - and the free advice you can pick up for the cost of But suffice to say it was good that many members spent a beer from the “old lags” - emphasise some of the time and effort both on the water and from the shore advantages of being in a club such as TBYC. locating and salvaging the missing boat. There have also been times when people have given up their own racing By the time you read this, the Winter Series is probably in order to help fellow sailors who have got into getting underway. If you haven’t tried it before, why difficulty when the conditions have proved too much for not go for it and join in? The weather can be glorious this time of year and the summer can suddenly seem to them. have returned. Download the entry form from the club This all goes to show that we pull together when the website or ask a member of the Sailing Committee for situation needs it. For some club members, this has been one and get stuck in! the first season of sailing, having come up through the club’s training sessions organised by Mike Thomason, Chris Maloney
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Commodore’s Comment As the sun sets through the masts and the wind subsides to a tranquil 15mph, its a far cry from the 6am wake-up call of a howling gale and lashing rain which greeted the Emerson cranes for lift out. Fortunately, as with most days, the weather is rarely settled and a change for the better was a relief to many. My thanks to Bob Crane, Rear Commodore (Cruising) for all his efforts ensuring a successful lift. Bob had the unenviable task of taking a near-naked Wayne Miller home at 4am after a sobering, fully-clothed swim. “Phone Killer Miller”, not often seen without a beer, did a sterling job alongside Bob and Steve Hopper in the early hours under the cover of darkness (and in a fair bit of breeze) to ensure there were boats on the beach ready for an early lift. Today is a far cry from the weekend’s events of lift-out and last gasp Sandhoppering. The first job is to set the flags at half mast, a sad and reflective moment for a very good friend of TBYC, Ian Kennedy. The weather gave us a fully-fitting tribute with a cloudless blue sky and warm sunshine. How Ian would have enjoyed the balcony banter and a club full of his extensive list of friends there to celebrate his life. A fitting tribute by over 450 who attended an excellent church service, well done Ian! Friendship is a priceless by-product of club membership, and we have to thank Ian for being the catalyst for much laughter and heavy heads. Back on the sailing front, I am very pleased to see the RS Feva Race Group taking shape for the Cadets to move up to from Picos. Making sure these stepping stones are in place guides our growing Cadets onto an exciting sailing path and enables the Race Training to take place. Sailing away from TBYC at the annual Sunsail Solent race series, Matt Rainbow, Steve and David Hopper, Paul Dell and Talula England struck three straight wins in a group of 22 Sunfast 37s to ensure a place in the final on the 6th of November. Good luck! Looking forward to seeing you at the Sailing Supper, a celebration of another excellent summer sailing season at TBYC - even if the weather didn't always play ball! Keep smiling. Peter
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Several boats have recently changed hands together with an influx of new boats and we welcome the sixteen new families who have joined the Pico class this year, bringing our fleet up to 72. The Club Picos have now been replaced with three new Picos to keep our club boats in tip-top condition for the next season. So far one of the previous club boats has been sold and the other two will be refurbished and offered for sale later this month. If you have an interest in joining the Pico fleet and are looking for a boat then give me a call. The Spring and Summer Series have been completed and congratulations to everybody for taking part in these exciting short inshore races. Results: Spring Series (46 boats entered) 1st Jonny Snow and Peter Snow 2nd Tommy Holmes and John Williams 3rd Charlie Metcalf Summer Series (32 boats entered) 1st Tommy Holmes and John Williams 2nd Millie Little and Jessica Bunting 3rd Vicky Little and Roisin Browne The Autumn series is currently underway with several new entrants making a big challenge for the top positions. Our thanks to Dick White, our Race Officer, for running these series, who was ably assisted by Vanessa and Beverley and several other volunteer parents. Midweek Points This year we decided to extend the interest with Pico racing and introduce a new Mid Week Points trophy. The format was straightforward with racing in the Club Mid Week Points and extracting the Pico results from the Club results. Congratulation to Vicky Little and Roisin Browne for become the first winners of the Pico Midweek Trophy together with runners up Millie Little and Jessica Bunting. And even more fantastic news is that both of these young crews beat the rest of the 84 Club entrants to take first and second place overall in the Club Midweek points which really proves that consistency does pay. Well done girls - a great result. Finally, a word about the Winter and Icicle Series. If you are fit enough to brave the elements, have a go at racing this winter! Entry forms are available from the website and lobby notice boards.
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Ian Kennedy Ian Kennedy, one of the longest standing members of Thorpe Bay Yacht club, has died after battling liver cancer for fourteen months. He started sailing as a youngster when the club house was a small hut on Thorpe Bay Esplanade. In 1955, 'Number 19 Hornet Fleet' was established at Thorpe Bay Yacht Club and Ian was one of the original sailors of this new 16 foot dinghy designed by Jack Holt. Racing became very competitive both at club, national and international levels. Ian was a prime mover to establish the 'Honers Club' for ex members of the '19 Hornet Fleet', who continue to meet after 35 years. Ian, like many of the Hornet sailors, went on to sail Solings at Burnham-on-Crouch. Ian went on to get married a second time in 1975 to his wife Margaret, who he met sailing. When their children were old enough, Ian introduced his children to sailing, where Ian moved into the 'Sandhopper Class', which today is a strong fleet at the club. He has been a prominent member of the club over the years. Ian began his working life in Southend at the family “Medway Knitting Company�. Much of his career was in the frozen food business, interspersed with several successful years as managing director of the Westcliff Leisure Centre Complex.
I knew Ian in his post-sailing days and enjoyed many times with him, catching the sunshine and peace in a lovely part of the world - Thorpe Bay Beach - and that is how I shall hold my memories. Ian, being one of the longest serving members of TBYC, always took a very keen interest in its affairs and was always able to help with the history of members and events. My thoughts are with the family and especially Margaret, who has seen far too much pain and suffering and been a real saint. Peter Thompson, Commodore
He leaves his wife Margaret and his four children and their families, who all continue to share his love of sailing and love of life.
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The season is coming to a close for the Sandhoppers, with lift out at the end of October... but a group of us have decided to stay in, and our ten boats will compete in the winter series. This is a first at TBYC and one that I’m sure will grow year-onyear.
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Looking forward to 2011, we will have thirty-nine boats, and I’m sure the racing will be as competitive as ever, with everincreasing numbers on the start line.
You will also have noticed huge improvements to the slipway with a new boat-friendly surface along each side as well as modification that have improved wave dissipation.
We are looking to purchase a training and demo Sandhopper for all to enjoy the keel boat This year we have added two experience, and to promote and brand new boats to the fleet, build the fleet. Keep watching making a total of 37 with two the blue sails! more due to join in March. We have had a very good year on Many thanks to all those of you the water with our national who have helped with work being the largest ever attended. parties this year, particularly Nick Club racing has been fantastic Elmore, Sam Husk, Steve and the new windward leeward Hopper,Toby Speller and Paul courses have proved a massive Spratt. success, so much so that we are the largest and most consistent The ladies’ showers and toilets fleet racing. are benefitting from an improved layout, with much Rupert Snow managed to sink his more space along with five new boat, which was a first in forty shower cubicles. The feedback years off the Thorpe Bay coast! The from the families has been good news was that Zeus was tremendous and very recovered. prepped and was out encouraging. racing the very next day.
Next year we are looking to install a disabled lift and new staircase. This will be of huge benefit to our membership, helping keep us as the premier yacht club on the Thames Estuary. Plans are with the council now, so fingers crossed they grant permission! Please keep supporting the work parties throughout the year. They really are good fun ... and many hands make light work! Happy sailing. Barry Duce, House Rep.
A good year for Sail Training, which has seen fifty-five members complete their Stage 1, a further twenty-four complete Stage 2 and another fourteen completing Stage 3.
sail training
The club is very grateful to Shaun Christian, Tim Allard, Mike Nevin, Ian Little, Nick Cotgrove, Simon Bown, Scott Weller, Michael Lloyd, John Williams, Rod Watson and Chris Pimm as well as to our junior instructors Alex Gibson, Alex Farrall, Alex Hadley, Jonny Snow, William Arney, Max Duce, William Thomason, Alex Watson, Alex Warrington, Alex Thomason, Maddie Thomason and George Warrington. Thank you all for providing the time, patience and commitment to instruct on the courses during this past year. Well done to the members in the table on the right for completing their courses. Sail training dates for 2011 will be published later this year. For 2011, it will be necessary for applicants to have the use of their own Pico or to arrange to share or borrow a Pico from another member. Cadets on Stage 1 will continue to use the club Oppies. Mike Thomason
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