Island Sailing Club

MEMBERS

Noticeboard • Launch • Winter Programme • Newsletter • Subscriptions • Club Clothing • Joining the Club

"Newsflash" - MARCH 2008

CONTENTS

C0MMODORE'S CORNER

The various reports from my fellow Flag Officers will indicate that the Club has not been idle over the winter. I am sure that those members on the mainland, who only start to use the Club as the sailing season gets underway, will appreciate the significant improvements that have been made and will also see that we have really exciting plans for the future.

 On the topic of plans, one project that has been consuming, and will continue to consume the time of the General Committee, has been the development of a strategic plan for the Club. As part of the information gathering process for this, the office will be sending out shortly a survey form seeking the views of the membership on the future development of the Club and, when the time arrives, I would urge you to take the time to complete it. More of that at a later date.

 This issue of Newsflash is the first that has been produced 'in-house' and thanks are due to our Office Manager, Sarah Berry, whose particular concern this has been. In the long run, with the development of a new Club database we hope to distribute most of the Newsflash items by email and your co-operation in making available to the Club your email details would be much appreciated.

 I have not made any mention of the reason why most of us join the ISC - the sailing. Chris Thomas, in his report, outlines the programme this year; our "flagship" event, the Round the Island Race, has received a lot of attraction over the winter and those of you who take part will see some improvements which take advantage of changing technology, e.g. the texting of declarations.

 The Club is gearing up for an active summer both on and off the water and I look forward to meeting many more members as the season opens.
Bill Pimlott
Commodore



FROM THE SECRETARY

 

It's spring - my favourite time of year as I anticipate those wonderful sailing weekends to come.

 

I hope you all like the new membership card which is enclosed and will go live on Wednesday 2nd April when all your balances will be transferred. We do not envisage any problems with the transfer, but would ask for your tolerance if there are any minor issues.

 

With many of you thinking about sailing to the Club I would like to remind you all that the Club pontoons are on a first come first served basis, you must display the ISC burgee and there is a time limit of 3 hours. You can only stay longer or overnight if you are on our yellow mooring buoy, which is just a little north of the pontoon.

 

Those of you who live on the Island may have noticed the advert in the County Press for Sue Cheney's replacement. Sue is retiring immediately after this year's Round the Island Race, having worked for the Club for 20 years. We are hoping to bring in her replacement from May when the office gets very busy. I'm sure that many of you will want to make a donation towards Sue's retirement present - this can be done by giving an envelope to myself, Sarah or Laura.

 

Philip Jones and his family are emigrating back to Australia in early June so we will be saying goodbye to him at the end of May. We very much hope to have found a replacement to shadow him for his last two weeks.

 

Hope to see many of you on the water; Ruby M should be making her first trip west this year during the middle of March.


Lea Bennett
Club Secretary

THE SAILING SCENE

Doesn't time fly? The daytime temperature is already hotting up, and that's not just here in the office!

 

Tuesday Evening Racing starts on 22nd April, and the Notice of Race, Sailing Instructions and Entry Forms will be out shortly. Keep an eye on the website for download versions. The Evening Race Committee met and has discussed all aspects of the racing; you can be sure your comments have been considered before the racing starts!

 

Our training sessions have been rather less than successful so far this winter, which is disappointing. With too few members showing interest to make courses viable, many courses have been cancelled. One thought is that the courses from last year had cornered the market. We still have a few that are gaining interest, and as the weather improves, we will look to advertising dates. One success story was the Race Officer training day, run by Rod Nicholls and Dave Atkinson. 15 members, and 1 Sailing Secretary, sat the course, and all received certificates!

 

Penny Carter is running a "Rules Advisory Course", providing a greater understanding of the rules of sailing - prior knowledge of the rules is required. If you're interested let me know, so I can send details directly.

 

New training courses: Short Range Certificate (VHF / DSC Radio) 26th April & 27th July Member's rate: £70 for the full course or £55 just for the update. Bring 2 passport sized photos, and a £25 cheque payable to the RYA for the certificate. It's recommended to learn the Phonetic Alphabet before hand. First Aid 27th April & 26th July Member's rate: £73.50 for the full course, which includes the cost of the fist aid manual. Both will take place in the ISC, and include a baguette lunch. Please book with me, if you wish to attend.


The Tony Chilvers Memorial Weather screen is now fully operational, with weather information scrolling from a number of websites in our locality. If it's switched off, please press the power button to see what's going on!

 

We are also offering a "Buy 5 Sonar sailing days and get 1 free". If you pay £250 up front, we will let you book 6 sessions throughout the year. This means each day is worth £41.67 a significant saving on the daily rate. There are a few restrictions, like avoiding Cowes Week, but talk to us for further details.

 

Talking Sonars, I'm thrilled with the take-up of the fleet for Tuesday nights and Cowes Week and all boats are now allocated. If you are keen to race, I'm afraid we're into waiting lists now!

 

If you're new to the Club, or new to sailing, why don't you try the Adult Sailing nights? For just £5 / person / evening, you can get some on the water guidance. Richard Palmer is once again kindly offering his time to run this event. It all starts on 8th May at 1800hrs. Come along to see what it's all about.

 

Wishing you all an excellent season's sailing. I've been promised better weather this year!

Chris Thomas
Sailing Secretary


SERVICES REPORT

The days are now getting longer, but it was not long ago that we celebrated Burns Night. This event was a sell out, with delicious haggis and the chance for members to try some Scottish dancing. Food sourced locally on the island was used at the Commodore's Dining-In and again proved a great success.

 The support of members is not only valued, but is very important to the continued well being of the Club. It is hoped that everyone will enjoy the proposed new events for this year and all members, long-standing, new or single, are warmly welcomed to the social side of the Club. We look forward to seeing new faces at some of the functions that are being organised this year.

 On Saturday nights the Head Chef is going to let her culinary imagination take over and will be producing 'Saturday Specials' - a choice of meals with that little bit extra…! Why not celebrate that important occasion, birthday or anniversary down at the Club? For extra privacy a round table can be booked in the Beken Room for 10 or 12 people.

St George's Day will be remembered with another mouth-watering meal and a little reminder about 'being English'. Do, please, come and join in the celebration of England's National Patron Saint.

 A speaker from Liz Earle beauty products will give a talk at the Ladies Luncheon in May so another event not to miss!

 Finally, please put into your diaries the big event of the summer season - the date of the 'Into the Blue' Summer Ball (see below). This event is always popular and this year the theme should not disappoint you!

 Later in the year there will be more exciting events and details will follow next time.

 For your diaries: 19 April - St George's Day Dinner - Black Tie 8 May - Ladies Luncheon with Guest Speaker 26 July - ISC 'Into the Blue' Summer Ball - Black Tie.

 To avoid disappointment, it is advised that all events are booked promptly with the office (Tel: 01983 296621) as tables do get taken quickly.


Linda Fair
Rear Commodore


 ESTABLISHMENT REPORT

The painting of the bar and dining room since the New Year is now complete with just two radiators to be replaced in the bar area. With the entrance hall and stairs also complete all that remains is for the top floor landing and Centenary Room to be decorated, which should take place in the next couple of weeks. The lighting in the bar and dining room is considered to be poor, unreliable and not consistent with the redecorated rooms and a new lighting system is currently being investigated. Talking of lights, our Club name should soon be lit up again by a new lighting system which can be seen from the sea by yachts etc as they enter the port.

The Gents refurbishment project has at last been completed and I apologise for any inconvenience the delay may have caused.

With the aim to save the Club some money we are just about to fit out one of our cellar areas to accommodate an "in house laundry" so that we do not have to rely on external laundry services, which at times have been very unreliable.

All these projects, we hope, will enhance the ISC for its members. The age of the Club buildings is such that a regular ongoing renewal programme is essential. If any of our members have ideas to improve the Club premises please let us know.


Rod Nicholls
Vice Commodore


 CRUISING NOTES

The 2008 Cruising Programme is now underway having commenced with a dinner at the Club on 6th March. The first venture to sea is on Saturday 29th March when we are visiting the Royal Southampton Yacht Club in Ocean Village for lunch, this is followed by the Western Solent Rally on 17th, 18th & 19th April calling in at Lymington and Yarmouth, subsequent events are listed in the Summer Programme and are on permanent display on the Club notice board. Full details of each event will be posted on the notice board 2 to 3 weeks prior to the due date. Any Club member interested in cruising is invited to enter their name and boat name to the list - all are welcome.

If there is any aspect of cruising you would like to discuss please contact Robert Lovegrove or myself at the Club. Do come and join us on the water; here's hoping that the weather is somewhat kinder to us this year.

Brian Stone
Cruising Fleet Captain


 

Home