Draycote Water Sailing Club

Let them eat cake (oh and a bit of sailing too!) starts on 7th May

by

Woman sailingI have been looking at ways to get more women into sailing at the club (whatever their level) and having sent out a survey we are gradually getting to the good bit – that is deciding what we put on and when.  For starters we will be looking at having a sail and social starting on Saturday 7th May from 2 until 4pm. We will have some Saturdays and some Tuesday evenings depending on availability and numbers.  The Tuesday evenings will probably be 6/6.30 to 8pm

The emphasis is on having fun sailing (if not too windy then we might just walk!) alongside a social element (i.e. coffee and cake or something a bit stronger in the bar – Saturday afternoons only). It will be relaxed, informal and geared just to women – to help, to support, to raise confidence and not to feel pressured to do anything you don’t feel comfortable with. This isn’t to say that there won’t be the odd challenge but it will be up to each individual to decide when they take that step.

Here are the provisional dates up to middle of September:

Saturdays – May 7th and 28th; June 4th; July 2nd and 30th; August 6th and 13th and September 10th and 17th

Tuesdays – May 17th; June 14th and 21st; July 12th and 19th; August 30th

Please let me know if you are able to come as I need to organize the refreshments and boats.  Do give me a call or ask any questions via e-mail and hopefully I will be able to help you with the answers 07813 765864 or e-mail caroline@noelquinn.co.uk

Caroline Noel

Mailchimp May 2016

by

Can you believe the month of May is nearly upon us!

We have had a great start to the summer season so far with good turnouts on Sundays, Wednesday evenings and the Youth and Junior sessions. With the warmer weather slowly approaching it proposes to be an exciting time at the Club in the few months.

DWSCOpenDayMay16p1

Open Day – Saturday 21st May, 11am-4pm

The Club’s Open Day, the flagship event of the year for attracting new members, will follow the successful format developed over the last few years, giving people the chance to go for a sail or try windsurfing and hopefully interest them in training courses or joining.

To make it a success, we will need your help in the lead-up to the day and on the day itself.  Please help us:

  • Before the day, by handing out leaflets and telling your non-sailing friends and colleagues. Leaflets are available from the bar and shop along with forms to let us know where you are handing them around: your street, place of work, sports centres, libraries, etc. The leaflet is also online at https://draycotewater.co.uk/draycote-water-sailing-club-open-day/
  • On the day, we need lots of helpers to help manage the boat trips, help people with sailing kit, take people out sailing or try windsurfing, and be persuasive about the Club and get them to join. You could do these all day (with a break for lunch!) or just for the morning (10am – 1pm) or afternoon (1pm to 4pm).

If you are able to help on the day, please send an email to ianmacw27@hotmail.com indicating what you would like to do or say ‘anything on the day’.

No Boat No Problem
We have a new initiative this year for people who either haven’t yet decided what boat to get or don’t want the hassle of owning and looking after one. For £150 a year for a single-hander to £225 for a double-hander, you can use the club boats as often as you like, whether for cruising or to take part in club racing.  This offer is available to individuals who are members of the Club as an Ordinary, Family or Young Person member.  If you are thinking of sailing much more than once a month, you will be quids in. Contact Dave Rowe for more details daverowe@draycotewater.co.uk

Get Racing

WebCollect Laggards
First of all, thank you to all those who have successfully renewed their membership using the new WebCollect system. Nearly all last year’s members have successfully navigated their way through the system. If you are one of the few who has not renewed, please do so as soon as possible. If you are having any difficulties at all, please call 01788 811153 during office hours or 01788 814418. If you have lost all the paperwork, don’t worry just start the process by clicking here.

Women sailing and social
There has been a good response to Caroline Noel’s survey of the club’s female members and the first get together is planned for Saturday 7th May, 2-4pm. Even if you didn’t complete the survey but are interested please come along and take part.  Please let Caroline know caroline@noelquinn.co.uk if you are planning to come.

Unshackled 
If you have noticed over the last couple of days 2 new boats around the club house that will be the new club SB20 boats.  To find out more about them and what else has and is happening at the Club look out for the Club’s magazine ‘Unshackled’ due out soon.

Events Coming Up
Monday 2 May – John Siggers Pursuit Race       Datum: 11:00am
Sunday 15 May – Flying Fifteen Championships
Saturday 21 May – Club Open Day  11am-4pm
Monday 30 May – Sir Charles Barrett Pursuit Race       Datum: 11:00amIf you have any items that you would like mentioning in our future emails then please send details to office@draycotewater.co.uk.

Happy sailing!

Membership Renewal at DWSC

by

There has been plenty going at Draycote Water over the last couple of weeks.  There has been a great start to Get Racing on Sundays with good numbers participating, Club Racing has been very active and we have have seen the start of Wednesday evening racing with the 2nd one taking place last night.

As you know the membership year began on 1st April and renewal has been taking place through our new online service called Webcollect which has been really well received.  It has however been noticed that you have yet to renew your own membership.  With various options to pay including bank transfer and monthly direct debit please can you take the time to log on and complete the relevant information to renew.

We have a deadline for you to complete your renewal particularly if you are paying by direct debit .  If you wish to pay by monthly direct debit then you need to renew your membership by 8:00pm this coming Sunday 17th April.

After this time you will incur a further late payment fee of £40 plus your monthly subscription, so to avoid this and to save more admin work please rejoin before then.

If you need any assistance or have any queries about renewal then please either call 01788 811153 or 01788 814483 or email office@draycotewater.co.uk or training@draycotewater.co.uk.

 

GET RACING OFF TO A CRACKING START

by

Sunday saw the start of a new Get Racing season to encourage those new to racing to participate in club racing.

There were near perfect sunny conditions with a 6-10mph southerly breeze, a welcome contrast to last weekend’s wild Easter weather.  A great turnout of 18 sailors of all ages took part in 16 boats with a variety of different classes, including a splendid home built traditional dayboat.

IMG_0831

There was a spread of race experience, three Oppies having trained over the winter months while for others it was their first race.

The session started with a thorough briefing of Draycote’s start sequence and race format before the boats headed out to the starting area and
their special start, number 6 in the sequence.

IMG_0855

Unsurprisingly the boats that hit the line with speed were those with more experience, and possibly a watch, but it wasn’t long before all the boats were in the thick of it as the race area was compact. A coach boat was on hand to direct those unsure of the course to the next mark and advise generally.

A couple of boats had to leave early but otherwise good progress was made by all to complete the race in approx 50 minutes. The race is run on a handicap basis with results being calculated on average lap times, so avoiding any boat having too long a race.

Thanks must go to the ODs for their assistance during the session.

It was good to see a significant number join in with the club racing within their own fleets in the afternoon. The idea is to give those taking part the confidence to join in the normal club racing on Sundays and Wednesday evenings.

IMG_0846

Similar sessions will run in the morning of the first  Sunday of each month, the next one being on 1st May. Contact Dave Rowe if you wish to hire club boats in order to participate and this is at no charge.

Race results are as follows:-

Position Name   Class Sail No
1 Adrian H 12 NoNo
2 Derin Can Soyer Optimist 6206
3 Millie Irish Optimist 4884
4 Katie Byne Optimist 6370
5 Sam Guppy Laser Radial 159493
6 Heather Guppy Laser Radial BAH
7 Luke Guppy Topper 24358
8 William Puchy Laser 4.7 173385
9 David Nuttall Laser 166640
10 Matt Hirons Solo 4710
11 Paul Berresford  } Wayfarer 11069
Elizabeth Berresford  } Wayfarer 11069
12 Sam Mewlings D/Boat Red
13 Steve Jeffs Laser 156165
DNF Emily Talbot      } H 12 1290
Lydia Roberts    }
DNC Adrian Talbot/Roberts H 12 1277
DNF Ethan Cheshire Laser 4.7 No No

Womens Sailing Survey

by

Calling all women and girl sailors!!

We need your help to improve women’s participation at Draycote!!!

Please help us by completing this short survey to help us to understand what we can do to make our club more attractive and welcoming to women sailors.

Womens Sailing Survey

Thank you.

Caroline Noel

Mailchimp post for April at DWSC

by

The summer season is just about to get underway and we have a month coming up filled with activities to get you back on the water.

First of all, thank you to all those who have successfully renewed their membership using the new Webcollect system.  If you have not yet renewed can you please do so as soon as possible.  If you are having any difficulties at all, please call 01788 811153 during office hours (9:30-2:30) or 01788 814418.  If you have lost all the paperwork, don’t worry, just start the process by clicking here.

Visiting Events
It has been great to see the Club being used so much over the winter with visiting fleets having open events and training sessions. Not many clubs can say that their busiest month is January! However, the next full weekend open meeting is now not until September, so there is no excuse for members not to make use of the full expanse of water throughout the summer!


Summer Racing
We are back to 3 races on a Sunday (plus the early morning warm-up race), with the 3rd race being the new format Windward/Leeward. More information here.

Get Racing and Refresher Weekend
Here are two initiatives to get newcomers to sailing and racing into the swing of things:

  • Get Racing on Sunday 3rd– April is the first of the monthly sessions to help build confidence to join in the Club Racing. With your own start (Start 6) on the morning race, and the help of a pre-launch briefing and on the water coach boat, this is the perfect opportunity to ease yourself into the fun of the club races. Club boats available without charge, but best to book in advance. Rigged and ready on the patio at 10am.  More information here.
  • The Refresher Weekend on the weekend of 23rd/24th April is for all those who have taken courses or joined the club in the past couple of years to come along and get back into sailing mode, with informal coaching, help to rig boats (either your own or the club’s). No charge for hiring the club boats. Come down any time between 10am and 3pm Saturday or Sunday.
Wednesday Evening Racing – starts 6th April

The successful Wednesday evening racing starts again on 6th April. Don’t forget:  The start times for the first two Wednesdays is 6:30, then 7pm until the last 2 Wednesdays when it’s back to 6.30pm.

The bar will be open from 6:30pm onwards and a new, fresh format to providing an evening meal will be available for just £5.  It will be a varied self service menu each week with a choice of mash, chips and vegetables such as sausages, gourmet burgers, BBQ and curry nights .  Please note there will be no need to book.

Women Sailing
A new initiative for this year is to encourage more participation from women and girls. Caroline Noel is hoping to strengthen the network of the club’s women members around common interests which may not necessarily be all about sailing, but include social aspects and other activities, e.g. cycling and walking. She will shortly be sending out a survey form to all women and girls on the membership list to ascertain levels of interest. If you do not receive one, please contact the office.

OOD Refresher Training – Sunday 3rd April 3.30pm
In case you missed it, here’s a second chance to run through the process of being on the OOD team helping to run the club’s racing.  Jeremy Atkins, Commodore, will make it all seem very clear and easy, from setting courses to running the sequence.

Forthcoming Events
The Club has the following events coming up:

3 April – OOD Refresher Training; Get Racing
6 April – Wednesday Evening Racing starts
9 April – Solo Spring Championships
23/24 April – Refresher weekend

Spring is here so enjoy the lighter evenings and have fun on the water.

Kind regards

Andrea

Andrea Halliman
DWSC Club Administrator

Mailchimp – March 2016

by

Here is your latest update on what has, and what is happening at the Club over the next few weeks.

Sunday Summer Series
It’s that exciting time of year with Spring on its way and the clocks going forward at the end of the month that reminds us all that the Sunday Summer Series is about to begin. It all starts on Sunday 27th March 2016.

The 3rd race of the Summer Series this year is going to be a pure Windward Leeward course.  This is the opportunity all you W/L enthusiasts have been waiting for — a clear W/L course without the encumbrance of round-the-cans sailors coming at you at funny angles and blocking your path to the leeward mark!

This course is obviously also suitable for other types of boats besides those flying asymmetric kites.  It gives the opportunity for racing that can be more tactical than the round-the-cans fare and is more typical of the kind of courses provided on the open circuit.  Sailors from the other fleets have already said they will give it a go, so hopefully we can start to get some decent turnouts for the 3rd race again.
WLCourse-Graphics.

Everything else about the 3rd Race stays the same: (one) Mass start, timed finish for handicap results and the race will be approximately 50 minutes.

More details to follow in the OOD instructions for the summer.

Wednesday Evening Series
Time to get organised in the week and join in the Wednesday evening club racing which starts on 6th April 2016. 

Get Racing (for Novices and Juniors)
This programme starts again on Sunday 3rd April 2016.

OOD Training
Two dates have been scheduled to hold the OOD training which includes information about the new windward / leeward 3rd race.  The training will take place on Wednesday 16th March at 7:30pm and Sunday 3rd April at 3:30pm.

News from February  
Affiliates Day – Our affiliated groups attended the Club for an update on how the Club is performing and also to review and discuss the process for renewal of membership this coming year.  A really useful and positive afternoon had by all.
Laser 4.7 Open – Although a breezy weekend there was some great sailing on the water with 34 boats from all over the country competing.

Membership Renewal
This month you will receive an e-mail about renewing your membership which will be available online.  There will be a set of instructions available and help in the clubhouse every weekend from 12th March to 3rd April, or during the week through the Waterside Reception.  Those paying by Direct Debit will have to set up a new Direct Debit. It will be slightly painful this first time, but thereafter it will give both the members and the Club great efficiency benefits.

Forthcoming Events – Lets see what’s on:
4 March                            Fireball, Solo and Laser fleets prizegiving – 7 for 7:30pm start
5/6 March                         Optimist Zone training
12/13 March                     29er training
19/20 March                     420 Open meeting *
Monday 28 March            RNLI Lifeboat Pursuit race – 11:00am start

* Some parking restrictions may be in operation.

Lots going on so enjoy your time at the Club and on the water!!

Windward/Leeward the way to go for 3rd Race on Sunday

by

Windward/Leeward the way to go for 3rd Race on SundayWLCourse-Graphics.

The 3rd race of the Summer Series this year is going to be a pure Windward Leeward course.  This is the opportunity all you W/L enthusiasts have been waiting for — a clear W/L course without the encumbrance of round-the-cans sailors coming at you at funny angles and blocking your path to the leeward mark!

This course is obviously also suitable for other types of boats besides those flying asymmetric kites.  It gives the opportunity for racing that can be more tactical than the round-the-cans fare and is more typical of the kind of courses provided on the open circuit.  Sailors from the other fleets have already said they will give it a go, so hopefully we can start to get some decent turnouts for the 3rd race again.

Everything else about the 3rd Race stays the same: (one) Mass start, timed finish for handicap results and the race will be approximately 50 minutes.

More details to follow in the OOD instructions for the summer.