The Christmas lunch at the Boat House Bistro was a great success with over 40 people attending, and many thanks to Jim Wood for organising it. There was talk of having a Fitting-Out lunch in the spring...
Winter Racing
The Winter Freezer series started on Sunday 7th January with three back-to-back races in the morning, so why not come along next week and give it a go.
Water Level
You might have noticed from the Southern Water website that the tide has started to come back in, and all boats can now launch from the concrete slipway, including Flying Fifteens.
Open Meetings
BSA are going to run a number of open meetings this year to help get Sailing at Bewl 'back on the map'. These start with the Bewl Blaster on 4th March as follows:
- Bewl Blaster Open – 4th March
- Heron Open Meeting – 12th May
- 2000 Class Open Meeting – 7th July
- Mid-summer Regatta Open Meeting – 5th August
- Wanderer Inlands and Catapult Open –15/16th September
- Bart’s Bash – 16th September
- London Windsurfing Association – 20th October
- Flying Fifteen Open – Date TBC
- Laser Open – Date TBC
The plan is that all the open meetings will be free to BSA members and the Notice of Race will be available here soon.
Oceans of Hope Challenge
Mariners of Bewl have arranged a talk about this on Saturday 20th January at the Bewl Outdoor Centre. More details can be found via this link and we are all invited along to join them.
Push the Boat Out (PTBO ) – 19th May
This year we will be running PTBO on 19th May so, if you know anyone who’s interested in sailing, this is a great opportunity to give it a try. Tell them to save the date and watch out for further updates on our website and Facebook nearer the time.
2018 Sailing Programme
This year’s racing programme has now been published and is available at http://bewlsailing.club/Events/Sailing-Programme.
If you use the calendar on your smart-phone / tablet / computer you can view the BSA calendar by adding it as either as a subscription or internet calendar depending on your operating system via this link https://calendar.google.com/calendar/ical/bewlsailingassociation%40gmail.com/public/basic.ics
Wednesday Evening and Saturday Sailing Sessions
BSA intends to have a patrol boat out on the water from late May to early September, though we need volunteers with RYA Power Boat Level 2 to make this happen.
The aim is to get more boats back out on the water, with a more visible on-the-water support available. The site owners MSL will still be responsible for safety on the water, and the intention is that the BSA patrol boats will act on a concerned neighbour principle and help out as required.
The BSA Pop-Up Cafe will also be open to act as a focal point for social sailing.
If you are interested in helping with this please let me know.
Land Yachting
There was a good level of interest in a day of land yachting near Lydd in Kent, however no one could make the proposed date. Places are limited to 12 per session and will be on a first come first served basis with a cost around £30. So if you are interested in principle please let me know and we will get some dates together.
British Keelboat League
The RYA have set up a Keelboat league and it sounds great fun; it would be great if BSA could enter a team or two. Each team needs 4/5 people and the boats are provided and we can select which of the qualifier locations we want to attend, more details can be found on the RYA website if you interested in taking part please let me know.
Intra BSA Communication
Every club struggles with intra-club communication between its members, and BSA is no different to anyone else in this regard. We are looking to set up a 'secret' Facebook group that is only open to BSA members and is completely invisible to everyone else. If any of you can offer advice on the best way to do this OR has an alternative proposal, please let us know.
We are also looking at the feasibility and practicalities of having a quarterly newsletter / magazine – again all advice on this will be gratefully received.
Youth Racing
You might have noticed a BSA Facebook post back in September showing Oppies back Sailing at Bewl, if you are interested in knowing more about them please take a look at their website
First Time Racers
Have you always fancied racing but never plucked up the courage, or are you unsure how to go about it? Do you ask ‘Is my boat up to it?’ Don't worry, just get in touch...
Annual General Meeting – Sunday 4th February at 14:30
The official notice was sent out recently, and I know it's not everyone's idea of a date to keep free! But, without a small nucleus of volunteers, none of this would be possible. We will be looking for someone to step into Martin's shoes as President, as he has now moved away from the area, and/or maybe a Vice-President. So please let us know if you are able to help out.
That's all for now and hope to see you down at Bewl on Sunday
Mark
Tel: 07766994728