Whitstable Yacht Club - News

Club News

Club Championships 2018

Posted: Tuesday, 29 May, 2018

Club Championships 2018 Prize Winners
Well done to everyone who took part in the Club Championships over the Bank Holiday weekend, thank you to all the members who worked hard to make the weekend a success, and congratulations to the prize winners, particularly Julie and James who came first overall in their Merlin Rocket! More ›

Reminder - No parking on the Beach or West Quay

Posted: Friday, 18 May, 2018

No Parking Sign As we get into the busy season at Whitstable Yacht Club, members and visitors are reminded that car parking is not permitted on the Beach or West Quay unless you're working on club business (which needs permission to be agreed in advance with the office or a Flag Officer). If you need to drive onto the Beach or West Quay areas for drop off or pick up, please drive carefully, do not block any boats, stay with or near your vehicle at all times, and move it out of the area as soon as possible.

Place an order for your WYC clothing!

Posted: Saturday, 12 May, 2018

John & Wizz are now producing and selling Polo Shirts, Sweat Tops and Hoodies embroidered with the WYC logo. Place your order by emailing johncrickmere@yahoo.co.uk.
(i) The current options are Polo Shirts, Sweat Tops and Hoodies.
(ii) Size options can range from Small to 4XL.
(iii) Garment colour options are Navy, Black, Silver Grey and Red.
Prices start at :- Polo Shirts - £13.99; Sweat Tops - £21.99; or Hoodies - £25.99
For just an additional £3.00 per garment they are happy to add one further embroidery on a sleeve eg "Recorder", "Bar Team", Boat Name, Class Logo, Personal Name etc.
There's a sample in the bar by the pool table if you want to look before you buy!

A very successful Open Day for 2018!

Posted: Sunday, 06 May, 2018

Open Day 2018
We had our open day on Saturday. Did you miss it? Not to worry, have a look at wyc.org.uk/members/New_Members for membership information, or wyc.org.uk/on-the-water/training for training courses!

RYA Push The Boat Out 2018 WYC has always responded to national 'try a boat' and 'push the boat out' days and over the years has been rewarded with an encouraging amount of interest and some very loyal new members. This year's event was probably the best yet: nearly 90 visitors took up our offer of a taster sail and they all came ashore wearing big smiles; 9 new memberships were taken out on the day; and many more took away information about our club and courses. We were delighted to include the Lord Mayor accompanied by the Lady Mayoress of Canterbury among that number - did you know that she owns a T shirt with the mayoral gold chain screen-printed across the front?
We could not have asked for better weather. A warm, sunny day with a gentle to medium breeze is the perfect recipe for winning over cautious novices and that is exactly what we had. Our visitors spanned a wide age range from 8 to we're-not-going-to-ask-you-sir. Full marks to our older cadets for giving the youngsters a taste of excitement in the club's Fevas and very many thanks to Wanderer, Miracle, Dart 18 and Tasar owners for providing a variety of platforms for the adults.
An impressive number of WYC members devoted their day to oiling the organisational wheels. The onus falls not only on boat owners: reception desks must be manned, queries answered, the mini-boat show ashore organised, buoyancy loaned, visitors escorted to the boats, boats held in the water while changeovers are made, safety-boat cover provided and much, much more. Thank you to everyone who gave willingly of their time and effort to make it happen and run so smoothly.
Same time next year?

505 National Championships photos now available

Posted: Sunday, 06 May, 2018

Photo by Nick Champion All the photos from last week's 505 National Championships are now available on the Champion Marine Photography website.

Update: WOFC application for a Lawful Development Certificate for the Oyster Racks off Whitstable

Posted: Thursday, 03 May, 2018

WOFC have made an application for a lawful Development Certificate for the Oyster Racks off Whitstable. The Commodore has made a formal comment to object to the proposal, which can be viewed here: WYC_Oyster_Trestle_Planning_Application_comment_Final.pdf. So far there has been over 130 comments made, mostly objecting to the application, but any member wishing to add their own views should do so before the deadline of 11 May. See https://publicaccess.canterbury.gov.uk/online-applications/applicationDetails.do?activeTab=makeComment&keyVal=_CANTE_DCAPR_117205 for the details of the application, and how to make a comment.

505 Nationals reports and results

Posted: Wednesday, 02 May, 2018

Photo by Nick Champion
An exciting four days of weather gave the 505 sailors a challenge for the 2018 National Championships at Whitstable Yacht Club. 27 boats took part, including visitors from USA, France and Australia! The event was won by Mike Holt and Rob Woelfel from Santa Cruz Yacht Club, with Philippe Boite and Fountaine from Club Voile St Quentin in second place, and Nathan Bachelor and Sam Pascoe from Tynemouth Sailing Club in third place. The highest place Whitstable Yacht Club boat was Chris Lewns and Jack Kilburn in twelth place.
Well done to all of the sailors, and thank you to all the volunteers from Whitstable Yacht Club and Oyster Coast Watersports who worked hard to make the event a success. The 505 fleet now move on to the European Cup on Lake Garda next week.
For more detailed reports, go to:
Final day and overall report: https://www.yachtsandyachting.com/news/204798/505-UK-Nationals-at-Whitstable-overall
Day 3 report: https://www.yachtsandyachting.com/news/204647/505-UK-Nationals-at-Whitstable-day-3
Day 2 report: https://www.yachtsandyachting.com/news/204612/505-UK-Nationals-at-Whitstable-day-2
Day 1 report: https://www.yachtsandyachting.com/news/204588/505-UK-Nationals-at-Whitstable-day-1
Full Results: http://www.wyc.org.uk/on-the-water/results/2018
Photo by Nick Champion at Champion Marine Photography.

TV donations - Thank You!

Posted: Sunday, 29 April, 2018

Thank you to everyone who generously donated to the fund to replace the broken TV in the Sea Room. We reached our target, and now have a brand new TV on the wall!
Thanks also to Thommo who generously donated his old TV for the use of the club's Training Centre.

WOFC application for retrospective planning consent for the Oyster Racks off Whitstable

Posted: Wednesday, 25 April, 2018

WOFC have made an application for retrospective planning consent for the Oyster Racks off Whitstable. The club will be making a formal comment regarding this, but any member wishing to add their own views should do so before the deadline of 11 May. See https://publicaccess.canterbury.gov.uk/online-applications/applicationDetails.do?activeTab=makeComment&keyVal=_CANTE_DCAPR_117205 for the details of the application, and how to make a comment.

Changing Rooms

Posted: Monday, 16 April, 2018

We've had reports of items going missing from the WYC changing rooms. We'd like to remind members to keep their valuables safe, and make sure that the changing room doors are kept closed and secured by the code locks. If you see anything suspicious, please report it. There are lockers available in both the male and female changing rooms, please contact Sally at sailing.secretary@wyc.org.uk if you're interested.

New club Topper and Topaz dinghies for Training, Cadets and for sale!

Posted: Tuesday, 03 April, 2018

New Toppers!
WYC Training and Topper International have teamed up to enhance the club's fleet with three brand new Toppers and five brand new Topper Topaz dingies for the club to use for Training and Cadet activities - a fantastic addition, which will allow our training offerings to grow even further this year, for adults and children alike.
At the recent Cadet Fitting Out morning, the club's younger sailors had a great time getting them out the packets and setting them up. Thank you to everyone who helped out.
To help finance the deal, the club will act as a 'show room' for the boats, which can be purchased from us at a discounted rate of £2,549 for a Topaz and £2,649 for a Topper 5.3 (smaller sails 4.2 are also available). The deal includes a launching trolley and top cover, giving savings of up to £851 on manufacturer list price. As part of the package you will get training support throughout the season, and a 3-hour training session for FREE!

Easter Nip Photos

Posted: Tuesday, 03 April, 2018

Nicky Whatley was on hand this weekend to capture the action from the sailing on Saturday. Click here to view the album.

Wetsuits

Posted: Monday, 02 April, 2018

There are a large number of wetsuits and other gear that was removed from the men's changing rooms during the recent works. This kit will be disposed of at the end of April if not claimed. If you think any of it could be yours, please contact the club office.

Andrew Pierce

Posted: Friday, 23 March, 2018

We are sad to announce that Andrew Pierce, longstanding Club member and former Merlin sailor, died this morning in hospital in Margate.
Richard Davis reflected on Andrew's life in sailing:
Andrew sailed Cadets in the early 60s as both crew and helmsman . He attended Cadet Week at Burnham on several occasions. He then crewed in National 12s and had attended the Burton Week in 1964, 1965, and 1966. He crewed in the Hornet Championships in 1967. I had started sailing with him in 1966 ( including the 1966 Burton Week). We sailed together in the 1969, 1971, 1972 and 1973 Merlin Championships - together we achieved 3 top six results.
Andrew retired from top flight crewing in the mid 70s and for some years sailed a Laser 'for fun'. He had worked with Mike Scott at Yachting and Boating - the weekly news magazine for dinghy sailors.
He has lived in Whitstable throughout his life. He always enjoyed talking and listening about dinghy sailing right until the end - he smiled at us on his last day as we recalled 'events' at Cadet Weeks in the early 60s.
He is survived by his sister Catherine, to whom we send our deepest sympathy, and will be greatly missed by his friends in WYC and the town.

Updated Cadet Handbook for 2018