RYA News Autumn06 A3
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SOUTH EAST REGION Newsletter Issue No 29 Winter 2007 CHAIRMAN'S ANNUAL REPORT 2006 ing centres. My own club has run an instructor course every year for the past ten years, which is Regional Development on reason why we now have plenty of instructors At the beginning of April, Andy Hooper started and senior instructors. But we are the exception. his role as the Regional Development Officer To improve instructor numbers, Andy intends to for the South and South East regions. Of run more courses over the coming year, and to course he had a solid foundation to build on, ensure that course costs do not put off volunteers, thanks to the many years of excellent work put particularly younger ones who are still studying. in by Jim Ellis as Regional National Coach, and He has also organised an Instructor Conference on his team of coach/assessors and powerboat 10 March at Chipstead SC. All instructors – trainers, and by Sam Smithson as Regional Paul Rayner OBE please put this in your diaries. Windsurfing Co-ordinator. RYA-SE Chairman The region currently runs three youth training The RDO role is a demanding job to take on. But those of you fleets – two of Optimists and one of Toppers. As I indicated in who have met Andy will already have recognised the enthusi- last year's report, they are not asm and ideas he has brought to his role. Initially much of his being sufficiently used to time has been taken up with getting a feel for the region, its meet their maintenance and clubs and training centres, and the issues it faces. replacement costs. Bookings have dropped even further A major task has been deciding how and where to set up On- this year, with only six clubs board Centres in the region to give more youngsters at school hiring the fleets, all over the the opportunity of sailing. Onboard has been implemented summer holidays. The re- very successfully in several RYA regions and now it is our gional committee discussed turn to get a slice of the action. Each Centre is based at an the reasons for this, and con- RYA Training Centre which provides the basic experience, cluded that it reflected in- and can build links with other training centres and clubs to en- creased purchase of youth courage youngsters to develop and keep on sailing. Each has boats by clubs, and perhaps Stuart Bishop is the new On- an Onboard Development Officer; there is Sport England fund- also availability of other Board Development Officer ing for half a post, so one of Andy's tasks was to secure fleets, such as those of Sea (ODO) for East Kent. He has matched funding. Scouts. The problem now 16 years experience sailing in appears to be not availability and around the South East, After all the preparation, the first Onboard Centre is about to of boats - but transporting and has also worked at train- start in the east of the region at Dover Watersports. Stuart them. We are therefore ex- ing centres in the UK and Bishop has been appointed as the ODO and starts work very amining the idea of locating abroad. soon. Andy already has plans for a second Onboard Centre trailers which could carry a Now Stuart is looking forward towards the north of the region. range of youth boats around to meeting all OnBoarders at the region. The RYA-SE their local clubs and training For Onboard to work, it has to be supported by training oppor- present youth fleets have sev- centres, and developing the tunities at club level. This in turn requires trained and commit- eral years of life in them, but OnBoard programme for them ted volunteers, in particular instructors and senior instructors. are unlikely to be replaced. and their local communities. Although the region has always been well off for these, there Continued on page 2 Contact Stuart on: is a need for more - particularly senior instructors - if we are to [email protected] support Onboard and increase the number and quality of train- Tel: 01304 212880 Also in this Issue . Honda RIB Page 3 Zone News Page 6 Topper Regatta & Zone Champs Page 4 OnBoard Page 7 South East World Champions Page 5 Regional Events & Courses Page 8 Page 1 Cruising Cruising is a major activity in the region, and involves a lot of Racing work for volunteers. Maintaining contact with clubs and cruis- ing yachtsmen generally, representing the region on commit- A major change towards the end of the year was the resigna- tees, responding to consultations and organising regional tion of Bruce Bonar as Zone High Performance Manager. seminars are but the obvious tasks. Tony Chamberlain, the Over the past three years, Bruce has made a tremendous contri- previous regional cruising representative, bought himself a bution to youth racing in the region, and we wish his succes- new yacht and has decided to spend more time cruising on it. sor, Paul Wren, well in taking on this challenging post. (His We very much miss his expertise, though I can quite under- profile is on page 1) stand that he wants to spend more time actually sailing than talking about it. I too would welcome that opportunity! Regional youth racing In another part of the woods, reorganisation was taking place. Now that youth squad racing is being carried out at Zone level, A review of all RYA committees showed that there was a good the region has sought to find a complementary role. We have deal of overlap between Cruising and Legal and Government concentrated on the other end of the spectrum, encouraging Affairs Committees. A joint review by the two recommended novice young sailors into representative racing through the re- a merger into a new Cruising and Government Affairs Com- gional Optimist and Topper Regattas (reports on page 4). mittee (CGAC). This took effect following the RYA AGM in These are inter-area competitions with trophies, with each of November, and I am a member of that new committee. Anoth- the six Areas of the region fielding a team. The region pro- er outcome of the review was the setting up of the cumbrously vides three boats for each team, but a team can be of any size named Offshore and Coastal Cruising providing the Area brings sufficient extra boats. As a result, Panel to provide an effective link be- the 2006 Optimist Regatta had 35 competitors and the Topper tween cruising yachtsmen and CGAC. Regatta over 50. The important thing is that all entrants should It includes regional representatives be novice sailors with no more than two full seasons' sailing. covering the UK coastline. The 2007 Optimist Regatta will be on Saturday 8 September at Chipstead SC, and the Topper Regatta on 20 October at Bough For this Panel to work, it was essen- Beech SC. My thanks to Brian Stanley and his helpers for run- tial to get the right person to represent ning these events over the past few years. the region, and I am delighted that John Crone, a former member of the Another successful - but rather different - event is the RYA regional committee and Honda Youth RIB Challenge for 8-12 and 12-16 year olds. John Crone was born on Tyne- immediate past Commo- This demands skill in powerboat handling on a small tight side. He started sailing aged 15 - dore of Sovereign Harbour course against the clock. Clubs that enter hold their own heats a GP14 with wooden hull, mast Yacht Club, has agreed to and the winners enter the regional final, held in 2006 at Pid- and boom and cotton sails! take on this role. Anyone dinghoe (report on page 3). The regional winners go to the who has seen the new Sov- national finals, held at the Southampton Boat Show. Now that Since 1971 he has been in Sus- ereign Harbour clubhouse this event is becoming established, more clubs and groups of sex, as commodore of Bexhill will appreciate John's dy- clubs are offering youth training for this event, and the region SC and - since 1998 - at namism and commitment. is encouraging this. The 2007 Regional Final will be on Satur- Eastbourne’s new Sovereign John will become the main day 21 July at Piddinghoe. Harbour YC, where he became cruising contact in the re- Commodore and the driving gion, but I am sure will Seminars force behind their magnificent wish to build contacts The regional club officers' seminar held on 25 February 2006 new clubhouse. more widely with cruising was well attended and comprised a number of important pres- clubs and yachtsmen, par- entations. For clubs that were not able to attend, reports of the John is married, with a mutinous ticularly on the Thames presentations were included in the Winter 2006 special edition family of two sons. While he and the Medway. I also of the regional newsletter. We shall not be running a seminar loves to sail his 32’ cruiser/racer imagine that he will want in 2007, but there will be a Cruising Seminar in 2008 (see both sides of Channel, he hates to spread the committee above). Red Tape and bureaucracy from work – currently I am cov- either side! ering the District Marine Environment Safety Committees and the Environmental and planning issues are becoming an increas- Dover Search and Rescue Committee, and Steve Davies, John ingly important part of the regional committee agenda. Some, Skellorn and Tom Sims cover the three PLA Thames User like wind farms in the Thames, are obvious and of major im- Consultative Forums.