You have probably heard by now (or even seen with your own eyes) that the water levels are rising rapidly after the draw down of the pre Christmas period.  The water is now lapping our main concrete 'apron'. It is amazing to watch just how quickly such a large lake can refill with a month of wet weather. The bulk of the jetty sections have also been brought ashore thanks to Mike Collins and Geoff Brown - this reduces wear and tear and breakages.  We will be reinstating the jetty at the March working party.

Renewals are hopefuly going out in the post this weekend with all kinds of useful information about training courses and of course the 2008 programme. Some of the Powerboat course take place in February so please respond as soon as possible to secure a place.  It is also much apprecated if membership renewals are returned quickly to reduce the job of the Secretary in chasing these later.

Julie has organsed a Day Skipper trainng course and the renewals and course information is arriving very close to the course dates.  If you want to attend this course (to be held at the club) please see the forum for details and contact Julie ASAP.

The renewal pack not only contains a copy of the 2008 programe but also a form to let you select a duty type and preferred dates. For a volunteer club of our size duties are an unavoidable necessity - and of course if we all want to take advantage of the water then we should expect to support the club in return by doing one or two duties, whether on a race day, a training day or a cruising day. We prefer not to select your duty for you and would much rather try to accomodate your preferences.  So please return the duty form as soon as you can to allow us to finalise a rota.  This then also allows us to also finalise the year book and print and distribute it.  The 2008 Year Book is already waiting for this information.

Our web site (the design of which is over 5 years old now) is being updated by myself.  I am involving all of you in this and you have the opportunity to comment on the design, layout and content as it develops over the next 5-6 weeks. You can keep up with this on the forum thread and also visit the test site as it develops. The site has a feedback form for your feedback. There is also the possibility of a junior website for our young sailors and there is also a forum thread for this. Let me know what you thnk, provide me with some photos for the site and if you don't like it please say so.

As I have mentioned previously, the boat park is undergoing some minor changes in layout. Most importantly, from this season, you will be allocated a specific space in the boat park once you return your membership renewal. Do not assume you will have the same boat park space as last time. We will also be issuing identification tags for your boat/trolley and your trailer.  Any boats/trailers in the boat park without these tags will be regarded as unauthorised.  Our boat park space is limited, we are victims of successful growth, and we must manage it carefully and I thank you in advance for your co-operation in this.

I look forward to seeing you all soon, regards

Steve Gibbon