When I became Vice-Commodore 3 years ago I wrote an article along the lines “…ask not what your club can do for you, but rather what can you do for the club.” (Thanks to John F Kennedy for the original speech on 20^th Jan 1961).  I will revisit this theme in a few paragraphs but first…

 There can be no better indication of the health of the club than the numbers turning out for the Winter Series sometimes known as the “Snowflake” or “Brass Monkey” – we need to find a more inviting title! When I was a new member several years ago we were lucky if there were 3 boats racing and one OOD with no patrol boat.  Yesterday there were 7 boats racing, 2 members on OOD duty and 3 on patrol.  In addition Jo Collins and Helen Shaw were in the galley (Helen is there for the whole of the winter series) and we were treated to a fabulous three course meal with the man course being a tasty Sticky Lemon Chicken.  This would not have been out of place at some of the better restaurants in Hexham! It was worth going to the club for the meal alone.

 Don’t forget to get your Dinner Dance tickets for 30^th November from Ruth Hawkin.  Tickets are selling very well and this event has been very well supported over recent years. It is not stuffy and formal but very relaxed and good fun with an excellent Ceilidh. The annual prize giving takes place and there are prizes for many categories other than just racing.  There will be a new category this year as well but you will have to attend to find out what it is!

 The jetty is now unfortunately completely out of the water as the level approaches 62% full for the dam inspection next week but the water levels gave Mike Collins the chance to sort out jetty chainage, mooring chains and a few new mooring buoys. Mike has also been busy with out hoist base for which we have some new plans over the winter to help facilitate boat park expansion.

Update on Work in Progress

 If you were at the AGM you may recall I said how conscious I was of keeping members informed about what is happening at the club. I have been busy in the week since becoming Commodore and it is time to update you on this.  I have initiated Committee working parties in 7 areas and these are reporting back to our next Committee meeting on 8^th December.

• Boat Park management and expansion.  This is being led by Viola Scott. We have plans for an immediate modest expansion of the boat park by between 15 and 20 boats which is facilitated by movement of the hoist which I earlier mentioned was being worked on by Mike Collins.
• Container Provision and Garage Refurbishment. This is being led by Graham Thumwood. We are investigating the provision of 80 ft of container space to hold all of the patrol boats and our ancillary equipment. The garage will be emptied.  (Those of you with personal equipment in there need to take note.) This will free up the garage for potential conversion and use as a multi-function room for members relieving the pressure which we now frequently experience on the club house main room.
• Wind Turbine. We are conducting a feasibility study into the provision of a Wind Turbine at the club, supported if possible by grants.  This will export electricity to the grid as well as supply us with some electricity when we are there. This seems to make economic sense as we have potentially  ‘free’ wind generating electricity which we cannot use on 5 days of every week. The feasibility study will report in detail on the cost benefits of a wind turbine for the club. This work is being led by Phil Armstrong.
• Junior provision and Training Review led by Viola Scott and Dave Drewery. Our training provision is reviewed annually although this year’s review will be more forward looking.  At the AGM I made three clear vision statements for juniors:
• To progress Junior sailing to regional squad level for as many juniors as possible;
• To offer more for Juniors than just training;
• To establish a junior forum/committee to elicit the views of our junior membership and to feed this to the full committee - this will potentially replace Tom's role as Junior Rep as he reaches 18.

These statements form the basis for the review.

• Tractor Provision (or equivalent) led by Bob Golightly. With the responsibility for jetty maintenance and management passed won to us from Northumbrian Water we are faced with the difficulty of moving the jetty in and out of the water as the eater levels change. NW used to do this with a very large tractor.  Our Business Development Plan identified the need to provide the same or an equivalent provision without this being burdensome on the club.
• Sailing Committee. In the past we have had a Sailing Secretary, a role which has recently been undertaken in an exemplary manner by Mike Scott.  Mike will be stepping down next year and to ensure we have ongoing expertise in this area and to spread the load I have formed a small committee to manage this activity.  This involves continually improving and extending the scope of our program to cater for member’s needs; dealing with the rota duties (which we will be improving next year); liaising with bodies such as the Soling Class association/SB3s, Osprey and Scottish Skiffs and local clubs to set our Open dates and establish the best attendance and profitability possible; and also to set our Sailing Instructions and Notices of Race. The Sailing Committee is led by the Vice-Commodore Paul Turnbull.
• Budgeting and Financial Management. We have had prudent annual management of our finances for a number of years now.  As we grow and our turnover increases, and as we plan for a future which could bring some significant changes and expansion, it is imperative that we not only manage our annual budget well but we begin to look forward more.  Our Treasurer, Peter Hawkin, and myself are looking at ways in which we can achieve this and this may bring some changes to the way in which the committee manages and spends member’s funds.

In the first paragraph I said I would revisit the theme of “…ask not what your club can do for you, but rather what can you do for the club.  So finally I am here! The work of the club is not the exclusive domain of your Committee. Your expertise and enthusiasm can be utilised.  If you feel you can contribute in any way to any of the seven initiatives I have outline above (or to some of the future ones I will be updating you on) then please do not hesitate to contact myself or the leaders of the individual initiatives (all details in the year book).

Many thanks

Steve

Commodore