|
|
|
|
Commodore’s Comment – March 2018
The British are known for always talking about the weather, to the extent that some other parts of the world think that we are obsessed with it. Well, it does influence what we do on a daily basis and can ensure that even the best laid plans go wrong.
The Fitting Out Supper has been a typical example where everything had been planned for Saturday 3rd March, but then it snowed. This resulted in the deferment of both the Fitting Out Supper and the instructors training day. Numerous other activities have either been curtailed or cancelled, but through it all, racing has continued and work parties have improved and maintained the facilities in preparation for the season. To put a positive spin on the weather, the rain is continuing to contribute to the water level, it having risen by almost 10 cm (or 3 inches in old money) during this month.
The Fitting Out Supper has now been re-scheduled for Saturday 24th March at 19:30.
A big “thank you” goes to Rhonwen Bryce and Ian Cook for working their way through the many obstacles presented in moving the event by three weeks.
The official opening of the new facilities at the club has been scheduled for Saturday 14th April at 12:00.
This is an open invitation for all members to come along and view the changes.
Work on the ladies and disabled areas has been completed (but not opened for use yet) and we are also attempting to tidy up the wet bar area before the opening. The regular Thursday work party team, led by John Jordan, has been pulling out all the stops and other club members are being called upon to apply their expertise to certain outstanding tasks. The objective is to present the new upstairs room in a finished state at the official opening.
I hope to see many of you at this event. You will have the opportunity to talk with “the team” who have spent the past fourteen months working on the project. In addition, we will have an initial plan drawing available of what is envisaged for the current ladies and gents changing areas. Members will then have the opportunity to provide comments/feedback prior to any firm plans being established.
Barley straw has been much talked about down at the club recently and for those who have been into the club’s garage since Wednesday 14th, may well have thought that we were planning a barn dance, there being one tonne of straw in the garage where the Dory usually resides! The objective is to lower the impact of the blue/green algae on our water based activities. Resulting from a request sent out to all members by Henry Beck, a determined group of volunteers of all ages braved almost zero temperatures on Saturday 17th to use three Christmas tree wrappers to turn two tonnes of straw into a mound of straw sausages (take a look on the FOSSC Facebook page). These sausages will now be placed in designated areas around the edge of the lake. If you are able to spare us any of your time on Saturday 24th March, your assistance in floating the sausages out onto the lake and fixing them around the edge would be much appreciated.
The new junior club will have its first meeting between 14:00 and 16:30 on Saturday 14th April. The club is open to any junior member of FOSSC who are in school year 6 or above and have successfully completed the YSS level 2 (Gull course). It is intended that the club will cover both shore and water based activities, the mix depending on both the time of year and weather conditions. For more information about this new club, please contact myself, David Greenfield, Tony Heming, David Benjamin or Tamsin Ramm. Alternatively, come and talk with us at the official opening immediately prior to the junior club.
FOSSC is run by volunteers and members may not necessarily know who is who. When I first joined the club there was a “rogues gallery” in the entrance which enabled me to put faces to names. Ken Elsey has recently brought this gallery up to date and it will re-appear on a prominent wall space in the next few days. When you take a look at it, you will notice that there are a few gaps. The committee are very keen to fill these vacancies. It is the team as a whole that ensures the club operates smoothly and accommodates as far as practical, the requirements of the membership. If you would like to find out more about any of the vacant positions, please can I ask you to contact any of the committee members.
Volunteering helps to make the club a continuing success story and can include family participation as well as individuals. I was very pleased to see both young children and teenagers working alongside their parents at Saturday’s straw sausage making. Some of the teenage members of the club, as well as enjoying the skill of sailing, are also achieving parts of their Duke of Edinburgh award via activities within the club, ranging from skills (completing RYA dinghy sailing courses) to volunteering (assisting Sailability for the disabled).
In closing my commentary for this month, I would like to ask if there are members of the club whose business background could guide us toward raising our profile within the geographical area, to please get in touch with myself (coates_david@hotmail.com).
Happy sailing in 2018!
David Coates.
Commodore.
|
|
|
Last Call for Fitting Out Supper
The rescheduled Fitting Out Supper will take place at the club from 19:30 on Saturday 24th March.Please email Rhonwen Bryce by Tuesday 20th March to book your place. rhonwenbryce@yahoo.co.uk
|
|
|
Helping on the Optimist Course
Well it's time to sign up for this years courses and I've been asked to write a bit about my experience. I got the sailing 'bug' again a couple of years ago after rekindling my passion for it on a hot holiday; bought an Ebay Topper and flailed around trying to remember how to sail after 30+ years. I now sail as often as I can, whatever the weather.
I think my daughter picked up on how excited I feel about sailing and wanted to try herself, so signed up for the Optimist courses which I've helped with for two years. I wish Optimists had been around when I learnt the basics of sailing. They are amazingly stable, so complete beginners can set off solo in relative safety. We were all (students and helpers) a bit nervous to start with but Nicola and John (the instructors) soon put us at ease. We all had to learn to rig the Oppies and after a few weeks the children were able to do this and launch a boat themselves, with the help of a buddy. The children are divided into groups (depending on experience) and each morning starts with a briefing where we are informed about what is to happen that day and cover any land based theory. Once rigged, the boats are launched and the games begin, as most of the learning is in a fun practical way with activities. Two to a boat initially, means children have a friend to help and reassure them, as well as the instructors and helpers shouting from the jetty, the bank and power boats. The sails can be reefed to make them smaller if it's a bit windy and if there's no wind then using paddles to propel the boat is a fun activity to learn the balance points of boats and bodies. Controlled capsizing and learning knots to secure your Oppie are also useful skills. We often had a very tame white duck who had various names including 'snowy' join in our games. Throwing small plastic balls from boat to boat whilst sailing or collecting them from the motor boat was a particular favourite for everyone. Once the basics are learnt, the most important of which is 'DUCK!!!' when it's windy as the boom comes flying across, sailors become confident enough to try sailing single handed. Then they aim to sail between buoys and start to learn how to sail a course, not easy when the buoy is upwind. An all important break for cake and drinks happens mid morning and the debrief at the end of the session comes all too quickly.
The second course focus is on better boat handling, sail trimming and trying to overtake your friends in friendly races whilst trying to remember who has right of way, port or starboard tack! There is a great age range but all the children had a fabulous time and gained in confidence as sailors and people. It was a joy to see those that were initially fearful or uncoordinated, develop confidence and control. If you would like to join us and help the instructors, please get in touch with Nicola Barrett to discuss what you can do.
My daughter now has her own Oppie and as many of the group were keen to keep sailing after the course, the 'Coot Club' was formed. We continued after the course to meet on Sunday morning and even join in Sunday racing. As a family we have gone on to enjoy Social Sailing on a Friday evening and family camping weekends. It's particularly enjoyable if we've stopped to collect fish 'n chips on the way, to eat at the lake, or used the club BBQ. We also have part share in a bigger boat and have taken Dad for a sail. He's also enthusiastic about sailing now (or is it the BBQ's?) and is an expert as he's helmed once! Sailing and helping on the training courses is great fun, whatever your age and we've really enjoyed the club, its facilities and have made lots of new friends. Many thanks to all for making us feel welcome. Hannah, Bob and Martha Green
|
|
|
Year Book 2018
The yearbook is not being produced as a hard copy this year. To view or download the full yearbook please visit the link below.
http://www.fossc.org.uk/yearbook.html?download=11:yearbook-2018
|
|
|
Club Expenses
Please note that there is now an Expense Claim Form on the Downloads page of the FOSSC website so please complete one of these and include it with your expense claim for future claims.
http://www.fossc.org.uk/downloads.html
Many thanks
Steve
|
|
|
An Icy Sail
Over the years, all my races at Frampton have tended to become a blur – some windy days, gear failures, a racing incident or two, a few close races and a memorable capsize at a Laser Open for which I was awarded the Capsize Trophy, all stick in the mind. But Wednesday 28th February will be one I recall long after I have had to hang up my sailing gear.
The wind was blowing from the East, “the Beast from the East” it had been popularly called by the media and it was cold, bitingly so. There were no white horses, though, and the three of us who had turned up for the Wednesday Afternoon Icicle Pursuit Series, after some dithering, decided to give it a go. Rigging my Laser was cold, but my hands have been colder when doing so before. It was definitely Radial conditions for me.
With a safety boat on the water and ready to go, Hannah (Green) set off in her Topper. The course was set to give a beat from red to green for the predominantly East wind shifting to the North with gybe marks at white and yellow. Pete Dalton in his Comet had started before me and Hannah completed her first lap as I crossed the start line. It was then that the snow started to fall and the wind strengthened, blustery but manageable with the radial rig. Manageable ordinarily, but considerably more difficult with a slippery deck and a mainsheet on which the settling snow was freezing, making it difficult to grip and giving extremely cold hands. As I rounded red and began my first beat up to green I saw Hannah, very sensibly, retire and make her way back to shore. I could see Pete a catchable distance in front and was in no mood to give up the chase. It is not often we get a beat the length of the lake to green and today it was a challenge with the wind shifts and gusts, not to mention the icy main sheet and painfully numb hands. Rounding green and bearing away the conditions became a bit quieter and I was thumping my hands and moving about in the boat to try to keep some blood circulating. I thought of those on the Arctic convoys at the time when I was born and realised that what I was experiencing was a slight discomfort compared. Most times the gybe at white was fairly quiet but on a couple of occasions there was a gust to make it a more anxious manoeuvre. Reaching from white to yellow provided opportunities for getting up on the plane, the spray freezing on the decking as it hit. Never was I able to keep the plane going all the way to yellow as towards the mark the wind became more northerly and sometimes much lighter as it came over the shore. The lighter wind at that point made the gybes at yellow much safer than at white despite having to turn 300 degrees or so. As I began to catch Pete I capsized on a tack during a gust. One of those capsizes where the boom hits the water with the boat heeled so that the rudder is out of the water and it becomes impossible to either let out the mainsheet or steer into wind. Fortunately I quickly got onto the centre board and brought the boat up without entering the water. Strangely, the usual shower from the sail was not present – I found out why as it became obvious the sail was frozen, making it much stiffer than normal.
For a brief period the snow had stopped but now it began to fall and the wind got up again. Making a quick gybe at white and onto the plane I got past Pete who had slowed up in the calm patch before yellow. As we rounded yellow he suggested that we could now go in. Looking at my watch I could see that there was still 5 minutes to go and knowing that I was very likely to capsize and allow him past I carried on. In the event it was Pete who capsized on the gybe at white just as the hooter went. I carried straight on past yellow to the shore where I was greeted by Ken Elsey who, with Hannah, had taken the opportunity of the Dory on the water to tow the Committee boat, which had been waiting on the jetty after being repaired, back to its mooring (where, he informed me, they had to break the ice formed in the lee of the trees). De-rigging the boat was another painful experience with all the ropes frozen rigid, the tiller frozen into the rudder stock and the mast sections frozen together. Thank you to Hannah for helping me. It took the four of us to get the Dory out of the water and back to the boat house.
Were we mad? You may think so, but I value the experience. Were we foolhardy? We were suitably dressed in good dry suits with layers of warm clothing underneath, the safety boat was ready and the sight of it on the water with Ken and Hannah manning it was reassuring, so I don’t think so. Would I do it again? Maybe. If there is a lesson to be learnt it is that even at Frampton conditions can change rapidly. We had carefully considered the conditions before setting out, I had even looked at the sky and thought it might snow, but I had not anticipated the difficulties with icing when it did due to the freezing temperature and wind chill.
Jon Barrance
|
|
|
A local walk
You are more than welcome to come and join us [Forest Ramblers] on an 8 mile walk on Thursday 26th April.The start will be from the club car park, starting at 10 a.m.
The route is as follows : walk around the lake, across to The Marches, to the Cambridge Arms bridge, back along the Gloucester Sharpness canal to Fretherne Bridge, returning via The Green.
There will be both a coffee & lunch stop.
Dogs are welcome. Owners are at all times responsible for their dogs, which must be kept under control & not allowed to annoy other dogs, farm animals, & other walkers.
Leader : Bruce Richardson [01242 464027]
|
|
|
Sailing Success for Ed Baker
Ed, of FOSSC, previously Optimist sailor SW Zone Squad, now Topper SW Zone Squad was nominated by the Topper SW Zone squad coach Natalie Taylor for the award of RYA Musto Junior Rider. Ed is one of 3 lucky winners who will get to spend time on a mentoring experience with members of the British Sailing Team.
An article has been published see link:
https://classicsailor.com/2018/03/young-sailors-win-mentorship-british-sailing-team/
Lots of great things happening with the youngsters on the SW circuit; notably the Winters at Weymouth NS2 where Matty Cohen came 7th overall!
Regards
Tina Baker
|
|
|
Lark Dinghy Cover
We have salvaged a relatively new cover from the damaged Lark that is pictured below.
The cover is currently on the mezzanine in the boathouse. If anyone is interested in viewing and possibly purchasing the cover please contact either myself or Malcolm Paynton and we'll arrange a viewing.
I'll put a label on to identify it clearly & avoid any confusion.
Thanks,
Malcolm
Berthing Secretary
|
|
|
Newsletter Articles.
Next Publishing Dates
Last Date for articles 12th April 2018
Planned publishing 14th April 2018 email articles to mailto:henrywlbeck@gmail.com
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
