Campbeltown Sailing Club – 4 July 2021
Club Commodore:
Sean Rose has stepped forward to take on the role of commodore, Greig Walker having resigned due to other commitments. Thanks to Greig, who will remain on the committee ex officio, for his excellent work while in post. Welcome Sean and thank you for accepting the role, we look forward to working with you.
Clear up and club preparation:
Towards the end of June club members did a lot of work to get the club ready for sailing and other activities. Nigel Parker and I cleared the slip of seaweed and algae. A selection of Nigel, Alastair Cousin, Greig Walker, Shona Bassett( Dinghy instructor), new member Ross Little and I worked on the club dinghies and the compound to get them ready for some school sessions.
Meanwhile Commodore Sean Rose and Julie Oliver have been working on the changing areas and club house to mend and repair, clean and sanitise the facilities to ensure safety in relation to covid and general hygene.
On Saturday 25 June a work party did major cleaning and clearing in the compound area, further work to the dinghies and equipment preparation to enable use of club facilities. Members involved were Sean Rose, Julie Oliver, Nigel Parker, Mike Healey, Michael Foreman, Ross Little, Sid Gallagher and Greig Walker.
Jamie MacLean has been working on the rescue launch trying to free up the styeering.
Sailing dinghies and club premises are now ready for use by club members subject to social distancing and covid restriction rules. We hope to set some dates for club events and activities soon.
Moorings
Five moorings are now ready for use and have been allocated to members.
Dalintober School Watersports Day
On Wednesday23 June CSC acted as host venue for a watersports fun day for 46 students (P6) from Dalintober Primary School. Set up by Claire Mitchell, Dalintober, the students had a great time and engaged in a great variety of activities.
Dinghy sailing was provided by Jamie Roberts, RYA SI who was hired for the day and came down from Oban. He was assisted by Shona Bassett, a local young person who has gained Dinghy Instructor qualification partially assisted by CSC. Additional help was given by Andrew McClement kindly giving up a day of his holiday and Nigel Parker who both were on hand to give back up with the dinghy sailing.
Canoeing and Kayakying were provided by members of Kintyre Canoe Club, Jane Gallagher, Grant Logan, Malcolm McMillan and Sid Gallagher.
Stand Up Paddle Boarding was available too, provided by Trudy Kennedy and Julia Holegate.
A rescue boat was on hand driven Campbell Fox. Jamie MacLean kindly loaned CSC his RIB since there are steering problems with the CSC launch. Jamie has been working hard on the launch and is in the process of getting it fixed and ready for use again.
The weather was kind to us and the kids had a very enjoyable day. Several staff from Dalintober accompanied the students and made sure things ran smootly and well. Enough equipment was available from CSC, Kintyre Canoe Club and Live Argyll to enable every child to have a wetsuit and buoyancy aid and any other thing they needed.
Cushendall Sanda Meet Up
Members of the club and members of Cushendall sailing club met up on Sanda over the weekend of 25/26/27 June. The weather was again very kind and enabled a barbeque on Sanda on Saturday evening. Billy McFadyen was one of the main organisers who liaised with Sanda’s owner to gain access to the island for the event. Campbeltown boats present were those of Billy McFadyen, Michael Foreman, Campbell Fox, Jamie MacLean, Ronnie Reid and Douglas McKenzie. Other club members managed to attend as guests of the boats above. Some canoe club members took advantage of the very calm conditions to paddle over on Saturday afternoon and socialise with the sailors and motor sailors. I hope more informations will be available later from those more fully involved.
Campbeltown Grammar School Watersports Day
On Tuesday 29 June, 12 students from Campbeltown Grammar School took part in a watersport day similar to that enjoyed by Dalintober students previously.
On this occasion sailing, canoeing and kayaking were available. Shona Bassett was responsible for the sailing sessions. Shona is a recently qualified dinghy instructor and she managed very well the daunting task of taking full responsiblity for the sailing sessions. Nigel Parker assisted Shona on shore. Campbell Fox again drove the rescue launch which again Jamie MacLean was kind enough to lend to CSC. Greig Walker, CGS Staff member and CSC member assisted Campbell in the rescue launch.
Slightly livelier breezes made the conditions a little more challenging despite which or perhaps because of it all the sudents had a very enjoyable day.
What’s Next
Members are able to access the club premises and use facilities to enable their sailing. Please remember to be mindful of covid safety measures such as maintaining distance and cleaning surfaces or leaving them 72 hourse before use. Toilets can be used but RYA recommend we do not use the changing rooms at present.
Members capable of dinghy sailing safely without supervision can use club dinghies. Please let the secretary know of any planned use and please clean boats and equipment after use to ensure covid safety.
At present we have no imminent club dates in the calendar but we hope to plan and organise some activities that members can join in with in the near future.