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Commodore's Musings - January 2017

Published 20:53 on 29 Jan 2017

I hope that you have had a restful and battery charging holiday season, which may seem like ages away, and are now looking forward to a successful 2017. January is a little of a manic month for me as there are a large number of birthdays in our family and the Christmas binge does not really seem to be over until we are half way through January.

Firstly I would like to thanks Susie for another wonderful Burns Supper. The Club was packed, the Haggis was truly wonderful, thanks to Sam, and above all the recitals and quiz went down a storm. I am not, however, so sure about the poetry skills of the members are ready for print just yet.

As we look back over the past few months we have achieved a fair amount, we have now reclaimed some 4m of car park on our Southern boundary with Harts Boatyard and planted 12 new hornbeam trees. I owe my thanks to Matt K, Nicki ET, Malcolm, Ben and Matt H for making this happen. As you will see all of the trolleys and trailers were moved out of the way whilst we were undertaking the work, rather than just putting them back we want you to identify your possessions with the aim of disposing of any unused items. Therefore could you come to the club over the next few weeks, identify your trailer/trolley and put it in a neat stack on the Harts boundary. Those items that are left behind will be cut up and disposed of at the Spring Work Party (11/12 March).

The AGM is now less than a month away on Sunday 26th February at 3pm. It is important for members to attend as this is one of the main chances for you to influence how the club is run and setting the priorities for the future. As ever there are a number of key vacancies most notably Secretary and Treasurer. Malcolm, our secretary for the past 3 years, has undertaken the role with great aplomb and whilst I have twisted his arm for the past couple of years it is only fair that he hands over this vital role. Sue P took on the role of Treasurer and helped steer us through a number of difficult situations for which she has my unwavering thanks. Whilst I thought that we had some succession plans in place these are no longer open to me, therefore, if you feel that you have the skills and some time to dedicate to the task please tell me directly. There are always spaces available on General Committee so if you have some time or a skill that you think would be useful, please make your willingness know to a member of the Committee, the candidature form is on the Club notice board.

It was good to see two Raters at Queen Mary for the annual Bloody Mary pursuit race this year, the conditions looked ideal for a potential Rater win. Unfortunately, the early starters had 30 mins of approx. 6-8kts of breeze which then dropped to less than 5kts. Martin Hunter and Jamie Stuart in Adventurer came in 7th and Ben Palmer and handsome Sam sailing Lady Jane came in 12th with the winners and second place being a Firefly. I hope that the Raters can make as many appearances at these prestigious national events as it is a great show case for the class. I have seen some early boat movements in the shed, Caprice is getting a make-over, it looks like lady Jane is also getting a spruce up. I also believe that there are some changes of ownership but have not seen anything official, so this all looks exciting for the season ahead.

After some tireless liaison work by Mel, we can now officially announce that there is an official invite for TSC to join our French river sailors at Yacht Club d'Ile de France (Paris) on the 10th and 11th June. By all accounts this was a fantastic occasion when we last visited Paris and so I hope that many Raters and Merlin Rockets can make the trip.

Recently we undertook a high quality scan of the 1871 rules of Thames Sailing Club, they can be found on the website http://www.thamessailingclub.co.uk/article/tsc-rules-1871-1 and provide a fascinating insight into the very earliest sailing matches on the River Thames "above bridge". It is interesting to note that matches started from buoys, your starting position was drawn by lots, the Commodore was the Judge and his word was final. There have already been requests to run some races on the principles of these rules. I hope that we may be able to use these early rules as a way of promoting the club more widely.

I look forward to seeing you on the 26th February where we will have an update on the proposed planning permission.

Regards,

Miles

Commodore

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