Affiliated to the Royal Yachting Association
Newsletter–Autumn 2012
If has often occurred to me as we have passed through this year’s sailing season that the Gods of Water and Wind have had a really good chuckle at our expense and have conspired to frustrate our enjoyment of the water at every turn.Much anticipated club events such as the Langstone Cup / Ramsgate Cruise and the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee Cruise have been affected by inclement weather. Other events have either been washed out, blown out……….. but not scorched out.
That being said, in true CCC fashion we have not let the weather dampen our spirits, but have had some really nice sailing and social activities
Cruising.
In his first year as R/C Cruising, Neil Bowsher has organised some very popular cruises and his cruising notes are proving to be particularly well received, especially amongst the newer members making initial trips to the various destinations.
The Easter Cruise to Benfleet was a great success and we were made very welcome by the BYC Officers and volunteers who met our fleet on arrival and proved to be as hospitable as ever.
The Jubilee Cruise to the River Roach and Crouch was very well attended and it was a glorious sight to see the acres of signal flags on the boats to mark the occasion.This historic event was marked by the issue of a commemorative burgee which was flown with pride by all those attending and although it was slightly wet (understatement of the year - Ed), we even managed to sneak a celebratory Barbeque in between the showers!
R/C Social Julia Armitage worked very hard to produce a terrific afternoon’s entertainment and many thanks to all those who helped out at the various stalls and also to Mike Porter-Ward and his band, who provided the musical entertainment.
As is usual, the Fun Day provided an opportunity for members to invite guests and visitors from far and wide for the day. The visitors who now hold the record for the distance travelled are two members of the Falkland Island Yacht Club!
Janet and Bob McLeod were visiting the UK from their home in the South Atlantic and, remembering a standing invitation to visit should they ever get the opportunity, chose our Fun Day event to take up the offer. They reported that they were made very welcome and had a good time.
A FIYC Burgee will soon grace the CCC Clubhouse and if any of you find yourselves in the South Atlantic, you will find our own CCC burgee displayed in the Port Stanley clubhouse!!
Training
Stuart Bradley continues to offer RYA accredited training classes but unfortunately the take up this year has been poor for both the RYA Day Skipper and VHF Radio Courses. The latter is a requirement to obtain a DSC Radio Licence.
Due to the lack of demand and also on-going difficultieswithsecuringappropriateaccommodation in our own clubhouse for the theory classes, it has been decided that it will be more economical for us to run the CCC training classes at Queenborough Yacht Club’s premises, where there is plenty of room to spread out.
months and for them to be re-laid in the Spring of 2013.
Annual General Meeting
The forthcoming AGM on 18th November will see voting for two new club officers following the end of the tenure for Rear-Commodore Racing Alan Turner and Rear-Commodore Social Julia Armitage.
Alan is, however, seeking to stay on as R/C Racing for an extra year and should there be no other nominee for the post, this will be ratified at the AGM.
Both Alan and Julia have worked very hard to provide CCC members with the opportunity to participate fully in the various club events and the Committee heartily thanks them for their services over the past two years.
The Club is also seeking nominations from members who want to be more involved in running the club and would like to sit on the club committee.
We are particularly looking for newer members to get more involved and would welcome them onto the committee, which meets once a month excluding July and December.
Voting for Club officers will take place at the AGM and nomination papers are being circulated now with the AGM notification.
On 17th November - the evening before the AGM - the club will be holding a Bangers-and-Mash evening. As there will be no Firework Party this year mainly due to safety and insurance issues, it was felt that an extra social evening would be a good idea and the Committee decided that AGM weekend would
be the most appropriate time / The Autumn Cruise on the August bankholiday to Walton-on-the-Naze was also a success with a good number of boats making the trip.
Racing.
Despite the obvious enthusiasm of our R/C Racing Alan Turner, turnout has been very disappointing for the Spring Tide races this year.
The weather has also proved to be a major factor in dissuading members to venture out to compete in the other scheduled races on the calendar andthis has meant that the first club race of the year was actually held in September! That being said, the racing is now over for another season and the various placings are being published.
Swale Regatta
Due to foul weather during the scheduled Regatta weekend, this event was postponed until September, with the Friday racing being omitted due to time constraints. Both days were well attended with twenty boats from the various clubs taking part, including a good CCC turnout.
CCC members once again managed to win a severalraces and the Interclub Trophy this year was won once again by Conyer Cruising Club, so a very well done to all of those who took part!!
Social.
The two informal Pot luck suppers and the August BBQ event proved to be very popular with members and we hope that they will be a regular feature of next year’s social calendar.
The Fun Day was a great success and the late afternoon tide was a bonus in scheduling the various water-borne events – although it was disappointing that only one entry for the Raft race was received!
Stuart will announce his 2013 class schedule
in due course and early expressions of interest are advised, as he wants to plan his own 2013 sailing schedule including some extended quality time in his own boat!
Website ()
The new Club website has been running several months now and we are very pleased with how it has turned out.
Our Webmaster Melvyn Biddle has spent a lot of time on this and has produced very professional looking pages that hopefully will be continually developed to provide information that is not only useful to visitors coming to Conyer, but also Club members wanting up to date information on cruising, racing and social events.
If you have any photos to share, suggestions to make or want to contribute to the site, please email your thoughts, photos or gossip to Melvyn who will be glad to include them.
Email him at
Club Moorings update
The club has three mooring buoys in The Swale that are installed for the benefit of club members:
- Annie’s buoy in South Deep.
- Gemini 1 and 2 on the South Shore of Harty at the approximate GPS position 51.21.132N 0.53.000E
Please note though that at least one of the Gemini buoys and some of the other clubs’ mooring buoys in the Harty area are known to have dragged recently, so please use caution especially with multiple vessel rafts in windy weather.
The club is intending to arrange for both Gemini Buoys to be serviced over the forthcoming winter
Don’t Forget….
This is yourclub being run for you. The Committee have worked hard throughoutthe year and their efforts have brought you numerous cruises, races and social events. We are always looking for suggestions to improve and if you have any thoughts that will benefit the club or its members, please share them with us.
Don’t forget to check the Club website for CCC news and function updates – the address once again is
With Christmas just around the corner please remember that we have a large range of regalia all tastefully emblazoned with the club crest. Baseball Hats, Tee Shirts, Polo Shirts, Rugby Shirts and Fleeces will all make the perfect Christmas gift or stocking filler.
For further details and prices see the club website at
On 8th December is the Christmas Party!!
You will remember at last year’s AGM meeting, it was suggested that as the Dinner Dance will be moving to next April, it would be nice to get out the glad rags and get into the Christmas Spirit by making the Christmas Party a black tie event.
Numbers will be limited, so look out for the poster and the announcement on the website which will give full details.
Lastly
The Committee wish you well for the winter period and hope that whether you are laying up or are planning to stay in the water to take full advantage of those few glorious and crisply sunny winter days, you have as restful or exhilarating time as you wish for!!