Well done to Harriet, first Yeadon boat at the recent Yorkshire Dales Brass Monkey. Conditions were fairly wild and very cold. The event was a major one in the national sailing calender with 120 + entries, though in the conditions only about 80 boats ventured out on to the water. In a great turn out by Yeadon's Juniors, Will and Matthew braved the conditions in a borrowed Feva but retired from the first race after a period capized in the cold water. Luke, and Andrew, decided not to sail their RS200 and Luke jumped into a friend's Radial and tried the conditions out but went for the early bath option to warm up. Harriet sat out the first race but completed the second race when conditions were a little better. The adult Yeadon sailors were missing from the water but there were a good number of spectators from Yeadon with Jo, John and Cathy and Rachel and I, amongst others and it was good to see the likes of Pete S, Neil A, Helen and John and Adam in the Club House.
It didn't look inviting !
Harriet in the second race (sorry it's blurred - cold hands !)
Spectating in the shelter of the Club House
Well done to YDSC in hosting the event, it all seemed to go very well !
With the final race of the current sailing season almost upon us I thought that this would be a good opportunity to remind you that just because it is the winter, activities at Yeadon haven't finished. Our winter social programme is now ready to be published and we look forward to you joining us for some of the following events.
Yeadon Sailing Club Winter Social Programme 2013
Tuesday 1st January Join us for a New Year Fuddle and “Commodores Bottle Race” @ Yeadon Sailing Club. Racing on Yeadon Tarn starts at 12pm Fuddle in the clubhouse from 1pm All welcome – sailors and none sailors; the more the merrier. Please bring something to eat and drink to share for the fuddle.
Saturday 2nd February Laying-Up Supper and Annual Prize Giving 7pm Yarnbury Rugby Club Tickets £14 adults, £8 children, £35 family We intend to have a raffle on the night - any donations of prizes would be very welcome. Get your tickets from Jo Lee email commodore@yeadonsailingclub.co.uk Friday 26th January.
Wednesday 27th February 7pm Racing Rules Talk – Get ready for the 2013 sailing season. Learn, update or refresh your knowledge of the racing rules ready for the new sailing season with highlights to the 2013 – 2016 changes. Followed by a Pie and Pea Supper The new rules book will be available to buy if you aren’t lucky enough to get one in your Christmas stocking. Please let Jo Lee know if you intend to come so that we can organise the correct number of pies.
May I take this opportunity to wish everyone a very happy Christmas and good wishes for the New Year.
Following on from the recent good news that Harriet and Will P were selected for the RYA Topper Zone Squad we have had further good news this week as Matt and Ben have been selected for the RYA Volvo 420 UK Youth Squad !
This is a major acheivement for the boys not least because of the injury affected season they have had this year, but as was reported in the newsletter they acheived some good results in the end of season events which obviously impressed the selectors.
Heather reported that ;
"They will by far the youngest pair and Ben is 2 school years younger than anyone else in the Squad !"
Plus she also noted,
"It will be tough on us all...not least because suddenly having to travel to Weymouth this weekend when you had planned to sail local and having already commited to training at Poole in Dorset the following weekend.
The credit card is already cowering in the corner!
Be warned that Christmas will be running late in the L-R household.
xH "
Best of luck to them all !! And reading below it sounds like they are all in for a busy year !
Details of the RYA Youth Squad are included below
The RYA Volvo UK Youth Squad Programme is designed to enable the best British sailors to develop their racing skills so that they can achieve on the international stage. It is aimed at sailors with the potential for world-class performance. Sailors are invited to join the RYA Volvo UK Youth Squad if the selectors feel they may have the potential to achieve one of the following criteria:
To win a medal at World or European Championships
To qualify for Team GBR for the ISAF Youth Sailing World Championships
To successfully follow an Olympic pathway
The RYA employs a specific National Class Coach and contracts a series of performance specialists to oversee the development of the sailors under the direction of the RYA Youth Racing and Pathway Managers.
As part of the RYA Volvo UK Youth Squad programme sailors will normally:
Attend all of the RYA Volvo UK Youth Squad camps.
Receive assistance from the RYA National Coach as required in preparing training and competition plans
Attend fitness and sports science support sessions
Follow a needs based training and coaching programme
Have access to remote support from the RYA National Coach
Receive support and guidance from an RYA Youth Squad sports psychologist
Receive sports science support including information and advice on nutrition, strength and conditioning and hydration
Compete in a number of mandatory domestic competitions
Compete in a number of international competitions
Powered up and coming off the star line fast at the Inland Champs in September
Following the recent colder weather and rain fall there has
been a visible improvement in the quality of the water on the tarn. The
committee have therefore taken the decision to resume sailing as of Sunday.
This does come with caution as no formal tests have been
conducted on the water quality. The council will not be in the position to
conduct tests for some weeks. Therefore I would strongly recommend not sailing
if Blue Green Algae would have a serious impact on your health. The biggest
risk is from ingestion, therefore can I ask all members to sail within their
comfort zone and rig according to the conditions. If you are unsure about reducing
the power of your boat then please ask for guidance.
It is also possible for Blue Green Algae to irritate the
skin, therefore please wear appropriate clothing such as a dry suit (but this
is not compulsory). It is cold, therefore I won’t expect to see anyone in shorts
and t-shirts.
The plan is for a short 2 race day series to be held this
Sunday with the frostbite running from the 2nd December until 23rd
December.
Sailing on Sunday will start at 12noon, David Hinks will be
the OOD.
There will be a notice regarding the declaration to sail,
and by signing on you will be agreeing with this declaration. Further
information from the RYA can be found here: http://alturl.com/mhdfb
We are arranging a fish and chip supper at the
Wetherby Whaler in Guiseley on Tuesday 27th November at 7.00pm.
All club members and their families are very
welcome.
£8.25pp inc bread and butter, tea or coffee.
Please let us know if you will
be coming by email to secretary@yeadonsailingclub.co.uk with the number of places you require. Please reply by 20th November.
The council are currently still waiting for the equipment to re test the tarn for Blue Green Algae. I inspected the water today and I believe it is lossing its 'Pea Soup' colour and therefore we may be soon be able to sail, but not yet.
The committee will be discussing the matter further at the next meeting on Monday, if you wish to share any views on the matter beforehand then please email me.
We have said that we will follow the process of 2 clear tests before we lift the sailing ban. With luck we will be able to sail most of the frost bite season. Any member wishing to sail at either Yorkshire Dales Sailing Club or Ripon Sailing club, then please see earlier communications for further information.
The Newsletter will be out soon, so look out for that.
I've been in communication with the Council and they inform me that they are in the process of implementing a testing system. This will take samples and indicate the whether Blue Green Algae is present and how many.
The latest observations indicate that the Algae is still present in large numbers.
While we have been ‘algea’ed off the Tarn members have been out and about flying the flag for Yeadon.
The Streakers lead the way when they attended the Ripon Open meeting and left their boats there, subsequently, amongst others, John with his Laser and Phil with his Graduate have joined them.
South Shields Topper Open
The Juniors have been the busiest ! The Toppers have been out on the road, on the sea for the South Shields SC Open Meeting, sailing in epic conditions on Rutland Water in the RYA Zone Championships and training at Carsington Resevoir. A number will also be at Pennine Open next weekend and possibly the Autumn Open at Carsington the weekend after.
Toppers on the far side of Rutland Water
Matt and Ben have been sailing their 420 at Burton and on the South Coast training at Itchenor, however the they would have preferred not to have meet the port tack boat quite the way they did ! While Luke has been doing the Northern Laser Open training sessions at Derwent, Sunderland, and will be at Yorkshire Dales and Scaling Dam in the next few weeks. He has also been doing the World/European (and RYA Youth squad) autumn qualifiers – at Sunderland where he did really well and at Pwllheli where he didn’t ! The last qualifier is at Plymouth in a couple of weeks time which is a long way to go!
420s Inlands at Burton
The National 12s have come across both extremes of conditions in Open Meetings they attended over the last two weekends. At Yorkshire Dales it was too windy to hold the last two races while and Ripon on Sunday they didn’t have enough wind to race. They are heading up to sail on the River Tyne at Newburn in a few weeks time.
If you are missing your regular fix of sailing please, like a number of fellow Club sailors, please take advantage of the kind offers we have had from Yorkshire Dales and Ripon Sailing Clubs to join in with their Club racing programme. Please speak to Tim, or any Committee member if you need any more information about sailing at either Club.
N12s at Yorkshire Dales (before the wind really arrived !)
Dear Member, Unfortunately due to the on-going Blue Green Algae problem we have taken the decision to cancel the planned Streaker and Solo Open Meeting at Yeadon Tarn on Saturday 20th October. Testing this week has confirmed that there is still high levels of Blue Green Algae in the water, it is unlikely that we will have a clear test sample prior to this event.
Further to my message below I have received the following: from the council:
"The Environment Agency have done a test this week and confirmed the Blue-green algae is still present in large numbers. They intend to repeat the exercise next week. After that Parks & Countryside are organising further testing to monitor the situation. In addition we are looking at introducing preventative measures to control potential outbreaks. "
Dear Members,
Sorry for the bad news, but currently there is no indication of a lift in the suspension of sailing due to Blue Green Algae. We have to take the lead from the council on this matter and the last update I had was as follows:
"I am (Council) in discussions with the Environment Agency to determine the best way of monitoring the Blue-green algae. Once we have resolved the best means of identification, frequency of water testing and threshold level of the organism permissible to enable water based activities I shall get back to you" I'm continueing to lobby the council for active testing of the tarn, this is the responsibilty of the council as the Tarn owners and the Environmental Agency no longer have any involvement in the matter. The council have in the past stated that they will not test the water on a regular basis even though it is used by the council for sailing activities and members of the public. I have also been intouch with a local councilor to make him aware of the situation. We can only hope that the recent weather conditions kill the algae and that active testing determines this is the case and we can carry on sailing. If any member wishes to sail at Ripon or Yorkshire Dales Sailing Clubs then please see the message sent via email below. Thanks Tim B Commodore Yeadon Sailing Club Alternative sailing plans Dear Member,
We have received two very generous invitations from both Ripon Sailing Club and Yorkshire Dales Sailing Club whilst we cannot use the tarn due to the blue green algae outbreak.
They have both offered the use of their facilities without charge to Yeadon SC members whilst our sailing suspension is in place, including space in their boat parks. However please note that boat park space will be limited.
Both clubs race on a Sunday with first race at 11.00 (RSC), 11.30 (YDSC).
Please note that boats and trolleys should be washed down before moving them.
To take up their invitations please do the following:
Ripon SC:
Contact their membership secretary, Martin Barrett, first so that he can log you as a temporary member at membership@ripon-sc.org.uk
Contact their boat park warden at boatpark@ripon-sc.org.uk if you want to leave your boat temporarily at Ripon.
Yorkshire Dales SC:
Sign in as a guest (or day sailor) using the forms near the galley.
Boats can be stored in a "Yeadon Block" closest to the water using the wires. There is a Boat park plan in the clubhouse which will show the area to use. Suggest boats are tied to these wires....it gets windy at Grimwith!
If you would like help or advice on moving your boat please contact a Yeadon SC committee member.
An evening with Ron Pattenden, the first man to sail solo round Britain...on a Laser!
Saturday 6th October, 7pm at OSC Clubhouse Tickets: £5 (half of proceeds go to Prostate Cancer charity) If you would like a copy of Ron’s book “Land on my right”@ £12 , please pre-order when booking your place.
Places limited so book early to avoid disappointment
Due to a combination of
circustances we will not be running the open meeting scheduled for Sunday 7th
October! The algae may well mean that we cannot sail at Yeadon in any
event however due to a weed problem at Hykeham SC they have had to cancel a two
day Gill (National Series) event due to be run next weekend. Ripon
Sailing Club has offered to extend their open meeting to two days in order to
host the Gill meeting and hence cannot now run our open meeting as
well. Yeadon Twelves can of course sail the two day open meeting at
Ripon. The Sunday part of the open meeting will comprise of two races,
one held before the club racing and one held during the club lunch break thus
non Twelve sailors can still enjoy the normal three races at Ripon if they wish
to do so. Full details will appear in due course on the National Twelve
website.
The sailing suspension at Yeadon due to blue green algae
is still in place this weekend.
However we have had some very generous offers from other
local clubs to allow us to continue sailing and information about this has been emailed to members.
We have decided to postpone the training activities for
both Adults and Juniors until we can get back on the water.
The working party planned for Saturday will go
ahead with as much help as possible appreciated in getting the dinghy park
ready for the winter.
Unfortunately due to the sailing suspension the
BBQ planned for Saturday is cancelled.
It is with great regret
that we will have to temporarily suspend all on the water sailing
activities until further notice.
We have been advised to
do so due to the high levels of Blue Green Algae and the risk that
this poses to members.
Notices have been
placed in the dinghy park and club house. We will review the
situation again at the weekend however we anticipate that there will
be no further sailing for a couple of weeks. We are looking in to
alternative arrangements and will update you soon.
As soon as I have more
information I will let you know. If any member wishes to discuss this
with me then please call me on 07976874680.
Training will go ahead
this week within the dinghy park and will involve shore based
activities.
The Algae testing has confirmed that there is Blue Green Algae present in the water. This is not the first time that it has happened at the tarn and the committee have decided that we will not suspend sailing activities unless advised directly by the council to do so or we judge that the situation is too dangerous.
However, members are asked to exercise caution when deciding to sail. You should note that: “Blue-green algae produces toxins which can harm, or even kill, farm animals, pets and wild animals and cause skin-rashes, eye irritation, vomiting, diarrhoea, fever and muscle and joint pain in people”. Therefore we strongly recommend that only those who are in good health should consider sailing. Parents and Guardians are asked to consider the risk of sailing for Juniors.
If the club does suspend sailing then a notice will be placed on the main notice board and the main door to the club house.
As ever always take care to wash properly after sailing with soap and hot water and avoid swallowing water. The toxins associated with Blue Green Algae can enter the body through the skin, so wear appropriate clothing.
If any member has any concerns or questions then feel free to email me at: commodore@yeadonsailingclub.co.uk or call me on 07976874680
Algae booms have been reported around the T Jetty on the tarn. Whilst we await the results of tests, members are asked to avoid this area and excercise caution. Please avoid swallowing water and wash properly after sailing and before consuming food or drink. Please report any additional Algae blooms to the committee.
The Junior Race Series resumes this Sunday after its summer break. Race 5 of the six race series is on Sunday 2nd at 2.30,
held within the normal Club racing, and then the final race, Race 6 is on Saturday 15th at 2.30 also within the normal Club racing.
With
most of the Juniors having some mixed results there is every thing to
play for and getting some good results in these last two races
could really shake up the table.
Summer Round up I know its not entirely over and has been mixed weather, but I hope everyone has had a good summer of sailing. There's still plenty more to come before the season ends!
The Wednesday night series had it's ups and downs, I recall a dry but very light winds season, I'm not sure if that's how everyone else remembered it. Unfortunately it has come to an end now and the scores are on the board. (remember to switch off PH for that Series, I didn't and got all excited!) http://www.yeadonsailingclub.co.uk/results/default.php
Series B Saturday and Sundays is well underway, and its going to be an interesting one!
A big thank you goes out to all those members who have helped with the Tuesday night training. Its an important activity for the club as it helps develop current members and attract new ones. Neil and the team have done a fantastic job at helping to maintain the sales and training balance. Particular thanks goes to Neil, Mary, Glenis, Dave and Luke (who has run a very successful junior training series at the start of the sessions).
Survey As ever, we would like you opinion on how the club is run and the facilities we have to offer. Please visit the survey at the following link http://go.clickmeter.com/uokb/
Theres a prize to be won if you do. Last years winner was Pat Murphy! (I'll be in contact to arrange collection).
Photos As ever we love to see pictures that have been taken of the tarn and YSC members sailing. I'm sure you'll agree that the following are stunning: http://9nl.com/7jmo/ Don't forget that all our photos can be uploaded to our Flickr Account:http://go.clickmeter.com/x48n/
If you have any pictures then please do get in touch.
Saturday Training The Saturday training series starts this weekend for adults from the Tuesday night training. The aim of the training is to polish the skills that have been acquired during the season and to hopefully get the class to Level 2 status.
This is open to all adult members, if you are interested then please signup as a student using the following link: http://9nl.com/0s8p/ and group code: gexbk9.
Clothing If like me you are a fashion conscious sailor, and always want to look the part (without getting my hair wet), then you can now purchase YSC branded clothing. We have a club page on Wave Clothing where you can purchase anything from Hoodies to YSC branded underwear.
I've purchased a hoodie and when it arrives I'll put a photo of me online with my best catalogue pose. Pick whatever outfits you want, there are 2 colour choices for the logo.
Water Gathers For those with a keen eye, you may have spotted the straight devices on the roof of the club house. These belong to Yorkshire Water and are being used to monitor the rainfall in the area. They'll be on site for a couple of months. Please avoid supplementing the readings :)
Funding We've made some progress with funding this summer. We have submitted an application for some additional training boats to Awards for All. A big thank you to Dave Norman for an excellent application. So figures crossed. We'll also be applying to Sport England for boat funding as well.
Mathews mum Sharon Midgley has been doing an excellent fund rasing job and has been in contact with Asda and Waitrose for help for training equipment. In September you should see YSC on the green token donation for Asda at the Meanwood and Adel branches. I'll keep you post on Waitrose.
Unfortunately we were unsuccessful with the Cash for Clubs funding for £1000, but we will apply again with a stronger application this month.
As for the larger pot of money for inspired funding (Lottery Grant) we plan to apply for funding to repair the clubs leaking roof. Along with some other funding to repair/upgrade the paths round the dinghy park. Its work in progress at present.
September Working Parties - Saturday 15th All those with some spare time on their hands would be welcome on Saturday 15th to help prepare the club for the winter. They'll be some general tidying up jobs plus I'm sure Trevor will have a list of larger maintenance jobs.
There will be lots going on at the club that day so we thought that since you'll all be there anyway, we'd have a BBQ in the evening (bring your own meat and veg) and as the days are getting shorter, there might be an opportunity for a night race, the Commodore will supply a special prize.
Committee and AGM The club can't run without members and a bit of organisation, therefore the committee constantly needs new blood to relieve those who have given up their time year on year, but also to bring new ideas. The committee is voted in as part of the AGM which will be held later this year, therefore please start to consider if you would like to take part. We meet once a month and try to keep it short, sweet and productive.
Please speak to a member of the committee if your interested and want to find out more. We will have vacancies for committee posts and the post of Child Welfare Officer. http://www.yeadonsailingclub.co.uk/committee.asp
Race Camera To help support the Race Officer's duties, we have set back up the camera in the race office which watches over the lap/finish line between the club house and mark 9. This records on movement and should pick up all the boats crossing the lap line during a race. So if you are unsure or need clarification then you can play back the video on the training PC. I've got some tweaks to make, but hopefully this might help should you encounter a problem. It starts automatically with the PC and at the moment the video is recorded into a folder on dropbox called 'Race Video'. Any questions then get in contact.
Dates for you diary:
September Adult Training Series - Every Saturday in September starting at 11am Saturday 15th Working Party and Bring your own BBQ Saturday 15th Junior Training
October Sunday 7th N12 Open (crews needed, please contact me for more information) Sunday 14th October Junior Team Racing Development Day Saturday 20th Streaker and Solo open
November / December AGM Date TBC
Janurary / February Laying up supper Date TBC
If you have any questions regarding the content of this message then please contact Tim Burnett at commodore@yeadonsailingclub.co.uk
All members who want to keep up-to-date with the progress of the British Sailing team are recommended to use the following detailed site for the latest news and information:
There are a number of different classes of boats taking part in the Olympics, but one class which will be very familiar to members is the Laser. If any members wish to give the Laser a go then don't forget that you are more than welcome to take out the club Laser during club organised training or events.
It was great to see 22 boats out last night during the Wednesday night racing. My favourite comment of the evening was 'Your not sailing the Titanic!' when the no water call was made 8 boat lenghts from the mark.
John made the start an interesting one with a downwind start. There were some confused faces on the water, but it was a nice change and I got a good start for once.
It was also good to see new faces as well as the wiser, the Pico's and club Laser have certainly had their use this year. If anyone wants to have a go at racing who has not done so before then speak to Tim, Neil or Andrew after the next Tuesday training or email racebuddy@yeadonsailingclub.co.uk. Its not too late to get racing, the season continues until December.
Wednesday night racing continues until August 22nd, the start times will get earlier towards the end so check the calendar. Saturday and Sunday racing goes on until the end of October and the Sunday Frostbite season starts in November.
The Adult training series will start the first Saturday in September and run throughout September. There may be the option to complete your RYA Level 1 or 2 at the end. If you are interested in the training and particularly the RYA certificate bit then please get in touch with Tim Burnett (tdburnett@hotmail.com).
It would be good to get a second club Laser up in operation, perhaps with a radial sail option. If anyone has the bits to donate then please let me know. We have a hull, just missing everything else.
Push the Boat Out
Last weekend was another great success with people making a real effort with Push the Boat Out. The winners of the best dressed boats were:
Leeds Sailing & Activity Centre, representing New Zealand - ingenious use of cotton wool to dress up the dog as a sheep! Jo, Harriet and William, representing Jamaica - Never seen so many pegs holding a boat together. Neil & Rachel, representing... erm sailing - Nice use of Marine flags, looked very pretty.
A special award goes to Howard for the oldest relic on the water (I referring to his Union Jack Flag which looked to have seen action at Waterloo).
We had a very nice letter of thanks for the Model Boat Club for helping to organise the event. They had a fantastic display and members really made an effort with their boats.
Visiting RYA Regional Development Officer Adam McGovern was impressed with our event and the members efforts.
Sunday Racing - Thornton Trophy 6 Race Event
The July theme of doing things differently continued on Sunday 22nd July with six short races being run for the Thornton Trophy with the best four results to count. Despite the different format we still had 16 boats raring to have a go at winning the coveted trophy.
After some initial confusion over the start time due to the blue card saying 1.30 and the notice and Dutyman saying 2.30 all was resolved with a 2.30 start and with six races to fit in, the afternoon was set to be a hectic one. The sun shone and the breeze blew at a nice force 3 with a several gusts up to force 4+ making it all very interesting.
After a short briefing to explain the revised sailing instructions with the slow fleet starting first for a change and only two minutes between starts the fleet soon gathered on the start line keen to be off! The first start however had to be abandoned and re done due to some confusion in the start boat (Howard cocked it up!). The fleet had no such confusion and at the second attempt everyone made good starts despite the, at times, windy conditions, Matthew Foster sailing the club Pico on his own and with the Jib was clearly a man on a mission and sailed a fantastic race, in fact winning all three initial races despite being pushed hard by Tace Morgan and Paul Horton. Leading the charge in the fast fleet were Phil and James Hartley in their Graduate but even they were no match for the Pico and Toppers who made the most of the early clear wind. The break for a cuppa after race three seemed to be very much appreciated especially by those who had done some swimming.
After what some thought was an all too short break we were back on the water again for the final three races. Just to prove that it was no fluke Matthew once again notched up three first places despite having a brief dip to cool himself down! Tace and Paul were still pushing hard to finish 2nd and 3rd overall with Phil and James in 4th place overall and the first of the fast fleet boats. Jo Lee managed a creditable 5th in her Mirror despite being single handed in the tricky conditions and Tony Langley finished sixth overall in his Solo. Several boats capsized some several times perhaps the most surprising being Dennis and Jo in the 5th race. Dennis was heard to say that Jo had got her jib jammed in but it was noted that Jo was not around when he said this! (sorry Dennis). The award for the highest number of capsizes goes to Harriett Lee whilst the award for the longest period swimming goes to Sean Bastow with our apologies for not being able to leave the racing for long enough to give him a hand up we were however keeping a watching brief for emergency signals!
It was very noticeable from the committee boat that most of our fleet were starting very well all day however by the end of the afternoon the starts were very close indeed and all the practice seemed to be having the right effect. The full results are shown in a separate results sheet with this report.
Report:- Howard Chadwick on behalf of the Race Team:- Helen Nicholson, Ian Morgan and Glenis Burgess.
The July interval season continues this weekend with Push the Boat Out on Saturday and a 6 Race mini Series on Sunday.
Saturday’s fun will start at 1pm with a lunch for members. Contributions will be welcome for food as well as money (please let me know if you have plans to bring food). The New Comers Race will start at 2pm and will be open to all ‘Tuesday Nighters’ along with experienced crew if required. The idea of the race is to introduce as many of our new members to racing and get them on the path to glory. We’ve got some promising young and older talent so let’s all help them make the transition.
After the new comers race we will be running a number of Olympic style races. The day will end with a BBQ from 5pm where we will be joined by members from Leeds Sailing and Activity Centre and the Model Boat Club. The aim of the whole day is to celebrate our national champions who will be going for Gold at the Olympics.
The Model Boat Club will be racing during the afternoon as well so courses will be picked to suit. They are holding an open day in the morning so any members wanting to try Radio Controlled sailing are more than welcome to go and give it a go from 9.30.
Don’t forget that prizes will be given to the best dressed boat in an Olympic Theme, so pick a country and funk up your boat to win a prize. Judging will take place at 1500.
Saturday Timings:
0930 – 1230 LSAC Have a Go Sessions and Model Boat Club Open Day
1200 - 1300 Olympic Parade
1300 – 1400 YSC Lunch
1400 – 1500 New Comers Race
1500 – 1700 Olympic Racing
1700 Onwards BBQ at YSC (Bring your own food & drink).
Sunday
On Sunday we are holding six short races for the Thornton Trophy starting at 2.30. Races will be a duration of 12-16 minutes only with three races sailed back to back then a tea break followed by three more back to back races! A real test of your starting skills perhaps but all good fun we hope and slightly different to what we normally do so we do hope you can join us.
In order to fit all this in we will be changing the starting sequence and possibly the timing of the starting procedure. Depending on the wind we may also be finishing on the water using the same line we started on to speed up the starting of the following race. A full briefing will be held at about 2.10/2.15 prior to the first race and revised instructions will be posted but you are strongly recommended to attend the briefing (please!) to try and ensure that things run relatively smoothly and avoid the race team of Howard, Helen and Ian Morgan looking totally incompetent.
I'm sure those that attended will agree that the Commodores Days was excellent fun. Plenty of nice weather, games, sailing fun, food and prizes all round.
Everyone was able to enjoy a bit of boat swapping (and buying for some), a game of rounders (there were a few surprised faces when it was mentioned it would take place on the water. Rafting, canoeing, racing and of course the bottle race (although the wind made it an interesting game).
It was a day to learn a few new skills for some, new experiences for others and for most to just get very wet.
The day would not have been possible without all the great help from members such as Glenis, Mary, Jo, Mick, Gerard, Patrick, Gren and the team, Neil, Howard, Trevor and others. But the day would have been boring without the participants. So a big thank you all round.
The fun continues next weekend with Push the Boat Out. It will start at 1pm with a lunch for members (bring a contribution in kind or in money) then The first race will be at 2pm for the New Comers Race (experienced hands are welcome to help). Then Olympic style racing. Don't forget that prizes will be given for the race competitors and those that dress their boat the best in an Olympic country of their choice. The evening will end with a BBQ (bring your own).
Sunday brings a racing day of 6 short races, so get yourself along to have a chance to win big.
Yeadon Sailing Club took their new Pico Sails for a spin this week. The sails were purchased for the Picos following a kind donation of £500 from Leeds Sports Federation.
The clubs Picos dinghies are the workhorse of the training fleet and the 10 year old sails were beginning to show their age. These new sails will extend the life of these essential training boats and help those progressing to racing to keep up!
Tim Burnett, Commodore, said "Sails are an important part of a sailing boat, you can't do much more than float without them. These new sails will support our important training programme and help many juniors and adults from the local community of Yeadon, Leeds and Bradford learn the fun sport of sailing".
Yeadon Sailing Club has been heavily involved in the RYA initiative to promote sailing in the lead up to the Olympics. The fantastic turn out at the Tuesday night 'Have a Go' sessions reflects these efforts with 20 or more boats out on the water during most sessions. Real promise being shown by both adults and junior sailors.
Tim went on to say "Yeadon already has some international stars on its membership and some of the new juniors this year are really showing promise, anyone of them have the potential to be a future Olympic star, and investments like this make that happen!"
Yeadon's have a go sessions will continue until August 14th, starting at 7pm on Tuesday evenings. Anyone wanting to give it a go should check out the website at www.yeadonsailingclub.co.uk.
Yeadon SC is also taking part in the national event 'Push the Boat Out' on July 21st. Anyone wishing to try sailing during this event with the Leeds Sailing & Activity Centre should call: 0113 2503616
Saturday was a busy day at the Club. It started early with the Junior training session, then it was Annual Ladies Race which was combined with the next race in the Junior race series and finished with the Grand Pursuit Race.
Well Done to Helen for winning the Ladies Race, Harriet was close behind Helen on handicap and won the Junior Race. It was great to see Tuesday Night Sailors Georgina, Trish and Catherine getting involved in the racing too.
Action from the Ladies and Junior Race
In the Grand Pursuit Race the early starter, Jo in the Mirror and David in the Heron, lead the way for the first couple of laps but were eventually caught by Bill in the Solo, Denis and Jo in the Enterprise, Alan in the Streaker. As the clock ticked down toward the end of the Race the wind went light and Denis and Jo managed to glide pass Bill to win the race by a boat length !
The Commodores Weekend is this weekends entertainment highlight of the summer. Come rain or shine all members and Tuesday night attendees are invited to come along and have some fun, food and if their lucky or I cheat... Prizes!
Each day officially will start at 12.30 but everyone will be more than welcome to come along before to help setup for the day.
The Plan
Saturday July 14th Starting 12.30
12.30pm - 1.30pm: Boat Swapping and Free
Sail. 1.30pm - 2.00pm: Lunch, bring your own
picnic lunch. 2.00pm - 3pm: Fun racing. 3.15pm: Charity race for Sailability - £2.00 min entry
fee.
4.00pm The charcoal will be lit for a bring your own meat and veg BBQ.
7.00pm Approx 'Midnight Race' for the Candlestick Trophy.
Sunday July 15th Starting 12.30
12.30pm - 1.30pm Raft Racing.
1.30pm - 2.30pm: Commodores Lunch (£4.00), the Ladies will be cooking up a treat!
2.30pm onwards (until we're all too tired to laugh anymore):
Famous 'Bottle Race' Bottles Wanted, Please Leave them in the club house!
Canoe Racing
Waterbattles
Prize Giving
Afternoon tea
Don't forget: More interval racing and Push the Boat Out July 21st
After the fun and games of rapid fire racing last Sunday this time it is the turn of the Juniors and Ladies to shine !
The 2.30pm race on Saturday is the Annual Ladies Race and the 4th Junior Race in the Junior Race series. So if you are not a Lady or a Junior please come down and support them !
Following that will be a Pursuit Race for everybody (men included too) this time, if Neil and Rachel can work out the Starting Sequence !
In a Pursuit race the slowest boats, on handicap, start first and then progressively the faster boats, on handicap chase the slower boats around the course trying to catch up. The length of time for the Race is fixed and if it all works out correctly, and everybody sails their boat to it’s handicap, then everybody should cross the finish line together ! We'll have to see how it works out !
So Mirrors will be the first to start followed by Toppers etc. and so on, with National 12s and Lasers being the last to start.
On Sunday Paul will be running a 3 race day for the F W Leeks Trophy, first race at 2.30 pm, best 2 out 3 to count. This will run as 3 short races, each about 30 to 40 mins each, with a tea break squeezed in at some point to suit.
The July-inter-series-interval officially started this Sunday amid general excitement and anticipation. Or might have done were it not for a rather cold and very blustery westerly wind. Still, several hardy souls sounded like they would be prepared to take part without any heavy coercion on my part. So, assisted by Ben, I continued with the plan for the day: six mini-races, best four to count with a cup of tea and a rest in the middle. The course was 8,7,4,1 all anti-clockwise start line to mark 6, the idea being that the only gybe required could be fitted in somewhere between 8 and 7 at an appropriate moment!
As we set off to the start only three helms intended to race i.e. David, Graham and Alexander. Dennis was experimenting with a diy reefing system, Terry was coming to terms with a new Laser and John Southall and Phil Hartley were going to watch and assess!
lesson #1 we anchored with a start line appropriate for three boats. In the event everyone opted in at the start so it was a little crowed. We then started to think about how we would conduct the race.
lesson #2 (obviously) this was later than we should have. I had intended to race back in and tick laps and finish people between the OOD box and 9. But as Ben said it was much more logical for us to stay where we were and tick people off as they came past. We attempted to communicate this to people as they screamed past us on the run however only David really appreciated that the finish line was between the committee boat and 3. After a couple of laps of fast sailing and earnest swimming (and a very spectacular death-roll capsize from Graham in which he appeared to fly thee metres through the air) we decided to start the finishing process.
lesson #3 to get three races into an hour the first finisher has to be at about 10 mins, the last finisher at 14 mins and the countdown for the next race has to begin immediately. This simple arithmetic should have been thought through before the race had already been running for 10 mins! In order for the first finish to be at 10 mins the decision to shorten course and blow the hooter has to happen after 8 or 9 mins.
lesson #4 some explanation of what the various hooter noises were for would have saved confusion among the competitors.
By the third race both John and Phil decided that if David could get round without even looking like he might capsize they would give it a go. John, however, had not attached his tiller and suffered the inevitable
consequence of stopping steering on a windy day. Still the water was
reasonably warm.
lesson #5: the start line that had become crowded for five was now carnage for seven, especially given the gusty and changeable wind. In general people honoured their 720 degree penalties by capsizing at the earliest opportunity and swimming twice round the boat. Then back inside for a cup of tea.
lesson #6 the course would have made more sense as a proper triangle, i.e. going straight from 1 to a gybe mark at 7 as there was no need to follow the normal YSC convention but I didn't think of changing it till we were back at the start. Also the tea break would have been a good time to make sure everyone knew where the finish line was.
Having taken too long over the first couple of races I decided that making the event best three of five races would be reasonable and the last two races were each only two laps. In the last race John got a good start and kept in front right to the end, if only he had done the first two he might have prevented David getting four firsts! The last race also had some added interest as both Trevor and Alexander managed to dredge amazing clumps of pond weed onto their masts or booms and Dennis' (very successful) reefed sail tore from reefing point nearly to the luff which meant he had to tack through about 160 degrees as he wended his way back to the jetty.
overall: 1st David, 2nd Phil, 3rd John
All in all a fun day out!
To
coincide with an RYA Olympic initiative, Yeadon Tarn will play host to a
number of activities to promote sailing in the Olympics within the
local community.
Leeds Sailing & Activity Centre Have a Go Sessions
LSAC
will be running sailing taster sessions to give people new to sailing
the opportunity to give it a go. No previous sailing experience required
and this is open to the public to book.
Sessions run from 0930-1030 or 1030 – 1130. Cost is £5 per person.
During
the sessions participants will be briefed on sailing at Yeadon Tarn and
taken out around the tarn is a sailing dinghy helmed by an instructor.
To
book call: 01132 203616. Places are limited so early booking is
advisable. Terms and Conditions apply, please ask for more details from
the LSAC.
Leeds & Bradford Model Boat Club
0930 to 1200
The
MBC will be showing a static display of Radio Controlled Sailing craft
and running have a go sessions for members of the public. No booking
required and have a go sessions will be run on a first come first served
basis.
Olympic Sailing Display
0930 - 1630
Located at YSC there will be an Olympic display for the public to learn more about sailing in the Olympics.
Tarn Olympic Parade
1200
– 1300 Members of Yeadon Sailing Club, Staff from LSAC and Members of
MBC will be parading their Olympic themed boats. Each dinghy will
represent a country in some form. Prizes will be given for:
Best dressed dinghy (YSC and LSAC)
Best dressed RC Boat (MBC)
1330 – 1430 An official judge will present the awards for the best dressed boats in each category.
1430 – 1630 Olympic Racing
MBC will hold a series of short Model Boat Races with a Medal winners race at the end worth double points.
YSC and LSAC Staff will hold a series of short Dinghy Races with a Medal winners race at the end worth double points.
At the end of the racing the point will be totted up and prizes awarded at 5pm during an award ceremony on the jetty.
