All posts by : Ian Jay

YOU CAN NOW SAIL ON SATURDAYS AND SUNDAYS 

The Club will be open for sailing on Saturdays and Sundays from 1^st & 2^nd August. Sunday activities will include cruising and racing. No weekday sailing is yet possible. To comply with Government and RYA guidance, on and off the water restrictions must be observed in order to protect all attending and contain the virus. The principal limitations are:

The Club’s premises will open at 10.00 am, with sailing starting at approximately 10.30 after the OOD C has given a briefing to sailors and the Club’s burgee has been raised. Sailing will finish at 16.00. The Club will close at 16.30.

The clubhouse and galley will be closed, but there will be access to toilets.  The showers, however, are not to be used.

The changing rooms will also be inaccessible, so sailors will need to arrive ready to sail, or change in their cars.

Numbers are restricted and all sailors must book a sailing session in advance via the link on the Club’s website or its Facebook page. The hire of Club boats is limited by the need for sanitisation.

Sailing will only be permitted if a full complement of 3 OODs is in place, a minimum of 6 boats have been booked in to sail and the maximum wind speed forecast by the Met Office does not exceed 25mph. A decision to cancel will be communicated to those with bookings before 19.00 on the previous day.

Only sailing helms and crew will be allowed entry to the Club beyond the car park. For their own safety, people in the Government’s clinically vulnerable or clinically extremely vulnerable categories are advised not to visit the Club. All persons need to be aware that, despite the precautions being taken and as elsewhere outside the home, there remains a risk of contracting the virus.

Two-handed boats may only be sailed by members of the same household bubble.

No spectators or other non-participants will be permitted, so as to avoid congregating and socialising.

A one-way system is in operation, with arriving sailors being directed through the boatshed, where they will be required to sanitise their hands and sign in for track and trace purposes.

It is important that all persons maintain a social distance of 2 metres, wash their hands regularly and sanitise them as necessary. Soap and sanitiser is provided. Special arrangements apply to OODs in safety boats, following the 1 metre + principle.

All who want to sail and who do OOD duties in normal times will be expected to take their turn by volunteering for either Saturdays or Sundays via Dutyman in advance and as soon as possible, so that the system can be populated.  There will be a third, shore-based duty officer – OOD C – who has been briefed to provide advice and help with maintaining the disciplines necessary to prevent the spread of the virus. A lack of OODs for a particular day will mean sailing is cancelled for that day.

These restrictions will be kept under review and adjusted as required.

For those wanting to race, race formats, times and Sailing Instructions will be published shortly.

VISITORS/NON-MEMBERS: regrettably, non-members cannot be accommodated at the present time – but APPLICATIONS FOR MEMBERSHIP ARE ALWAYS WELCOME. Details of how to apply can be found elsewhere on this website.

The forecast has abated and the necessary OODs have volunteered so sailing is on tomorrow. Have fun.

Just in case the weather forecastors are wrong, the ticketing system is up and running for those who wish to come to the club. Be aware though that if the wind forecast continues to be above 25mph on the Met Office or the necessary 3 OODs do not become available then the session will be cancelled. Please keep an eye on the email group and Facebook to find out Friday evening at 7pm.

The link to book is https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/saturday-social-sailing-tickets-114338557704

Also be aware that the rules have changed as follows –

As Sutton Bingham continues to develop sailing activities post COVID lockdown the club is offering Saturday social sailing for a maximum of 30 members on site, to comply with government restrictions.

OODs use 3 of those 30 places, so there are 27 individual places available to book to access the site and go sailing from now on. Only members who have booked online to sail or who are doing a duty should be on site.

Please book a place for every named sailor now, not just for your household bubble as was previously the case. No visitors please and sailors should be competent to manage their own rig, launch and recovery while being able to sail in the prevailing conditions without relying on rescue support.

Restrictions on double handed dinghies remain – they must be crewed from a single household bubble as it is difficult / impossible to properly socially distance in a sailing dinghy.

Sailing on the 25th at the moment may not go ahead because the wind forecast is above the 25 mph limit and only one OOD has volunteered, please keep your eyes on the website and Facebook and the email group for further updates.

The Summer newsletter has been sent via email for the first time direct to your inbox. If you haven’t received it check your spam folder or similar. Let me know if you haven’t received it at all and I’ll check the server. I hope you like it although it is different from the paper one you are used to. There are many links to articles and also content from other places, like facebook & youtube. You can also see it online – Summer Newsletter

Dear Member,

As you know, the Prime Minster made an announcement on Sunday evening of the Government’s change in philosophy from ‘Stay at Home’ to ‘Stay Alert’ whilst still combatting the virus and saving lives. He also mentioned some small easing of restrictions on travel, exercise and outdoor pursuits. The RYA has since issued detailed advice on how it believes clubs might organise a resumption of sailing in a manner which complies with the present Stay Alert philosophy. Whilst this may be applicable to coastal sailing and for those clubs where safety cover is not mandatory, we need to ensure that we can maintain the health and safety of all members whilst at Sutton Bingham.

We are determined to support the Government’s objective of keeping the R number below 1 and to abide by their rules. The current rules allow one individual to contact no more than one member from another household – and, even then, whilst maintaining the current social distance of 2 metres. It is difficult to see how we could do that at Sutton Bingham.

For the time being then, we are not in a position to allow sailing to restart until we have resolved the issues of providing safety cover, access to the Clubhouse, use of changing rooms and toilets etc. However, we believe that it is within the spirit of the Government’s current rules to allow members access to the Club grounds to collect boats, check on security and undertake maintenance, providing individuals adhere strictly to the Government’s rules of social distancing. The Clubhouse and Galley will remain strictly off limits except for essential use of the toilets, but responsibility for washing and de-sanitising hands will be with any member that needs to use those facilities. We are attempting to source sanitiser pumps to place in the Clubhouse but we would ask members to bring their own until such time as suitable pumps can be found. Remember that others may have touched the gate, padlock and other fixtures and fittings before you.

You can be assured that the Club’s committee is studying the latest advice and looking closely at how things might be organised in order to get members back on the water as quickly as possible. However, the health and safety of our members remain our priority. We will keep members informed as the situation develops.

Stay alert and stay safe.

Merv Clark

Commodore