Hi All,

I am sure that you will be really looking forward to the start of our Summer Sailing Season after what seems like an eternity away from the Club. It is great to see so many membership renewals, and this has certainly helped in completing our duty rosters. We have also had quite a few new members who joined at the end of last season as well as recently this year. You are all very welcome.

Please note the updated Duty Team Procedures and Helm/Crew Procedures.

I would like to draw your attention to a few features of our extensive 2021 Summer Sailing Programme.

Independent Sailing
The Club will reopen for independent sailing (as well as for paddleboarding and radio sailing) from Monday 29 March 2021. This will give us a chance to get the covers off our boats and make sure that everything is in good order. For many of us, Good Friday 2 April may provide an opportunity for some socially distanced buddy sailing before the start of the race season.

2020 Young Guns and Mongrels' Bowl
Our season starts on Easter Saturday 3 April with the 2020 Young Guns and Mongrels' Bowl races postponed from last year. Helms are reminded that they are eligible to sail in the Mongrels' Bowl provided they completed the required number of qualifying races in a 2020 Summer Class Points Series or Club Handicap Series but were ineligible for the 2020 Top Dog. Do have a word with your Class Captain or drop me a line if you are unsure on whether you are eligible.

2021 Summer Class Points and Club Handicap Series
Our class and handicap racing will start in earnest on the following weekend, Saturday 10th April and Sunday 11 April. As well as participating in Class racing, you are welcome to join in handicap racing on Saturday afternoons, Sunday mornings and Sunday afternoons provided that your dinghy does not have Class racing at the same time.

2021 Commodore's Cup and Novices Cup
Our Commodore's Cup Race Series for juniors, and our Novices Cup Race Series will run this year for 12 weeks commencing on Saturday 5 June.

2021 Ladies Trophy and Veterans Tankard
Our 8 week Ladies Trophy Race Series will be extracted from the second Sunday morning handicap race commencing on 27 June 2021. Similarly, the Veterans Tankard will be contested for 8 weeks with results extracted from the second Sunday morning handicap race commencing on Sunday 22 August 2021. This format was successful last year for the Ladies Trophy and I am hopeful that it will prove popular again this year.

2021 Wednesday Evening Race Series
I would like to recommend the 15 week Wednesday evening race series that starts on Wednesday 5 May with separate starts for fast handicap boats at 18.55 and slow handicap boats at 19.00. We were unable to hold these race series last year, but I am sure that they will prove very popular in 2021, especially as some members may be working from home rather than having to rush home from London.

Handicaps, Rules and Procedures
The RYA has left handicaps unchanged for 2021 and the handicaps as set out on p16 of the ivory Sailing Club Programme 2021-22 booklet will apply this year. ISAF has updated the Racing Rules of Sailing for 2021- 2024. I am happy to be corrected, but I did not find the rule changes to be particularly significant. We have updated our procedures both for Race Teams and for Helms and Crews. The Sailing Committee has withdrawn the wind restrictions that applied last year, but do please support an OOD should they decide to postpone or cancel racing where they believe conditions are likely to lead to frequent capsize. Until at least 21 June, we will continue to deploy an AOD to assist with signing on. Do please take a moment to look through these procedures, arrive in good time, and also make sure that you are aware of the starting sequence. On Saturday afternoons we have reverted to our usual race start sequence. Sunday mornings are unchanged, but there is a change on Sunday afternoons with the welcome addition of a first start for the Enterprise Class.

Open Day Bank Holiday Monday May 3rd
In place of our usual Open Day, we will be running a Discover Sailing event providing a free one hour sailing experience for prebooked visitors. In the afternoon we will be running our usual Chipstead Pin pursuit race which is open to all members.

I look forward to seeing you back at Chipstead Sailing Club soon. My advice to all members is to start your season early, and sail as regularly as you can. If you have any questions on when you may sail do please let me know. In the meantime stay safe and let’s hope for fair winds and good weather.


Best Wishes

Richard Sammons
Sailing Secretary

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