WELBECK SAILING CLUB

 

 

Membership at Welbeck Sailing Club, Frequently Asked Questions

 

 

 

Who is included in a Family Membership?

 

Everyone in a household, e.g. parents and any number of children under 18 years of age. 

 

My partner and family don’t sail. Will they be welcome at the club?

 

Yes. We are family friendly club and we are always pleased to welcome non-sailing members of your family, or friends.

 

Can I be a member without owning a dinghy?

 

Yes. You don’t have to own a dinghy to enjoy sailing at the club. We usually have members who need crew and that’s one way, or you can sail one of our club dinghies for a small donation towards maintenance. We class this as “Crew” membership.

 

When are the club days?

 

Club Days are within the sailing season (Late March to October) and are on Wednesday and Friday Evenings from 5:00 pm and Saturdays and Sunday’s from 10:00hrs. Sunday is the most popular day as this is our race day. However, sailing is only allowed when there is safety boat cover, so members usually contact each other to establish if there are enough members sailing and a volunteer to cover safety

 

Do you provide training?

 

Yes, as required. We are affiliated with the Royal Yachting Association (RYA), and we can provide training to their syllabus, There is an addition charge for this formal training, however there is usually always a member to help get you sailing and when there is sufficient demand we run a training day on a Saturday, weather conditions permitting. We also run Officer of the Day (OOD) and safety boat training for all members at no cost, again as and when required

 

Can children sail?

 

Yes. But children must be supervised by a parent or another responsible adult at all times.

 

Do you have a joining fee as well as a membership fee?

 

No. We don’t have a joining fee

 

Is there a fee for berthing (storing) my dinghy ?

 

Full and Family membership includes the berth of one dinghy, if you have more than one boat additional berths are at extra cost. A member who does not own a boat berthed at the club is our Crew membership.

 

Can I sail without becoming a member?

 

Only at the invitation to sail with a member or at one of our open days. However, we would expect anyone wanting to sail regularly to become a full member

 

Can windsurfer or powerboats be sailed at the club?

 

No, we are only allowed sailing dinghies on the lake plus our safety boat.

 

Can I sail and use the facilities when it isn’t a club day?

 

As the club is within a private estate, we can only sail at times agreed with the estate owners, however you can visit on non-sailing days to carry out maintenance of your boat as long as you stay within the club site.

 

Do I have to race?

 

No. We welcome anyone who enjoys sailing no matter whether their preference is for racing or cruising. However, we do believe that the best way to improve your sailing abilities is to sail in a fleet with other boats and club racing gives you the ideal opportunity to do this. A number of our current members who joined with no intention to race are now regulars at races so ‘never say never’.

 

Is safety cover always available?

 

During club days, there is always a safety boat on the water, we have a simple rule of “no safety boat cover then no sailing”. We do expect members to provide safety cover and Officer of the Day duties (OOD) on rota basis, but only after you have completed training and assisted OOD showing you are competent.

 

Do I have to help with the maintenance and running of the club?

 

As we are a small club, we rely on members volunteering to help with maintenance of the site and the club house. Working parties are arranged a few times a year with a plan of work, there are usually enough volunteers, but more the better.

 

 

 

 

These are just a few questions raised by new members, if you have any other questionz please do not hesitate to contact us.