Dear all  See the link below

http://www.medwaybargematch.co.uk/

I trust the season has started well for everyone? What a change from the snowy lift-in to the current excellent weatherconditions! Let’s hope it bodes well for the whole season.

I enclose the front cover and list of entrants to this year’s Barge Match - its Centenary - which as usual comes right through our territory on Sat 31st May, Bank Holiday weekend. I’ve followed many of these races over the past 10 years and they really are worth getting out to see. Edith May, the 101 yr old 80ton barge being restored in Halstow Dock by Geoff Gransden was a past winner and is likely to be ready for next year’s match. Geoff is Chairman of the Barge Match Committee and sails a restored Faversham Oyster Smack moored off Gillingham Reach. Paddlesteamer Kingswear Castle will follow the Match as will dozens of other craft with supporters, etc.

Whether from the shore or from on board your craft, this really is an impressive spectacle and not to be missed. It should be one of the highlights of the sailing year. (HW 10.04 BST Sheerness @ 5.19m - so make a day of it and return to LHYC about 8pm in the evening)

all the best and hope to see you out there.

Mick - Femme Fatale

Graham Osborne and I attended the recent RYA Seminar entitled “Freedom of the seas” at Chipstead Sailing Club. It was a bit of a test to our navigation skills just finding the venue at the picturesque Sailing Club Lake close to Sevenoaks. However after some coffee and a chat with fellow yachties we settled down to highly enlightening presentations from various presenters.

We started with the RYA cruising manager and RYA legal Manager who covered a huge range of topics that were entitled “current Cruising Issues. These included items such as personal water craft, (I call them jet skis) red diesel, and wind farms and many other valid cruising issues.

This was followed by Nick Beer a principal Inspector from the MAIB. His talk was “lessons from Ouzo” where we had detailed breakdown of the considered events that, did or may have, occurred building up to the loss of the yacht Ouzo, a little worrying as it appears that this type of accident could happen to any of us. The crew were experienced and well equipped. The lessons learnt varied from, “don’t rely too heavily on your radar reflector”, to “making sure you fit a crotch strap on your life jacket”.

Having broken for lunch with bar open and a splendid feast we settled down to the afternoon session. It started with an attractive Sarah Black being the “Green Blue”RYA Project manager. It is easy to decry the efforts of the Green brigade but her presentations showed ways we can help which are easy and inexpensive. This included items easily available to avoid diesel and oil spills and special, more environmentally friendly, cleaning agents. Check the RYA website fore more details.

Sarah was followed by Roy Stanbrook Harbourmaster (lower) PLA. Roy was a very humorous and interesting speaker. He was not very keen on the “lower” part of his title and felt it would be clearer if it described his responsibility as covering “The deep end”. His presentation was lively and relevant to our sailing activity in the estuary. His main plea was while in the estuary we should be listening to Channel 69, 68 or 14 depending where you are. You could miss very important information by staying on 16 alone. He added not to hesitate to call “Thames Patrol” (on the channels mentioned above) if you need assistance.

The day ended with two short presentations on the latest efforts to preserve Milton Creek as a possible sailing destination. Although the creek has not been a popular place to visit, once a fixed bridge is built any chance of visiting by yacht is lost forever.

This was followed by a presentation by David Holden of Swale Marine Electrical explaining the details of AIS (automatic identification system) particularly in the Thames. David had some equipment set up to demonstrate the advantages of such equipment. This seems to be the way ahead for those sailing in busy shipping areas and could help avoid situations like the Ouzo disaster.

A splendid event I would highly recommend. However a word of warning the seats were very hard and a sore bum should be expected but this was just a small point which didn’t detract from a good day out in the winter.

I have just registered my new boat on the “CG66 - Safety Identification Scheme” and then wondered how many other club boats are registered. For those that don’t know what I’m talking about HM Coast Guard maintain a database of leisure vessels to aid search and rescue. Probably best described by the MCA themselves:

YOUR SAFETY FIRST

If you are at sea and get into difficulty and you are unable to raise assistance, is there anyone ashore who knows what to do if you fail to return at your estimated time?

Would a friend or relative know who to contact? Would they have sufficient detail about your vessel and your likely whereabouts to be able to assist the Coastguard to locate you?

Would it not be a comfort to know that when you set out, the Coastguard has the details of your vessel on a database that is accessible to all Coastguard Co-ordination Centres throughout the UK so that they have the information they need to mount a search and rescue operation should you get into difficulty?

SO WHAT CAN I DO?

Quite simply, join HM Coastguard’s CG66 Voluntary Safety Identification Scheme. You can join online, or download the form and send it to your nearest Coastguard Co-ordination Centre. Forms can also be obtained from any Coastguard Co-ordination Centre or Sector Base, MCA Marine Office, RNLI boathouse; or look out for them in your Local Marina or Sailing Club.

The scheme is free and is for the benefit of the owners and skippers of all types of leisure vessels and small craft.

It’s simple to register on line at http://www.mcga.gov.uk/c4mca/mcga-hmcg_rescue/mcga-hmcg-cg66.htm or download a form to fill in and post.

It’s also probably worth mentioning that if you have already registered in the past you have to verify the details every 2 years, with the on line system you get an email reminder, but I don’t know what happens if you registered on a paper form.

Have we got the forms in the club hut for the use of members that don’t have internet access, I can’t rember seeing any?

I have started to build the UtC notice board. One of the items reflects the Ouzo topic that was raised at the RYA SE Cruising seminar. Dave Quigley has kindly left a copy of the full MAIB report on the table. Please DO NOT REMOVE this as many people will want to read, learn and inwardly digest this.

However, one of the outcomes was a report on a series of tests on common radar reflectors, carried out by QuinetiQ. This report can be seen at;
http://www.maib.gov.uk/publications/investigation_reports/2007/ouzo.cfm

This underlines what PBO discovered a couple of years ago.

Someone has already removed the colour copy of the last UtC Newletter; If you want a copy, please let me know or use one of the printed B&W copies on the table. If you have an email address I will send you another copy, but I will not print colour copies because that comes out of my own pocket…

If any one has any particular subject they would like to see put on the board please let me know.

Bob

The March edition of Sailing Today came through the door today and there is a feature on the Medway. The club appears in one of the pictures on the first page of the article, a view across the creek from the quay by the church. The club gets a very brief mention as being accessible along a gully across a drying area HW +or- 1.5hr from Stangate Creek.

It’s quite a good article, not sure if it’s worth buying the magazine for if you don’t normally get it. I suppose its for the visitor to the area.

From Ken Milburn

Dear all hope all those winter jobs are nearly all done?
Or should I say I wish mine were.
Anyway just a quick / brief note to mention PBO (March edition) have published info on my new £340 engine
fitted in Aspirations for those interested in such cheap info or those frustrated that I can do instead of costing the requisite fortune!  {as published in UtC}

Regards
Ken

Sunday 23 March 2008. Kent Boat Jumble. Open 10AM. NEW SITE. The Kent County Showground, Detling, MAIDSTONE, Kent, ME14 3JF. Junction 7 / M20 or Junction 2 / M2. Indoor / Outdoor Event, Admission £4.00, accompanied children and car park free. Chaddock and Fox Promotions. Telephone 023 92381405 or 07887 771451 or E Mail Map link to venue here.

Sue Farnsworth made this comment elswhere; in case you did not notice it, I have repeated it here;

“Some very sad news, my brother Ian Knight (Franks son) passed away on the 28th December. I am not sure how many rember me and Ian as kids playing down the club, but we had many many fun weekends down there.”

Please accept my condolences on behalf of all the club members. I expect that many members will remember you both playing down at the club.

Some thoughts on the use, non-use and misuse, of the ‘new’ LHYC Clubhouse.

ALL the members contributed to the special £10,000 fund for the new clubhouse, and it also took a lot of effort on the part of some members to install and prepare it.

The members expected to use it freely, as they did with the previous clubhouse, [otherwise what was the purpose of having a new hut].

Then the members were told that they were not responsible enough to use it, so could not have free access to it.

Now it houses the site CCTV system, and has it’s own security system; keypad, lock, alarm and internal camera.

However, members can apply for a key, subject to vetting for suitability and a deposit of £25. [How much do the keys really cost or is this just a discouragement].

Relatively few members have taken advantage of this privilege [how many exactly would be interesting to know], but presumably if every member applied, the majority would pass vetting and be given access.

Those refused may take the view that they are considered irredeemably irresponsible and therefore second class members, and may well have to decide if they want to continue membership, or negotiate a reduction in subscription rate.

Now the ‘responsible’ members, with access, have to maintain their credibility rating. Mistakes with setting the alarm, locking the door, turning off the heating and so on, could lead to withdrawal of key holder status, due to the ability to identify the miscreant on the internal CCTV.

There would be a public flogging, of course, or the option of spending three weekends on the mud, fixing moorings…

You get my drift here don’t you; the whole line of reasoning is totally flawed, insulting and outrageous.

At present, some members no longer have any interest in the clubhouse, a few never having seen inside. It is not surprising that there was a shortage of volunteers to finish it off, notwithstanding the tears, creating even deeper divisions………..

If you read this then use the link to go to Intheboatshed.net. You will see an article about Metal thieving from Navigators & General insurance company. It is a real risk at present, even though metal prices are going down. Thieves stole the bronze plaques from a monument in Chatham last week.

Just because they have been once does not mean they will not come back; on the contrary, it usually means that they will because they know what is there, ready and waiting for them. They just need to remember the ‘hub puller’ next time.

Chap in Lower Halstow has lost 2 motorbikes in 2 weeks from the same garage, the first time they also took a selection from his Snap-On tool kit, the second time they took the rest and the cabinet, £1000.

Have you checked your insurance to make sure that you really are covered for external theft ashore.