RDO Update February 2020

 

Having said that, lots of others have been out on the water with the Leigh & Lowton and Windermere Winter Series two great examples of how people are staying active (though it is fair to say the weather has not always been encouraging them).

 It was also fantastic to see two NW sailors, Neil Marsden & Jonny McGovern, win the iconic Tiger Trophy representing Blackpool & Fleetwood Yacht Club. In windy conditions the pair dominated the weekend…and yes it is always nice to see my brother reminding me who the best sailor in the family is!   

I am writing this blog after two recent Storms; Ciara & Dennis, both have hit the UK hard resulting in flooding and damage to property. It is worth highlighting any sports facilities damaged by the recent storms can apply for Sport England funding to carry out repairs.

Hopefully the recent wet weather has not dampened enthusiasm for the up and coming season, we have lots planned in 2020 and here a just a few things that may be of interest to you or your club:

RYA Discover Sailing

–An amazing 34 NW clubs have signed up to deliver a Discover Sailing open day in 2020, only the E0ast Region are able to match this number so far. Well done to all the NW clubs for being ahead of the game and getting your orders in!

The deadline for the first print run has now passed,  however if you have not registered yet, fear not as we have negotiated two further print runs:  therefore please order before 2 March for events until 30 June & before 27 April for events from 1 July to 30 September. This can be done online

RYA Club Development Forums

Following the success of our first forums on open days & discover sailing I am pleased to say our second round of workshops are fast approaching and you can book a place to gain useful hints for your club.

The next forum topic is: What can your club do to retain more members?

Membership churn remains a challenge for many clubs. This forum will facilitate a discussion between clubs from across the area, to share ideas and review the most recent insights.

Date for the events are:

27 February – West Lancashire Yacht Club

3 March – Royal Windermere Yacht Club

5 March – Hollingworth Lake Sailing Club

RYA NW Instructor Training Day 2020 – Saturday 14 March, Waterside Lodge, Southport

This year’s annual Instructor Training Day moves back to a Saturday and Southport after our trip to Windermere in 2019. We have loads of great workshops planned including some old favorites mixed in with some great new topics so it should be another good event.  

Booking is live and with over 50% of the places already sold don’t miss out, book your place today HERE!

NEW for 2020: OnBoard Instructor Development Days

Why should you change what you do? These days shed new light on making the most of your OnBoard resources.

OnBoard was relaunched in 2017 with a focus on six broader learning benefits of sailing and windsurfing - creativity, teamwork, determination, communication, independence and confidence. To support this, a set of OnBoard resources were produced for teachers, parents and instructors, all linked to the character attributes.

These days are designed to help you understand the broader learning benefits and put the new resources to the test in a mixture of shore and water based sessions.

The day is open to current instructors and assistant instructors from OnBoard Clubs & Centres. We have two dates planned:

18 April @ West Kirby Sailing Club

19 April @ Ullswater Yacht Club

The events are free and booking is online HERE 

Keelboat Instructor Endorsements 

The all new RS21s will be at Ullswater Yacht Club for two weeks in preparation for the British Keelboat League event so we are taking full advantage and running two keelboat instructor endorsements in the boats.

This course is for RYA Dinghy Instructors who want to teach in small keelboats. During the two-day endorsement we will look at the variations & considerations when teaching in keelboats. Candidates must demonstrate their pre-entry test skills and teaching techniques. Course Dates are:

Course 1: 11 & 12 July

Course 2: 13 & 14 July

We expect places to sell out fast so book your place HERE 

Finally don’t forget to save the 18 & 19 July in your diary as it is the Northern British Keelboat League event Boats are all supplied for this event so you simply need to select you team, enter and then rock up and race, more details can be found at:  www.britishkeelboatleague.co.uk 

Happy Sailing, Adam McGovern

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