2007 Memberships

   Membership Subscription letters should have gone out to all existing members by now and Yuri would appreciate prompt payment as well as your co-operation in filling in your details and returning it all to him in the envelope provided. After the 2006 Levy and Round Ireland, we have now rectified our finances somewhat, but as our Treasurer John Hughes keeps reminding us, it is getting harder to make ends meet and keeping the Club doors open all year is becoming an uphill battle. This is your resource and it is important that we all pull together to keep the club available as a social gathering place throughout the long winter of inactivity.

Simon Says

   Our very own in-house high performance yacht designer, Simon Greenwood, informs us that his 8m flying machine had a very successful Christmas regatta season in the south of France. "Wild Honey" had 2 1sts and a 2nd while coming 2nd overall, ably campaigned by his brother Jonathon and friends. They had the pleasure of beating a brand new Corby 33, a very notable achievement, given the formidable reputation built up by the Corbys.

   Another local young yacht designer, Mark Mills - who was a junior member of WSC - also had a very successful 2006 with some of his boats, including Tiamat, making major headlines. We had the skipper, Tim Costello, and some of his crew in the Club on Fri Feb 9th with their Tiamat Roadshow, organised through the good offices of Kevin Johnson and Barry Byrne, regular crew members. (Will there be a crew conflict this year with Foxy Lady returning to campaign in local waters - our Commodore might be trawling the bar to press gang some poor unfortunates into action!) This event was organised by the Johnson/Byrne axis and saw the debut of our new white projector screen..

150 years of RNLI in Wicklow

  While Grace Darling might not have been here to set the ball rolling, dedicated seamen and townspeople have manned the station in Wicklow since 1857, giving assistance to seafarers in trouble when called upon, often putting themselves in great peril. Our present station is a modern complex, with 1 of only 2 remaining slipway launched boats and an Inshore D-Class (due for replacement in Feb).

  We in WSC are planning to help them commemorate this milestone by assisting with some fundraising activity. Phils Table Quiz on Sat 3rd March will be first up and during the sailing season, we would hope to run a 1 day event, possibly on the August Bak Holiday Monday incorporating a Man Overboard compulsory drill for all boats, to help gather more funds.

  As sailors, we are very aware of the importance of this very important voluntary service - David O Gormans family had need of them in 2006. The boats helping to organise this are Saltee Dog and Crazy Horse.

 Sailing Section

    After resuming where I left off 10 years ago, as your Rear Commodore Sail, it is my intention to try and involve as many sailors as possible in the running of our sport within the Club this coming season. There are a number of reasons for this - we need to see new faces taking an active role in Club affairs, my business will have me away for stretches during the summer and not least, we need to share out the various responsibilities more evenly and equip members for taking on Club roles in future years. Our major event is the South East Cruiser Regatta and all hands will be required to assist.

   As there is little scope for enlarging our sailing section, we need all our existing hands to make the effort to pull together, regardless of whether you feel you might have done your bit already. We are a Club and its the effort the members put in, that makes it successful or otherwise. By every one doing a little, we will all benefit.

There was a Sailing Committee meeting on Fri 26th January, followed by a Boatowners meeting, with a very encouraging turnout at both.

• A Dinghy and Boatpark protocol has been drafted by Peter Shearer and Gerry Haughton, details of which will be posted on the website shortly. Any dinghies not paid by Jan 28th will attract a penalty storage weekly premium, for which the owner is now liable.

• Cruisers will make 2 away Club trips hopefully - Malahide for the June Bank Holiday and Portmadoc for the last weekend in June, with some carrying on to Scotland.

• A compulsory Man Overboard drill day will be included on the calendar for all club cruisers to participate with an additional fun element to the the day.

• Cruiser Lift-in will be Saturday 5th May.

• Our Junior Section have proposed we run a Junior Dinghy Regatta in August.

 Charlie

2006 Cruiser Prize Giving

    A little later than planned, the 2006 prizegiving event was held on 7th Jan 2007, with a very large turnout of sailors on the night. Commodore John Johnson thanked all involved and made special mention of the input by John Harte, Val Foley and Gerry Nolan and had great praise for the large numbers of juniors present in the room who were very active during the season.

   The trophies were well spread throughout the fleet, with Gerry and Angela Nolans "Cracker" best overall. Most improved was Paul Carr/Eamon Roche "Gaelic Knight" and the Best Achievement went to Dennis Noonan and his Round Ireland team. The most anticipated trophy of the night, the Osiris Orifice (for the Pillocks Pot notable events) had several nominees - David O Gorman, John Harte and Charlie Kavanagh but the dubious honour in the end went to John Johnson for a less than textbook cast off from Bilbos' mooring during the season.

  The catering for the night and slideshow were provided by the crews of Cracker and Calypso, with Battileur bringing up the rearguard with musical entertainment, making it a most enjoyable start to the New Year..

Sheilas' Romantic Meal Sat 17th Feb (book early)

Phils Table Quiz Sat 3rd Mar (in aid of Wicklow RNLI 150th) (Saltee Dog/Crazy Horse)

Rugby finally crosses the Liffey to Croke Park in February.

For more information - check the calendar

Space Inside Arts night 8pm Weds 7th Mar

Please play your part and be involved.

     With our Clubhouse slowly but surely getting an internal facelift (see photo above), it is now a very attractive and welcoming environment for members to socialise in - please utilise it..

     Your Social Committee (headed by Anne Neiland and David O Gorman) are working hard to keep the Club open over the winter months, we need your support. Every member should try to attend at least one function a month – you will benefit your club and yourself by making the effort.

    In the New Year, we hope to encourage all boatowners (and crews) to get involved in running events – quizzes, fashion shows, cheese and wine, meals, talk shows, debates etc etc. Other non-sailing members are also encouraged to assist/get involved. Don't forget us if you have a celebration in your family, work or socially - let Gerry or Kerry know.

Tide Tables

  Tide Table booklets are now available for Wicklow Harbour and can be purchased at the bar for €2 each.

  For the Lunatics in our midst, there is a Total Lunar Eclipse scheduled for Sat 3rd March about 11.30pm - come down for Phils Quiz and join the party on deck with a hot drink in your hand.

  e-mail him at kevindesmond@eircom.net - walkers should always bring suitable clothing and footwear with a packed lunch/snacks always letting someone know their plans.

   Roles for the 2007 club year have been allocated and all committee members will set up sub-committees as appropriate to involve as many members as possible in the running of the club - please volunteer if you feel you would like to contribute.

    Would our members like to be able to read abridged reports of meetings in a members private site? Replies or other views/opinions/information to the editor please.

ISA News Items

     If you wish to check out current or old news items from the Irish Sailing Association, follow this link http://www.sailing.ie/inside/default.asp?pageId=50

     The ISA has a wealth of sailing/boating related information on its website - you help to pay for it all so make use of it. The ISA Annual National Conference and Awards Dinner was held in the Tara Towers Hotel, Feb 3rd and 4th - 5 of our Committee attended and will be reporting their experiences at the next meeting.

New Honorary Life Members

    After another very successful Round Ireland in 2006, our Commodore, John Johnson, used the occasion of our Club Thank You Party on December 8th to bestow our highest award on the Race Organiser and his good wife, Dennis and Evelyn Noonan. After 4 races and with the compliments of competitors and world sailing organisations ringing in his ears, it was appropriate that Wicklow Sailing Club should honour Dennis and Evelyn for their hard work and expertise in managing a highly complex event on our behalf. He has a very well organised team around him and he paid tribute to their efforts in his thank you speech. Fittingly, Dennis was the December recipient of the Cork Dry Gin Sailor of the Year award - Well Done Dennis.

Danny Cleary Club Person of the Year

  Every year we honour one of our members for dedication above and beyond the call of duty in memory of Danny Cleary, who almost lived in the club. This year the fitting recipient is Angela Nolan who has worked diligently to help keep the wheels turning, especially with our catering needs. She starred with a small team during the Round Ireland and has been a very visible presence over the years in many facets of our club. Well done Angela - you put us younger folk to shame.