Summer seems to have arrived and there is lots going on at the club – here’s all the news:
Youth Program update by Ruth Gribble
The youth programme has got off to a flying start with the glorious weekend sunshine. We now have 50 children signed up for Chew Crew or an RYA course between April & July and the instructing team has grown to 17 people, including our 5 new young Assistant Instructors!
There are still a few spaces available on the stage 1 and stage 2 courses which run for 4 consecutive Saturdays, staring 21 June – do check the WebCollect calendar if you’re interested.
Please email chewcrew@chewvalleysailing.org.uk if you have any queries or would like to get involved.
Slippy Slipways
A quick reminder that at this time of year that the slipways can become very slippy with algae. The committee are aware of a minor accident that happened over the last month so please do take care when launching and recovering your boat at the waters edge.
On this note, if any member has seen any simple and effective solution in place at other clubs to reduce the algae growth and slippiness please do let me know here
ILCA and Solo Open meeting this Saturday 24-May-25
entry fee increase midnight 21-May-25
The weather is set fair for this Saturday and the wind forecast to switch to a southwesterly with a peachy 10-11 knots ( according to my forecast at least), so don’t forget the upcoming Solo and ILCA open meeting. A one day event with 4 great races planned there will be a good mix of visiting sailors and, of course, many local Chew boats vying for the silverware.
Entry is only £10 for members until midnight on 21st (and then will increase to £15) so hurry up and get your entry in now by clicking here to save a fiver
RYA youth nationals
onsite report by Chew Youth sailor Giovanni Bianchi, ILCA 95
The Youth National this year was hosted in Pwllheli, Wales. Although the venue is great for racing I must admit that on low tide, returning back to the club is difficult, as there is no concrete slipway so hauling your ILCA on soft sand truly drains the few remaining drops of your energy.
Above and below – Giovanni in action at the youths
This was my second national and I looked forward to an exciting week of racing, and I was not disappointed: throughout the week, we were presented with a mixture of light winds, to moments of survival conditions and big waves with plenty of champagne sailing. On day one, we were immediately exposed to extreme conditions, and being a heavier sailor, managed to handle better than many other sailors, and I placed 8th and 11th in the races held. The rest of the week were filled with similar results. On the lighter days I did struggle, but I managed to hold on to the lea on the lower half of the field. Last year I ranked last on the table but this year, after months of training on the water at Chewand at Lymingthon Royal Youth Club, I placed thirteenth overall, just missing out on the medal race by a few points to the boats ahead and I finished race ten with a podium finish, that after racing in twenty-seven knots plus, left me very satisfied with my performance that week. I really appreciated the RYA’s commitment to have us racing every day and also their support on and off the water.
I truly enjoyed racing against some of the best youth sailors in the country, and enjoyed the high sense of competitiveness that lingered in the boat park. I would highly recommend this event as it is truly a fantastic week on the water.
I am proud to represent Chew at national events: training at Chew is not easy because of the shifty winds that characterise the lake, but the laser family is supportive and engaging, there are many experienced sailors that are happy to give advises to the younger ones. I would love if the club could offer training sessions specific for racing.
Lake and Cake by Jo Cudmore
We have had a great start to Lake and Cake with the first two Saturdays attended by several ladies and providing us with great sailing and some yunmy cakes and biscuits! Our next date is 07-Jun-25 – let’s hope we can have 3 great sailing weather meetings in a row! Looking forward to seeing you all you then
Chihuli Adelaide botanical gardens
Above: Lake at the Botanic Gardens Adelaide with a blown glass artwork by Chihuli ( Eds note: Can we expect to see similar creations at the next Lake and cake?!) and a nephews wedding cake below.
Upcoming RIB and First aid Course details
PB2 course on Saturday 31-May-25 and Sunday 01-Jun-25 (consecutive days) one space still available. You need to be able to do both days. Cost only £40 please book via your Webcollect account. Any questions please ask jeffstratford@btinternet.
RYA first aid course at the club, required by all instructors but beneficial for everyone, only £30 please book via your Webcollect account, any questions please ask.
Got your PB2 and want to take the next step then sign up for our in house Advanced Rescue Helm Safety Course where we will show you how to rescue people and a variety of craft. It is one day, our aim is all rescue helmswill either do it or hold the RYA safety boat certificate. It is free, one place left to book email jeffstratford@
Competent sailor of any age and want to help us on the above course? You will need to rig and sail a variety of boats and be rescued, all I can offer is my gratitude and lunch, if you can help please get in touch with Jeff.
On Wednesday 25-Jun-25 the Police Group are the duty team, we will also be arranging a working party to go to Denny Island to prepare it for the annual treasure hunt during the family regatta. Everyone is welcome and please bring your nettle bashing tools either manual or power. Please help if you can, let Jeff know you are coming, meet at the flagpole at 10am.
Lost Property
The amount of lost property in the signing on room has built up and we will shortly be making arrangements to sell items on to tidy up the area if they are not claimed or cannot be identified to club members within the next month. Please do have a look if you are missing something and make sure you grab it before we move it on
Member Travels
by Sailing Sec James Williams
The open meeting circuit has been relatively quiet in the last few weeks, with just a couple of reported travels.
Paul and Anna Smalley took their RS400 to Salcombe, with improving races across the weekend to finish with a 2nd place and 4th overall, while Paul Croote (pictured below)n won every race in the Cherub open at Poole YC.
Further afield, Sarah Harding put together a great report around an ILCA coaching week at Wildwind (Vasiliki) through the ILCA Women’s Coaching Programme.
Please do let us know if we’re missing your events off or want to send in reports yourselves. The more adventurous the better and doesn’t have to be racing!
Evening Sailing
A reminder that Wednesday evening racing has well and truly kicked off, with over 50 boats out racing for both of the last 2 weeks. Do come and join in!
If the busier starts are not for you then the lake is also open on Thursday evenings for the next couple of months. There is always the option of free sailing under Twilight Thursdays, or come and join Thursday Improvers this week where a simple course will be laid and tips given out. This will be followed by 5 weeks of Start Racing, where we will give guidance and informal coaching to help novices towards participating in club racing, navigating starting, boat handling, boat speed, mark roundings and rules with a mini regatta to finish off. No need to join every session, but meet rigged and changed at 18:00 if you do wish to join!
Police Travels by Jeff Stratford
Seventeen members of the Police Sailing Section went to WPNSA on the 16/17/18-May-25 with seven boat for their Spring Coastal experience. That represents 50% of the members ship and most of the boats.
On Friday we had a beautiful sail within Portland harbour.
On Saturday we ventured out into Weymouth Bay and across to Bowleaze Cove, there were too many boulders on the beach so we had a long sail back to WPNSA for a late lunch. In the afternoon we had a series of short fun races changing helm and crew for each race. Beautiful sunset over Lyme Bay from the Cove Inn.
Sunday morning was lovely and sunny but with little wind which was forecast to drop so we packed up and headed home.
A lovely weekend.
Andy Jones
Commodore