Saturday Clubs for Adults
Adult Saturday Club Dates 2024 (09:30 to12:30)
23 March
27 April
25 May
22 June
20 July
17 August
21 September
26 October
23 November
Booking online
Registration is mandatory, using the online booking link above NO LATER than the Tuesday prior to a Saturday Club, and earlier if possible. This is to enable us to arrange for sufficient instructors and support boat cover. If you need to cancel your booking please email the Contact listed on the WebCollect 'Saturday Club - Adults' event page.
Adults
With regard to adult participants the opportunity is offered to raise any sailing related question/need - whether it is on a particular sailing technique or how best to prepare your boat for trailing to another venue. For more 'special' questions it would be best to have advance notice so that an instructor or ‘expert' can come prepared. If your requirement is an ‘on the water' one, then an instructor will happily accompany you in your own or a ‘Club' boat - ‘Club' boats are available at no charge at Saturday clubs.
Have a go at racing, we are encouraging Adult Saturday Club participants and instructors to stay on for a 30 minute race after lunch (13:30 start). We will try to buddy up instructors with those wishing to race. For those in single handers, coaching from a powerboat is permitted. In response to members fears that they will be in the way if they race, which they should never feel as we always welcome more racers, series winning helms will not be allowed to compete - but they may buddy up and crew for you.
Club boats available for Training, Racing, Cruising and Saturday Clubs
Refer to the 'Club Boats and Associated Equipment Policy' document for conditions, restrictions and contacts.
8 Optibats - age range 6 to 10
Five of these boats were obtained from Lottery funding and an additional three were then purchased. These boats are very similar to Optimist dinghies but are heavier and very robustly built.
11 Toppers - age range 10 to small adult
Five were obtained originally from Lottery funding and members donated old Toppers to increase our fleet to 10. All the original boats have now all been replaced as we review their condition on an ongoing basis and sell the oldest one as necessary (usually to a club member) and replace it with a new one to keep this, our hardest working fleet, in good shape. These boats are equipped with 'Club' race rigging. This enables ‘budding Olympians’ to learn and race in boats up to the standard required of RYA Champion Clubs. All have standard and 4.2 rigs.
4 RS Fevas - double handers - age range 10 to adult)
Thanks to three of our young sailors living in West Sussex, who applied to the Youth Opportunity Fund, we received funding for four boats and a double trailer. They are very exciting to sail with modern asymmetric spinnaker and a real feel of speed but also very forgiving, these boats enable us to teach RYA Stage 4 which allows the young sailors to attain the skills required to apply for pre-assessment to take part in an RYA Dinghy Instructors course held at one of the RYA coastal centres. This qualification can help young peopled with D of E awards, and help them to find summer jobs at home or abroad whilst at college or university. These boats and the double road trailer have enabled our young sailors to compete at National and County regattas with great success. We took delivery of two new RS Fevas at a special price offered by RS and the RYA bringing the fleet up to six which enables us to use them for Team Racing.
It is also possible to use them as single-handers for adults as well, to get to grips with learning the centre-main method of tacking and gybing. As double handers they can also be used by smaller adults with a child as crew.
4 Lasers - age range 12 to adult
Another three of our young sailors living in West Sussex successfully put forward a bid to the Youth Opportunity Fund to purchase two brand new Lasers with XD radial rigs and a double road trailer plus an additional 4.7 rig. Our two older Lasers had their rigging upgraded to a similar standard with an additional 4.7 rig. On the Junior front these enable us to provide those youngsters moving up from Toppers with the opportunity to sail an Olympic class boat with a rig suitable for their height and weight.
2 Laser 2000s - double handers - age range 16 to adult
These were purchased to enable adult members doing the RYA Level 2 to have the option of learning centre-main skills, as the majority of modern boats are designed this way. We also use them for the adult Seamanship and Sailing with Spinnaker courses and, as quite a number of our 15+ sailors join in these courses, they get to use these really great training boats. We also take them to Cobnor where our instructors can introduce other members to seamanship and racing skills in these really user friendly boats.
2 Quests - double handers - age range 16 to adult
These were purchased through grant funding from Sport England to enable adult members doing the RYA Level 2 to have the option of learning centre-main skills, as the majority of modern boats are designed this way. We also use them for the adult Seamanship and Sailing with Spinnaker courses and, as quite a number of our 15+ sailors join in these courses, they get to use these really great training boats. We also take them to Cobnor where our instructors can introduce other members to seamanship and racing skills in these really user friendly boats. They are rigged for symmetric spinnaker and trapeze.
2 Wanderers - double handers - adult but not exclusively so
These are used primarily at Saturday Clubs and on courses. They are also ideal cruising dinghies.
1 Miracle - double handers - adult but not exclusively so
Usage is as for the Wanderer
2 Comets - 12 to adult
These have Standard and Mino sails, the latter providing the flexibility in age/ability in what is otherwise a ‘lively’ racing dinghy. There is also the option of simple reefing for both sails by furling round the mast.
Note. The age range for juniors, across all the boats, is for guidance as size and ability play a significant part.
