About Worthing Yacht
club
Location
| History | Sailing | Windsurfing
| Social activities | Clubhouse
| Rescue boats | Boatpark
Location
Worthing Yacht Club
is located directly on the beach about two miles west of Worthing Pavilion Pier.
Worthing is easily accessible from South London via the A24 or the M23/A23 south
and A27 west. On entering Worthing, follow signs to the seafront
then turn west and follow the coast road until you find that the road turns
north at George V Avenue. Take the next turning on your left (Eirene Rd) and
about 100 yards along this road on your left hand side, you will find the entrance
to the carpark at the rear of the clubhouse.
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A potted history of the club
The Yacht Club was originally
founded by former members of Worthing Sailing Club who had become disillusioned
with the increasing social membership and decreasing interest in sailing within
the club. The keen sailing element of WSC set up a new club to concentrate more
on sailing and erected the original clubhouse withing the confines of the existing
boat park on land obtained from the local council.
As
the popularity of the sport grew throughout the 1960s, the number of dinghies
in the compound increased to some 200 and space was at a premium. The membership
at that time raised the necessary funds to move into a new clubhouse which is
now a residential property next to the current clubhouse. The club continued
to thrive with large dinghy fleets of Seafly, Scorpion, Heron and Mirror classes.
There was the annual Worthing Regatta and Sailing week with fleets of up to
150 boats attending regularly. These were joined in the 1970s by 505, Cherub,
International Moth and Lasers with a mixture of fleet racing and handicap racing
of fast and slow fleets. The Unicorn catamaran was developed at the club to
be followed in the late 1980s by the newly designed Dart 18.
Considerable effort
by the members during the 1980s and a substantial grant from the Sports Council
resulted in the erection of the current clubhouse. This was fitted out by members
and formerly opened by Sir Alec Rose in March 1990. This new building was specifically
desgned as a yacht club and has been continuously improved by the members over
the years.
During
the late 1980s and 1990s the popular classes in the club changed with catamaran
classes and the Dart 18, in particular, becoming dominant. The wide open water
at Worthing is well suited to catamaran racing and during the 1990s WYC became
established as one of the premier cat clubs in the UK. In recent years there
has been further changes with several Dart 18 sailors moving on to F18 competition
and other more challenging classes such as the Spitfire. A rapidly emerging
junior section has spawned a growing Laser and Laser Pico fleet though itt has
to be admitted that the Lasers and Picos are not always helmed by juniors. Newer
catamaran classes like the resilient Dart 16 have also joined in the last year
or so.
The club has benefitted
from the continuing popularity of windsurfing in the region and a substantial
percentage of members either join as windsurfing members or enjoy both sports.
Windsurfers generally revel in winds above Force 5 (unless they are learning)
whereas dinghy sailors prefer winds less than Force 6 (unless they are psychotic).
Thus the two sports are infinitely compatible. The windsurfers bring a fresh
dimension to the club by way of freestyle sailing, wave jumping and wave riding
rather than racing. Worthing offers some of the most challenging windsurfing
on the south coast which is evident from the popularity of the location on windy
days.
As time goes on, the
members look forward to what the coming years might bring by way of developments
in the sport and to emerging sports like kite surfing which may have a future
at Worthing. The club will continue to be run by it's members for it's members
relying on the experience and skill of the membership to help it continue to
develop and improve. At present the membership comprises approximately 60% from
the locality and 40% travelling from as far as Harlow. All are welcome and the
club prides itself on making new members feel at home very quickly.
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Sailing activities
Racing is scheduled
every Sunday between March and November alternating between late morning and
afternoon starts depending on the state of the tide. During the summer months
(late May through August) there is additional racing on Midweek evenings. Bank
holidays afford an opportunity to hold regattas and short trophy series which
often attract visitors from other clubs.
The
club holds a number of open events each year which are a valuable source of
extra income and also a source of new members. An experienced race team organise
world class racing only to be matched by the shore team who organise first class
catering, on-shore support and entertainment. Ask anyone. Worthing puts on the
best open events compared to anywhere.
It's not just about
racing, of course. The club is fortunate to have a number of experienced members
who willingly give their time and energy to running training and coaching sessions
throughout the year. Again these often attract visitors from around the country.
We have an active junior section (see juniors page
for details) and have diversified into organising long distance cruises to other
clubs when the weather has permitted. New ideas are always welcome and any member
can organise an activity. Some members just like to come along and potter around
in their boats on sunny days which is just fine. If you are interested in sailing
or want to find out more, come and visit us for a chat and a look around.
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Windsurfing activities
More
than 10% of the WYC membership are windsurfing members. Add to this the members
who sail and windsurf and you have a thriving section within the club. Since
most of the windsurfers are interested in freestyle sailing and improvement
of their skills, the club tends to focus on providing facilities (showers, bar
and food) and a social venue for the windsurfers. However, Worthing has hosted
the British Funboard Association events in the past.. We have also had visits
from the travelling windsurf club Ocean Motion and have been pleased
to offer them temporary membership and use of the club for the duration of their
stay.
Other events include
the windsurfing social extravaganza with the prerequisite house music, windsurfing
videos, tequila and Mexican food for such an event. - watch the bulletin
board for details.
The windsurfers here
are a friendly bunch and are always happy to help out beginners with advice
and tips on technique. Windsurfing involves a long learning curve and everyone
seems to remember it well. Since many of the windsurfers sail all year regardless
of sea and air temperature they are a hardy lot (verging on lunatic) who are
used to the Worthing shore dump which can be ferocious. They will be pleased
to keep visitors right about where and when to launch - just ask.
If you are a regular
windsurfing visitor at Worthing and you have not yet visited the club, why not
come in and see what we have to offer next time you are here.
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And we know how to party
I don't really know
where to start when it comes to describing the socials. They vary from the black
tie and posh frock do through totally bizarre theme evenings to family beach
parties and barbecues. We have some truly brill bands play at the club (though
occasionally some less brill) and some amazing food produced by Anne and her
team in the galley. There have been Toga parties, Wild West parties, a Caribbean
evening (in November and yes some did go swimming though not necessarily by
choice) a Medieval night with serving wenches, dungeons and stocks (as our secretary
wrote in Yachts and Yachting "Let your imagination run riot and you are
not even close"), Hallowe'en parties including coffins and cobwebs, the
clubhouse once was fitted out as an ocean liner. It just goes on and on. There
are some ace events scheduled for this year so if you want to join a club with
lots of fun on the social scene, this is it. Keep your eye on the bulletin
board for details on all up and coming events
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The clubhouse
WYC
has a well appointed clubhouse with spacious changing rooms and hot showers
on the ground floor including baby-changing facilities in the ladies. The club
office and a wet bar/galley are also situated at ground level with the bar opening
onto a spacious patio overlooking the beach. Upstairs are the main bar and galley
which have large picture windows opening onto a balcony to allow non-sailors
to watch the action at sea. The balcony is a popular location in the summer
for a drink, a chat and friendly discussions about tactics (much more fun than
a protest flag).
The race office is situated above
the bar and galley with a panoramic view of the beach and water which enables
the race team to manage the race (they will spot you cheating)
and oversee the safety of those on the water. The race office also houses the
VHF radio base and flags which communicate with the safety craft and sailing
boats on the water. There is an anemometer above the roof (10m above sea level)
which is connected to a display in the galley so that the windsurfers can argue
about how inaccurate it is.
Underneath the clubhouse are the
storage facilities for the club's rescue boats, marker buoys etc.which are kept
in a state of readiness for any emergency whilst the club is occupied.
The clubhouse is open every Sunday
from March through December and on Wednesday evenings during the summer months
when sailing activities are scheduled. Members can access the ground floor facilities
during the day all year round by requesting an access key,
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Rescue boats and duties
There
are three rigid inflatable safety boats plus an Orkney Longliner which can be
used during club activities. Safety is a primary consideration during all club
activities and manning the rescue craft is a prerequisite to any organised event.
If the safety boat is not manned we don't go racing. This is a members run club
and all sailing members are required to perform at least one duty a year which
will comprise either manning the rescue boat, the race office or the bar. Many
of the more active members are happy to perform duties more regularly. Members
who are new to any of these activities can be trained by more experienced members
and short courses can be organised where there is sufficient interest.
The club has been fortunate to have
members of the Worthing Beach office as honorary club members for a number of
years now. The Beach Office have been of great help to the club during open
events providing extra safety cover when they can and also safety boat training
They actively discourage owners who allow their dogs to soil the beach which
is a great help to us sailors. Just step in it in bare feet or get it on your
sails to appreciate their good work.
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Boat compound
The club has a large, turfed boatpark
just west of the clubhouse which is equipped with water pipes and hoses at various
locations around the park, secured gates to the carpark and also to the beach
adjacent to a ramp over the shingle. When there is sufficient space, members
can store trailers at the end of the compound but storage of boats is always
given preference.
Members are expected to keep the
space around their boat in good order, cutting the grass under their craft and
ensuring that tie-downs are secure. The general maintenance of the park is managed
by volunteer working parties of members who mend the fencing, clear and rubbish
and cut the grass between the lines of boats. Members are required to insure
any craft left on the park and to comply with any security measures such insurance
demands. Boats are left on the park at the owner's risk and the club will not
accept responsibility for any mishaps that ensue. However the boat park is fairly
sheltered and a there is plenty room to rig and to mess about with things like
spinnakers in relative safety.
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