Commodore

THE AQUARIUS SAILING CLUB NEWSLETTER

The Commodore writes……… Nigel Knowles

By common consent it has been a miserable summer (did it ever arrive?), but in true AQSC style we have made the most of it! True we have not had the best of sailing conditions and our venerable sailing secretary Richard has been heard to remark there are so many more people attending Sunday teas than there are on his sailing register that the "S" in AQSC should really mean "Social". Nevertheless recent weeks have seen the Club boats well used and it has been good to see a number of new faces at the Club.

On the social side we have enjoyed a Midsummer madness cruise to the Magpie, a BYO Barbeque followed by a cruise upstream to watch the Sunbury Regatta's fireworks, Mike Baker's quiz evening and a splendid evening of light -hearted "gypsy" music led by Pat Halling. We are indeed fortunate to have such talent in the Club - thank you Pat.

Looking ahead the Club's Annual Dinner is on November 15 (details and a booking form are included in this newsletter) and is followed by the AGM, Prize Giving and End of Season Party on 6 December.

As in recent years, although the sailing programme formally finishes on November 9, we will endeavour to provide safety boat cover on Sundays for those intrepid sailors who wish to continue sailing. The "once a month" Sunday lunches, followed by afternoon activities aimed at younger members will also be resumed.

The programme of refurbishment of the Clubhouse has taken a back seat over the summer, but Bodgitt and Co hope to resurrect it during the winter months with completion of the long scheduled kitchen make-over(yes really Diana!). They were however summoned into action to repair the damage caused by the recent break-in, and in quick time rebuilt and strengthened the Bos'ns store, back door and bar door. We are also replacing the alarm with a more modern sophisticated (and noisier) system. It is regrettable that the damage these miscreants caused is out of all proportion to the value of items taken.

Over recent years Bodgitt & Co's programme of improvements has meant that the Club has had to dig into its financial reserves. The Management Committee is now considering what further developments should be undertaken and is also reviewing whether changes are needed to our subscriptions.

An article giving the background to these deliberations is elsewhere in this newsletter, and I urge you all to think about the issues raised and make your views known: Any changes that the Management Committee feel to be necessary will be put to the AGM. This is when the Officers and Management Committee are elected (for which there are always vacancies!), but just as importantly it is an opportunity for the membership at large to have their say and to discuss what you want of your Club.

There is always a tendency for things to continue unchanged because "we always do that", so please think what you like about the Club and what you don't like, what we do and what we might do, what we could do better or more/less etc. and then air your views at the meeting.

This being the last newsletter of the year, I conclude by thanking all members of the Committee for their good work and indeed all members who have served the Club in different ways. I look forward to seeing as many as possible at the AGM.