News Letter June 24
| Contents |
|---|
| Upcoming Events |
| Coxing |
| Club Clothing |
| Crew Lead Training |
| Little Bustard |
| Life Jackets |
Welcome!
Welcome to our first news letter!
With several new rowers joining us recently and a lot of upcoming events, now seems like a good time to let everyone know what's going on. First of all - welcome to all our new rowers;
Upcoming Events
We have several events planned for the rest of the year - check out the calendar for a full list. If you'd like to join any of the trips, just click on the link in the calendar and register your interest via the "Register" tab.
There are a selection of local and not so local events, and both short and long rows. If you'd like to try a regatta, please do put your name down. Anyone is welcome to join in no matter how long you've been rowing.
We normally set up WhatsApp community groups for each event, so add yourself to them when you see them.
| Date | Event | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 6 Jul | Crew Lead Training - Medical emergencies | Although this is part of our ongoing Crew Lead training and development, this session is open to all regardless of how long you've been rowing with us. Learning how to recognise and handle medical emergencies at sea is vital for all of us, so please do attend if you can. It might be yours. |
| 13-14 Jul | Ullapool Regatta | The races are 2K with individual turning marks for each boat, so it's good experience for SkiffieWorlds in 2025. |
| 3 Aug | Johnshaven Fish Festival | A gentle 'row in company' with our friends from neighbouring clubs to Johnshaven and back for the fish festival. |
| 16-18 Aug | Knoydart Expedition | An expedition from Mallaig to Inverie to visit The Old Forge and explore Loch Nevis. Maximum 12 persons. |
| 31 Aug | North Berwick Regatta | Racing 3.2km round Craigleith. |
| 7 Sept | Castle 2 Crane | Race 21 Km up the Clyde from Dumbaron Castle to the Finnieston Crane in Glasgow. A great row in the company of dozens of other boats. No crew changes allows so limited to one crew only. Could take Little Bustard and/or Spirit, depending on demand. |
| 21 Sept | Monster the Loch | 21 mile row the length of Loch Ness, with ~100 other craft. A spectacular event, and always very popular. Could take Little Bustard and/or Spirit, depending on demand. Check out the video from 2023 to get an idea of what it's like. |
| 25-30 Sept | 5 Miles from Home | Virtual International rowing challenge - row 5 miles in our home waters and submit the GPS log to the organisers to see how well we did. We'll enter as many crews as we need to to make sure that everyone gets a row. |
| 6 - 12 Jul 2025 | SkiffieWorlds 2025 | Advance notice for 2025 .... SkiffieWorlds is the St Ayles Skiff World Championship, and is held every 3 years. The next one will be in Stranraer, and we're looking forward to it already. It's a fantastic week of rowing, entertainment and community. All are welcome to come along and we'll make sure everyone gets to row as much as possible. |
Crew Lead Training
We've been running a series of training sessions under the title 'Crew Lead Training'. However, these are not limited to prospective crew leads and everyone is encouraged to come along and join in to share knowledge and learn more about our boats and the sea.
Topics cover all aspects of going to sea in a boat, including;
- Local navigation knowledge
- Wind, weather and tide
- VHF Radios
- Launching and recovering the boat
- Loading/unloading the trailer
- Emergency communication
- Race rules
Next Saturday (6 July) we'll be running a session on handling medical emergencies in the boat. Please do come along if you can.
Coxing
With more people in the club, we need everyone to cox from time to time, otherwise the same people end up coxing all the time and don't get a chance to row.
Anyone can cox, and there is a general expectation that everyone should take their turn at coxing social rowing sessions. If you've not coxed recently or even if you have only just started rowing, please put yourself down to cox one. You will always be in the boat with an experienced rower (the crew lead) who will be absolutely delighted to guide you, and the best way to learn how is to do it.
You don't need to ask, nor do you need to wait until you are asked. You don't even need to be an experienced rower, so just hit that "Add me as Cox" button and give it a go!
Little Bustard
Our little two seat skiff - the Little Bustard - is available for all to use. It can be rowed by one or two people, both with or without a cox.
If you would like to have a go in her during a scheduled social rowing session, please speak to a crew lead or post on the club whatsapp chat and we'll arrange a few tandem sessions for you to get used to rowing with two oars. Once you have got a bit of experience, you can then take her out solo if you wish.
Experienced rowers can take Little Bustard out outside of scheduled rowing sessions, but must ALWAYS discuss their plans with a crew lead before hand. Solo rowers MUST let someone know when they go out, where they are planning to go and when they plan to return, and MUST confirm when they have returned.
Club Kit
We have club tee shirts and hoodies available to buy from StitchnPrint in Stonehaven, so you can look extra stylish next time you are on the water. Also available via the Shop link above.
If there are any other items you'd like to see in the shop, just let us know. We can add anything from the StitchnPrint catalogue.
Life Jackets
Our club life jackets are checked and tested at least once a year, but many of us have our own life jackets and it is a wise precaution to have these checked regularly too.
If you have your own life jacket and would like it to be checked, please ask Gordon who will be happy to check it for you and show you how do the checks yourself.
