EDITORIAL Here we are already in June and with Midsummer in the offing. Many changes are taking place in the clubhouse, as regular visitors will have been observing. Last month it was decided by the General Committee to put in patio windows, which certainly improve the look of the building and will prove to be a great asset. Pipes have also been laid for central heating, to be used at a later date, so that all structural building work will be completed in one shot. There only remains the cleaning and refurbishing to be done. The renovation of the Black Hut will be looked at on a later date.

BSC has been very much in the news recently with interesting articles about Hightown in Lancashire Life and a piece in The Formby Times about one of our older members Arthur Gelder putting safety signs, warnings concerning tides, on the dunes. I will display the piece on the notice board in the clubhouse later. Arthur is very concerned that there are no official signs warning of the dangers when the banks cover.

More news from the local paper is that in addition to the very large wind farm being developed on Burbo Bank over the next few years, there will be a 65 metre high meteorological mast erected towards the end of this year. This mast will gather scientific information about the weather and will record, wind speed, temperature, air pressure and the chemical consistency of the sea salt. Once erected the mast will remain in place for the next twenty-five years and the information will help in the structural design of the wind turbines.

So far we have had a good sailing weather and as I write this, five of the club boats are already in the Albert Dock in preparation for the Mersey River Festival in two weeks time. Sunday was a very good day for the Lifeboat Race with a much bigger turnout of boats than usual, doing more laps. This must be very pleasing for the Sailing Committee. The fund raising in the clubhouse was well supported and was a great success. The good weather also gave us a chance to see the most unusual sight of Venus in transit with the sun. In our garden we tried three methods of viewing, one with a sextant, one through a welding mask and one using binoculars to focus an image onto a sheet of white paper. The first two were quite successful, the welding mask easier to use but the best image of the three came from the binoculars and paper. Quite an interesting exercise!

At last month's meeting a ballot was held and two new full members and one-house members were welcomed into the club. Mr Anthony Robert Turner and Mr Glen West are now full members and Mrs Barbara Bates has become our newest house member.

I think that I have caught up with most of the club news since my holiday. I was very pleased to receive a letter by post from a man in Dorset concerning a previous newsletter article, which I will print after the reports. It's good to know that our newsletter is getting around and I know that the website is well used and popular with those members who don't receive a newsletter every month. Thank you all for your contributions.

NOTES FROM THE GENERAL COMMITTEE MEETING 8TH JUNE

Apologies for absence were received from Mark Meadows, Alan Roe, David Griffiths and Phil Wright.

THE COMMODORE opened the meeting and told the Committee that Rex wishes to stay on at the club in his cleaning capacity. Mike had also ascertained that there are still many years left on the lease of the boatyard.
Mike said that it was unfortunate that the opening party had to be cancelled because the clubhouse was not ready to use but was pleased that it was suitable for use for the RNLI Day. Mike was very grateful that the day was such a success. He remarked on how wonderfully generous people were. Shelagh Warren and her team raised in excess of £360 for the Lifeboats due to the generosity of people who ran stalls, spent money on them, worked in the kitchen and helped in any way including getting the clubhouse ready for use. He also thanked John Heyworth for running a very good race. Two Lifeboats were in attendance, one from Southport and the other from New Brighton. There will be photographs in the Crosby Herald and the Formby Times.

THE VICE COMMODORE gave his report about the Sailing Committee business. John Newton has been asked to make a new triangle for the Stevenson's cross, as the other was unusable. The Committee were asked to agree to the allocation of moorings as follow: -S17 to Glen West and S16 to Bob Turner. There is space in the yard for both boats and the General Committee agreed. There is an intermittent fault with the button controlling the winch.

Three races had been sailed, two over the Bank Holiday and the RNLI. Race. The winner of that race was Peter Grocott in Jasmine. Final race instructions for the Altmouth Cup were given to the Committee and the entry forms will be posted.

A great deal of discussion took place about the safety aspects of using the boat yard out of which there are two messages for boat owners.

The first concerns use of the winch and is a restatement of previous guidelines.

1. A key holder for the winch should be arranged in advance of a launch or recovery. There is a list of key holders available and one experienced person from the list should be present (in an advisory capacity only)
2. Users should fully understand the process involved and comply with both written guidelines and the usual practices for launch and recovery.
3. The boat trailer being used must be suitable for the job.
4. In addition to the person operating the winch there should be an adequate number of helpers.
5. All boat owners should submit an insurance form to the Yard and Berth Master.

With regard to the last point about insurance less than half of the boat owners in the yard have complied with this. What is the difficulty with this request?

There was an accident in the yard that resulted in Mark Meadows going to hospital. A trailer tyre blew out. Fortunately for Mark the outcome was not as bad as it may have been but the committee is very concerned with the safety aspects of the yard. This should be self-policing. Each member is responsible for his/her own trailer. Members should be advised that they are responsible for third party insurance. If you are unsure about what cover you have contact your own insurer.

VANDALISM is an ongoing problem around the clubhouse and the boats and the sailing committee suggested that there should be some " reward for information" notices placed around the club area. Wilful damage and stealing dinghies seems to be a regular thing. The General Committee mainly thought that these notices were a good idea and action will be taken about the proposal.

Incidentally a family was recently seen having a barbecue on the beach by the clubhouse, using a disposable barbecue. When they had finished they walked away leaving barbecue, cutlery, plates and debris behind. What a way to bring up young children. Two of our members disposed of the rubbish. Ed.

THE REAR COMMODORE reported that the last House Committee meeting mostly concerned arrangements for getting the clubhouse ready for the RNLI Day. The next few weeks will involve cleaning and refurbishing the clubhouse. but it remains to be seen how much money will be available when the main work is paid for. The glass washer is causing serious problems and will probably have to go back to the suppliers. The Black Hut is becoming increasingly in need of repair and is another target for damage

THE HON SECRETARY was unable to attend but watch out for some changes to the 200 club.

THE HON TREASURER was not present but the Commodore told the meeting that the finances are 'in tune'

THE HON MEMBERSHIP SECRETARY now has a list of people who have not paid their subs and are therefore no longer members. It would save a lot of effort and correspondence for Stan if anyone leaving the club would officially resign. Stan thinks that he will not be able to organise the forthcoming Prize Giving and it is therefore in the hands of The House Committee. Stan has done this so well over the past years that his efforts will be badly missed.

THE SOCIAL CHAIRPERSON'S REPORT was incorporated in the Commodore's report but please note

THE NEXT SOCIAL EVENT WILL BE A BARBECUE ON 3RD JULY

Marathon Bike Ride
Sunday 4 July 2004

Tim Asbury and Katherine Hogarth are attempting the 56 miles bike ride to and from Chester. They intend to raise funds for the clubs "Building Fund". Please sponsor them generously, the sponsorship form is on the Club House noticeboard.

A LETTER TO THE EDITOR

Dear Mrs Heyworth

I was sent a copy of your clubhouse news by a friend, because Clwyd was mentioned.
Sometime in the 60's my brother saw Clwyd in Southampton and I bought her unseen. She came up to the Humber on a lorry and was kept and raced in a mixed class with Humber Yawl Club at Brough Haven.

When I bought her she had a Kelvin E2 engine on the wing and a cabin top. I removed both the engine and the top and had a lot of pleasure sailing her. Without an engine, and the fast tides on the Humber the anchor became very helpful!! My son Jeremy, as a teenager took her up the Ouse to York

I have fond memories of your part of the world, as I was a cadet on Conway when she was off Rock Ferry 1935/37. It was a great honour to be in the Captain's gig crew, quite a pull up to Liverpool Landing Stage where we waited in a sort of hut for Captain and Mrs Goddard (presumably from the Adelphi Hotel) Happy days

Yours Sincerely
Peter Austin.

What a friendly and interesting letter and how thoughtful to write to us. Most of us remember Styx very well, the last time I heard anything of her she was in Conway, does anybody have any information about her or any other of the Rivers Class boats, if so can you please get in touch with me? Ed.

Finally something I came across the other day about the English language.
You have to marvel at the unique lunacy of a language in which your house can burn up as it burns down, in which you fill in a form by filling it out and in which an alarm goes off by going on. English was invented by people, not computers, and it reflects the creativity of the human race (which of course is not a race at all) That is why when the stars are out, they are visible, but when the lights are out they are invisible.

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