Class Association
PRESS RELEASE
“Winning this award is a real accolade,” says outgoing Commodore Ross Ryan,who accepted the award, on behalf of the club at the Dinghy Show at Alexandra Palace London in March. “Our club operates at real grass roots level with a committed team of volunteers. Our aim is to encourage more people to actively participate in an exciting sport which can offer so much at all levels. Achieving this recognition is one we are enormously proud of and will work to raise awareness of the positive benefits of sailing for all.”
The club, moved to the flooded former gravel pit at Hoveringham in 1986. Located alongside the River Trent and 12 miles east of Nottingham, the club is well placed to attract members from Nottingham, Lincoln and Leicester.
From small beginnings come great things and since the mid 1980s Notts County Sailing Club has grown to 1,200 members ranging from 6 year olds to over 80s. The club is described as “an unknown gem in the Trent Valley”.
The club won the Facilities Development category in the National Club of the Year competition as a result of its recently completed development programme. This was achieved through money saved over a number of years and a grant from Sport England. As Commodore Adrian Jones explains, “The exterior of the clubhouse has been refurbished with new boarding, windows and insulation. The clubroom was extended with a multi purpose training room, to cater for sailing courses, social and meetings. And with a growing number of women taking up sailing at the club we have provided a much needed increase in size to the ladies changing area.”
The club hosts a number of national events each year. It is home to The Nottingham University Sailing Club and the Snakebite team racing event with up to 200 competitors, the National Wayfarer Cruising Conference, RYA Zone events (the pathway to the Olympics) and this year the club will host the National HANSA (Disabled Access boat) championships.
“Sailing is a sport for life, and a sport you can start at almost any age,” says Adrian. “It does not have to be expensive and is a complete release from the daily grind. At Notts County Sailing Club we cater for all levels of sailing. The RYA Training Centre helps adults and juniors take their first steps in windsurfing and dinghy sailing, right through to race coaching and more advanced skills, including power-boating.”
Many youngsters begin sailing at the Saturday Club. This is essentially a club for messing around in boats run by members and parents. The youngsters soon gain confidence and want to take sailing further, however the best part of the session always seems to be jumping in the water afterwards! From Saturday Club the children can learn to race, instruct or just enjoy being on the water. Other activities at the club, for all ages, include: racing, casual sailing, windsurfing – especially when windy, or ‘Ladies that Launch’ and coaching.
Nottinghamshire County Sailing Club Press Notes
As publicity officer David Eberlin says, “Sailing is a wonderful family sport, which is relatively inexpensive, easy to access and a great way to instill confidence into youngsters. Notts County Sailing Club is a welcoming sailing venue, and all we want is for members to enjoy the sport. Annual membership is relatively inexpensive and second hand boats can be bought at very reasonable prices.”
If you want to join us or see if sailing is for you come along to the Notts County Sailing Club “Try Sailing in May” day on Saturday 12th May 2018. Alternatively just come along and see what the club can offer you – more detail on our website www.ncsc.org.uk
For more information David Eberlin – info@ncsc.org.uk
