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About Us

Seafarers Sailing Club is a small, friendly club formed in 1961 to encourage the sport of dinghy sailing by the provision of racing, cruising and training. The clubhouse is situated on the Solent between Hill Head and Lee-on-Solent overlooking the Isle of Wight. The Club has approximately 140 paying members. As the majority have "family" membership, the number of people entitled to use our facilities is greater than 300. The compound has space for approximately 150 boats which is usually just sufficient to meet members' demands.

Seafarers is fortunate in its location. The compound is within a large public car park. There is a public slipway close to the Club's compound giving access to the beach. From there it is possible to launch and retrieve boats at all states of the tide. The proviso is that, when launching or retrieving a boat at low tide, there is an expanse of beach and an inclined slipway to negotiate. A ridge of soft shingle may be present across the slipway making it difficult to pull up heavy dinghies and the Club's RIBs. The Club uses a small tractor to recover boats from the beach to the top of the slipway.

The Club is committed to providing "affordable" access to sailing; membership fees are usually the lowest in the area. This is achieved through an ethos of self-help. The Club occupied its present site in 1974. During 1975 a small, temporary clubhouse was built. Construction was almost totally DIY to keep the cost down. Significant rebuilds occurred in 1983, 1990, 2001 and 2008. In all of these, members carrying out most of the work - skilled and un-skilled - helped keep costs to a minimum. The Club has no employees; members carry out all routine maintenance of buildings, compound, boats and the tractor.

The Club holds races every Saturday afternoon and Sunday morning during the sailing season which runs from the end of March to November. During the summer, when nights are longer, there are also races on Thursday evenings. From June through to September, volunteers run 'Practice Sailing' sessions on Tuesday evenings and Saturday mornings. Aimed primarily at Cadets and Novices, they provide an opportunity for anyone wanting to sail with Patrol Boat cover. The sailing programme includes about a dozen cruises each year. The destination is often to the Isle of Wight to one of the several pubs near the shoreline. One of the cruises involves an overnight camp. This is very popular with Cadet members. In addition to the programmed cruises there is often a midweek cruise for our retired or non-working members.

A duty crew comprising an Officer of the Day, Deputy Officer of the Day, Driver and Crew for the Patrol Boat, a Tractor Driver plus three or four other members, runs each race. It is an important responsibility of Club membership that, five times per year, each member must attend as part of a duty crew. The only other significant responsibility concerns payment of fees (see Membership page).

The Club currently operates two RIBs (Rigid Inflatables Boats) with outboard motors which are used as Patrol Boats. The Club also owns a number of dinghies, which are primarily for training and encouraging new and novice sailors to develop their sailing, while building their confidence before purchasing their own boat. However, they are also available for occasional use by suitably qualified and/or experienced members for cruising and/or racing. Another major asset is the tractor, which is driven by trained members to assist with the launch and recovery of boats and enables club sailing at any state of the tide.

The Club is an RYA Training Centre. Training expenses are kept to a minimum by making full use of qualified members, and Club boats, as an integral part of our training programme. Each season, when free of pandemic restrictions, we run at least one Start Sailing/Basic Skills courses for beginners. This "Spring Course" is run over a couple of Tuesday evenings in May and then the late May Bank Holiday week. A "Summer Course" has been introduced more recently. It is run during school term times on Saturday mornings from mid June to the end of August. We also run at least one advanced course per year to enable our more experienced members to extend their skills and qualifications. The Club also trains its own Patrol Boat crews.

The Club does not have a "social-only" membership category. Nevertheless we have a busy social programme with activities being held about once a month. Past events include formal dinners, barbecues, skittle evenings, American suppers, and ploughman's lunches. Craft Corners and Coffee Mornings take place in the clubhouse most months. The bar is open on the first Tuesday and the first Sunday of each month in the evening and at lunchtime respectively. The bar also opens for social events and, usually, after sailing. The Club also competes with other local sailing clubs in darts and snooker competitions.

As boat space is at a premium, members are not allowed to berth multi-hulls or any dinghy with an overall length greater than 5 metres in the compound. Despite this a wide variety of traditional and modern designs are sailed including Mirror, Topaz, Laser (4.7 to Stratos), RS (Feva to 600), Wayfarer, and Blaze. At present, the most prolific class is the Laser.

Early in the 2024 season the Club is introducing a new way to get out onto the Solent - a Bursledon Gig (see images below). This type of rowing boat can be rowed by up to four people plus a cox, and is 15 feet long. To use the boat you would need to be a member of the Club.

Seafarers Sailing Club's landlord is Fareham Borough Council (FBC). Through its Management Committee, SSC works hard to maintain a good relationship with the Council and, more widely, to contribute positively to the local community. FBC has been kind enough to support our endeavours through the provision of grants and equally we have supported their Access All Areas (AAA) summer activities by offering a day of free sailing to local children. The Club also supports 'The Big Spring Beach Clean', a Surfers Against Sewage initiative, by encouraging participation in the annual Hill Head event and providing free refreshments.

The Club supports several charities. We invite RNLI representatives to the clubhouse on the evenings of our AGM and our Christmas Draw to sell Christmas cards and other gifts. Our Coffee Morning each September raises funds for Macmillan Cancer. Each September we hold a race to raise funds for the Bart's Bash Foundation. Additionally, each year we choose a specific charity to support. Charities supported this way have included 'Toe In The Water', 'SCaRF', 'Cash for Kids', and 'Wetwheels'. Our current Club charity is 'Hampshire and Isle of Wight Air Ambulance'.

Last updated 19:57 on 7 February 2024

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