AGM, Prizegiving and End of Season Party

AGM, Prizegiving and End of Season Party - John Neale

Some 40 stalwarts turned out on a very crisp evening to attend the Club’s most important business meeting of the year and were rewarded upon entry to the delicious & heart warming aromas of mulled wine & goodies being prepared in the kitchen.

Our President George Bray, impressively attired in blazer & flannels, chaired the meeting which he opened at 20:00 with a welcoming address, followed by the Commodore, Nigel Knowles presenting his report in his usual efficient manner aided by computer controlled graphics projected onto a large screen to emphasise & support the various points he was making, oh, the wonders of modern technology !

Nigel was pleased to report that the Club is in good shape both numerically & physically, the latter following sustained efforts by Bodgit & Co in replacing the frontage windows, which necessitated much structural work, also refurbishment of the Start Hut and Safety Boat plus numerous smaller D.I.Y. Jobs. The regular work parties which are very well attended do much to keep the Clubhouse & surrounds in good shape.

Thanks to the influx of new & family members the club boats have been widely used with "senior" members providing support & tuition. Nigel said he was heartened by this & hopes the trend continues & expands, particularly among the young ones (cue for song). We now have 130 members comprising 68 Full members, 62 Family & Junior members, so we would like to see more on the water please! Shouts of Hear! Hear! were heard from Richard at this point.

On a down note, we had a burglary in November which caused damage to the Bosuns Hut & both the Bar & back doors plus loss of money & bar stocks. They even smashed open the pay phone in the lobby would you believe? This of course required repair work to be done, the installation of a new alarm & lighting system, and the introduction of a revised policy in the amounts of money left overnight on the premises.

On a happier note, we've had a good social year with several notable events including a live musical evening with Pat Halling & friends, a quiz night, a bowls tournament, a ladies night & the highlight of our "special year" the 60th anniversary party, concluding the years festivities with the Xmas dinner. Sincere thanks to all concerned in this most important aspect of Club life.

A word of warning however to all of us never to leave food & scraps around encouraging our little furry friends to come & party when we've gone home - please take heed!

Thus ended the Commodores Report, his last alas, for he is standing down having served us outstandingly well for the last 3 years, a point emphasised by the Chairman in his thanks to Nigel on his report & work for the Club, in recognition of which he (George) proposed that he (Nigel) be made an Honorary Member, which was approved wholeheartedly.

The next report was that of the Treasurer presented by Graham Thompson who supplied us all with 2 sheets of accounts & a sheet of multi coloured graphs which had us all spellbound.

However after explanations & words of wisdom he managed to convince us that whilst we were not yet broke, if we carried on with our intended "necessary works" spending spree (c/o Bodgit & Co) in order to support our ambitions & remain solvent, it would be necessary to have a small increase in fees.

As we haven't had any increases since 1997 & then only in berth fees it seems quite remarkable that we've managed to do so much without increases. This of course has only been achieved by Members D.I.Y. & prudent fiscal policies (Government please note!) and we are still the cheapest (& happiest ) club in the area.

The next item on the agenda was the election of officers, always a tense part of the proceedings, especially when some of the major players are standing down. It's then that people start to nervously look around stare intently at the floor for objects imagined dropped. However, I'm pleased to report that none of these tactics were necessary as Tony Hopkins valiantly stepped forward to offer himself as candidate for the office of Commodore & there being no others (surprise, surprise) was gratefully & swiftly voted & installed as such.

In his acceptance address, Tony said what a hard act Nigel would be to follow but with our support & forbearance he would endeavour to do so to which we all acclaimed Hear! Hear!

Another major office - that of Social Secretary was also up for grabs, unfortunately no one wanted to, so it was held over to be solved at a later date. Diane Carpenter was warmly thanked for all her work in this office during the last 5 years & will be sorely missed; another hard act to follow.

The rest of the existing officers were re-elected with the exception of Mike Chipps, who being both a T.W.A. & a keen new member was voted onto the Management Committee. See what happens when you don't attend!

There being no AOB. that completed the official business of the meeting so next came the "fun part". This started with the prize giving which as always was handled by our veteran Sailing Secretary Richard Cannon.

Richard was assisted by Cassie our new Commodores wife. Despite Richards best efforts at rigging & fixing, Graham Thompson still managed to haul in 4 trophies from 61 races which gave him 1st position. Next was Charles Dennis with just 1 trophy from 41 races & Roger Wheeler came 3rd, collecting 1 trophy from 50 races.

Hanna Lunniss did well to collect the Young Helm Cup and the Cundy Trophy (long distance race). Our past Commodore, Nigel Knowles also received 2 trophies, one of which, would you believe, was for the most improved helm, which just shows what perseverance can do and must give us all hope. This result came from 41 races & earned him 4th place.

Our new Commodore Tony Hopkins won the Laser Cup after 33 races & gained him 7th place. Mike Chipps was awarded the Water Rat trophy for most capsizes in the regatta whilst Bryan Clements, Richard Cannon, Peter Carpenter, Pat Halling, Cathy Bridger & Sarah Herbert each received an award of a Crystal Glass for various results / places over the year.

Richard was applauded for all the work he puts into the Club, not only as Sailing Secretary but for the many other duties he performs which are vital to its smooth running. The meeting heartily endorsed this vote of thanks.

Last but by no means least came the invitation to indulge ourselves---- in refreshments of course. The attendees, having sat patiently thro' the proceedings, whilst being assailed with lovely odours wafting from the kitchen, needed no second prompting to fall upon the tables laden with home made mince pies & many finger lickin goodies washed down with glasses of mulled wine all prepared by the lovely ladies of the kitchen (Joan Walkden, Mary Dennis, Linda Wheeler) with others helping ad hoc. Having sated ourselves & stripped the plates clean we bade one another farewell etc, etc & stepped out into a very cold night to make homeward tracks. Thus ended the 60th A.G.M. & well done to all who attended.

________________

I have to say John that if you ever want my job, writing for The Mainsheet, just say the word. You have ' the touch' my friend.

Mike Baker Editor