South Bank Sailing Club Blog

Last Updated 12/8/21   The committee meet regularly to review the RYA and Government Covid-19 guidance as the situation develops. Updates will be communicated to the club before any sailing activities. We currently require any visitors to check-in by scanning our QR Code with your NHS Covid-19 App, or manually signing in with your contact details outside the clubhouse. Members are asked to observe social distancing and wash their hands / use the hand sanitizer gel provided.

How can sailors pass half a month stuck in their homes? At Jerome’s urging, we set out to cross the virtual Atlantic in “Sailaway – The Sailing Simulator” The game runs 24/7 – so when you’re awake and your computer is on, you can trim your sails and watch the weather. But when you’re busy, out or asleep, you must rely on careful planning and a very rudimentary autopilot if you don’t want to fall behind! After a number of two-day practice races, Gary, Henry, Jerome, Joe, Mike, Peter and Tracey all set off from Birmore Island, Ireland, to Gull Island, Newfoundland at 8pm on the 21st April. The group had chosen to use everyday 38-foot pleasure cruisers for the race rather than high performance racing yachts. These do around 6kts in average conditions, and can edge up against 9kts in extreme conditions, so 1660 NM was going to be a long sail. A first few days on a gentle run saw the fleet diverge, perhaps due to differing interpretations of the need to navigate a great circle. J...