My diary entry for 1st December ” Rutland Civil Service Sailing Club Committee Meeting” Our boats have been put to bed for the Winter and will next sail 1 April 2020 – put that date in your diary. Being the first day of Winter, I imagined it might be a relatively quiet day at Rutland
How wrong can you be. I travelled with my sailing buddy Mike Threadgill and was looking forward to catching up with the rest of sailing friends on the Rutland Civil Service Sailing Club (RCSSC) committee. It was also my final meeting as a full time committee member after a lot of years, having decided to step back and make space for others to get involved. So, it was with mixed feelings.
However, after all the rain, the weather put on a great show, despite being the first day of metrological Winter. The Sun shone, the skies were clear blue and there was a good breeze – though it was fresh. I thought it would be nice to see Rutland Water and RSC on a day like this and I wasn’t disappointed.
What I never expected was a packed car park, a row of Camper vans parked outside the gate and, it seemed like, hundreds of sailing dinghies and young folks wrapped up in dry over coats etc to keep warm as they rigged their boats. The place was full of fun and life. Wonderful.
We used the Training Room for our meeting which happens to overlook Rutland Water, so as good as our meeting was (and it really was) it was easy to let our eyes drift off towards the water seeing scores of 29ers launch and sailing off to enjoy a days racing on Rutland Water in super conditions.
What a meeting to finish my time on the committee. Full of energy, enthusiasm, positive and energetic – sooooo tempted to change my mind. With Club Captain Chris Peck and this positive atmosphere the meeting tackled the agenda, celebrating success and already looking forward to 2020 season and of course, our AGM in January 20. I leave our Club Captain to make the announcements. Thanks for the kind words folks, like every member, you don’t have to be on the committee to support the club, I’ll be around if required.
Delighted to see our friend John who, despite a recent very bad fall, got himself to the meeting and, as usual, contributed 110% A good friend to us all and inspiration to myself and others in our club.
The meeting finished early and we adjourned to the bar which was now beautifully laid out for the Cruiser Fleet Christmas Meal – RCSSC is proud to be a member of the Cruiser Fleet and it was good to meet folks ‘ashore’ rather than sailing by. Myself, Christine Peck and Mike Threadgill were made very welcome and the conversation flowed. The food was again second to none – well done Nick and Caroline our caterers. Somehow they served a hoard of hungry 29ers and a large Christmas Lunch group at the same time. They deserve a long rest this coming week. So glad we found them.
Looking back on the day, after all the rain, mist and cold this bright blue day, full of friends and life it really was Winter Warmer Tonic. So glad I made the effort to be there.