The Rhumb Line #3
June 23 2021
I’ll start this edition with some fitted dinghy news. Did you know that the RHADC Commodore is also the Chairman of The Bermuda Fitted Dinghy Association? The entire raison d’être for our club is the pursuit of fitted dinghy racing, the clue is in the name and it’s enshrined in our rules. Many past and present Flag Officers have “served their time” on our little red boat along with countless crew over the years. It’s a huge commitment and it requires significant effort to get all four boats from RBYC, St. Georges Dinghy & Sports Club, Sandys Boat Club and ourselves on the start line to keep this quintessential Bermuda nautical tradition alive.
We are very pleased this year, under the guidance of Rear Commodore Roger Beach, to have a relatively young crew made up of junior coaches, students and alumni of our Junior Sailing Program. So far, results haven been encouraging, and on Sunday in Mangrove Bay they notched their first win of the season. All results are posted on the RHADC website and linked to Facebook. The schedule is also there, and if you can, get out and support the Elizabeth II crew.
News from around The Club: As you no doubt are aware by now, we are thrilled to announce that Andrew Lake has joined us as Dockmaster. He’ll be available at dockmaster@rhadc.bm and we’re excited to see him get to grips with the marina. And not a moment too soon because we will begin to see a trickle of visiting yachts this Summer. So as you are about The Club please ensure our guests are welcomed in the usual RHADC style!
The long awaited Junior Member’s Lounge (the former snooker room) will be open from July 1st, and will be a great hang out, with TV, WiFi and ping-pong available, for our younger members.
Sailing News: The school term programs are now over and we have a brief respite before the Summer Camp Program begins. We’re pleased to say the program is full this Summer with only a waitlist now available. Adult sailing is a growing feature of the sailing program, if you want to learn how to sail or get more confident helming a boat, contact sailing@rhadc.bm.
The RS21 “taster day” is scheduled for this Saturday, 26th June, and we encourage all with an interest in sailing these high performance boats to come and join the fun. Email the sailing team for details and availability.
In Junior sailing we are delighted to report that two of our young sailors are heading to Italy with the Bermuda team to compete in the Optimist World Championships. We’re very proud of them, and indeed the rest of the team. Best wishes to Kipling Rossouw and Ethan Thompson. We know they’ll represent Bermuda and RHADC well.
A tiny bit of housekeeping, especially as we move towards more boating and use of the marina through the Summer. If you and your guests come ashore and find the bins full to overflowing, please either use the dumpster or take your trash home rather than add to the mess in a very busy junior sailing area.
And finally, we are delighted to see The Club busy on a regular basis after a rough 18 months through the COVID pandemic. Please adhere to staff instructions regarding mask wearing and congregating around the property, and please make reservations to avoid disappointments! Keep your eyes on the weekly “What’s Happening” for detail on what’s going on around The Club.
Fair winds,
Neil Redburn
Commodore