I’ve had a very busy month, which culminated in the first-ever RYA Connected conference which took place at Taunton Racecourse on 04 November. It was attended by over 120 people from clubs, Training Centres, class associations and Sailability groups in the region, from Gloucestershire to Cornwall.
RYA Connected events
The busy conference was definitely a success, and we hope that the other RYA regions get as much out of their Connected conferences as our delegates did.
To keep the momentum going, there will be more RYA Connected events throughout the winter, including Monday webinars, drop-in 45-minute Connect Calls and local in-person events for further networking. You can find details of all these on the Connected page of the RYA website and add filters to home in on the kind of event you’re looking for. Check in regularly, as events are being added all the time.
Look out, too, for the new Connected monthly newsletter which replaces Clubroom, and workshops at the Dinghy & Watersports Show on 24-25 February 2024.
If you’d like to host a local in-person event, please contact me and I’ll organise it.
Inspections
As you know, the inspection year runs to April, so you have until 31 March 2024 to have your club inspection for the 23/24 year. If you haven’t organised it yet, we do realise it may be that your inspection will not include water activity as we’re into the winter months. However, it’s still an opportunity to get technical advice and support as well as ensuring that your club meets the necessary standards, and it will be very helpful as you plan for next season.
Please can you book the inspection by the first week of December so that I have a record of it, because the 24/25 inspections allocations will be sent out in February, and there is a chance of confusion if you leave it until very close to the next inspection year.
If you have any problems with organising your inspection, or you can’t match dates with your inspector, please let me know as soon as possible and I’ll sort it out!
Junior racing news from Regional Performance Manager, Duncan West
It was really good to see so many of you at the RYA Connected conference, and I hope it gave you lots of ideas about next year’s activity.
Now is the time to plan for winter talks, reviewing the rules, sail tuning etc. Let me know if you need any help and advice with this.
RDO Rob Howlett
07876 330374
rob.howlett@rya.org.uk