Our river is increasingly becoming a dumping ground. This derelict houseboat was abandoned early last week on Hoo Island, adjacent to the Segas SC moorings, opposite Gillingham Marina. If you saw anything or have any information about where the boat came from or who owns it, please contact Paul.Cozens@PeelPorts.com.
Members of local sailing cubs are invited to join in the racing at MYC. As Autumn gets into gear and the less hardy look to laying up their boats for another winter the Cruisers and Racers have the Cruiser Class Autumn Series as a final hurrah before the season end.
This year’s series is going to be different to previous years with a mixture of longer and shorter races spread over 6 weeks starting on Sunday 24 October, The first two races (24 and 31 October) will be longer, starting at 09:30 with a time limit of 15:30 so make sure you allow for being on the water for most of the day. In a break from previous years these two races will start from the MYC Club line with courses from the 2021 MYC Cruiser Class Course Sheet. November’s races (7th, 14th, 21st & 28th) will be shorter in-river events starting at 09:30 and finishing from a Committee Boat.
No matter what sort of Cruising or Racing Yacht you sail there is a class for you to enjoy racing if your boat complies with ORC Cat 4 requirements and the MYC Minimum Equipment Level.
MYC intend to run 3 classes:
Class 1 for boats with a 2021 IRC Rating,
Class 2 for the less serious racers using the RYA NHC handicap system
Class 3 for the more cruising boats with no spinnakers also using RYA NHC Handicaps.
Visitors can be allocated a free mooring for the duration of the series and should contact the MYC Office on 01634 718399 for more information or contact the Cruiser Class Racing Captain on cruiser-racing@medwayyachtclub.com
Full details can be found in the MYC Yacht Racing page https://www.medwayyachtclub.com/boating/racing/keelboat-racing/yacht-racing/
You are invited to a Zoom webinar on Thursday 14 October at 19.00
Lt Cdr Rod Drake RNR RD will talk about the role of the NATO Shipping Centre in keeping merchant shipping safe.
It will start at 19.00 prompt and will last about one hour. Please click the link below to join the webinar:
https://us06web.zoom.us/j/91001098954
Sue and David Long
Cruising Association Kent Section Secretaries
Email: kent@theca.org.uk
An important “Head” rowing race will take place on Sunday 17 October, starting at Wouldham at 1pm and ending at Rochester.
A number of motor boats will be stationed along the route to marshal the racers. Other boaters please keep clear.
Sun Pier pontoon will be closed to river users for 3 weeks whilst repairs to the pontoon gate are completed.
Jetstream Tours will continue to run trips from the pier until 31 October.
Medway Council apologises for any inconvenience
The Kent & East Sussex Branch of the Inland Waterways Association
invite you to an open meeting on The RNLI.
Colin Brown is returning to give us the follow up to his excellent previous talk two years ago.
Thursday, 14 October 2021, 7.30 p.m. for 8.00 p.m.
at Strood Yacht Club, Knight Road, Strood, ME2 2AH.
All are welcome to attend whether IWA members or not, and we look forward to seeing you there.
In the event of any change in the Covid regulations necessitating the cancellation of the meeting, please check the IWAKES page on the IWA website before attending the meeting.
Please ensure your club or organisation is represented at our business meeting on Tuesday at 7pm. If you haven’t received an email with the Zoom link and the agenda and minutes from our June meeting, please contact us on info@msba.org.uk
Include in our meeting will be a presentation on Medway’s bid for City of Culture 2025.
This morning the huge, unprepossessing “accommodation barge” that has graced Rochester riverside for 8 years was towed away by GPS Marine to Upnor where it will be refitted. KentOnline reported that the vessel will be transformed into 400 “luxury” holiday apartments in Gibraltar by a mystery businessman.
Apparently, and not a lot of people know this, the barge is known as “Hillside” and was originally built for the Dutch navy. GPS has been maintaining the vessel since it arrived from Portsmouth where it was used by the Royal Navy for crews in the process of changing ships. It has three decks with air-conditioned rooms plus leisure and communal areas, including a bar, dance floor and had a cinema or lecture theatre.
Active Thames is a partnership programme to support the development of watersports on the tidal Thames and inland waterways in London, Kent and Essex.
The Active Thames Grant Fund, running from 20 September 2021-31 October 2022, is provided in response to findings from the recent Active Thames survey. We do not wish to be too prescriptive about sport, location or delivery, but the application should link to at least one of the objectives below:
Closing date for applications is 31 October 2021. For more information and how to apply, click here…