Medway and Swale Boating Association
The voice of boating on the tidal Medway and Swale
Statistics from RNLI Sheerness for 2016:
Promotional Clip for Medway Sunlight Rotary Dragon Boat Challenge and The Food Festival. The festival takes place on St Mary’s Island Chatham from 27 to 29 May. The Dragonboat Challenge takes place on Sunday 28 May.
A maximum of 30 teams can participate and MSRC currently have 9 firm bookings and 14 expressions of interest so don’t delay. Last year the event raised over £12,000 for charity and they hope to exceed that figure this year. If you would like to enter a team contact Allan Smith on 07956 452331 or email dragonboat@medwaysunlightrotary.org.uk or visit www.medwaysunlightrotary.org.uk.
Weather permitting, on Wednesday at 0900, two more buildings (the dust precipatators) will be blown up. The 198 metre high chimney will be demolished before the end of this year.
Clifford Mickleburgh on DAWN OWL with Charlie on a whistle-stop tour of Europe from the Netherlands north to Copenhagen and then south through the Kiel Canal, Frisian Islands and the European rivers and canals to Switzerland and back down the Rhine through Germany to Friesland in the Netherlands. Find out about the boat lifts and the inclined planes!
Non CA members are welcome. There is a charge of £3 for the talk, which starts at 8pm. The pub offers a special menu for these events so come to eat at 7pm. Call the Dog and Bear, Lenham, on 01622 858219 by 5pm to book your meal.
Please make sure your club or organisation is represented at our next quartely business meeting on Tuesday 28 March, 7pm, at Upnor Sailing Club. Agenda and minutes will be going out by email. The Battle of Medway (Dutch Raid) 350th anniversary commemoration in June will be discussed. This will be the biggest event on the river for many years. We will also have a short presentation by Tom Clegg from the Kent and Essex Inshore Fisheries and Conservation Authority regarding the no-take zone on the Medway. See you there!
Derek Zobel of Wilsonian SC asked us to share details of the Icom Regatta pack as advertised in RYA Wavelength publication – Annual review 2016 – page 17. This is suitable for clubs that wish to provide regatta officials with handheld VHF radios for an event.
If you have, or intend to use either a fixed VHF radio on a boat, or even a handheld one, then you must have a licence to use them. Hoo Ness Yacht Club is offering a one day VHF course on 1 April for members and non-members. The course will include tuition, assessment and submission for the successful applicants’ licence at no extra cost. The 2017 cost for the study packs which the RYA charges to its training centres is not yet known but the total cost to participants is expected to be around £140.
For more information please email Barry Gardiner bgard(at)clara.net as soon as possible.
Medway Yacht Club is holding a Marine Radio Short Range course on Saturday 15 April. This course is for anyone who owns a fixed or handheld marine VHF radio. The Short Range Certificate is the minimum qualification required by law to control the operation of VHF and VHF Digital Selective Calling (DSC) equipment on any British flagged vessel voluntarily fitted with a …radio either fixed or hand held.
Price for Non Members £75. Additional fee payable on the day for RYA Certificate £60. Instructor: John Gore. Call MYC to book on 01634 718399
Contractors working on behalf of the Environment Agency have discovered a major structural issue with a large section of lock wall behind the left-hand tail lock gate. This entire section of the lock now requires a complete demolition and full rebuild. This unforeseen work will take a further 12 weeks to complete. It is therefore anticipated that the lock will remain closed until the end of June 2017.
For more detailed information from MRUA see Reply.
For essential maintenance, Kingsferry Bridge will not be lifted on Tuesday 21st March 2017 between 07:45 and 15:12.