It has been a while since last chatting, but, guess what CAROL’S CHRISTMAS WEDNESDAY is happening on 12th DECEMBER, ie in two weeks time. Time to dress yourselves, dress your boat and come down to have a fun evening: Hopefully the weather will be kind to us ??? Hans Dettman, myself and Pam Featherstone will be on bridge. Rob Main Baillie will be entertaining us and Hopefully Santa and his helper will be in attendance. Our faithful staff will there to feed and water us – so regardless of the weather, Please be there as I am relocating to the Western Cape in the New Year so will be saying goodbye to Royal Natal Yacht Club and all that entails.
May I ask that you bring a small gift for a child in hospital, (last year I went to King Edward, and I would like to do the same again). It doesn’t have to be expensive – it’s the thought that counts. There will be a box in the lower deck to place gifts in. RNYC are hosting Xmas regatta over 15 – 17th December which I will be involved in, thereafter I am hoping to Cape Town for Christmas and family time. I would like to wish everyone ”Happy Holidays”; wherever you go – drive safe; sail safe; it has been an honour to be part of RNYC. Yours in sailing Christmas Carol
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December:
Wed 12th RNYC Wednesday Night Fun’d Sailing Fri 14th WOZA Friday Sat 15th-Mon 17th Flying Fifteen Season Refresher Sun 23rd RNYC Offshore - Impromptu Race January: Sat 05th FF/Dinghy Racing Sun 06th Offshore Summer Series Wed 09th RNYC Wednesday Night Fun’d Sailing Fri 11th WOZA Friday Sat 12th FF/Dinghy Racing Sat 26th FF/Dinghy Racing Sun 27th RNYC Offshore - Squadron Series Pacer Team Sailing/Racing - EVERY Saturday Pacer Ladies Twilight Sailing - EVERY Tuesday Please Note: Pacer Sailing is weather dependant, and will be rescheduled to a day with more favourable conditions if need be. On Friday 21st December, we are hosting an exclusive members Christmas cocktail party.
The special occasion? An unveiling of history! Two items from the triumphant Lord Admiral Horatio Nelson’s HMS Victory from the Battle of Trafalgar, which took place over 213 years ago. The cocktail party will be held in The Trafalgar Room, adorned with festive Christmas decorations, a delectable cocktail made from Distillery 031’s new Scarlet Gin will be waiting for you on arrival, as well as soothing sounds from a live band, and scrumptious snacks to go around! An excerpt from our Trafalgar Dinner Article below dives more into detail of the copper ingot to be unveiled: As an accomplished adventurer and experienced yachtsman Ralf had his fellow members spellbound as he weaved his exploits and experiences around those of Lord Nelson and the Battle of Trafalgar without any mention of either. Just as suddenly as Lord Nelson was struck down in the final stages of the great battle Ralf produced a piece of HMS Victory which was then passed around the room with everyone holding a piece of history in their hand and the realisation of the significance of this event which occurred on this very day 213 years ago dawned. The artefact, a copper ingot, which Dr Dominick kindly donated to the Club to be used to raise money for the club’s charity fund raising initiative was taken from the hull of HMS Victory and sold off to fund the ongoing preservation of this magnificent battleship. Very quickly a group of members under the direction of Messrs Brodie and King formed a syndicate to purchase the ingot on behalf of the Club and outbid any other potential purchasers. In a short space of time the syndicate raised the sum of R 17 500 which is to be added to the Club’s fund raising initiative for the Highway Hospice. Through the generosity of those assembled we are delighted that Dr Dominick’s generous donation will remain in the Club and will now be placed on permanent exhibition in the Trafalgar Room for the admiration and appreciation of future generations. Such is the calibre of club members, and Dr Dominick concluded his presentation with a robust toast to the Club and her members which was enthusiastically taken up by those assembled. The fun starts from 18h30. All RNYC members are encouraged and welcome to join! Dress Code: Smart Casual, Charge: None - cash bar available. Dinner available in The Britannia Room after the event. Event Reminder: New Years Eve Party Monday 31st December The Lowerdeck & Ndongeni Lawns: DJ Rob Main-Baillie R150.00 gets you a braai mean and snacks For catering purposes, please let us know if you are joining us by Tuesday 27th December The Britannia Room: We have an exciting menu in the works, watch this space! Last week we wanted to warn arriving international boats of 6 metre swells and 40 knot north easterly winds at entrance to Durban harbour. The harbour was closed due to dangerous sea conditions and we were aware that 3 yachts were on approach. RNYC Member Roy Cook wanted to warn these boats but was unable to reach them via email. He then went to one of the Oyster boats that had already docked in Durban Marina and had SAT phone ability to ask for their assistance. Unfortunately the boats at sea didn’t answer their phones. Roy then got in his car and drove up the coast to Umhlanga and used a hand-held VHF radio on channel 16 to call the boats. The Port Tower also responded to the call and all changed to channel 6 and managed to get the message through to the skippers of the dangers of entering the harbour.
The co-ordinator for the Oyster Fleet, Regine Watts, joined Roy Cook and they drove to the beachfront at Ushaka Marine where they instructed the skippers to line up with the fairway buoy and the sector lights and approach under power. All boats made a safe entry and Roy and Regine then drove back into harbour and directed them from one of the piers to safe anchorage within the harbour. Just goes to show that the old radio technology still has its place in the modern world. The party will be held in the Foredeck Room / Ndongeni Lawns at our Clubhouse on Monday 17th December 2018 from 12h00 - 16h00.
We ask that you drop off a wrapped present for your child by Sunday 16th December. The party has no entry fee, however we do ask that presents are within the same price range and cost no more than R100.00. When making a booking, we require the names of the children attending, as well as at least one guardian’s name and contact number. There will be a “Father Christmas” and “Christmas Fairy” to hand out the presents to the children, as well as various games and activities. The event is festive and fun and your kiddies are encouraged to bring along friends! Dear Members,
As is customary at this time of year I am writing to ask you to show your usual generous appreciation towards our staff. Feedback from members and reciprocal guests about how welcoming and helpful the staff are continues to be extremely positive. We have seen some staff changes over the year and we remain indebted to all our employees who have continued to look after us so well, enabling us to enjoy our membership with high standards of service and food that we may occasionally take for granted. In line with our Club constitution, their remuneration does not benefit from conventional service charges or tips and so through the Grats Fund we are able to recognise their contribution in a practical and tangible way. It is paid out before Christmas and in the New Year to all members of staff other than the senior managers Last year’s Staff Fund was generous and I’m sure you will wish to reward our staff similarly this year. Donations can be made by credit card or charged to your account. Per our custom we have placed white boxes with donation slips on the bar counters and you can fill in and drop the slips into the boxes. I would suggest that a donation of up to 10% of annual expenditure in the Club is a reasonable benchmark. This is a good opportunity to remind you that our Facebook page ( @RNYCDurban ) has details of events occurring in the run up to Christmas and into 2019. A reminder that the annual Kiddies Christmas Party is on Monday, 17th December and we are hosting a Cocktail Party in Trafalgar Room on Friday, 21st December. Please keep an eye on our website and Facebook pages for opening hours during the holiday season. Thank you for your continued support and generosity to our staff whom I thank for their continued commitment and service during the past twelve months. May I wish you all a very Happy Christmas and I hope to see many of you at Club events in 2019. With best wishes, Jeremy Kriek Vice Commodore MASTER MARINERS RECOGNITION FOR SOUTH AFRICA’S TOP SALVAGE MASTER CAPT. NICK SLOANE
Faced with a reluctance by the South African state to grant any sort of official recognition of the achievements of South African salvage master Captain Nick Sloane in leading the team that raised the capsized cruise ship COSTA CONCORDIA, the Society of Master Mariners South Africa decided to initiate a unique gold medal as its highest honour to a fellow mariner. The gold medal was awarded to Capt Sloane in the presence of a large group of international salvage delegates attending the International Salvage Union’s AGM that was being held in the Table Bay Hotel in Cape Town on the evening of 23 October 2018. In making the presentation the Society’s President, Capt Rob Whitehead, told those assembled that, as a result of the state’s reluctance to recognise the significant achievement and international recognition generated by Captain Sloane’s leadership in the successful salvage of the Costa Concordia, the Society had created this gold medal award as its highest honour to a fellow mariner. The laid down criteria for making the award is as follows: “Certificated Master Mariner or Deck Officer who, by an exceptional action, has brought the highest honour to our profession by him or her exercising the pinnacle of marine skills acquired as a result of their qualifications and experience”. Full marks to the Society for taking the lead in granting this overdue recognition of a true South African hero and an example to old and young alike. That a South African was chosen to lead the international team that successfully raised and refloated the cruise ship is a factor that should never have been overlooked and does no credit to those in the South Africa government and state organisation that deliberately or otherwise neglected this. Source and full article: https://africaports.co.za/#33 In South Africa, Remembrance Day commemoration ceremonies are usually held on the nearest Sunday, to the 11th day of the 11th month, at which the "Last Post" is played by a bugler followed by the observation of a two-minute silence. Remembrance Day services are held to honour those who were lost in the two World Wars.
As with all families, our Club had a number of losses from the war, namely; Major George O Edwards, D.S.O., Mr F E Newman, and Mr J Thompson, Sir Marshall Campbell, Captain Stuart, Mr H Cullingworth, and Mr Beresford Smyly. Our Club will be holding a ceremony on Sunday, 11th November, from 10:30am. All are welcome to join. Below is an excerpt that sheds light on the significance of the two-minute silence held during the ceremony: It was the proposal by Sir Percy Fitzpatrick, well-known South African philanthropist, author and politician, which was acted upon. Fitzpatrick had been deeply affected by the loss of his son, Nugent, in France in December 1917. In commemoration of the Armistice, he appealed to King George V for a two-minute pause to be observed annually throughout the Empire at the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month: one minute in remembrance of the fallen in war; and one minute in gratitude for those who survived. Fitzpatrick had access to the King, who was moved by the idea. The official call of the King was published in the Sunday Times on 7 November 1919 and read as follows: THE GLORIOUS DEAD King's call to his people Armistice Day Observance Two minutes' pause from work The King invites all his people to join him in a special celebration of the anniversary of the cessation of war as set forth in the following message: “To all my people Buckingham Palace Tuesday next, November 11, is the first anniversary of the Armistice, which stayed the world-wide carnage of the four preceding years and marked the victory of Right and Freedom. I believe that my people in every part of the Empire fervently wish to perpetuate the memory of the Great Deliverance, and of those who laid down their lives to achieve it. To afford an opportunity for the universal expression of this feeling it is my desire and hope at the hour when the armistice came into force, the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month, there may be, for the brief space of two minutes, a complete suspension of all normal activities. During that time, except in rare cases where this may be impracticable, all work, all sound, and all locomotion should cease, so that, in perfect silence, the thoughts of everyone may be concentrated on reverent remembrance of the Glorious Dead. No elaborate organisation appears necessary. At a given signal, which can easily be arranged to suit the circumstance of each locality, I believe that we shall gladly interrupt our business and pleasure, whatever it may be, and unite in this simple service of silent remembrance.” George R I Source:Why we should observe Remembrance Day in South Africa, Allan Sinclair, 08/11/2015, http://www.theheritageportal.co.za/article/why-we-should-observe-remembrance-day-south-africa A message from Rear Commodore Andy Brown regarding the Ndongeni Lawns Boat Parking, as stated in the The House rules:
Bona fide members in good standing may, on application to the General Committee, be granted permission to park their dinghy on the Ndongeni Lawns subject to space limitations; subject to the payment of the prevailing parking fee; and in terms of the prevailing boat parking rules. All vessels parked on the lawns shall, at all times, be in a seaworthy condition and must be launched at least once a month. All vessels parked on the Ndongeni Lawns shall be stored under a canvas cover which shall be in good repair and all boats shall be stored in an orderly fashion within the designated parking area. Slapping rigging and halyards are strictly forbidden. Any vessel failing to meet these requirements or failing to display a valid current parking disc shall be removed from the Ndongeni Lawns without reference to the owner and at the owner’s cost. Mr Brodie is one of our first members to have surpassed his own Movember Challenge. He has already been sponsored an amazing R900.00! And so a new challenge arises for all Movember men to best this.
A reminder of the Movember pledge challenge: We encourage our men-folk to support our cancer fund raising drive by growing a moustache. For an entry fee of R 500.00, we encourage you to participate in this drive to benefit Highway Hospice. Then on Friday 30 November at our monthly draw, a competition will be held for all participants to determine who has the most impressive moustache. The winner will be awarded with a club voucher to the value of R 2,000.00. Please accept this challenge and let's have some fun. Shaneé and the fundraising committee will be approaching you all for a commitment to accept this challenge. Send us your 'before' and 'after' photos for our Facebook album. (@RNYCDurban) |
AuthorThe Royal Natal Yacht Club is the oldest yacht and sports Club in Africa and the oldest yacht club in the southern hemisphere. Read our Newsletter to find out more! Archives
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