- Written by Secretary
It is with deepest regret that we will not be holding the GP and Euro Cup this weekend at Queen Mary Sailing Club.
We have been advised holding event will bring lots of people together for briefings and socials, however as it is due to "social distancing' Queen Mary will however be open to any people who wish to sail as people in boats do dot come into contact with one another.
We will be taking one event at a time and monitor how the situation with the Coronavirus at the time of the upcoming events.
Queen Mary Sailing Club are delighted with the amount of entries and have invited us back to visit them again when the wave of virus is over. We had an excellent training event at Queen Mary early spring and plan to go again.
Photo by Victoria Payne af the Queen Mary training, boat setup session.
- Written by Secretary
The Government has published an action plan to contain the possible spread of the virus.
This advises:
That there’s presently no rationale to close or cancel sporting events, but this may change as the situation evolves.
Anyone with flu-like symptoms should avoid the risk of spreading their infection, whatever that infection may be, by staying at home and recovering.
For those hosting sporting events, whatever their size, attendees and participants should stay up to date on the government’s latest advice on how to avoid catching or spreading the virus.
As the situation progresses we might advise the frail, elderly and those with pre-existing health conditions to stay away from gatherings as part of general advice aimed at minimising unnecessary contact with others.
For those travelling to sporting events overseas, the Foreign Office’s travel advice should be followed and travellers should note that apart from the countries and territories named in that advice, the government isn’t presently advising against travel to anywhere else.
For those who offer community and leisure services, such as running a local football team or running a gym, hand hygiene should be strongly promoted and encouraged and equipment and facilities should be thoroughly cleaned and wiped down as usual following use. The government is planning to publish specific advice on this shortly. Please use hand gels.
There’s presently no reason people should stop doing their daily sport and physical activities as they normally would.
As you are well aware, guidance may change in response to events, so please keep a close eye out for further advice.
The risk level is currently identified as moderate. Please use the following for information and advice, not social media:
- https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/coronavirus-covid-19/
- https://www.gov.uk/government/topical-events/coronavirus-covid-19-uk-government-response
- https://www.gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice
How likely are you to catch the virus?
- you can only catch it if you have been close to a person who has the virus
- the chance of being in contact with the virus is currently low in the UK
- if you have travelled to areas where many people are infected, your chance of catching the virus is higher, i.e. China, Northern Italy, Iran and any affected areas
Reducing risk of exposure:
All should
· know how to spot symptoms of the virus and watch for these in yourselves and your colleagues
· wash your hands for 20 seconds with hot water and soap more than regularly
· use tissues to blow your nose and make sure these are binned
· try not to touch your nose, eyes and mouth
· make sure your contact numbers and emergency contact details held by P&D are up to date
· if you start to feel unwell or develop any symptoms, you should contact NHS 111 for advice. Do not come to an event and avoid public transport
· if someone you have had contact with is medically diagnosed, stay at home.
Travel
· If you are planning to travel to an area that is not included in the category 1 or 2 areas/countries specified as having implications for travellers returning to the UK (see https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/covid-19-specified-countries-and-areas/covid-19-specified-countries-and-areas-with-implications-for-returning-travellers-or-visitors-arriving-in-the-uk) there is nothing particular you need to do on your return to this country. You need to check the specified countries regularly.
- Written by Secretary
Dear Member,
Happy New Year!
This being both my first letter to all members in my first ever role as Chairman I admit I find this process foreign. Firstly I feel I must thank you all for your support whilst I have been learning about the role, class expectations and whilst trying to put my own stamp on it at the same time.
I extend my thanks to you for your participation in the WASZP UK Class and your enthusiasm that is evident in that you find time to spend time in what I believe is the best boat in the best class!
I am writing to you on the turn of the year to try and keep you abreast of the situation of the WASZP UK Class and hopefully provide you with some information of what the class committee has been working on to support you. I along with a team of dedicated volunteers have been behind the scenes striving to push the class forwards in a positive direction on your behalf.
So far the committee has grown fairly organically and stems from the AGM held at the 2019 UK Nationals and currently consists of the following members:
Chair - Maxwell Todd
Secretary - Victoria Payne
Events Coordinator - Mellissa Welbourn-Hesp
Training Coordinator - Petrina Blomeley
The WASZP UK Product Distributor is Duncan Hepplewhite of Sailingfast.
We are still a relatively new and developing class both worldwide and also here in the UK, currently manufacture led. The WASZP ethos of and culture has over the past couple of years embraced sailing racing development with the WASZP Games and alignment with SAILGP. Our task to progress the WASZP UK Class ensuring both sides; those who want just a recreational fun sail and those who wish to take their sailing racing more seriously continue harmoniously. I do believe that we are lucky to have a community those extents to both ends of the spectrum. I have found that the only thing better than sailing the boat is doing so surrounded by others doing the same.
I personally have been striving to make sure that for you this year we have a full calendar of varying events that is spread throughout the country, this has not been my effort entirely and wish to thanks those that have been doing their bit in order to pull together a varied and exciting calendar.
Last autumn we successfully introduced a training programme to cater for all sailors from beginners to those wishing to further their racing development. These sessions take in venues across the UK with various top coaches and I’m pleased to say we have received very positive feedback so far from attendees.
We also have an exciting programme of GP events planned for 2020 incorporating workshops and of course the apres-sail!
However as with all sailing classes we have to have a buffer of funds to allow us to offer GPs, Training and event support etc. These funds come from our membership scheme, our training and event entry fees. We are also fortunate to have support from Zhik in the form of sponsorship for event prizes, Noble Marine for our insurances and Sailingfast.
With the New Year we find ourselves under pressure still as a relatively new and developing class to continue as we are without looking at new and innovative ways of raising money to support the class moving forward.
What we need:
- Proof of critical numbers at events for WASZP UK to secure top sailing locations.
- to incentivise all Waszp owners to join us and grow the class. (Of the 83 boats {sailors aged between circa 14-60 yrs} in the UK we only have 45 signed up as members of the UK Class.)
- to keep the class afloat financially
How we solve the problem of funding the class does not rest on you as members but as Chairman I would feel I had failed if I didn’t bring to your attention the need to continue to support the class. It would be a real shame if through lack of support/funds it led to the class no longer existing when having only just begun.
There are a number of costs involved so that the class can be operational in a legal fashion. I am very aware that the class is a business and although we don’t need to make millions, profit is one of the leaders to expansion and being able to provide you the sailors with more of what you enjoy moving forwards.
Following this comes the necessity to renew our class memberships and as such I felt that a call to arms to rejoin, as well as participate in class events as a means of showing your support, would help to sustain and move the class in a positive direction. You can join or renew your membership at https://www.waszp.org.uk/index.php/membership
One of the key factors I feel moving forwards for people to want to engage is seeing that there are active members and a circuit that people can engage with. We must ensure we are visible and market ourselves in the best way possible, however we need more of you to support turn up to events, as these are a key area in recouping some of the initial expenditures.
We are a fun and friendly class. I would encourage and ask of you as members of the class to market the class, tell your friends and colleagues and highlight that there is opportunity to enter the class, especially with the second-hand market opening up offering a less expensive route into the class.
Your opinions are valuable to us, this is your class and we welcome any ideas you may have to help us develop the class further. Please feel free to email me at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. with any suggestions.
With all this said about our activities inside the UK I hope some of you can support the Eurocup series and look forward to seeing you all in Garda again this year. It promises to be bigger and better and I hope that we as the UK can show up in good numbers to enjoy the sailing and festivities that come alongside being in such a magical environment.
I extend my thanks and gratitude to all our members of the committee that volunteer to work on the class’s behalf in their free hours outside of their own commitments.
Hopefully together we provide you with an environment where you all feel included and valued as well as getting value out of the class and can enjoy your sailing at all levels.
Yours Sincerely
Max Todd
WASZP UK Chair
- Written by Secretary
Coach Max then set up a cracking slalom course which kept us entertained for hours with the occasional flying fifteen fleet joining in the racing. The format is new to many of us so hitting the line foiling at full speed was the key to success, in addition to a heavy focus on hitting foiling gybes consistently. After a fun and productive three-hour session, Max hopped in a boat to show us how to do it, before everyone headed in for a well-earned hot drink, de-brief and video analysis of the highs and lows of the day!
We also enjoyed a brilliant meal as a squad thanks to WASZP UK Class and Parkstone Yacht Club which we were all extremely grateful for, followed by a chilled evening.
Sunday brought some less favourable conditions as the front that had dominated the forecast all week inevitably closed in. Although we weren’t quite brave enough for the conditions, we still had a very productive day since world class moth sailor, Josie Gliddon, joined us for the day. Josie brought interesting new insights into areas such as heel and trim as well as providing us with some Garda secrets before the Waszp Games in Malcesine next August.
A massive thank you on behalf of the WASZP UK class, to Parkstone Yacht Club for the wonderful hospitality, as well as Zhik and Noble Marine for supporting the class! Also of course, thank you to Max Todd for his usual enthusiasm and the time that he commits to the WASZP UK class which is helping us build a quality team environment that is a pleasure to be a part of. Finally, thank you to Josie for spending Sunday with us and sharing her expert analysis which was incredibly valuable and will hopefully help us towards our goal of the WASZP Games next summer! Before then, we are meeting for many more training weekends, the next one being held at Tata Steel Sailing Club, the Welsh Riviera, on the 4th and 5th of January.
