GUIDANCE FOR OFFICER OF THE DAY DUTIES
Introduction – As officer of the day (OOD) you will be the main club member on duty for our Wednesday evening or Saturday afternoon sailing sessions. As such you will be responsible for opening up the club house, deciding whether sailing can go ahead and if club boats are available for use, holding the radio and keeping watch on what is happening on the water and then closing up the clubhouse, if necessary, at the end of the session. Although you will be in charge during the session please remember that other club members will likely be around and all will be able to help or advise you as needed.
Access and Opening up – If you do not have a key to the clubhouse, then you can access through the boathouse and a key for the clubhouse can be found in the key safe which is on the door connecting the boathouse to the clubhouse. The code for the key safe will have been provided to you beforehand. If not you can contact Michael Dickie or Melanie Clark for the code. Once the door is open please return the key to the key safe. Once into the clubhouse the keys for the balcony doors and all the external padlocks can be found on a hook hanging above the water heater in the kitchen. You will then be able to open up the balcony doors and the door to the clubhouse. Open all the doors on the veranda, including in front of the kitchen, to make the club look open and let in the light. The club flags should also be put out, into the vertical sections of drainpipe along the promenade, and taken down afterwards.
Is Sailing Possible – You will need to check the current weather conditions once down at the club. Windguru, which is accessed from the club website, will show wind speeds and gusts. No club boats are allowed on the water if the wind speed exceeds force 3 or the sea conditions are deemed to be unsuitable. Force 3 is anything above 10 knots. Please do discuss this with the power boat helm on duty who will be able to help with the decision. You will need to ensure that there are sufficient people present who can help safely launch and recover the power boat.
If the wind and/or sea conditions mean that club boats cannot go out, there is no requirement for the power boat to go out on the water. This does not prevent members with their own boats going out sailing.
Power boat launch and recovery – it’s the responsibilities of all sailors wanting to sail to make themselves available to help with the launch and recovery of the power boat.
Use of Club boats – All members wishing to use a club boat should have made a booking and paid through the WebCollect system. A list will be made available for you. Please check if they have booked via Webcollect, if not they will need to fill in the form which is kept in the green Club Boat folder held in the office. There will also be a Club boat sign on sheet down in the clubhouse which should be filled in by all those taking out club boats during that session. This can also be used to check that all club boats have returned to shore at the end of the session.
Radio Ashore – You will be holding a hand held radio during the sailing session so you can keep in touch with the PB during the session. A crib sheet for the use of the radios will be available in the club house office, next to the radios. During the sailing session you will be responsible for watching the action on the water and the prevailing weather conditions. You have the authority to bring the sailing session to an early close if you and the power boat helm think this is appropriate. Then the power boat helm will advise all club boats to return to shore. While it is very unlikely that it will be needed, there is an emergency plan located on the noticeboard located within the clubhouse office which includes a list of useful telephone numbers.
The End – Once the sailing session has ended, all club boats have returned to shore and the power boat is back on the promenade, you can start to think about locking up the clubhouse. You may find however that sailors coming off the water will want to have a drink at the bar afterwards. Feel free to stay and join them, but if you do have to get away please ensure one of the Committee members (those who have keys to the clubhouse) will lock up the club house for you.