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SAILING & WINDSURFING Club in North London |
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FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
1. WHAT IF I HAVE MY OWN BOAT?Members can keep a boat or board here at the Harp, or can keep it at home and bring it to sail. In either case you must pay a licence fee. Boats must be of an accepted Welsh Harp class - GP14, Laser 1, Firefly or Topper. You must show evidence of 3rd Party insurance to the tune of £1 million. 2. WHEN CAN I SAIL?You can sail almost any time you want to within the bounds of common sense and safety. You are advised never to sail unless there is someone else around capable of effecting a rescue if needed. There are a small number of days (about 8 a year) designated as 'A' days (see dates) in our calendar of events. On these days NO SAILING CAN TAKE PLACE other than the scheduled event unless it is Zoned. Windsurfers may not sail on any Sunday before 1.30 pm, or on summer Wednesdays after 6.00pm. 3. WHAT ABOUT SAFETY?Safety-boat cover is provided whenever training or racing is going on. Our boat drivers are all RYA-qualified, as well as being locally trained in Welsh Harp conditions. Children must wear buoyancy aids at all times; adults are advised to. All our RYA-qualified instructors have been trained in First Aid. There is a First Aid kit in the club-house. There is a public phone on site for emergency calls. 4. DO YOU CATER FOR CHILDREN?We are part of the Harp Young Sailors (HYS) initiative run jointly by all the clubs. This runs most summer weekends outside the summer holidays on Saturday (beginners) OR Sunday (race training) for children aged 8-17. It has Optimists, Toppers, Picos and Lasers. See HYS for details. We also welcome children as part of families, but outside HYS cannot teach them on their own. 5. WHAT ABOUT HEALTH - WEIL'S DISEASE etc?The water in the Harp is regularly tested by the Environment Agency. There are, however, two specific health hazards members should be aware of: Weil's disease is a bacterial infection most usually transmitted through rat's urine. It enters the body through open cuts and grazes, or through the mouth, nose and eyes. It has flu-like symptoms, and, if treated in good time, responds well to antibiotics. There has been no reported case of it in the club. Blue/Green Algae is a problem especially during the summer months, when the weed can mass in large coloured patches. Despite media scares, there is little evidence that the algae is dangerous to humans, but it might cause skin irritation or sickness. Try and avoid any blue-green patches, and rinse algal deposits off your wetsuit at the outside cold-water shower before entering the clubhouse.
DO NOT WORRY UNDULY ABOUT THE ABOVE - JUST BE AWARE. 6. DO YOU ACCEPT OTHER SORTS OF BOATS, LIKE ENTERPRISES? No. Only a limited range of types of boats is allowed to sail on the Harp. This is because we wish to maintain our practice of class-racing, where boats only race against others of their own type. Keeping this restriction has led to large, healthy racing fleets of the classes that are allowed.
7. IS EQUIPMENT SAFE THERE? There is a locked under-cover area for windsurf rigs, and boards can be secured to our racks. Dinghy equipment is generally safe left with the boat, though you are advised to remove smaller items such as dagger-boards, tiller extensions and so on. Regrettably we do have instances of petty pilfering. 8. WHAT IF I CAN SAIL ALREADY?Experienced windsurfers and dinghy sailors are always very welcome. If you have your own boat or board, you are free to go sailing as soon as you have paid your dues. If you want to use club equipment, we will require you to demonstrate your competence - even if you are a National Champion! 9. CAN I KEEP MY GEAR THERE? Yes. Windsurfing rigs can be stored securely under cover. Regrettably we do not at the moment have lockers available for the storage of sailing clothing or smaller items of kit and rigging. 10. CAN I HIRE A BOAT OR BOARD?No - We are not a commercial facility in that sense. However members may book and take out club boats or boards, for which they have been checked out, whenever conditions are suitable. 11. WHEN IS THE BEST TIME TO COME AND SEE YOU?You should find someone at the club on:
You may find people there at other times - it's a bit pot luck depending on whim and weather. 12. CAN I LEARN TO SAIL AT ANY TIME OF YEAR?Our regular free training only takes place on Thursday evenings between mid-April and mid-September. Outside these dates, both in summer and during the autumn, we run occasional RYA courses in windsurfing and dinghy sailing. Sometimes our instructors will be willing to make individual arrangements. 13. HOW LONG DOES TRAINING TAKE?It depends a lot on whether you have sailed before, how easily you pick it up, and how much time you are able to make for training. Complete beginners who start training at the beginning of the season (mid-April), who attend regularly on Thursdays and who also spend some time on Saturdays or Sundays gaining crewing experience will usually be checked out during the summer. If you are able to attend only occasionally, it will clearly take longer. In these circumstances you may wish to sign on for one of our RYA Level Two courses, which take place over weekends and are a more intensive fast-track means of learning. Time and lessons alone, though, will not necessarily make you competent. 14. WHAT CLOTHES /KIT DO I NEED FOR INITIAL TRAINING?It depends on the weather, but you should always count on the possibility of getting wet! Dinghy sailors should bring old shoes (trainer-type), shorts/trousers and shirt or top. If it is cold or windy, a windproof jacket is also a good idea. We do have wetsuits available, but they are not generally needed for dinghy training. Buoyancy aids are provided and must be worn. Windsurfers should likewise bring old trainer-type shoes, plus swimming costume and towel. We will loan you a wetsuit and buoyancy aid. 15. CAN MEMBERS BRING GUESTS?Members may bring guests on an occasional basis. Guests, however competent, may not use club boards or helm club boats (this is for insurance purposes). They may use members' private boards and helm members' own boats. Guests must be signed in (in the guest book) by the accompanying member - who will be responsible for the guest's compliance with club and site rules and bye-laws. Guests must not be left on the site unaccompanied. If guests wish to enjoy the facilities on a more frequent basis, they are welcome to join the club. 16. ARE DAY-SAILING TICKETS AVAILABLE?No. We are not a commercial centre. We have no paid staff on site. |
