Sailing Group
| Leader | Judith Hankey (Southampton U3A) |
| Venue | Sailing is out of Gosport |
The SAILING GROUP, led by Southampton U3A, is now up and running -- or, should we say 'sailing'?
To date, at least 3 Solent U3A members have joined this Group & have experienced thoroughly enjoyable times on the water.
Judith Hankey of Southampton U3A is the Group Leader who, together with her husband, are experienced sailors qualified to teach novices and others with little sailing time. Although it is a Southampton U3A Group, sailing is out of Gosport in the summer time while dabbling in the theory in the winter months!
If you are interested in joining this Group you can send an email by clicking Judith Hankey. You will be made most welcome.
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U3A AFLOAT ON THE SOLENT
I am one of the Solent Members who has joined the new combined U3A Sailing Group. As the day for my first sail with the new sailing group approached, I admit to having looked forward to it with excited anticipation and I was not disappointed. I have always loved ‘messing about in boats’ of any kind and have not had the opportunity to sail since moving to the Solent area, so was delighted when this opportunity presented itself.
On arriving at Haslar Marina I parked the car in the car park, then went to collect a free ‘crew pass’ from the office to display inside the car windscreen before making my way down the boardwalk to the awaiting yacht. The skipper and the rest of the crew were already aboard Spellbinder when I arrived, so introductions were effected. We were then shown various equipment and appropriate use of same. After our safety briefing we were kitted out with life jackets before setting sail.
We motored out of the harbour and, once clear, the mainsail was hoisted and I was set to work on the ropes to haul up the jib. It was a lovely sunny day with just the right amount of wind for a good sail. We sailed out past one of the forts in the Solent and picked up a mooring buoy outside Langstone Harbour, where we ate our lunch which we had brought with us. We were then shown the knots we would need to become familiar with, if we were not already conversant with them, and given a chance to practise them. (Unfortunately I was not able to join the first sailing with the group who sailed to Bembridge on the Isle of Wight and back.)
During the course of the day we all had the opportunity to be involved as much or as little as we wished, with helming being the most popular activity of the day! Tacking and gybing were practised and we were also shown how to manoeuvre the boat for a ‘man overboard’ eventuality. We eventually returned to the Marina and got the boat ‘ship shape’ again ready for the next users. I certainly returned home tired but happy and I am sure all the crew slept very well that night! Now I am looking forward to the next time … anyone want to join me?
KATHY KANJI