| Youth Week (Survival) Guide 2013 |
Essential
Bring plenty of spare clothes
Come prepared to work and play hard
Be prepared to have lots of fun
Don't plan much for the next week - you'll need to sleep! |
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| Introduction |
| What follows is a very useful guide to Youth Week; essential reading to ensure maximum fun, based on the principal of smarter not harder. There is a lot to do and help with but if we get it right a good time will be had by all. You can download this guide from the download page. |
| Youth Week aims to ensure that the children have fun on the water and through fun, build confidence and ability. It is a family event and its success depends on the participation and help from all parents, aunts, uncles and grandparents. |
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| If the last few years are anything to go by there is going to be an awful lot of us at the Royal Southern during Youth Week. |
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| Hopefully the details in this booklet will help everyone sort out some of the administrative, domestic and organisational minefields. Many of the items are the same as in previous years however, in some key areas things have moved on and so you will need to spend a little time reading this. |
The first day will seem chaotic. No one will be sure where they are supposed to be; it will take a long time to get going, children will be demanding action, parents will have questions, lunches will get lost, group leaders will get harassed, boat bits will go missing and so on.
Somehow by Tuesday morning everything will have slotted into place and the rest of the week will run like a well-oiled machine. |
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| General Organisation |
All the children will be allocated to groups depending on their age and ability. Groups usually consist of approximately 12 children, with 2 group leaders. These leaders will stay with the group all week.
Some activities will involve the group alone, for others they may join together with other groups. Groups will be colour coded and we will be using the tally system. This should help everyone recognize their leaders, identify their boats and trolleys and find where they are supposed to be. |
| Group Name |
Experience |
| Shrimps |
Children who are 6 and under and are learning to row |
| Turtles |
The very beginner sailors, this group is often sub-split by age |
| Minnows |
For those learning to tack to windward, around 8 years of age |
| Hawks |
For those who have mastered a beam reach sausage and are perfecting their windward sailing and gibing. Reached RYA Level 3 |
| Eagles |
Those moving onto racing and seamanship skills |
| Junior Cadets |
Aged 13-18 sailing in Lasers & Picos and SB3s. |
| Cadets |
Aged 18-21 sailing Lasers and SB3s as well as team racing |
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The Cadet & Junior Cadet section is split into three groups according to age and ability.
Group 1 is 18-21 year olds. Group 2 is 16-18 year olds. Group 3 is 13-16 year olds. |
It takes a long time to sort over 100 children and 80 adults into working groups. We may make mistakes. These can be rectified, but we would ask that everyone starts as allocated on Sunday to get the ball rolling.
If your child wishes to be in a group with a particular friend please let Ben Richards, or Natalie Gray - at the Royal Southern Yacht Club - know as soon as possible. No promises, but we will try to accommodate requests. |
Group lists will, hopefully, be posted on the Junior Room, Shower Block and Main Notice boards
We will not be publishing groups of names on the public website. |
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| Special Note for Parents and Helpers |
| We cannot stress enough the reliance we place on the enthusiastic support of you parents, helpers and other supporters. The more you put in, as they say, the more you will definitely get out of it. Just so that you are aware, there are a huge range of jobs available. |
Additional Note for Parents and Helpers of JC's
JC's are a very large group. It does require some parental support, particularly out on the water. Please let Karen know ASAP if you are not going to be able to support throughout the week.
Parents will be required to run a taxi service in the evenings. A rota will be posted for this. |
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| S.P.L.A.S.H. Flags |
At the start of a Splash Day, the flags spelling out SPLASH are hoisted on the Club Flagstaff.
This indicates that all adults are required to supervise all children. Adults are asked to supervise all children, not just their own, to issue discipline or praise where required.
When the day's events have finished - usually by 1900hrs - the SPLASH flags are lowered and normal parental control returns. |
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| Safety Issues |
| All children must wear suitable buoyancy aids or lifejackets whilst on or near the water, including on the pontoons. These must be correct for the weight of the child, and correctly fitted. |
| Please would all adults also wear buoyancy aids or lifejackets whilst afloat. |
| Sailing is an outdoor sport. If the weather is inclement, waterproof jackets and, ideally, wetsuits. |
| If the weather is good, sunhats and sun tan creams are a must. Let's hope for the latter. |
| In the interests of risk management, registration forms must have been completed in advance, leaders names and mobile numbers are required on the notice board and safety logs will be maintained. |
| Kill cords are required to be used at all times by all Rescue and Escort boats taking part in Splash week. |
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| The Briefings |
| There will be a briefing every morning,. Sometimes there will be full briefings involving everybody; sometimes they will be by group. Details of the next day's briefings will be posted on the Junior notice boards located at the bottom of the stairs to the showers and in the Junior Room by 7pm each evening. |
| There will be a leaders briefing at 8.00am on Monday 23rd, there will then be a group briefing at 08.30am prompt in the north dining room. Make sure that you all check the group lists and remember which group you are in - both adults and children. |
| Boats should be rigged before each briefing, and please remember those key safety points. The main sheet needs a figure of eight knot tied to stop the boom going out beyond 90 degrees, and the mast should be restrained so that it doesn't fall out if the boat inverts. |
| Everyone (grown ups too!) should be changed ready for sailing before the briefing, unless specifically instructed otherwise by his or her group leaders (they may, for example, be planning some shore training). We often go afloat straight after the briefings. |
| Getting 100 children afloat can take quite a while and it can slow the whole process down if one group member is 'still in the changing room'. We would also like parents to place pile lagging on the booms of the children's optimist, this will prevent any injuries. Andrew Woodhouse has spare lagging if needed. |
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| Lunches |
| These need to be packed separately for each member of the family. Groups do not always meet at the same venue for lunch. |
| Try and encourage your children to take responsibility for their own lunches - making sure that it is handed in to the correct group leader and goes on the correct escort boat. Adults may not be in the same group as their children. |
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| Fuel |
Since we have to monitor fuel costs closely those boats designated as escort, rescue, or safety will receive a contribution from the Splash funds towards their fuel at the end of the week.
If you are able to bring a boat with you to Splash Week please let Natalie Gray know in advance as this will help with planning, and also we can identify those who will have official escort, rescue or safety duties. |
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| The Day's Sailing Programme |
| What we are able to do depends on the weather and the number of suitable escort boats available. The programme has to be very flexible, the final decision on venues etc. only being taken each morning. |
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| Boats & Trailers |
| When the fleets are returning to the slip at the end of the days sailing it is imperative that we clear them from the slip as quickly as possible to make room for others following them in. Most of our sailors are not sufficiently competent to queue nicely, 'mill' around until there's a gap on the slip or prevent carnage as they career downwind towards the shore. |
| The children are, quite rightly, very proud of their boats and boats must be recovered on their trolleys, if they have them and not lifted out and dumped on the car park - this doesn't do the bottom of the boat a lot of good. |
| Colour coding will help the shore team identify trolleys, but, ideally, all trolleys should be marked clearly with the boats name and sail number. The best place for this is on the wheel or on the tyre in white paint. |
| This will help ensure that your Oppy ends up on your trolley at the end of each day. A quick reminder to turn your Tally number over on the board as soon as you as you get back safely ashore will help keep track of everyone too! |
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| At the End of the Sailing Day |
This is when the real work starts for all grown ups. We try to encourage the children to help pack up their own boats!!
The sort of help required: - |
Packing away optimists, washing hulls, rolling sails
Cleaning out safety and escort boats (don't leave this to your group leaders, who also have their own children and sailing dinghies to sort out, too)
Ensuring all gear is collected by children and adults
Ensuring lunch boxes are also collected
Returning the groups 'box' (for drinks, sweeties, first aid etc) for replenishing
Organizing litter pick up |
| There's plenty to do. If you are not sure what, please ask. We will soon give you a job. If every one helps, the sooner we are all finished. |
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| Showers |
| We organise a shower rota to ensure that the showers (boys and girls) are left clean and tidy. Mops and buckets available and a different sailing group is responsible for them each day. |
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| Teas & Catering |
| The charge for tea is included in the price of Splash Week. A typical tea consists of sausage, mash and beans, or cottage pie with peas and carrots, or roast chicken, potatoes and vegetables, followed by ice cream and washed down with plenty of squash, water or lemonade. |
All Splashers tend to stay for tea and it gives the kitchen certainty for their catering numbers.
The teas are served in the Splash dining room. |
Tea is usually served at 1700. Again it's a self-help affair. Mums and Dads etc. are required as waitresses and waiters, purveyors of orange squash, 'mopper uppers' and monitors of good behaviour. As a reward, tea and cake is served for adult helpers!
Included within the entry fee is as usual tea and cake for the adults, after sailing, and Parents Pimms on Splash Monday. |
Parents Suppers
There will be a separate flyer for the Parents Suppers enclosed in the Splash Week Information Booklet and on this page later in the year. You are asked to book in advance to help with the planning. |
| The leaders will be having their planning meetings at this time, so please please volunteer, as the leaders will not be available at this time. Again, a different sailing group is responsible for the dining room each day. |
| Evening Activities |
| You can't rest yet! Though you can ease up a bit, as the Junior Cadets (JC's - old Splashers now over 13) help us out. |
Parents Briefing & Veteran Oppie race- Monday August 23rd at 1800
There will be an informal parent's briefing with Pimms on the first evening. This is an informal session to get to know each other and to ensure that everyone is up to speed on the week's events. The JC's will organise a game of British Bulldog on The Green for the Splashers during this time. The veteran oppie race will take place at 18:30 where committee members take part in an hard fought race to be the best oppy sailor of the night! |
| Treasure Hunt - An evening activity planned for Thursday 26th. |
| Cinema - There will a cinema evening for the children, kindly organised by grandparents on Tuesday evening. |
| All the above may be changed if circumstances change during the week |
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| Lost Property |
Last year we collected many items of lost property including buoyancy aids, lunch boxes and numerous items of clothing.
All items have been washed or laundered and will be put out on display at the start of Splash Week. |
| Items not claimed, will be sold on the Second Hand Rail, any profit made being added to the boat fund. |
| During the week any new items of lost property will be collected and put in a HUGE box in the North Dining Room. Please check for your lost property from time to time during the week. |
| Needless to say, it helps if clothing, particularly wet weather gear and safety equipment, has your child's name clearly marked somewhere! |
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| Second-Hand Items for Sale |
| Splash Week is a good time to sell on sailing clothing that your children have out grown. We will have a rack on which to display any items, and ask that you tagged each item with your name and how much you want for each article. |
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| Awards & Prizes |
| First of all, a plea for the return of trophies from last year (Russell Cup, King Cup, Broke Moat Trophy). |
| These need be returned to the Club office by Friday 30th July at the very latest. If you would like to engrave them with the winners name before you return them, we would be delighted! |
| There will be awards, Gold, Silver and Bronze, within each group. The Eagles will be racing for the King Cup and Russell Cup (awarded for the first lady helm). The Junior Cadets compete for the Broke Moat Trophies as well as under 21 Trophy and the Michel Herbelin Watch. |
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| Youth Dinner & Ball |
| On Friday August 27th, there will be a Prize giving at 17.30 hours, followed by a Splashers supper in the North end of the Dining Room. After the children have finished supper the tables will be cleared leaving ample space for the Splashers to enjoy entertainment followed by a Disco. |
While this is happening, the JC's and adults have dinner in the South Dining Room, while trying to ignore the resounding beat coming from the other end.
The Junior Cadet & Cadet prize-giving will take place at this time. |
| Once dinner is finished, the partition dividing the dining room is removed and the adults and JC's are encouraged to join in the dancing. |
| If you were not tired by the past five-day's events, you will be by the end of the evening! |
| This is the Splash Ball. Dress should be smart casual. |
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| Veteran's Optimist Race |
| An evening race scheduled for Monday 24th August at 1830. |
| An annual event, run by the Eagles, in which Flag Officers, Members of the Management Committee and Members of the Sailing Committee, race for the Veterans Optimist trophy in the RYA and club Oppies. |
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| Lastly |
| Remember, if you don't know / don't understand / need help please ask, but please be patient. All the leaders and helpers are volunteers and we're only human! |
| We welcome suggestions and ideas for improvements and we are always looking for more helpers - please volunteer. |
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