Pwllheli Sailing Club
Encyclopedia
Pwllheli Sailing Club was founded in 1958 and is a yacht club in Pwllheli
, Wales
. Over the years it has moved the location of its clubhouse several times, and it has also become organiser of national and international yachting and dinghy sailing events.
The club was founded in 1958 in temporary premises to the east of Carreg yr Imbill
(Gimlet Rock). In the early days membership was shared with the Gimlet Rock Club, a social club which allowed members to drink alcohol on Sundays, not allowed in public houses at that time. As membership split from the Gimlet Rock Club it migrated into an extension to the GRC building, and had the use of dormitory rooms on the first floor, where the "Bridge" to manage races was also located.
The early membership had several Folkboats
and Stellas
, and races were hotly contested, with owners sailing to and from the South Caernarvonshire Yacht Club in Abersoch to compete in each other's races.
The club acquired two GP14s, Frisky and Heidi, for members to borrow, and located them in the roughly surfaced dinghy park to the east, between the clubhouse and the derelict "Old Jetty" where there were twin slipways into the harbour. There was a dinghy racing programme from the early days of the club, but this was hampered by the need to borrow Jumbo, the boatyard workboat owned by Partington Marine, to act as safety boat. A seaward slipway was also installed from the dinghy park c1970, though weather conditions meant this was rarely usable both because it was very narrow, and because it was fringed by granite chunks from the old Gimlet Rock Quarry.
In the early 1970s Les Caddick, one of the earliest members, donated a small Dell Quay Dory
and outboard, making the club self-sufficient for its safety boat. Though the major membership was for cruising and racing yachts, with many racing in the Irish Sea Offshore Racing Association's annual series, the dinghy side started to increase. There was an annual Long Distance Dinghy Race to Abersoch
and back, for example, and the Merlin Rocket national championships were hosted - the first such dinghy championship at Pwllheli.
A strong relationship with Newquay Yacht Club created the annual passage race both from and to Newquay in South Wales.
An early, if not a founding, member was Alfred Walter (Bill) Maley of the Maley & Taunton
engineering company of Wednesfield
In 1986 the club received funding from the Sports Lottery and the European Regional Development Fund to develop a Sailing and Events Centre.
and take place around buoy
s in Cardigan Bay
within a couple of miles of the start.
The club has a committee boat used to start and finish special regatta
s and a number of offshore races.
Pwllheli
Pwllheli is a community and the main market town of the Llŷn Peninsula in Gwynedd, north-western Wales. It has a population of 3,861, of which a large proportion, 81 per cent, are Welsh speaking. Pwllheli is the place where Plaid Cymru was founded. It is the birthplace of Albert Evans-Jones -...
, Wales
Wales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
. Over the years it has moved the location of its clubhouse several times, and it has also become organiser of national and international yachting and dinghy sailing events.
Location
The club is located on the western side of the harbour near to the Glanydon Beach and is within walking distance of the town. The club has dinghy storage compounds adjacent to the beach and boats launch from the beach.Principal officers
Officers serve 2 year terms. The Vice Commodore becomes the Commodore and the Rear Commodore becomes the Vice Commodore.- Commodore - Dave Hulse
- Vice Commodore - Phil Ranner
- Rear Commodore - Stephen Tudor
History
Carreg yr Imbill
Carreg yr Imbill—in English Gimlet Rock or sometimes Gimblet Rock—is the remains of a large granite outcrop and quarry at Pwllheli, Gwynedd, Wales....
(Gimlet Rock). In the early days membership was shared with the Gimlet Rock Club, a social club which allowed members to drink alcohol on Sundays, not allowed in public houses at that time. As membership split from the Gimlet Rock Club it migrated into an extension to the GRC building, and had the use of dormitory rooms on the first floor, where the "Bridge" to manage races was also located.
The early membership had several Folkboats
Nordic Folkboat
The Nordic Folkboat is a small sailboat, rigged as a sloop. The design of this boat was the result of a competition held by the Scandinavian Yacht Racing Union in 1942, who were hoping to create an easily sailed and low cost boat...
and Stellas
Stella (yacht)
The Stella is a 'one-design' Bermuda rig sloop yacht, designed for cruising and racing by the noted yacht designer CR Holman in 1959. The design was to the requirements of a customer who had seen the Nordic Folkboat and decided that the English east coast needed a similar vessel but modified for...
, and races were hotly contested, with owners sailing to and from the South Caernarvonshire Yacht Club in Abersoch to compete in each other's races.
The club acquired two GP14s, Frisky and Heidi, for members to borrow, and located them in the roughly surfaced dinghy park to the east, between the clubhouse and the derelict "Old Jetty" where there were twin slipways into the harbour. There was a dinghy racing programme from the early days of the club, but this was hampered by the need to borrow Jumbo, the boatyard workboat owned by Partington Marine, to act as safety boat. A seaward slipway was also installed from the dinghy park c1970, though weather conditions meant this was rarely usable both because it was very narrow, and because it was fringed by granite chunks from the old Gimlet Rock Quarry.
In the early 1970s Les Caddick, one of the earliest members, donated a small Dell Quay Dory
Dell Quay Dory
A Dell Quay Dory is a small boat usually 13 to 22 foot in length.This boat design has a Cathedral Hull which is very stable when stationary on the water.The boat was manufactured by Dell Quay Marine in the UK between the 1980s and 90s....
and outboard, making the club self-sufficient for its safety boat. Though the major membership was for cruising and racing yachts, with many racing in the Irish Sea Offshore Racing Association's annual series, the dinghy side started to increase. There was an annual Long Distance Dinghy Race to Abersoch
Abersoch
Abersoch is a large village in the community of Llanengan in Gwynedd, Wales. It is a popular coastal seaside resort with approximately 1,000 inhabitants, on the east-facing south coast of the Llŷn Peninsula at the southern terminus of the A499. It is about south-west of Pwllheli and south-west of...
and back, for example, and the Merlin Rocket national championships were hosted - the first such dinghy championship at Pwllheli.
A strong relationship with Newquay Yacht Club created the annual passage race both from and to Newquay in South Wales.
Founding members
Founding members are taken from the original Articles of Association- Edwin Reginald Wilson, Optician
- Norman Timmins, General Manager
- Charles William Martin, Garage Proprieter
- Thomas Linney, Hotelier (The Victoria Hotel)
- Norman Parry, Director
- John Irwinne, Director
- Col Owens, Builder & Contractor
An early, if not a founding, member was Alfred Walter (Bill) Maley of the Maley & Taunton
Maley & Taunton
Maley & Taunton is a defunct tram and tramway engineering company. It was situated in Wednesfield in Staffordshire, England.Maley & Taunton exported globally, with its trucks used in the Lisbon trams and in the UK on the Blackpool tramway...
engineering company of Wednesfield
Wednesfield
Wednesfield lies at , and is located to the northeast of Wolverhampton city centre on the northern fringe of the West Midlands conurbation...
Clubhouse locations
- 1958 to c1980 - Shared premises with the Gimlet Rock Club
- c1980 to (unknown) - premises at the Gimlet Rock itself
- (unknown) to 1989 - Purpose built premises opposite the lifeboat station. (Now the treatment plant)
- 1989 to 1997 - Marina Building
- 1997 to current - Current Building
In 1986 the club received funding from the Sports Lottery and the European Regional Development Fund to develop a Sailing and Events Centre.
Future
- 2009 Mirror World Championships
- 2009 Splash World Championships Splash Worlds
- 2009 Topper Nationals
Racing
The club hosts racing for local and visiting boats all year round. The races generally start from the bridge on the treatment plant building opposite the lifeboat stationRoyal National Lifeboat Institution
The Royal National Lifeboat Institution is a charity that saves lives at sea around the coasts of Great Britain, Ireland, the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man, as well as on selected inland waterways....
and take place around buoy
Buoy
A buoy is a floating device that can have many different purposes. It can be anchored or allowed to drift. The word, of Old French or Middle Dutch origin, is now most commonly in UK English, although some orthoepists have traditionally prescribed the pronunciation...
s in Cardigan Bay
Cardigan Bay
Cardigan Bay is a large inlet of the Irish Sea, indenting the west coast of Wales between Bardsey Island, Gwynedd in the north, and Strumble Head, Pembrokeshire at its southern end. It is the largest bay in Wales....
within a couple of miles of the start.
The club has a committee boat used to start and finish special regatta
Regatta
A regatta is a series of boat races. The term typically describes racing events of rowed or sailed water craft, although some powerboat race series are also called regattas...
s and a number of offshore races.