A great Club year comes to a close

LutineNewsletter

2022 has turned out to be a fantastic year for our Club after two very challenging pandemic years and I’m delighted to highlight the following:

  • Charter bookings have bounced back to exceed pre-pandemic levels and in fact this year will contribute record revenue for the Club.
  • Club weekends on Lutine have run at over 90% capacity and have represented members’ interests across racing events, adventure weekends, learning to sail, cross channel or just cruising the Solent. 
  • Our Club is growing, we are now over 660 members! Just since June, more than 65 new members have joined us and most importantly, have begun to get out on the water and attend our monthly social events.
  • Attendance at socials is increasing sharply – October’s attracting around 40 over the course of the evening and the End of Season Party at RORC last month proving a sell-out at 65.

So, as a Club we are in good shape, financially and from a growth perspective but it’s no time for complacency, certainly not as we face very uncertain economic times ahead. However we also have a great deal to look forward to in our Club:

  • Despite the inflationary pressures, we have decided to keep all charter fees the same as this year right across the spectrum
  • We have today launched our new website which features, for the first time, a blog page which, early next year, will interface with an updated social media platform, all combining to make 2 way communications with all our members much easier and more involving
  • 2023 is of course a Fastnet year (50th in fact) and the crew, largely rolled over from our Covid-struck 2021 campaign is already training, has completed the first qualification to Cherbourg and we will introduce you to all the crew during the course of the campaign next year. 

Everything we do is about reshaping our club for the future and this means listening to our members and embracing change – so let’s do it!

On behalf of your Committee, may I take this early opportunity to wish every member and your families a wonderful Christmas season and hugely positive 2023.

Tim Blackstone – Commodore