Our club has a number of different boats that we use to teach people how to sail, race on Wednesdays and Sundays, and for cruising on Sundays.
When they are not in use for courses, members can hire the boats for racing and/or cruising.
Note that this page only lists boats owned by the club – many more classes of boats are sailed by our members, so if you drop by on a Sunday you’re likely to see still more different boats out on the water.
Hartley 15 (x2)
These are stable training dinghies with a higher boom. They have a jib, mainsail and spinnaker and are generally sailed by at least two people.
RS Vision
This is another one of our training dinghies. It has a jib, mainsail and spinnaker, as well as a single trapeze – though that doesn’t see a lot of use on our lake.
One of our most popular club boats, it is used for both training and racing and sailed by at least two people.
Laser Bahia
This is a larger dinghy that can seat a family. We occasionally use this for training. It has a jib, mainsail and spinnaker, and is sailed by at least two people.
Wayfarer
Like the Bahia, this is a bit bigger and can seat a family. A classic British design that’s been going strong since the 1950s, it has a jib and mainsail and is sailed by at least two people.
Laser/ILCA (x2)
Fast, one person racing dinghies with a single sail that is sleeved over the main mast. If you’ve ever watched sailing at the Olympics, you will have seen people sailing these. They are normally only used for racing. We have ILCA 7, 6 and 4 sails (formerly known as standard, radial and 4.7) available for use with them to suit different levels of ability, wind strength etc.
Comet
A classic racing dinghy normally sailed by one person. It sees occasional racing use at the club.
Junior and children’s boats
We have a number of boats that are primarily used by our younger members and people learning to sail.
Topper (x6)
Lightweight and easy to rig, these can be sailed by one or two juniors as appropriate. They have a single mainsail and we use them for our junior training courses.
Don’t let the label of a “junior” boat fool you – these are raced competitively at regional and national level! They occasionally make race appearances at our club as well.
Optimist (x2)
A classic design that has been used to teach children to sail for many decades, and now one of the two most popular sailing dinghies in the world! It has a single sail, is normally sailed alone, and is a bit more stable than the topper.
Laser Pico
Slightly bigger than the toppers, it can be sailed by one or two young people and has both a mainsail and an optional jib.