Arnside Sailing Club have won a new safety boat in competition run by the RYA and Suziki beating 180 other sailing clubs to first prize. The new Rigiflex safety boat together with a Suziki engine and Extreme launching trailer was awarded to the Sailing Club at the RYA Suziki Dinghy Show at Farnborough International Exhibition Centre, south west of London.
Alasdair Simpson for the club said “We were greatly surprised to have won the boat as we knew there would be many other very strong entries. We are very excited that we have won the boat and are bringing it back to Arnside.”
“We will be using the new boat to expand our training courses. We offer sailing lessons at both Arnside and Killington, near Sedbergh. We run paddle boarding and kayaking lessons at Arnside at low tide when the water is shallow enough to stand up. With a very scenic estuary, Arnside is a great place for water sports”
Arnside Sailing Club have doubled their membership since 2020 and have recently become a charity. The Club was shortlisted for the RYA Club of the Year award in 2018 and 2022. They are a RYA Training Centre and OnBoard Club at Killington, which they use for longer training courses, as it is not tidal. OnBoard is a RYA Programme to get more youths sailing. Their clubhouse is used for music concerts with a programme featuring the best bands in Cumbria and Lancashire and as well as nationally known acts such as Simon Armitage the Poet Laureate and his rock band and Martin Simpson, a leading folk singer.
Rob Clark, RYA Director of Sport Development, said: “It was a very difficult task for the panel to identify one winner. However, the nomination for Arnside Sailing Club stood out for how they would be able to use the boat to help build on the considerable growth and demand in training the club has seen over recent years, their commitment to providing low cost opportunities to get on the water, and their strong links within their local community.
Alasdair Simpson added. “We aim to keep our membership fee and lesson prices low so cost is not a barrier to take part. We have 20 club sailing dinghies, 11 paddle boards and 7 kayaks, which are available to members free of charge, so you do not need to own your own craft to take up water sports for the club. Winning the new safety boat will help us put on more courses, enabling more adults and youths to take up water sports