Clubs in decline

[Actionmat]

I've never had the urge to check out a club, perhaps I would have if I was paying marina fees, but I'm afraid they do have a 'saga' image and with a young family that has put me off. I'm not being ageist, but my weekend revolves around my son, so I'd only be interested in a club that had plenty of kids for him to meet up with while i was boring the adults about my boat rebuild. Do they exist?

 

[Sandy]

Society is changing, fewer and fewer people ar joining clubs of any sort.

 

[teddington_lock]

I've never had the urge to check out a club, perhaps I would have if I was paying marina fees, but I'm afraid they do have a 'saga' image and with a young family that has put me off. I'm not being ageist, but my weekend revolves around my son, so I'd only be interested in a club that had plenty of kids for him to meet up with while i was boring the adults about my boat rebuild. Do they exist?

I basically spent my junior years growing up in Penton Hook Marina , and at PHYC more specifically. Loads of kids around , we were always playing , fishing , taking the dinghys up the pit or whatever.

Not sure if this sort of thing still goes on now , or if all the kids sit on each others parents boat with play stations ?

A big club in a nice location might be a good start ?

 

[Sulley]

I basically spent my junior years growing up in Penton Hook Marina , and at PHYC more specifically. Loads of kids around , we were always playing , fishing , taking the dinghys up the pit or whatever.

Not sure if this sort of thing still goes on now , or if all the kids sit on each others parents boat with play stations ?

A big club in a nice location might be a good start ?

Likewise there always seemed to be loads of kids at PHYC then, it was great fun!

I belong to Windsor now and we have quite a mixture of ages, there are a few kids around but not like 25 years ago.

 

[Actionmat]

Thanks for that, I assumed I had to moor at Windsor or PH to be eligible.

Out of interest, I also looked at camping, caravanning and campervan clubs and they are all geared towards families with children. There is a big contrast between them and boat clubs, which may be part of the problem. I know kids put some people off(they certainly put me off before I had one), but it's one of the reasons I have a boat. We used to holiday abroad a lot before having children and a dog.

My son made a couple of friends on this trip to Hurley, they spent the afternoon in a dingy exploring (what they called) Poo Island. Geese not dogs and had a fantastic time. Swallows and Amazons stuff, I wish I'd had the chance to do that as a nipper.

 

[Sulley]

At Windsor we have people who moor in many different places and even some people who don't have boats. Our membership is definitely growing not declining.

 

[No Regrets]

I don't think Clubs are really geared towards Children per se, but they are certainly most acceptable if suitably behaved!

We have awards for the best youngsters (Cadets) in our boat handling, and membership is £1 per child up to 18.

what we don't have is a creche or organised play-pits etc. We are a boating club...

 

[penfold]

Our club's member roll is about 25% cadets, as the tuition offered by the long-suffering volunteers is dirt cheap and running around in a wetsuit does tire them out after a few hours. I do wish they'd stay out of the bar area though, you can only tell them so many times before having a vision of you turning into your own father.

 

[teddington_lock]

My son made a couple of friends on this trip to Hurley, they spent the afternoon in a dingy exploring (what they called) Poo Island. Geese not dogs and had a fantastic time. Swallows and Amazons stuff, I wish I'd had the chance to do that as a nipper.

I was lucky , I got to do all that , fantastic fun. The islands at Cliveden were great , as was the upper weirstream ( round the head of the island ) at Cookham. I remember fishing for perch under the visitors pontoon at PHYC with just fishing line , a hook and bits of bread. I had my first real crush on a girl at PHYC too lol , It really cements your love of the river , and it sticks with you forever.

I've still got my plaque for winning the kids boat handling when I was a kid at PHYC , it was for the Cygnet shield. Any PHYC members on here ? does it still exist ? My name should be the first on it ( along with Nick Slater of PH Boat Sales fame ). In fact , you'll find a lot of the kids of yesteryear work on the river now , I can think of several in various river based jobs other than myself.

 

[Richard Shead]

I was lucky , I got to do all that , fantastic fun. The islands at Cliveden were great , as was the upper weirstream ( round the head of the island ) at Cookham. I remember fishing for perch under the visitors pontoon at PHYC with just fishing line , a hook and bits of bread. I had my first real crush on a girl at PHYC too lol , It really cements your love of the river , and it sticks with you forever.

I've still got my plaque for winning the kids boat handling when I was a kid at PHYC , it was for the Cygnet shield. Any PHYC members on here ? does it still exist ? My name should be the first on it ( along with Nick Slater of PH Boat Sales fame ). In fact , you'll find a lot of the kids of yesteryear work on the river now , I can think of several in various river based jobs other than myself.

Having nipped to the loo in PHYC the other day I can assure you nothing has changed since you were a kid..

 

[teddington_lock]

Having nipped to the loo in PHYC the other day I can assure you nothing has changed since you were a kid..

But is my name still on the shield ? lol

'Twas 1985 , I was 11

 

[No Regrets]

A shield in the loo!?

Christ, what sort of club is THAT!?

 

[Wavey]

If their web site is to be believed one Thames club has been without a Commodore, Rear Commodore Tidal and Rear Commodore Non-Tidal since the beginning of the year, with two ladies running the clubhouse and membership backed up by the committee.

It's a pity to see such clubs in decline especially when I have such great memories of when my dad was a member, but they do need to drag themselves into the 21st century in particular with the programme of events which is essentially the same as it was when Noah had a boat. It's not exactly rocket science is it?

I didn't mention it at the time of posting this but it was PHYC I was referring to unfortunately. I don't think it helps that their fees at £150 pa are very steep compared to many other clubs.

 

[oldgit]

I don't think it helps that their fees at £150 pa are very steep compared to many other clubs.

Thats 20 packets of fags or 25 gallons of diesel,or a family day out at the theme park of your choice.
It might buy you a couple of cheap games for the Xbox.

 

[boatone]

Thats 20 packets of fags or 25 gallons of diesel,or a family day out at the theme park of your choice.It might buy you a couple of cheap games for the Xbox.

So are you suggesting cheap or expensive? No, it's not all about VFM. As many have said its also about contemporary interests, apathy, not wanting to get involved or contribute, or simply just wanting to do one's own thing or with small groups of more intimate friends.

The TMBA is not a club and expects little from its members except that they are motor boaters and wish to support the river and our efforts to get the best deal we can for boaters. No dress codes, no meetings, no socials or boat handling competitions. We have a comprehensive website, promulgate river wide information by Facebook and Twitter and communicate directly with every individual member via email. For a fiver its difficult to imagine any better VFM if you care about the river and the services we receive, but i know what a struggle it is to get folk just to sign up and add to our single greatest asset, the number of boaters we can claim to represent.

 

[oldgit]

"So are you suggesting cheap or expensive? "

When your club membership for a year costs the same as a couple of dozen packets of cancer sticks..its got to be cheap.

 

[lynall]

Went to a club the other weekend with a view to joining, i liked it a lot, nice people all friendly to me, tidy place, all the facilities etc
Just got to do the paperwork and become a social member, never saw any blazers, but then it wasnt that sort of event.


Lynall

 

[st599]

The Old Guard are long dead, todays Old Guard are yesterdays Mods & Rockers, products of the swinging 60s. Hardly the types who strut about in Blazers bleating about a dress code. What may have an detrimental effect is a few people promoting a misconceived impression of Yacht Clubs as they were before WW2.

I got a phone call from a Thames yacht club as they had a last minute need for an instructor. They offered £50 plus dinner in their restaurant. I said ok, taught the course and was refused entry to dinner as I had brown shoes on.

Such yacht clubs still exist.

 

[Actionmat]

At least you got a great story out of it. I would have gone back wearing black crocs or handed them an invoice for fifty quid plus the cost of dinner somewhere else.

I'm all for dress codes, I don't see why it's a problem to make the effort where appropriate, but to treat you like that was rude. At the very least you're owed an apology.

 

[Poignard]

I got a phone call from a Thames yacht club as they had a last minute need for an instructor. They offered £50 plus dinner in their restaurant. I said ok, taught the course and was refused entry to dinner as I had brown shoes on.

Such yacht clubs still exist.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UeAfYTlA-ls