CLUB HISTORY

What once was …
The Sydney Uni Sailing Club was established in 1964 and since then has had a successful history as part of Sydney University for many years. The club was run in many ways and from various locations around Sydney harbour with each being specialised to specific classes of boats. At the Clubs peak, membership reached over 400 with the social activities of the club providing as much attraction as the sailing. In cooperation with the other university sailing clubs around Australia, various regattas and social events were held each year which created an environment where sailing could be both social and competitive. In this sense, members were given the equipment to get out on the harbour to enjoy them selves and the sport of sailing. This kind of club structure provided a means for those without sailing experience to get involve with the sport while those with a competitive streak could compete in State and National class regattas. The racing side of the club provided the support for the 26 sailors who received their Blues for sailing in recognition of their achievements.

The Decline of University Sailing
The University Sailing Scene in Sydney has declined over the last few years. Today, Sydney Uni Sailing is the only active university sailing club in NSW. Previously the other largest sailing clubs in Sydney were those of; UTS, UNSW and Macquarie but these have had most of their assets sold off and since 2007 no longer have active management. Having a committed management committee is very important to the success of the club so as students graduate and move on, their positions must be replaced with new committed members. While failure of this contributed to the decline of the Sydney Uni Club, the larges influence to all the clubs has been funding cuts. The introduction of the Voluntary Student Unionism, (VSU) meant that funding to sailing clubs was severely cut making club sustainability more challenging. Without these necessary funds, large numbers of students who have the interest, no longer have the infrastructure to support them.
 

“Direct funding for university sporting clubs has been cut by 40 per cent 2005 and 2007,”
Reported by the Australian University Sport Association.
 

THE CURRENT REBUILD

2007 – Rebuild
From mid way through 2007, a new group of students established a new management committee for the Sydney Uni Sailing Club. The boats that the club owned at this point had had limited maintenance making their use challenging. Through out the second half of 2007, the goal was set to bring the boats back to working state so that they could be used. By the end of the year, this was complete and plans were set for marketing and recruitment of new members from the beginning of 2008.
 

2008 - New members and events
From the beginning of 2008, the club has held and participated in various recruitment events on campus and down at the club. As of August, the club passed its goal of recruiting 50 cruising members which will set a benchmark to improve on in 2009. The level of interest and the success achieved is evidence of the interest in sailing and the potential the club has to grow. By forming a partnership with the UNSW windsurfing club, it was possible to create a number of events that were otherwise unachievable.
 

2009 - Work in progress
From the beginning of 2009, the club will continue with the work it has been doing in 2008 as well as establishing new events such as the first university regatta for almost a number of years. These events will grow the clubs position on campus and help to re-build sailing in universities. By establishing a sailing school, the club will allow the new and interested to get involved in the sport. With the help of alumni and the general sailing community, the club aims to begin the process of turning over its boats so that the level of club equipment can be improved and maintained in the future.

 
Read about us in Autumn 2009 edition of SAM http://www.usyd.edu.au/alumni/activities/magazine/index.shtml
 
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The 2009/10 Club Management Committee:

Commodore (President) - Tom Mallet (thomas.mallet@gmail.com or 0416308818)
Vice-Commodore (Vice-President) - Laurence Hendry (laurencehendry@yahoo.co.uk)
Vice-Commodore (Vice-President) - Olivia Clark (olivia-clark@hotmail.com)
Secretary - Josephine Roper (josie164@gmail.com or 0416117343)
Treasurer - Elgar Welsh (ewel4450@uni.sydney.edu.au or 0405772740)
Windsurfing Officer - Scott Coleman (chesthair2000@hotmail.com)
Racing Officer - Tom Brewer
Training Officer - No Holder
Trip Officer - Tom Shaw
Social Officer - Kaitlyn Kelleher (kelleher.k@neu.edu or 0422483697)
Shed Officers - TBA

To contact any of these committee members, you can email them through the Contact Us page.
 

2009 AGM Sydney University Sailing Club Minutes.doc
 

2008 AGM Sydney University Sailing Club Minutes.doc
 

Sydney_University_Sailing_Club_Constitution.doc
 
 
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Past Presidents/Committees (If anyone has details of past presidents it would be good to grow our list.)
 
Club Founded 1964 by: Don Turner, Gary Langford & Rolfe Howlett
 
1964 Committee: President: Don Turner, Vice President: Rolfe Howlett, Secretary / Treasurer: Gary Langford
 
2007 - 2008 Daniel Gain
2009 - 2011 Tom Mallet