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Clevedon Sailing Club Cadet Section is an active group of 30 cadets aged between 9 and 17 who are learning to sail dinghies in what we believe are some of the most challenging conditions in the UK. Our aim is to teach the Cadets all the sailing skills they need to progress from the safety of the Marine Lake to the more demanding environment of the Sea.
CSC is part of the RYA On Board Programme which aims to promote sailing as a sport for young people. We are also an RYA accredited training centre. See the RYA web site for more information about RYA training and accreditation (rya.org.uk).
We have a team of RYA qualified dinghy instructors (DI’s) and senior instructors (SI’s) who teach the cadets to sail. Under their instruction Cadets are encouraged to improve their skills to achieve their RYA stages 1-4 certificates. Those that wish to progress their skills even further will be encouraged to race and participate further afield. CSC holds a number of racing series throughout the season and the Cadet section is invited to various local clubs for cadet level race events.
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New Cadets begin their training on the Marine Lake where they are taught the basics: tacking, capsizing, how to sail a triangular course etc using the fleet of 8
Optibats.
The intermediate group will concentrate on becoming confident sailing on the sea. This will include sailing with experienced Cadets in ‘double handed’ boats and race training. We aim to give Cadets the confidence to sail on weekends with the rest of the Sailing Club. When Cadets attend a race they will be given the opportunity to sail a shorter Cadet course to help them start racing if they want to. By this stage we hope that Cadets are thinking to have a boat of their own. The Cadets have access to a fleet of 5 Toppers, 2 Laser Visions and 3 Picos but we encourage Cadets to purchase their own wherever possible.
The third group of Cadets will be those that sail confidently on the sea and race regularly. This group also continue to progress through the RYA scheme, receiving certificates as they do so. |
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We hope that this structure will provide a focus for all Cadets and give them some positive goals to aim for.
In no way is CSC Cadets all about racing and we know that ultimately, it is important for the Cadets to love sailing, whatever their skill level. So, as well as focused sailing skills’ sessions, we include some fun sailing activities and games evenings; we hope to build the Cadets into a solid team of really great sailors!!
In the summer we run Cadet Week where all our Cadet sailors enjoy a week of sailing and sea related activities including a trip to Ladye Bay for a picnic on the beach. And we close the sailing season with a Laying Up Supper where you exchange buoyancy aids and wetsuits for party dresses and smart shirts. Your instructors serve you a banquet of delicious food and a variety of awards are handed out by the Club’s Commodore.
The cadet section relies entirely on volunteers; from instructors to tuck shop duties, boat maintenance to beach duty. If you are interested in helping to share the load then please let us know. We can give training in all aspects.
We do have a waiting list so if you are interested in joining the Cadet Section then please contact the Cadet Officer who will gladly answer any questions you may have
(enquiry@clevedon-sailing-club.co.uk). |
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