River Severn Cruise

With another bank holiday weekend ahead and the locks fully operational again, PCC are eager to get back out onto the waters of the Bristol Channel!

To celebrate the start of the season, on Saturday 1st June, the club extends an invitation to any boat moored in Portishead Marina to join us. We’re planning to head up to some hidden places under the Severn Bridge, anchor for a picnic and then return on the tide.

This is an ideal opportunity to get together over the bank holiday weekend for some fun sailing, provide an opportunity to meet some fellow Portishead-based sailors and discuss future cruises planned for the 2024 season.

If you haven’t been out beyond the lock recently, would like to join in but would also like to benefit from having someone aboard to help you with the navigation etc, please contact us as we may be able to connect you with a PCC member who can join you for the afternoon and impart some local sailing knowledge.

High water on Saturday 1st June is 15h20 BST. The plan is to lock-out and muster at Portishead Pier two hours before high water. Please listen in on VHF Channel 37 for any mustering information from either Stuart or Geoff.

Our adventure will only take place in good weather. As a guide, we’ll sail up channel in a force 3 and if the wind is blowing force 4, we’ll likely head up to the Suspension Bridge via the River Avon. As is tradition, we’ll then round the afternoon off with a social drink at the Sirens Calling.

If you’d like to join us, just complete the form below and include your mobile number so we can add you to a WhatsApp group for more information.

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Shanghai Cup 2024

In partnership with Cardiff Bay Yacht Club, PCC is happy to announce the dates for the Shanghai Cup 2024, Bristol Channel IRC Championships and Nimrod Cup.

The popular annual championship, held over two weekends, saw PCC boat Ctrl-J skippered by Andy Williams retain the Shanghai Cup in 2023 with Emma Peel and Checkmate XV coming in second and third places respectively. The 2023 Nimrod Cup was won by Hallucination with Pele and Glad Rags following in second and third place.

Back for another year, the Shanghai Cup will use IRC ratings and take place as follows:

  • Portishead weekend – 15th/ 16th June 2024
  • Cardiff weekend – 29th/ 30th June 2024

Social events at each location will be communicated at a later date. Note the Nimrod Cup will use NHC ratings and will run on the Cardiff weekend only.

The organising committee have now updated the event website at shanghai cup.co.uk and have posted the Conditions of Entry and the Notice of Race 2024 v0.1.

Further information including the entry form, can be found on the Shanghai and Nimrod Cup website. Members are also invited to spread the word and look forward to two weekends of competitive racing in June!

If you’re looking to join the action but aren’t a PCC member or don’t have a boat, contact us to find out about the latest crewing opportunities that may be available.

BCYA Rally & Shanty Festival

This years Bristol Channel Yachting Association (BCYA) English Coast Rally is coming to Portishead Marina. It promises to be a fun-filled weekend across the Whitsun Bank Holiday of 25th – 27th May as it will be at the same time as the Portishead Shanty Festival and the EAT Food Festival.

As with all BCYA Rallies, visitors can benefit from discounted berthing, a complimentary drinks reception, an official welcome from the town and a competition for the best dressed boat.

The BCYA have supplied us with the following information for the event so get involved and enjoy the fun!

RNLI Safety at Sea Evening

Club members recently attended the RNLI lifeboat station in Portishead to hear about the latest innovations in sea safety and survival equipment, tour the boathouse and receive an all-important lifejacket check.

Kicking off the event, Bernd Langheim, Water Safety Officer for the RNLI gave a short briefing on the work of Portishead RNLI, the area it covers and the types of callouts the team attend.

This was followed by a presentation from Dave Herbert, Deputy Duty Harbour Master at Royal Portbury Dock who shared some insight about the growth of the port as a gateway to the UK and the ships that regularly visit – many of which we see when we’re racing in King Road. Members noted that anyone stood on the bridge of a car carrier can only see 200m beyond the bow of the ship – creating a massive blind spot where small craft will not be seen.

After the presentations, members had a tour of the boathouse and learnt about the equipment carried aboard RNLI Portishead’s Atlantic 85, My Lady Anne. This was followed by an opportunity to have personal lifejackets checked. Of the 20 checked, 15 failed due to various faults – the RNLI message being to make sure you service your lifejacket before heading out for the new season!

The RNLI are happy to run further sessions for club members so if you’d like to be added to the waitlist for the next event, please contact us. In the meantime, thanks to the RNLI Portishead volunteers for hosting us!

Annual General Meeting

The club’s annual general meeting, which all members are encourage to attend, will this year take place at Portishead Bowling Club on Wednesday 13th March at 20h00.

 AGENDA

  1. Apologies for Absence
  2. Approval of 2023 AGM minutes
  3. Matters arising from 2023 AGM
  4. Honorary Treasurers report and adoption of Annual Audited Accounts for year ending 31st December 2023
  5. Commodore’s report
  6. Election of Officers and Committee
  7. Appointment of Auditors
  8. Adoption of changes to the constitution
  9. Any other business

AGM will be formally closed

Following the AGM after a short break a period of half hour will be set aside for a general discussion of matters raised from the floor.

Notices and Reminders.

This notice of AGM together with additional information has been emailed to all members. if you didn’t receive it, please email the Club Secretary.

Copies of the minutes of the 2023 AGM and the ‘Audited Accounts’ will circulated electronically one week prior to the meeting to members. 

Nominations for the posts of Club Officers and for positions on the general committee are to be signed at least seven days before the AGM i.e. by 6th March. Nomination forms are available from the Club Secretary by emailing or at a Wednesday night meeting. 

Members are reminded that membership renewal is due on the 1st of January each year and that only fully paid-up members will be entitled to vote at the AGM.

RNLI Sea Safety Evening

The RNLI have been in touch to offer members an evening focussed on lifejackets and the latest developments in safety at sea. Designed to be an informal event pitched at both novice and experienced sailors, we would encourage members to attend. Equally, if you’d like the RNLI to give your lifejacket a once over, bring it along!

The event will also feature a short presentation from the Deputy Duty Harbour Master from Royal Portbury Dock who will talk about the dangers associated with sailing in a busy shipping lane.

After the event, members are invited to retire to the nearby Royal Inn for drinks.

The event will take place on 14th March at 19h00 at the RNLI boathouse.

To reserve your spot, please register via the following link. Note that the event space has a capacity of 25 people so don’t delay, reserve your spot today!

Please contact Tim at PCC or Bernd at the RNLI if you have any questions.

Club Christmas Lunch

It’s time to start peeling the spuds, prepping the sprouts and getting those turkeys in the oven! Per club tradition, Val Bundell and her crew will be taking to the club kitchen to prepare the annual feast, hosted in the clubhouse. This year lunch will be served at 13h00 on Sunday 17th December and will comprise a main course, desert and cheese.

Demand for tables at this event is always high so get your booking in to Val as soon as possible. Our well stocked bar will be open too, ensuring you’ll be able to enjoy a beer, glass of wine or soft drink with your festive fare.

As our last social event for 2023, this is an event not to miss! Alternatively, if you’re considering joining the club, there’s no time like the present! Check out our membership page or contact our membership secretary, Dave Martin to learn more.

Festive Music Night

As the festive season rapidly approaches, the club will be hosting one of its traditional evenings at the clubhouse. Come and hear the Pill Owls and the Mudlarks while munching on a mince pie and enjoying a glass of mulled wine.

Providing a great opportunity to kick off the festive season in style, why not come down to the clubhouse and listen to carols from the Mudlarks and then the Pill Owls bedecked in their Dickensian garb of top hats, fancy weskits and flowing cloaks!

The fun will start at 20h00 on Wednesday 13th December at the clubhouse.

If you can’t make it, check out our other social events for the rest of 2023. Alternatively, if you’re considering joining the club, there’s no time like the present! Check out our membership page or contact our membership secretary, Dave Martin to learn more.

Laying Up Supper

As the temperature starts to drop and the days shorten, many club members are starting the process of lift out and wintering on the hard. As the Parish Wharf starts to fill-up and to celebrate the end of another busy sailing season, the club will be hosting its annual laying up supper at the clubhouse on 11th November 2023, starting at 20h00.

New this year will be an appearance from the Port of Bristol Shanty Crew for which there will be a collection in aid of the Teenage Cancer Trust. For food, the club is taking an ‘American Supper’ style approach – i.e. bring your own dish. However, to make sure we don’t end up with 20 plates of sausage rolls etc., please liaise with our Social Secretary’s Owen and Sushi Boyle who will co-ordinate everyone’s contribution.

Why not take this occasion to come to the clubhouse, discuss your wintering plans with fellow members and celebrate another fantastic season on the water? With club members cruising over to Ireland, sailing round Scotland, attempting the FastNet, the Round the Island race, the Shanghai Cup and our own racing series here in Portishead, there’s much to discuss over a drink or two from the well-stocked clubhouse bar.

If you can’t make the laying up supper, check out our other social events for the rest of 2023. Alternatively, if you’re considering joining the club, there’s no time like the present! Check out our membership page or contact our membership secretary, Dave Martin to learn more.

2023 Holms Race

The 2023 edition of the Holms Race will be on Saturday 16th September.

This annual race is for many a highlight of the Bristol Channel sailing calendar. The course leaves Portishead, rounds Flat Holm to port, Steep Holm to port and then returns to Portishead. Featuring a choose your own start time, it pits skippers and crews against the wind and tides of the Bristol Channel with the aim of being between the islands at slack water ready to race back on the new flood tide.

The Notice of Race, Entry Form and Sailing Instructions provide additional detail and the planned social program. A big thanks to Advance Marine and Boatfolk Portishead Marina for their continued support.

New this year is a special prize for the ‘Top Club’. Presented by the BCYA to PCC earlier in the year, the amazing rose-bowl trophy will be awarded to the top club in the Holms Race. The top three results from each club will be amalgamated and the best placed club will be pronounced as the ‘Top Club’. So looking forward to great participation from clubs across the Bristol Channel – as the BCYA said themselves, ‘you’ve got to be in it to win it!’

Click here to view the results from the 2023 race.

We look forward to seeing everyone for the 2024 edition of the Holms Race. In the meantime, contact Nick Duppa-Miller via vice.commodore@pccsail.com with any questions.