Hebe Jebes May/Jun 2014 | Page 18

SLAM Sailing Centre SLAM Sailing Centre Hebe Haven Yacht Club Open Day 2014 The setup of an Open Day is not an easy thing to do when you have to transform the Centre from nil to full capacity in a short space of time. Our Team did a fantastic job getting everything ready, considering what seemed like a never ending list of jobs to do for the morning start. By 10.00am, we had all the fleet of boats rigged and launched ready for the future sailors coming to Hebe for a test sail at the Club. The day really kicked off at 10.30am, with Sailability Hong Kong launching three Access 303 Dinghies—very kindly sponsored by the three yacht clubs of Hong Kong. We had representatives from each club present to participate in the ribbon cutting ceremony and the official launch of the new members of the Access fleet. It is great to see the Clubs getting behind this programme and this will only benefit sailing as a whole in Hong Kong. Someone must be looking down over Hebe Haven Yacht Club, because when you have six weeks of British winter weather and you are planning one of the biggest days at the Sailing Centre, you want to make sure all the ingredients are in your favour to run a successful day on the water. Fortunately we did and it was a welcome sight to see only shorts and t-shirts required by the staff, whilst setting up the Club boats and facility for the onslaught of the public who were coming our way later that day. The vendors and sailing booths were all busy setting up their areas and it was great to see the preparation that was put into transforming the Garden Bar into a mini-boat show. The Hebe Dragons were represented by Gregoire and all the parents of the Team, who we teamed up with the Development Fund For Youth Sailing booth, selling cakes made by volunteers and selling Lucky Draw tickets for the draws that would take place later that day. There was a good turnout from some of our sponsors, who came along with their staff to show off new clothing and equipment they were bringing to the Club. Remember, if you are interested or able to offer any kind of support to the charity, whether that be coming along to launch boats, sail with the sailors on the programmes or even sponsor something for the Charity, then contact Sailability Hong Kong via their website and get in touch with their team who are always looking for recruits. During the day, we organised two lucky draws that were really well supported by our local sponsors. One lucky draw was held in aid of the Club’s Development Fund For Youth Sailing (DFFYS), which raises money to support the development of youth sailing at Hebe Haven Yacht Club (HHYC) and to help enable the expansion of the dinghy sailing racing programme. Key aims of DFFYS The kind donations that were given were extremely well received and a huge thank you to everyone who was able to support the fund. Special thanks to: • • • the Sheldon family—who sponsored a day trip on their junk; the Club—for sponsoring a Stand Up Paddle Board; and Mimi Cheng & Pearl—for rallying lots of local companies to donate prizes for the lucky draws held throughout the day. The bouncy castles were extremely popular with the families this year and once again, we were fortunate to have the support of the Albarus girls who were face painting non-stop throughout the day, which added to the fun atmosphere at the Club. For those who are running kids parties, contact the girls at Penguin Paint Force or call 61171256 to book a great alternative themed party for your kids or sports clubs. 1. Support the development of youth sailing at HHYC and to enable the expansion of the Dinghy Sailing Racing Programme. 2. Assist the HHYC Dinghy Racing Squad (Hebe Dragons) to attend recognised regattas and to assist with transport of dinghies to those regattas, team uniforms and other requirements identified by the Team Manager and the Sail Training Centre Committee. 3. Promote the Hebe Dragons Racing Squad and Hebe Dragons branding through competitions at local, regional and international events. 4. Enable individuals to receive support to attend sailing events, which will further promote HHYC. 5. Provide an annual scholarship towards sail training at HHYC. This can be made available to an individual or to a government subsidised school. 16 Hebe jebes • MAY/Jun 2014 17