Latest News

  • 28 Jul 2023 21:46 | Robert (Administrator)

    The last sessions of lessons are well underway, and as a result the Club is no longer able to train and develop any more new members.  We will begin accepting new members again in the spring of 2024, when we will offer a full range of lessons and checkouts for all experience levels.

  • 16 May 2023 11:31 | Anonymous

    Ahoy Sailors!


    Every Wednesday starting May 24th, we will hold Social Sailing Wednesdays at Club Locarno. 


    What is Social Sailing Wednesdays? 


    There are two goals of this activity;

    1- Socializing within the sailing fleet and building a stronger community.

    2- Helping new and rusty sailors get on the water. 


    Social Sailing Wednesdays will start with a rigging clinic for lasers. If you have sailed a laser in the past but want to go over rigging, I am more than happy to walk you through this until you're comfortable rigging it by yourself. 


    Then we will all rig our dinghies and launch as a fleet. There will be no reservations for boats. We will mainly use lasers. If there are more participants than available lasers, you can rig a Vanguard or a Tasar. 


    If you haven't been checked out for monohulls, you can also get checked out at this event. 


    There will be 8 spots for registration on the event page. You are welcome to drop-in without registration. 


    It will be first come, first served. 


    At the end of each day, we will either light up the BBQ or head up to the Galley or a bit of both. So bring a patty, some veggies, and some buns!


    If you're a Sailing Fleet or All-fleets member, come and join us!


    Hope to see you on the water!


    Batuhan Yesilbursa 

    Marketing and Communications Director



  • 11 Jul 2020 14:04 | Robert (Administrator)

    Last weekend’s Club activities included a kayak trip to the Thormanby islands. This is a great destination, easily accessible from Vancouver and highly recommended as a beginner or intermediate trip. A large portion of South Thormanby island is a marine park that has been left in a more or less unimproved state (e.g. no toilets or picnic tables). It appears that the old homestead at Farm Bay has been left to decay and the meadows are slowly going back to forest. The lake on the map also seems to be going back to marsh, so don't get your hopes too high for swimming .  The bird life is fantastic, and you can enjoy a real nature experience if you can pitch your tent far enough from the snoring masses.

    Among the highlights of our trip

    • Experimenting with the use of Coleman fuel in an alcohol stove

    • Nearly losing one paddler and some of her footwear to a pit of quicksand at low tide

    • Improving access to our cove by moving several inconvenient logs at high tide

    • A lunar eclipse

    • Eagles wrestling in mid-air off the north tip of Merry Island

    • Being overtaken and passed by a pod of seven orcas (including an albino), shortly after launching from Halfmoon Bay


    If you are planning to visit Farm Bay, note that launching and landing will be nearly impossible at high tide levels, as your access to and from the beach will be blocked by the remaining mat of floating logs and related debris.  Also remember that the demand for Sunshine Coast ferries is currently well in excess of supply, so if you don’t have reservations you could be in for a several-sailing wait.



  • 30 Jun 2020 10:34 | Robert (Administrator)

    I am delighted to see that ClubLocarno and the JSCA are operating at something very close to normal. There has been a big jump in activity levels, renewals and new memberships since we reopened, and while most things are progressing smoothly, there have been a few areas of turbulence worth mentioning.

    Mask Wearing

    We don’t like to do it, and JSCA staff don’t like reminding us to do it when we forget. If reminded, be kind, apologise for your error, stop what you are doing and put your mask on immediately. Mask use is not optional, but our use of the sailing centre IS optional - it is a privilege that can be revoked, both individually and collectively. When the second wave of Covid hits Vancouver, we must be seen to be a low-risk facility that can continue to operate safely. Be safe.

    Lessons and clinics

    With the spike in new memberships comes a corresponding increase in demand for lessons and clinics; this has been made more difficult by COVID-related changes that have affected our capacity and schedule. We apologize in advance if you have waited longer than expected to get on the water. If you are concerned that time is running out or that you have been somehow forgotten, please feel free to contact me directly. Be patient.

    Volunteers

    Please remember that the club is run entirely by volunteers. If you find that service levels occasionally fall short of those offered by Starbucks or Amazon Prime, please be calm and perhaps even offer to help out. Volunteer to repair minor problems as soon as you report them. Take a few extra moments on our website to try to answer questions before you ask them. Tell a volunteer (or a JSCA staffer) how much you appreciate them. Be kind.

    See you on the water!

    Robert Holley
    Commodore


  • 26 Jun 2020 22:03 | Robert (Administrator)

    After the last 24 hours of shifty breezes and drifting boats, it is encouraging to see the more  familiar NW winds of summer pattern moving in.  It is also a good time to remind members that most of our fleets have a hard wind limit of 20 knots - beyond that, vessels become very difficult to control and damage becomes more frequent.  Above 20 knots, only the windsurfing and the barbecue fleets are operational.

    Before you launch, we recommend that you:

    • Verify the wind history as well as the current strength - if it has been climbing recently, it may not be done climbing yet
    • Check the conditions offshore as well as those at the JSCA - they can be quite different, especially when blowing from the south.
    • Talk to Jericho Rescue to get their view on current conditions, and accept their advice on whether to launch
    Please be realistic about your skills and capabilities, and err on the side of caution.  Much can be learned from the mistakes of others, as you watch from the upper deck.


  • 24 Jun 2020 09:49 | Robert (Administrator)

    The June edition of the BC Marine Trails newsletter is now available online.

    BC Marine Trails: June News 

    We want to draw your attention to a call for peer review of the proposed Code of Conduct for paddlers and other users of the wild coast.  This is an important initiative that has the potential to change the impact of recreational users on the BC Coast and move us closer to sustainability - your input is important.

    See you on the water!



  • 18 Jun 2020 10:43 | Robert (Administrator)

    We recently had a serious incident on the water involving one of our Vanguards.  A collision with a commercial fishing vessel resulted in a harrowing experience for one of our members and her guest, and the complete loss of 1/3 of our training fleet.  That there were no injuries arising from this incident appears to be exclusively the result of quick thinking and decisive action on the part of our Vanguard crew.

    This is the first such incident of its kind in memory for our Club. Having had an opportunity to reflect on it, I would like to share with you my rules for cycling in the city, as I believe that they may have some relevance to water sports.

    Robert's Rules Of Riding

    1. You are invisible.

    2. The other users of the road have little or no knowledge of the rules, and little or no interest in applying those that they think they know.

    3. Other users in vehicles have little or no control over those vehicles.

    4. Each of the other users has choices open to them; be prepared for them to choose the course of action which is least helpful to you.

    5. Notwithstanding rule number 2, the actual hierarchy of priorities on the road is as follows:

      • Large trucks

      • Medium trucks

      • Small trucks 

      • Cars driven by angry people 

      • Cars driven by people in a hurry 

      • Livestock and large pets

      • Pedestrians

      • Cars, other

      • Transit vehicles

      • Cyclists, other

      • You, on your bicycle.

    Once you substitute commercial vessels for trucks, and yachts for cars, these rules seem to translate fairly well to boating, and are a useful complement to the actual rules.  There are likely fewer angry people at sea, but possible more who are in a hurry on Tuesday evenings and Sunday afternoons.

    Each week the Jericho Sailing Centre reminds us in their newsletter of the key rules; the first is that “it is everyone's responsibility to avoid a collision at sea”.  You will regularly find that, because you have knowledge, skills and judgment (seamanship), there will be a disproportionate burden that falls on you. On the bright side, your actions may one day save a life.

    See you on the water, 

    Robert Holley
    Commodore



  • 21 May 2020 06:38 | Robert (Administrator)

    The Jericho Sailing Centre is planning to begin Stage 2 operations beginning May 25.  This will include the Galley, schools, public access and most important to our new members, issuance of membership cards.  

    This completes the last requirement to activate your new membership in ClubLocarno and get on the water - take a look at the All Access Checklist for all of the details.

    We are still organizing lessons and checkouts that are consistent with Covid-19 Protocols, so please be patient and watch our Calendar of Events for the most up-to-date information.


  • 16 May 2020 06:52 | Robert (Administrator)

    We are delighted that the Jericho Sailing Centre reopened on Saturday, May 16, and our members once again have access to the Club Locarno fleets. We have developed our Covid-19 protocols for this first stage of the JSCA opening - please read them carefully.

    ClubLocarno Covid-19 Protocols Phase I

    In addition, please review the Jericho Sailing Centre website to familiarize yourself with the JSCA protocols.

    You will need a gate key, a mask and a smartphone to use the facilities under the new protocols. A best practice may turn out to be a watertight container that will keep your mask and smartphone safe and dry while on the water. Please note that we may be required to provide our craft sign-out and door access records to facilitate contact tracing, in the event of known infections on the JSCA compound.

    We did not have the usual spring work party to get our fleets ready for the season. This means that your first voyage of the season may be the first for your craft as well. Please inspect your craft carefully before going on the water, and give it an extra-thorough cleaning when you return. Kindly log this effort in the craft sign-out system so that we know which boats have had the extra attention. Where a more organized effort is required (e.g. stepping masts, rigging sails) the Fleet Directors will plan and schedule ‘mini’ work parties.

    We are still organizing and scheduling lessons and checkouts, and plan to be ready to take on new members in June, when the JSCA plans to begin accepting new members in Stage II of the re-opening. We are in the process of modifying our training and checkout processes to be consistent with our Covid-19 protocols, and our partners (Windsure and MacSailing) are doing the same. Please refer to our calendar or the fleet pages for the availability and timing of lessons and clinics.

    We are solving problems as they arise and learning as we go, which means that the protocols and supporting facilities may also change. Please be patient and flexible.

    See you on the water!


  • 14 May 2020 07:20 | Robert (Administrator)

    ClubLocarno has developed ClubLocarno Covid-19 Protocols in preparation for re-opening.  Please take a moment to review them in advance of visiting the club.

    These protocols are over and above the Jericho Sailing Centre Covid-19 safety protocols, which all uses of the Centre must observe.

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