Reading Canoe Club

YET AGAIN, a successful summer is drawing to a close. While training routines will be changing over the next few weeks, plenty will continue to happen throughout the winter. Check the notice boards regularly and speak to your section leader to find out which sessions will be of interest to you. The highlight of the summer 2000 must surely have been the National Marathon Championships which we hosted back in June. The event was extremely successful and raised significant funds for the club which have been used to buy two paddling machines, one of which has already arrived. This event was only possible because of the massive team effort by members prior to, during and post race weekend. The weather was fine, racing was fun and fair and the atmosphere was superb. Several clubs have written since to thank and commend us, so well done all. Of the weekend, Reading brightest star was Tom Daniels who became the U14 National Champion in both K1 and K2. In the senior race, David Coulson and BOA's Simon Dark claimed a thrilling victory in K2.s AGM - 15th November from 19:15 IF THE DATE of this year's Annual General Meeting is not yet looming big in your diary, then it should be. This is one of the few times when all club members have the opportunity to come together in discussion. It is important that you come and hear about the issues which will affect you in your canoe club. Most importantly, your vote will count in the elections for committee positions. The AGM also gives us an opportunity to celebrate the year's successes as section leaders report on the activities of their paddlers in 2000 and perpetual trophies are awarded to the worthiest recipients (so you'd better come because you might win one!). There are six weeks still to go before the meeting but you must take action NOW! All committee positions require nominations BUT they must be received by Dave Sackman (with a proposer and seconder) by 20th October. Any items to be added to the agenda should be sent to Tamsin Phipps as soon as possible. Proposals for Dave can be sent to or left at the canoe club. Please find contact details overleaf. Club Boats CLUB K2S, funded by our successful Millennium grant application, have now arrived. The addition of these boats now means that the club has an excellent fleet of kayaks and canoes for beginners and members to paddle. Club members may train in these boats but before taking them out on the water please speak to your section leader to check the boat's availability. Also, ensure they the boat appropriate for your intended activities. If you would like to race a club boat, check the regulations as no club boat may be raced on an event with portages or shoots. If you take the boat away from the club, you must also pay a fee of 5 to cover general maintenance. You are also responsible for damage done to any boat in your care and you will be liable for the cost of its repair. A set of clear guidelines have been drawn up and will be proposed at the AGM. Workday: 21st October THERE are several items of maintenance which need to be tackled before winter takes hold. The date set for the effort is Saturday October 21st. Many of the tasks are menial, such as cleaning windows, cleaning the weights room, sweeping the boat shed and so on. However, there is also some more extensive work requiring our attention. Internal work to repair and repaint cracks (on the staircase for example) needs to be done and the railings outside require striping an repainting. A large group of us working on these jobs would not make them too odious. If all members do not make themselves available to do these jobs then it will have to be realised that the cost of membership will be increased to cover the cost of contracting the work out. Over the next week or so, a list of jobs will be published on the notice board. Please volunteer yourself to do a job which you are willing to do. Otherwise, the committee will be 'volunteering' you. Members who are not available on October 21st should not despair; the work can be done at any time before the AGM. Any amount of time that you can spare will be greatly appreciated by all members and will help to keep the canoe club the pleasant environment that we all enjoy.

Announcements: Whiz, Bang, Paddle? YES! Back due to popular demand, the firework night paddle is again on the club activities agenda. Saturday 4th November is the date but please speak to Gail Battison or watch the notice boards for further details. Holey Martin THANKS must go to Martin Watson. He has made a superb job of fixing the unsightly hole in the wall. Club Room Hire WHEN the club room is being hired for an event or is holding an organised meeting, members are asked to refrain from entering the room. The committee asks members to remember that we currently we receive around 6,000 per annum from hire of the club room. This is a significant and important proportion of our funds. Law Says Light Up AS THE NIGHTS draw in, you are reminded that your boat requires a white light to be displayed after dark. This Environment Agency Bye Law is for the safety of you and other rivers. Failure to comply also carries a hefty maximum penalty of one thousand pounds. Ground Works REDEVELOPMENT of the river frontage is to take place over the winter. This is in line with our planning agreement. The intention is to extend the landing stage up to the boundaries with our neighbours. A slip way for the launch of the bell and motor boats will also be constructed.

Organised Training Sessions

	Session	Start time
Monday	Club 5km time trial	7:00pm
	Heavy weights	6:15pm
Tuesday	Medium/heavy weights	6:30pm
Wednesday	Light weight circuit	6:30pm
	Paddling session	6:30pm
Thursday	Fitness circuit training	7:00pm
	Heavy weights	6:15pm
Friday	--	--
Saturday	Paddling session	9-9:30am
Sunday	Paddling session	9-9:30am

Club & Committee Contacts

Chairman	Tamsin Phipps
Secretary	David Sackman
Treasurer	Simon Artal
Membership Secretary	Paul Toomey
Competition Secretary	Brian Greenham
Racing Captain	David Coulson
Communications	Abigail Cattle
Youth Representative	Gail Battison
Tim Ralph	Tim Ralph
Ordinary Members	Martin Lomas Susan Gray

Committee positions & responsibilities

Chairman

The Chairman holds legal and financial responsibilities for the Club. He must direct the Club to ensure that it continues to fulfil its commitment to the Sports Lottery body, whilst maintaining the conditions of the lease and working within health and safety regulations. He liases with a number of organisations and voluntary bodies including; the BCU and its associated committees, often concerning race documentation; the Sports Council; Reading Borough Council; the Environment Agency and British Sport and the Disabled (BSAD). He presides at all General Meetings of the Club and at all meetings of the General Committee, is a signatory on the main account, membership account and contingency fund, attends meetings on behalf of the club, submits grant applications on behalf of the club, completes paperwork letters etc, not undertaken by the Secretary and amongst other duties is a member of the Paddlesport Officer Steering Committee.

Secretary

The Secretary is responsible for the co-ordination of meetings of the Club and General Committee, recording and distributing minutes relating to such meetings and deal with minutes of section committee meetings. He is involved in all correspondence relating to the general business of the Club and in liason with the Communications Manager, he may also produce newsletters and information packs and may be in communication with newspapers, TV, media and marketing of the Club. He maintains the club house office, notice boards etc. He is a signatory on the main club account and contingency fund.

Treasurer

The Treasurer's role has expanded somewhat since the Club has become a publicly accountable organisation. He is responsible for accounting all monies collected on behalf of the club from races, visitor fees, the telephone, coffee/tea, etc. He manages and produces quarterly sets of accounts, budgets, pays bills, liases with billing authorities and gives financial forecasting. He has the power to examine, after giving one week's notice, the books of any section, and shall report any discrepancies to the General Committee. He shall audit the books of each section annually and shall produce at the AGM balance sheets showing the financial state of each section and of the General funds, accompanied by the Auditor's report. He/she is a signatory on all the Club held accounts.

Membership Secretary

The Membership Secretary's job has also grown as a result of the new building. He must maintain an up-to-date list of members, issue membership renewals and cards and collect membership fees. He show allocate and maintain an up to date list of boat racking, issue new spaces and collect rack fees. He is responsible for the issue of keys / swipe cards and the collection and return of deposits associated with them. He is responsible for the maintenance of the alarm system and associated software. He will appoint the Officer of the Day from the membership list, by allocating dates to members after consultation with them. He runs the membership account

Competition Secretary

As we now have a new building from which to develop, the Competition Secretary is able to have a full role. He is to develop the club according to the development plan agreed with the Sports Council, co-ordinate section leaders for marathon, racing, slalom, youth, disabled and polo and co-ordinate training sessions with the section leader to ensure most effective use is made of the facilities. He co-ordinates competition entries with the section leader and ensures all section leaders collect boat-use fees. He maintains an up-to-date register of approved weight/circuit instructors/coaches etc. Manages the weights room, plans dry land training with the section leaders and coaches, developing ways in which members can progress from beginner to the elite

Racing Captain

The Racing Captain is responsible for the Sprint and Marathon activities in the club. Duties include the management of the club boats for the section use and collection of fees due for their hire. He puts in race entries and co-ordinates teams on race days or the delegation to another member to do this duty. He helps to co-ordinate training sessions.

Slalom Leader

The Slalom Leader is responsible for the Slalom activities in the club. Duties include the management of the club boats for the section use and collection of fees due for their hire. He puts in race entries and co-ordinates teams on race days or the delegation to another member to do this duty. He helps to co-ordinate training sessions.

Club House Manager

The Club House Manager is responsible for the management of the club house and grounds. He will organise frequent work days and is responsible for paying the cleaner and the purchasing of cleaning materials. He is responsible for all the bookings of the club room and the collecting of hire fees.

Communications Manager

This role is concerned with the promotion of the Club and its special events through a range of media. He is responsible for the compilation and production of a frequent newsletter to aid internal communications, as well as producing poster and advertisements.

Youth Section Leader & Youth Member

Structure training and arrange social events for youth members, devise and co-ordinate youth recruitment initiatives. Youth member also stands on committee to represent under 18s.