# Cruiser Fleet

I am here to prevent the first-page-empty bug!

At GYC we have both deep water and drying trot moorings. The drying moorings allow access three hours either side of high water and the deep water moorings are accessible at any state of the tide. Members have a range of sailing and motor yachts, from light displacement racers to traditional blue water cruisers. There is rarely a waiting list for moorings and we can usually accommodate boats up to a maximum of 12 meters and ten tons.

We can sail upriver as far as Tower Bridge and there are no restrictions downriver; it is possible to sail to the Thames Estuary beyond the Medway on a single tide.

The club organises yacht races about every two weeks in the summer and about every month during the winter. Racing is open to all classes under the Byron handicap system. GYC has a friendly relationship with other clubs on the Thames, and there are inter-club racing events, regattas and open races at other Thames and Medway clubs. Our races are usually around cans, downriver to Erith, Thurrock and Gravesend, and beyond to Sea Reach and around the Isle of Sheppey.

Each summer, we organise the ‘East Coast Cruise’ where a dozen or so boats spend a week sailing together to destinations beyond the Thames such as Burnham on Crouch and the River Blackwater. The club also has a well-equipped yard with hardstanding for 20 boats and a brand new boat lift. Berth holders also have use of a workshop, engine shed, sail loft and storage lockers. As we rely on our members volunteering for all aspects of our management and maintenance, we are able to keep the prices for moorings and yard very reasonable indeed!

## Race Rules

## Handicap System

The club uses the Byron James handicap system. The system is based on measurements taken from thousands of yachts along with race data - which is used to calculate a boats theoretical hull speed and a handicap which adjusts race finishes.

The Byron James website includes data for most yacht classes - but they also provide a calculator that works with the specific data from any particular boat. It is the responsability of the yacht owner to apply for a BJ handicap certiticate and you must re-apply if significant changes are made to the boat, such as adding a spinnaker.

The certificate should normally be renewed every three years and submitted to the captain of the cruiser fleet who will make sure these are used to handicap races.

## East Coast Cruise

The club organises an annual East Coast cruise, which is a one week cruise for members boats round to the ports and estuaries of the Essex coast.