Visit by the Mayor of Guildford

MAYORS VISIT
The Mayor of Guildford Councillor Terence Patrick visited T.S. Queen Charlotte on Thursday 19th January to present the units efficiency award of a Burgee for 2011
The Mayor was meet by the unit Chairman Mike Evans and Commanding Officer Lt (SCC) Colin Whitear.
The Mayor was then presented and inspected a guard of honour, after meeting with the unit committee the Mayor was shown around the unit meeting with staff and cadets to see them in general training

Well done to all at Guildford Burgee for 2011
five in a row
This is for all the hard work done by Staff, Cadets, UMC, Parents without your help and commitment this would not have been achievable
In order to make this six in a row we need your continued support in 2012

BZ to all
Commanding Officer

Commanding Officers news letter for 2012

Well here we go again new year, I think it's going to be a busy one, we have lots to do in 2012 RNP (Royal Naval Parade) 19th July it is also the units 70th year and the Queens Diamond Jubilee.
Our cadet numbers continue to grow with over 50 on the books, we are also looking at setting up Royal Marine Cadet Detachment once again here at Guildford.
As for dinghy sailing the unit is looking for Instructors to help up at Ripley.
We welcome two new members of staff details I will post later in the week
As you can see from the photo a tree has come down on top of the boat shed so if any one has a chain saw?
no damage appears to have been done.
We need to arrange a clear up day towards the end of this month tidy up the grounds details to follow.
No replacement for the job as CO yet? I would however like to thank all who made 2011 another great year for Guildford, we host the Mayor of Guildford on the 19th January who will present our award of a Burgee for 2011, also have a look around and see the cadets in classes.
Training this year up until the boating season all cadets will train for 3rd Class Seamanship, we also have two cadets getting ready for their Leading Hand board A/C T Gittins & A/C B Bayliss, As you may know Tom Winskell is now settled in Canada but keeps in touch via email.
Well now we know how to work the web site we will keep you up to date with events through the year

Welcome 2012

Happy New Year to all
from CO

An Offshore Sailing Experience on the TS CITY LIVERYMAN

The offshore sailing course during which I spent a week on the yacht TS Liveryman was a great experience.

Upon arrival in Ireland, it was, for once sunny. I made my way down to Howth Marina, and met most of the crew on Liveryman, and all of the crew on Vigilant, as well as the skippers and mates from both the yachts. After the remaining crew arrived on Liveryman, introductions were made and we had the essential briefings for that evening, and after a story, went to bed.

The next day we woke up hoping to set sail, however with the wind at force 8/9, that proved impossible (or just dangerous and stupid). We spent the morning learning sail theory and receiving more briefs, such as how to use the winches and how to send out a distress signal. After lunch we caught the train to Dublin, where half of the cadets went round some interesting shops, and the other half saw Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows Part 2. Later, after a lovely dinner of bangers and mash, we went off to hear a bit more of the story, read by our skipper, Jenny, and again, went to bed.

When we woke up the next morning, the wind was still too strong to go out. So we continued with the sail theory and pumped up the dinghy to take a paddle in it. After lunch the wind died down enough for us to finally set sail, and we had an exciting race with Vigilant on the way to Arklow (which they only won because they cheated by motoring). Unfortunately one of the crew injured her shoulder whilst sailing. We moored up in Arklow late that night but we still managed to have the story.

The next morning, the injured crew member went off to the doctor to have her shoulder checked, where it transpired that she had trapped a nerve. Together, we decided to do a night sail to Wales. Buoyed with excitement we set off, steering, as we would for most of the journey, on a compass course of 160. We figured out a watch system. Overnight, a few of the crew members got quite seasick and Jenny, our skipper, kept our spirits up by making us sing slightly silly songs. Some of the crew even saw dolphins! We arrived at Dale at 5am.

After we woke up at about 1 pm we had a lunch/breakfast of tasty burgers. We then set off to Neyland, doing sailing exercises such as man overboard and sailing at all points of sail on the way. After a shower in the luxurious showers in the marina we had a tasty dinner, the nightly story and went off to bed.

The next day we set off early to beat the flood gates into Milford docks. On the way we managed a man overboard drill for everyone, and a few tacks and gybes. After mooring up in Milford, we set about cleaning the boat, which wasn’t as much of a chore as it sounds, and was a lot more fun because we were doing it as a team. After Liveryman was spick and span, we went off to have fish and chips with the crew of Vigilant, later having an improptu birthday party for one of the crew members of Vigilant. The next day there were tearful goodbyes and promises to stay in touch.

As I said earlier, the week was a wonderful experience. I gained sailing knowledge, experience and my offshore hand 2. Apart from that a huge part of the week was working together as a team and meeting new people which was extremely character building. I am glad I went, I have made friends with people from different parts of the country and that I find the most valuable of all the positive things of that week.

Use our webshop to help us raise money

Exciting news! We're delighted to announce our fundraising webshop.

When shopping online, you can access over 100 leading retailers - such as BT, Thorntons, Marks & Spencer and HMV - using our webshop. Every time you use our webshop to go to a retailer's web site and subsequently buy something, you'll automatically earn money for us!

You don't pay anything extra by using our webshop, so please try to use it whenever you can. Please spread the word. Thank you!

Find our webshop at buy.at/GuildfordSeaCadets.

Happy shopping and thank you for your support!
Best wishes,
Guildford Sea Cadets

Cadets Raft Up at Guildford Lions Raft Race

Guildford Lions Raft Race, a photo by Guildford Sea Cadets on Flickr.

On Saturday 2 July 2011 cadets from Guildford entered the Guildford Lions Raft Race. They built, then paddled, two rafts to raise money for the unit. Photographs have kindly been provided by AC Tommy Gittings. Watch this space! Further details to come!

An Experience Onboard TS JACK PETCHEY

TS JACK PETCHEY, a photo by Guildford Sea Cadets on Flickr.

Photographs and report kindly provided by AC Tommy Gittings.

"On my voyage on TS Jack Petchey, we sailed from Gosport to St Helier via Cherbourg and St Peter Port. We learned about every aspect of operating the ship and had a go at all the different aspects of crewing an offshore power vessel. Living onboard for a week was a good insight into life onboard a small navy ship and was an experience of a lifetime.

The first full day we were on the ship, we had a cameraman onboard for a promotional video; this meant that the day was spent having fun in the Solent. We learned lots of new skills on this day; we anchored the ship, practiced for a man overboard and familiarized ourselves with the handling of a much larger vessel than most of us had ever driven before.

On day 2 of our trip, we set off very early so as to have the tides with us on our cross-channel passage. Once out of port and away from the coast, there are no other ships to be seen and I got my first proper seafaring experience. The seas were quite rough for such a small vessel, making it rather difficult to steer in a straight line and maintain our course. This was quite an exciting day as we developed our skills in helmsmanship, navigation and keeping an effective lookout.

The third day was a short hop to Guernsey; there was lots of opportunity for fun with the boat as we sped through the water, we developed our boat handling techniques and some interesting, new aspects of navigation. The next day we spent in port but there was still an opportunity for learning in the morning and fun in the afternoon; we swam in a freezing cold saltwater pool and visited a historic castle.

The final day involved another short hop to Jersey, we utilized this time to complete our final safety drills before being presented with our qualifications. We all cleaned up the ship before the captain’s rounds and going ashore for the final time. All the ports we visited were interesting places with their own unique character and different attractions to visit.

The voyage has been a great experience for me, not only have I learned loads of new skills that I would not have otherwise but I have developed as a person in general. I have experienced what it might be like to join the navy and go to sea on a real warship; I have also improved my skills in working as a team and as an individual in challenging circumstances.

Going offshore with the Sea Cadets is a once in a lifetime experience that would be an excellent character building and learning activity for anybody. No other course I have been on has been as fun and exciting whilst still being educational. It is hard to describe how much fun I have had and how much I have learned by I can say that it has been the best single activity of my life."

Summer Competitions 2011 - Success Stories!

2011 has been a brilliant year for Guildford Sea Cadets. We have had a massive number of cadets enter competitions with a significant amount of success stories. Everyone who has taken part in a competition this year deserves a cheer and a shout! Well done for your commitment and achievements!

It all started with LC Traylor and OC Horton entering the Surrey District Sailing Regatta at Mercer's Park near Reigate. They sailed the unit Bosun dinghy together and although they didn't win they got valuable experience that they can use next year! Well done to both of them for their achievement!

Following this was the District Paddlesport Regatta at Guildford Unit. A number of our own cadets competed and some walked away with medals. Well done to all of those that took part! Those that achieved a medal went on to the Southern Area Regatta and put in a solid performance. LC Deverell walked away with a gold medal which means he will continue on to the National Regatta and compete against cadets from across the UK. AC Bird, AC Barnett, OC Seymour and OC Collins all achieved runners up medals. Well done to them all, a great effort!

Finally, after automatic entry to the Southern Area Rowing Regatta, our junior girls team put in another excellent performance against fierce competition. Although they did not walk away the winning team they have again gained a valuable experience that will put them ahead next year!

Well done to everybody who took part in competitions this summer. We hope to continue to perform well into the Autumn and Winter and return even better in 2012! Check out the photographs of our competition success on our flickr website.