Sailing at Great Moor

Sailing can be both fun and challenging at Great Moor, ranging from peaceful days of idyllic calm floating around and admiring our beautiful surroundings, to days when you will find yourself speeding across the lake, watching over your shoulder for quirky wind changes and sharp little gusts.

Members sail a wide variety of dinghies, from solid Drascombes to performance Lasers and RS craft.There is plenty of room out on the lake for spinnaker enthusiasts, while the youngest members can hone their skills closer to shore in the club's Optimists.

If you don't own a boat, the club has a fleet of boats for hire, including Kestrels, Picos, Toppers, RS Fevas, Visions and Teras, Optimists, a 420 and a Hartley 15.Training is carried out in the club's Kestrels, and new sailors often choose these as their first boats to take out for sailing practice.

Racing takes place on Sundays throughout the year, except in February when the club invites members to help with club maintenance.Sunday racing is 'handicapped', so open to all, with prizes awarded annually.The club also hosts occasional open events for specific dinghy classes, when the lake may be closed to other users. Towards the end of the summer there is a regatta for ladies and junior sailors.

Not everyone enjoys racing, of course, and casual sailing is also welcome on Sundays, as there is plenty of space on the lake for all kinds of sailing fun.During the summer months, there is casual sailing on Wednesday evenings, when less confident sailors may prefer to practise their skills.Friday evening sailing is also popular in mid-summer.Members can, of course, access the lake at any time, but the club advises that there should be a minimum of two boats on the lake at any one time, for safety reasons.

If you have little or no sailing experience, don't despair.The club is recognised by the RYA for training (members only), and there are opportunities to learn to sail for both adults and juniors at various times throughout the year.These courses are popular however, and have limited spaces, so check on the club calendar and book your place early.There is also a "Water Week" held during August each year, aimed at improving skills for adults and juniors alike, as well as 'Grebelets', a series of Sunday improvement sessions for juniors who have already had some training.