Steve Atkin

Rear Commodore Power

Email: rcpower@shyc.co.uk

Phone: 07860 317455

Boat: Chardonnay

Steve has been motor boating for over 25 years, and with his family joined SHYC over 9 years ago and is always an active member of the club.

This is his 3^rd year as rear Commodore of Power, working closely with the rear commodore of Sail, and does the usual jobs that this position requires. Steve also looks after the maintenance of the Club, and runs karaoke on the last Friday of each month.

His current boat is a Princess 415 "Chardonnay", and he can be found on most weekends with his family and 2 pet dogs, around the harbour and Club.

Alison Attwood

Membership Secretary & Communications

Email: membership@shyc.co.uk

Previously: Membership Secretary & Communications 2006-08

Phone: 07764 677363

Sails on: Taka Taka & Calypso

Alison is membership secretary and looks after some of our communications including the monthly newsletter, Ahoy!, and sending press releases and race reports to the press.

Alison is an enthusiastic member of the yacht club, involved in various social activities and helping behind the bar. She is a keen crew member and has made a number of trips across the Channel and down to the Solent, compensating for any lack of sailing talent by cooking great bacon sarnies!

Previously membership secretary, Alison was responsible for launching Ahoy!, the monthly newsletter that goes to all members.

Freddie DeVere

Vice Commodore & Chair of the Social Committee

Email: vicecommodore@shyc.co.uk

Phone: 07801 422438

Sails on: Kratos & Beer O'Clock

Russell Freeman

Email: rcsail@shyc.co.uk

Boat: Iolandra

Previously: Rear Commodore Sail 2007-08 & 2008-09

Taryn Gordon

Race Committee Secretary

Email: taryn.gordon@btinternet.com

Phone: 07765 892440

Boat: Red Machine

Taryn started sailing in June 2006 having never stepped onto a yacht before in her life (and not realising that white trousers weren’t really sensible in the wet!). Not knowing one person from the yacht club Taryn presented herself as ‘spare crew’ and filled a gap on Red Machine that Sunday morning , she has sailed on Red Machine since her first outing and this year became a co-owner joining the current skippers Pete Fletcher and Brian Donald.

Over the past two years she has obtained her day skipper theory, practical and yachtmaster theory of which unfortunately none have passed on the remedy for sea sickness. Taryn proudly holds the trophy for ‘first to vomit’ on a lumpy trip home from Fecamp.

Taryn’s sailing repertoire includes one and quarter ‘Round the Island’ races, several ‘Royal Escapes’ lots of Sunday and Wednesday races, and the best bit for her without doubt is the team she races with and the club she sails home to.

Taryn is an active member of the club and is currently the racing committee secretary and the ‘Princess’ in the pantomime. You can generally find Taryn in a Red Machine shirt somewhere in the bar on a Sunday.

Sue Holt

Email: sue@eastbournerlniregatta.org.uk

Previously: Secretary 2006-09

Rob Morris

Boat: Two Dizzy

Previously: Treasurer 2006-10

Elaine Robinson

Commodore

Email: commodore@shyc.co.uk

Phone: 07816 673602

Previously: Commodore 2002/03, 2007/08, 2008/09

John Males

Previously: Commodore 1997/98

John has been interested in the water for a ling time, diving and building (two) boats – the latter being Pipedream – with many hours spent on the water with his family.

He has been across the Bay of Biscay on the Portuguese Rally; and has taken Pipedream for three months down the French Canals.
After being in Newhaven and Brighton; they were one of the first in Sovereign Harbour, and started up the Berth Holders – its first meeting being in the Boat House. As a group, they had many an evening with parties and BBQs outside and inside the toilet bock, before we had a club house, and Eddie would sing late into the night.

After this, John instigated the Yacht Club – finding the building and raising the money from other boat owners, and spent many hours putting it together with other volunteers; painting and decorating, and running the Galley before handing it over to a franchise. John was the first commodore, for 18 months, and then President, supported by his wife Maureen. It was a club to be proud of. Our first event was a wedding for a couple in the marina, who sailed their yacht Even Stevens (a 36ft Sigma) up to the club house. During his term, he raised money for Children in Need and other charities, and has formed a close relationship with Rye, Newhaven, and Shoreham.

The first visit to Le Treport was the beginning of a strong friendship between our two harbours with Entante Cordial. Unfortunately there was a fatality on one of the trips, which is marked by a memorial bench outside the Yacht Club.

John moved from London to Eastbourne 41 years ago, and is a church organ builder by profession. He is now life member and supporter of the Club.

Lynne Seabrook

Assistant Manager

Fiona-Susan Bird

Bar Volunteers

Email: fionasusanbird@googlemail.com

Bob Jackson

Race Captain

Email: bob.jackson@talk21.com

Phone: 07721 397295

Boat: White Rose

After a narrow escape with a Welsh pony and a green slimy canal which did nothing to help learn the 'Eskimo roll' in the school canoe, Bob found solace on the mirror dinghy during a weeks school holiday in the Brecon Beacons at the age of 13. Rapidly enthused, the teachers persuaded Sheffield Council to buy two GP14's followed by a Scorpion to form a Sheffield Schools Sailing Association.

Subsequent racing on a friend’s 30' yacht based in the coal dock (aptly named!) at Hartlepool lead to the delights of the Bass Rock and the fleshpots of Amsterdam during the annual North Sea Race, and hence was born a love of offshore racing.

20 years of racing from Burnham on a She 36 experienced races to Sweden, Norway, Holland, France, Spain, Fastnets and a transatlantic to St Lucia, before madness took over and the current Elan 40 was bought and berthed in Eastbourne. Two keen sons determined to race a Fastnet before Dad gets too decrepit provide motivation and endless fun.

When not racing, Bob does work in the Book Industry despite his wife's allegations that he spends all his non-racing time, repairing the boat, maintaining the boat, paying bills for the boat, buying more 'bits' for the boat, talking about the boat, organising crew for the boat.............now made worse by his appointment as Race Captain at SHYC.

A new grand daughter is already being trained to say 'ready about' although at 7 weeks old, progress to date is slow.

Mark Robinson

Training Principal

Email: training@shyc.co.uk

Gwen King

Rear Commodore Sail & Acting Treasurer

Email: gwen@shyc.co.uk

Phone: 07970 222 880

Sails on: Leopard

Previously: Membership Secretary & Communications February - September 2009

Gwen has always loved the sea and discovered the joys of sailing for charity in regattas on a Sunfast 37, over a five year period. Always taking place in the summer, these regattas were fun days out until 2007 when in September the race was abandoned through high winds. Whilst others were feeling poorly Gwen found it exhilarating and this encouraged her to volunteer to crew at SHYC and to subsequently become an active member, volunteering behind the bar, and generally increasing her experiences on yachts.

Currently Gwen is looking for club members to join the "Wall of Fame" where a quality framed photo of their boat's can be added to the foyer and stairway into the club. Exhibits will start to be hung in 2009.

Kevin Fearn

WebMaster & Bosun's Locker

Email: kevin@shyc.co.uk

Phone: 077 1133 0108

Boat: Reflections

Kevin has been a member of SHYC since 2003, after purchasing “Reflections”, a 29^ft Westerly Merlin (from Freddie).

He took over the website administration in 2008, and in addition to keeping it up-to-date, he is on a mission to make ours the best yacht club site in the country. His goal is to make the website truly interactive, so that members can find something new to read or contribute every time they visit. As well as real-time news and events on the front page, we now have a new photo gallery, members’ wall, and fully integrated racing section with podium. The Royal Sovereign Suite site has been revamped, complete with on-line enquiries and bookings manager. New this year are iPhone apps for SHYC and the RNLI Regatta, plus "realtime race results".

Also in late 2008, he undertook a revamp of the Bosun’s Locker, replacing ‘the box’ with made-to-order merchandise. There is a much wider range, including gifts; and can be personalised with boat names. On-line ordering is integrated into the club’s website.

On the water, Kevin and wife Janice like to do ‘a bit of everything’ – enjoying cruising, racing, and bobbing-around with a G&T in equal measure. This year’s objective was to venture further afield - a great personal success taking Reflections for two weeks holiday in the Solent.

Back on dry land, Kevin is a freelance I.T. Consultant, specialising in Retail.

Charles Erb

Previously: Commodore 2000/01; Rear Commodore Sail 1998/99 & 2006/07

Boat: Pleiades

Charles has been involved with the yacht club since it began and has done most of the jobs at various times. Among his contributions to the club are:

• First person to paint the gentleman’s lavatory in the original club house (with magnolia emulsion).
• First person to face a contested election to an office of the club.
• During term as Commodore, fundamentally altered the direction, aims and objectives of the club. These changes enabled us, among other things, to form our own racing infrastructure and develop into the modern happening club, which we now are.
• Played the part of Father Christmas for the club’s children’s Christmas party for several years.
• Formed the original long term planning committee, with Peter Gooch and John Crone, to negotiate with Eastbourne Borough Council, planning and tourism departments, Department of the Environment and Carillon to begin the process of achieving our permanent clubhouse.
• Made the first attempt to bring together all strands of the club on line and present a comprehensive web site.
• Produced and edited the ‘glossy’ club magazines.
• Successfully negotiated with the strike committee of the French fisherman for the ‘liberation’ of our cruising fleet, which was blockaded by their strike, into Boulogne yacht harbour.

Charles has been sailing yachts, along with wife Jan, for more than fifteen years. They have had their present boat "Pleiades" a Westerly Ocean 43 since new in 2000, during which time they have cruised very successfully and raced with very varied amounts of success but have always enjoyed themselves.

These days Charles is retired from work after a life long career in the printing industry. Other interests are flying his aircraft as a private pilot, beekeeping, vegetable gardening, bird watching, socialising and enjoying as many of the finer things of life as he can get around to.

David Griffiths

Company Secretary & Acting Business Manager

Email: david.griff@virgin.net

Phone: 07917 098000

Boat: Trio

Brian Goodger

Previously: Commodore 2005/06 & 2006/07

Alan Reid

Boat: Dragon Song

a.k.a. "Speedy"

Saturday series racing & Scottish poetry

Roy Martin

Email: roy.martingb@btinternet.com

Boat: Kratos

Phone: 01323 478124

Previously: Race Captain 2008

Jeff Penfold

Boat: Aeolus IV

Previously: Race Captain

Jeff enjoys participating in identity parades, mostly at his local peach-colour police station.