Commodore's Report

DON JOHNSTON Commodore Managing in the pandemic After a miserable couple of months earlier this year, the last two months have seen a welcome improvement in the access to and use of the Club. Nevertheless, in the light of the resurgence of the fifth wave, it is unlikely that there will be a further easing of restrictions.

I was delighted to receive an unsolicited compliment from a member of ABC on how well the management and staff at the Club have managed the pandemic restrictions this year—well done to all.

Some of you have spoken to me about the “pettiness” of some current restrictions. The rules are established by the HKSAR and have the force of law. Neither GenCom nor the management has any right to exercise discretion (as doing so would put the viability of the Club at risk). Our role is to administer the law as it applies to the Club and I ask that you respect both the rules and our staff who have the thankless task of administering the rules.

Updated Articles of Association The General Meeting of Members (GMM) will be held on 21 June 2022. Knowing that it will be over by the time that you read this, I do hope that the acquiescence and, indeed, acceptance so far is an indication that the new Articles of Association (AoA) will be approved. If so then the new AoA will take immediate effect and the Annual General Meeting (AGM) in November will be held under the new rules.

HKSAR 25th Anniversary Sailing Cup This event involves cooperation between the Home Affairs Bureau, the Hong Kong Sailing Federation (our national body), the Hong Kong Jockey Club Charities Trust, Royal Hong Kong Yacht Club, Aberdeen Boat Club and Hebe Haven Yacht Club. This is a three-race event and is a tribute to the organising committee, chaired by Ambrose Lo, in which the Club was represented by Bridget Chan and Rob Allen. I quote from an email from Ambrose to his team and the three clubs:

“We now have 132 boat entries for the HKSAR 25th Anniversary Sailing Cup … Heartfelt thanks to you, we exceeded our committed target on this spectacular celebration event for Hong Kong and sailing. Working as one single team, you have proven that collaborations between sailing clubs can blast sailors with fun and the city with joy. Not to mention promotion of our sport.”

I was one of a number invited to watch Paul Chan, the Financial Secretary of Hong Kong, start the first race of the event at RHKYC. Whilst we were comfortably ensconced in the Chart Room overlooking the Start Line, it was a challenging wet and windy day for the sailors as they struggled to adapt to the changeable weather which ranged from calm to windy to gusts to squalls with limited visibility. Still, despite some misgivings and some damage they pressed onto a finish.

The Club’s event was on Saturday 25 June 2022 with both a morning and an afternoon race.

Open Dinghy Regatta This was the first big event after the easing of restrictions and it is a credit to the committees and the Sailing Centre that it came together in such a spectacular manner. There were four courses, 12 classes of dinghies, 150 dinghies, over 200 sailors, over 70 volunteers and great weather.

Looking Forward … Apart from the ever-popular UK Sailmakers Typhoon Series and the Peroni Summer Saturday Series, there are two other great events scheduled. The first is in early October and is called “Steering the Course" and is arranged by the Club and Sailability Hong Kong in support of a World Sailing initiative to help increase participation by women and girls in the sport of sailing. The second is the 24-Hour Charity Dinghy Race on 22 – 23 October 2022. Planning for this is well underway and it is always a spectacular sporting and social event.

於疫情下進行管理 在年初經歷了悲慘的數個月後，遊艇會於過去兩個月的到訪人數和使用人次方面都有 所改善。儘管第五波疫情再度爆發令進一步放寬社交限制的期望不樂觀。

我很高興收到一位ABC會員的盛讚，表揚遊艇會管理層和職員於今年的管理工作做得 非常出色——大家做得好。

部份會員與我談及一些現行限制有多「小家子氣」。這些規定由香港政府設立，並具有 法律效力。執行委員會和管理層並沒有行使自由裁量權的空間（這樣做將危及遊艇會 的運作）。我們的工作是執行適用於遊艇會的法規，而我希望你們尊重這些規定，以及 為執行規定吃力不討好的一眾職員。

會章更新 會員大會(GMM)已於2022年6月21日舉行。我知道當你在閱讀到份報告時，大會已經結 束。我希望直至目前為止的默許，或應說是接受，代表新的會章 (AoA) 將獲得通過。若 是這樣，新會章將即時生效，11月份的週年大會 (AGM) 將根據新規則舉行。

香港特別行政區25周年回歸帆船賽 是次賽事由民政事務局、香港帆船運動總會(我們的國家機構)、香港賽馬會慈善信 託基金、香港遊艇會、香港仔遊艇會及白沙灣遊艇會合辦。比賽由三場賽事組成，由 Ambrose Lo 擔任主席，而 Bridget Chan 及Rob Allen 將擔任本會代表。我在此引用 Ambrose 寫給他團隊與3個遊艇會的電郵：

「香港特別行政區25周年回歸帆船賽共有132艘艇參賽……我們衷心感謝各位，讓我們 在慶祝香港回歸以及航海運動的盛事上超越了承諾的目標。作為一個獨立團隊，您們 證明了遊艇會之間的合作可以為船員帶來更多樂趣，為這個城市帶來歡樂。其重中之 中，更是推廣我們這項運動。」

我是應邀觀看香港財政司司長陳茂波在香港遊艇會開始首場賽事的人士之一。雖然我 們舒適地留能俯瞰起點線的航海圖室中，但對於船員們來說這是一個充滿挑戰，潮溼 大風的日子。他們奮力適應多變的天氣，無論是平靜轉大風，到陣風以致能見度有限的 狂風狀況。即使抱有疑慮和損傷，但他們依然堅持到底。

本會的賽事已於2022年6月25日週六進行，分為早上與下午兩場賽事。

公開小帆船大賽 這是社交限制放寬後的首場大型活動，有賴各委員及航海訓練中心的配合和支持，成 就是次場面十分壯觀的活動。一共四條賽道，12個小帆船組別、150艘小帆船、超過200 名船員、超過70名義工和絕佳的天氣。

期望…… 除了大受歡迎的 UK Sailmakers 颱風盃系列賽和夏季週六系列賽外，還有另外兩項精 彩賽事。首個賽事將於十月初舉行，名爲「Steering the Course」，由本會以及航能香港 合辦以支持世界航海運動，鼓勵更多婦女及女孩參與帆海運動。第二個賽事為24小時 慈善小艇賽，將於2022年10月22-23日舉行。比賽的規劃工作正順利進行，它將會是一 個壯觀的體育和社交盛事。