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WRG BC

Boat Club News

boat club’s AGM, which took place at the Inland Waterways Association’s

Festival of Water at Ilkeston

WRG Boat Club News

I do look forward to receiving my copy of

Navvies, it’s always a good read and I enjoy

the various reports. I’m too old and decrepit to dig these days but it’s good to know what’s going on and how different restora

tions are progressing. Of course as soon as I

get my copy it reminds me that another WRG Boat Club news is due!

Well what a busy year I’ve had! As Martin said in the last Navvies, I’ve moved

house, well I’ve downsized and now live in a bungalow, (see below for my new address).

This meant I had loads of ‘decluttering’ to do, or as I call it, getting rid of stuff. The most interesting was the auction that the

Historic Narrow Boat Club held where I, and others, sold some of our canal ware. I managed to resist buying anything, but it’s good

to know that old canal artifacts are where they belong - on old ex-working boats, being used!

WRG BC AGM

We met this year at the Inland Waterways Association’s Festival of Water at Ilkeston. After the problems last year of the loud

music making it really difficult to hear what

was going on, we decided to try to choose a quiet venue. We thought at first we might

have our meeting on-board nb Fulbourne but when our trusty Commode Door looked, she found that it was rather a distance from the site and somewhat difficult to get aboard. As it was a really lovely day we decided to commandeer some tables by the food outlets.

The meeting was announced over the loudspeakers a few times and commenced at 2 o’clock. A number of members were present as well as four ‘Flag Officers’.

Apologies had been received from

quite a few who either weren’t at the Festival

or were there but engaged in Festival activities.

The Minutes of last year’s AGM had

been published in Navvies last Autumn. Mike proposed that they were a correct record of proceedings, Athena seconded and all agreed. There were no matters arising.

The officers’ reports followed starting

with the...

Commode Door’s Report: (here is

an adapted summary) Although this year’s

festival is in the Midlands I didn’t manage to get here by boat; other club members are camping in tents or in camper vans and two have arrived by train! As far as we know the only WRG BC boats here are Brown Trout (Athena), Ampere (Malcolm and Barbara)

and The Lady Margaret (Roger Margaret and John) Cre-Dal-Wood (Eric & Doreen Wood) and Fulbourne of course owned by a few WRGies including Elaine. (If we’ve missed you out, please let us know)

As this is our 20th Anniversary AGM Let’s celebrate! [Lynne produced a suitably decorate cake, and bottles of Prosecco etc] We all enjoyed cake, drink and later remem

bered and toasted absent friends.

The Commode Door continued by

recommending boating in this area and

talked of her work on the Trent as a volun

teer lock keeper, she recommends this form of volunteering.

The Erewash Canal Preservation and

Development Association is 50 this year. It’s a very enthusiastic and hardworking AWCC club. They restored the canal 45 years ago and are still helping to maintain it. They are continuing restoration with the Cromford Canal which joins the Erewash at the junction at Langley Mill.

Boat Festivals and Rallies are great

opportunities to celebrate, campaign and/or meet other club members. There are many events organised by the IWA or Association of Waterways Cruising Clubs or others. [I,

Sadie, am at the Shackerstone Family Festival as I try to write this!] We would like to hear from club members who have attended any festivals or gatherings. I have especially enjoyed following Malcolm and Barbara’s trip in Ireland which was on Facebook. (We could also create a WRG BC Facebook page!)

We would very much like at least a couple of other club members to join our

committee if anyone is willing to help. Can I make a plea for anyone who would like to be

part of the committee, especially someone with computer skills,

so that we could send out AWCC information by email or advise members of their activities, or offers of help or requests.

Lynne continued - As

AWCC rep, I attend their Mid

lands Region meetings and the National AGM. The AWCC is probably the largest group representing the interests of

boat owners and private moorings. They lobby on our behalf CRT and Parliament.

Meetings start again in

WRG BC’s 20th birthday cake and bottle of bubbly

October, we have been discuss

ing licence evasion and cloned boats, others

evading mooring fees by saying that they are at AWCC club moorings when they aren’t!

We have received a request to help rebuild a bridge over the river Nene and the AWCC have been carefully monitoring and reacting to proposed HS2 routes affecting waterways.

The AWCC have a website , it’s planned to make it accessible to club members, instead of just officers, soon. We have up to date information about AWCC clubs and officers, this is available in the handbook. Please let Sadie know if you want a 2018 handbook as we need to order them NOW!

Erica our Midland Region Secretary keeps us well informed. AWCC Alert is not

being published at the moment. I also have a few really good booklets about Carbon Monoxide safety on boats.

The Secretary reported a fall in club membership, which now stands at 40. Two

members left and the rest left by default, that is they didn’t PAY THEIR SUBS! Please be aware of this terrible fate that may await you! If you haven’t yet done so, set up a banker’s order so that it’s automatically paid and you are worry free! I have details of how to do this, just ask.

I was asked about this year’s famous WRG BC Christmas Card - with moving house and ill health including time in Hospital, I haven’t even thought about it. I promise I will when I return home from the Shackerstone Family Festival, at which I’m a volunteer. I wouldn’t dare not produce one!

Our little Treasure(r) produced very full accounts for the year ending 31 August

2017, these are available on request from the Secretary. To summarize - The income for the year amounted to £445.00 with expenses of £404.00 of which £300.00 was donated to the Wendover Arm Trust. The club has now donated £5,150 to various canal projects! (List available on request)

There was discussion about allocation of funds / donations this year. Lynne suggested the Erewash Canal Restoration and Development Association and Malcolm suggested the Lichfield and Hatherton Canal Restoration Trust so after discussion it was decided to give them £150 each when we have the funds available.

There then followed the election of officers, which followed the past procedure, however it was also decided that Lynne would approach Elaine with a view to coopting her as a club officer. So you’re stuck with us for another year! Please consider standing as a member of the club officers as we need you to suggest new ideas!

Future plans were discussed but the

only decision was to hold our AGM at St. Neots next year at the IWA’s Festival of Water which will be there over the August Bank Holiday.

Any other business included discus

sion of the need for claiming expenses and

how. It was also decided to keep subs at £10

p.a. The meeting closed and we all ‘socialised’

Sadie Heritage, Secretary 07748186867 sadiedean@msn.com