The new Glen Sannox arriving at Troon
In a message to all members, CRSC President Graeme Hogg announces the first cruising opportunity of the year in a Nominated Excursion to Arran aboard the new Glen Sannox, as well as giving a summary of the survey that members were invited to complete last autumn.
Dear Member,
There are a few items to cover to bring you up to date with Club activities. The main items are a nominated excursion aboard the new Glen Sannox and the results of our recent survey.
For a variety of reasons, it is now some time since we as a Club have been able to achieve one of our objectives of sailing together aboard a CalMac vessel. The arrival of the new Glen Sannox on the Troon – Brodick service offers an opportunity to get together again aboard what has been a well-received new member of the fleet.
We would join the 10.50 sailing from Troon and return on the 13.00 sailing from Brodick. For those wishing to spend time ashore in Brodick, return by the later 17.20 sailing is an option. There is no group booking facility, so please book your tickets individually online. The return fare is £9.20. I urge you to book in advance to simplify passenger transfer arrangements. Troon is accessible by car or train. The train connection from Glasgow is at 09.30 and a shuttle bus operates from the station to the harbour. If arriving by car, there is a car park operated by Associated British Ports. The daily charge is £5, payable on departure. The car park is a distance from the terminal, so again there is a shuttle bus in operation. Passenger check in is 20 minutes before departure, so make sure to be at Troon in good time.
The ship has full catering facilities and lunch will be available on both crossings.
It will be great to have an opportunity to sail together again after so long and I hope you will be able to support this trip, even if you have sampled the delights of Glen Sannox already. I look forward to seeing you on board.
Waverley lies at Ardrishaig on 30 July 2023, a scene to be repeated in August
Looking further ahead, the Club has agreed a nominated excursion with Waverley Excursions aboard the paddler on Sunday 17 August. That day she will sail from Glasgow, Greenock, Largs and Tighnabruaich to Ardrishaig, with a cruise to Otter Narrows on Loch Fyne. This will be her only visit to Ardrishaig and upper Loch Fyne in 2025. As usual, there will be Club only fares and meal offers and full details will be made available in the fairly near future.
As you know, the Club launched a survey, last autumn, directed primarily at members, to assist the Committee in identifying what aspects of our activities are most appreciated and enjoyed and to identify ways in which the Club might evolve to maintain its appeal and meet the ever changing circumstances in which it operates.
There were 190 responses to the survey, almost all from members which, out of a membership of around 500, is a reasonable response rate. Overall, there was a good degree of satisfaction with what the Club offers but a number of interesting points did emerge.
The first section sought general information about respondents and this revealed two important matters.
Age of membership
The age profile of respondents showed that fewer than 20% were below the age of 60. This is perhaps not entirely surprising. Anyone below 50 has, with the exception of Waverley, known only ferries and has no direct experience of the older passenger ships that once graced the waters of the Clyde and elsewhere. The Club is keen to attract more younger members and will engage with a group of existing young members to look at ways of doing so.
Geographical spread of members
One surprising feature of the responses was the proportion that came from those who live out with West Central Scotland. We will look at ways of better reaching those further afield in the future. Steps have already been taken, thanks to Covid, by holding meetings via Zoom or “broadcasting” them on YouTube. We will assess what scope there is to develop this aspect on a timely and cost effective basis. Clearly members benefit from Club publications and online engagement no matter where they live. And this leads to the next area.
Subsequent sections looked at specific Club activities.
Publications
The two annual publications, the Clyde Steamers magazine and Annual Review are identified by respondents as the most prized aspects of Club activities. There are no plans to alter the quality or timing of each publication. The specific question was asked as to whether combining the two publications as a cost saving measure might be worthwhile. There was no strong view expressed and so the two will continue separately.
Website
This too is well received. There was some desire to see more frequent updates, but this is dependent on the ability to generate material. There is a small group which co-ordinates website activity, but they are not in a position to generate content. That will happen only if members are willing to put material forward for publication. The website group will identify ways of making it easier to submit material for publication.
Social media
The Club has a presence on Facebook at present. Again there is a desire to see more frequent updates, but member input is required to achieve this. There are numerous other social media avenues which could be opened up but an assessment of this will be left initially to the group of young members being brought together.
Club outings
Sailing together has always been a mainstay of Club activity. In recent times, a combination of Covid and CalMac’s ageing fleet problems have made this much more difficult. Many members recognise this but the demand for more sailing activity is still there, particularly among younger members. The new additions to the CalMac fleet will provide sailing opportunities in the coming months and years. There is also an appetite for non-sailing outings, such as shipyard or appropriate museum visits. The Club is currently lacking a dedicated Cruising organiser and identifying one is a priority to re-invigorate these activities.
Promotion of Club activities
In order to attract new members, the Club must promote what it offers in an effective fashion. The website is one means of doing so, as are membership leaflets, although a wider distribution of these would help and was advocated by many respondents. Better promotion aboard the CalMac fleet remains an ambition and some other new ideas are being considered. A name change for the Club might also widen the range of people attracted. These areas will be assessed by the Committee.
Club memorabilia
There is probably a degree of misunderstanding over the nature and extent of the Club’s collection of memorabilia. There is a range of photographic material, timetables, posters, books and physical artefacts relating to ships and people of the past, but it is probably less extensive than many people might imagine. Its curation has also been neglected to some extent until relatively recently and there is an extensive collating and cataloguing exercise underway to establish exactly what is in the collection. Once that is complete, it will be easier to offer greater access to the collection, via the website (a process which has started already) and display of some physical artefacts in suitable locations, which will hopefully satisfy the widespread desire for greater access.
Hands-on Preservation Projects
The Club has never actively participated in a hands-on way with ship and other preservation projects, although many members do so as individuals. There was no strong appetite expressed in the survey responses for this to change, but the Club is happy to act as a conduit for members keen to pursue these activities, to put them in touch with the appropriate bodies.
Conclusion
As set out above, there are several ways in which the Club can evolve its activities. However, as a Club, it is the members who can provide the impetus to do more things and maintain existing activities better. It becomes ever more time consuming to run an enthusiasts’ club of this nature, relying as it does on people willing to devote their spare time to what can be quite demanding tasks. They do it because they can enjoy what it brings them and others, but the more members who show willing to support these efforts, the more the Club can thrive. Please be willing to put yourself forward to support your Club in any way you can. The Clyde River Steamer Club needs you!
I am sorry to have to advise you that the Club’s Honorary Secretary has tendered their resignation from the post. Eric Schofield, their long-standing predecessor, has agreed to step into the breach until our AGM in April. Thereafter, as things stand, no obvious candidate has been identified to fill the position to date. In line with the final paragraph of the Survey item above, if this is a role you might be willing to undertake, please contact a member of the Committee. You will be given further details of what the role entails to enable an informed decision to be made.
The other outstanding position on Committee is that of Cruising organiser, as noted above. It is expected that a candidate to fill this post will be identified in time for the AGM. While there is a candidate in mind, any volunteer for the role would be welcomed and if it is of interest, please contact the Committee and you will be given further details of what the role entails to enable an informed decision to be made.
Kind regards
Graeme Hogg
Published on 11 February 2025