WHO We Are  |  WHAT Is It About?
WHY Are We Doing It?  |  HOW Are We Doing It?

Who We Are

We are a varied group of people, united by a common interest in owning a large yacht that is capable of sailing long distances. To further this interest, we have purchased an Oyster 55 as the Club boat.

The organisation is non-profit making. The Club members have agreed to split the cost of purchase equally, so that we have an equal share and equal say in the management of the yacht.

The club is run by committee members tasked with maintaining the yacht in its present good condition and creating a sailing programme to and around such places as Scotland, Ireland, France, the Baltic and the Canary Isles.

Within the organisation, we have a number of qualified skippers and mates who take responsibility for the yacht and help develop the boat-handling skills of their fellow sailors.

What Is It About?

The project aims to give individuals a stake in a large, ocean-going yacht of high quality and presence, thus providing the opportunity to enjoy long distance cruising in such a vessel.

The founding members established the club following more than twenty-seven successful years running a 58 foot pre-war ketch named Marabu. Although we made every effort to keep Marabu in good sailing condition, repairs to her wooden structure became both prohibitively expensive and time-consuming and she was eventually sold. One of the main disadvantages of the wooden construction was the amount and extent of the maintenance work required each year. In contrast, the Oyster 55 is a modern, fibreglass yacht which will be very much easier to maintain, thus extending the annual sailing period and enhancing the enjoyment for all members.

The camaraderie and friendships that developed over the twenty-seven years of the Marabu syndicate are fundamental to the formation of this new club. Many issues such as those relating to training, the extent of use by shareholders, crew management, crew safety and annual maintenance were carefully refined and developed over the many years of the Marabu syndicate and these methods will be adapted and adopted to suit this new project.

Our hope is that about 60 share holders will eventually own the vessel jointly and that the income from sailing revenue will fund its maintenance and running costs.

Why Are We Doing It?

Owning a quality yacht is a very expensive business, not only in terms of its purchase price but in terms of its annual maintenance, mooring fees, insurance premiums etc. Therefore, individual ownership of such a yacht is only a dream for all but the very wealthy.

Moreover, those with yachts of their own often experience difficulty finding crew to undertake longer, adventurous journeys, or possibly have smaller boats that cannot undertake long distance sailing. Others often find that, over time, they are unable to get sufficient return on the investment in their own vessel as other commitments interfere and prevent sailing often enough to make the outlay worthwhile.

We have purchased an Oyster 55 which is recognised as one of the foremost cruising vessels in view of its extremely solid construction, the quality of its sailing performance and the comfort of its interior. It thus provides an ideal platform to provide the quality sailing to which most of us aspire, allows the opportunity for long distance cruising and is a vessel we will always be proud to own.

Owning a share in our Oyster 55 gives many benefits and is an attractive option for those who have sailing skills but have chosen to sell their own boats, for those who would dearly love to own their own boat but cannot afford to, for those who enjoy sharing a boat with like-minded people and who would like company on longer cruises, as well as for those who currently have no sailing skills but wish to learn.

How Are We Doing It?

This is NOT a time share organisation.

Each member holds a share of £4000. As a temporary measure, in order to purchase the vessel, some share holders have taken up more than one share and additionally provided loans at no cost to the club.

At a cost of £4000, we anticipate club membership will be accessible to anyone who enjoys sailing and appreciates that an outdoor pursuit of this nature requires some outlay in terms of equipment to enjoy that activity.

Share holders and those actively involved carry out work to maintain and improve the vessel and will benefit from reduced sailing charges.

Our aim is to attract a variety of individuals from a wide cross-section of society with sailing skills and additional skills that will enhance the functioning of the club; for example, web page designers to promote the club’s image, engineers, electricians and carpenters to help maintain the equipment or any other skills that would help maintain, improve or enhance the yacht.

The club will agree a sailing programme in advance of each sailing season, with time periods allocated to visiting areas of interest. Each of the cruises, however long, will be skippered by a club-recognised and qualified skipper and club-recognised mate.

In a typical sailing programme, the yacht would remain in Brighton over the winter and spring months (November – May) for maintenance work, weekend and day/evening sails.

From May - September, it is anticipated that a cruising programme will operate, to the Western isles of Scotland for example. This might typically involve a delivery trip to Falmouth, a changeover at Falmouth, cruising to Oban, a crew change there, followed by a number of crews enjoying cruises of one or two weeks around the Western Isles before delivery trips back to the Solent in September.

The yacht would then be available for weekends in the Solent until November when she would return to Brighton until the following May.

Club members can reserve those summer weeks that suit their diaries; for example those with children might only be able to cruise in August, those without children may wish only to cruise outside school holiday periods.

The club has its own social programme to encourage share holders to meet one another, learn from each other, develop friendships and enjoy the camaraderie that develops through shared experiences within a sailing environment.