Please reach us at dinghy@clyde.org if you cannot find an answer to your question.
As an Royal Yachting Association (RYA) approved training centre we provide training within the following certification paths:
Students can then move on to more advanced training for racing and sailing with spinnakers. Some may choose to learn how to become instructors.
We also organise training courses on site for:
Other courses may be available from time-to-time in Day Skipper theory, VHF Radio, and Race Management. Information on these courses will be emailed out to members and publicised more widely on Twitter or Facebook.
Evening classes provide RYA-approved training on a specific evening of the week, between the start of the sailing season (April) until Summer School starts.
For 2025 evening lessons will begin the week commencing 14 April, with a block of ten weeks for each of the three teaching evenings (Monday, Wednesday, Friday). The programme is open to juniors and adults of any level. It is likely that different advanced modules will be available on specific evenings.
This means that the evenings will be organised as:
Classes start at 6.30pm and end before dusk (they are usually shorter for juniors to avoid them getting over tired). Tuition follows the RYA syllabus.
Check availability and book onto classes here. See the next answer for how to book a course.
Any place on a course is conditional on membership of the Clyde Cruising Club Dinghy Section being finalised, including payment for membership and the course itself. See the following answer on how to get started.
Juniors must have reached the age of 8 before the first class.
If you have any questions then please email the instructors team.
Summer School typically runs over 6 weeks in July and August, with training offered during the day over Monday to Friday.
It is a great way to try sailing out, and make rapid progress. We welcome beginners and improvers, with a range of training levels available. Courses are accredited by the Royal Yachting Association (RYA).
For 2025 training will begin on 30 June, with subsequent blocks of lessons starting 7 / 14 / 21 / 28 July and 4 August. These can be booked for anyone who will have reached the age of 8 by the time the course starts.
Check availability for each course here. See the next answer for how to book a course.
Classes are run from 09:30 to 16:30 each day, with children supervised by the instructors during the lunch break. Bring a packed lunch and a bottle of water.
Any place on a course is conditional on membership of the Clyde Cruising Club Dinghy Section being finalised, including payment for membership and the course itself. See the following answer on how to get started.
If you have any questions then please email the instructors team.
If you are completely new to sailing, you can come down to the loch for a chat (weekday evenings from April to October are best), or contact us.
When you are ready to give it a go, decide which membership level is best for your circumstances by looking at the options for dinghy section members here (see the second table for the dinghy section). Any cancellation may incur a £25 fee.
Then create an account and apply for evening lessons or a summer school week from the club calendar. Open a training event to see each level of tuition described and its availability stated. You can then select the appropriate level.
When making bookings for another family member, please note that you need to sign into the portal using their account in order to see the training slots. These will not be visible when signed in using an account created with the email address of the family contact.
The costs that you can expect are the annual membership, the fees for any classes you book, and a small charge for the relevant log book for each person sailing. You may also need to purchase some kit (see next answer). There is no charge for examinations, certificates, or the use of boats.
Membership fees must be paid before the start of classes.
On your first evening or summer school class please bring a completed training form (downloadable from the Training page and also available at Bardowie) and your kit.
If you need any help you can either contact dinghy@clyde.org or get in touch with the instructors at bardowie.instructor.team@gmail.com.
To start with you can get by with:
So basically dress for the Scottish weather, and try and anticipate how it may change while you are sailing. Remember it is colder on the water than on the land.
Other things to consider are:
Once you are sure that sailing is for you, it might be worth investing in:
The Club has a selection of buoyancy aids for learners, and helmets for juniors.
It is important that you understand that RYA training courses are progressive, and as such are designed for learning to sail and improving sailing skills. You are encouraged to practice these skills between stages and take any opportunities to experience sailing at other venues.
For this reason, certificates will only be awarded when the instructors are satisfied that all elements can be demonstrated to the standard approved for each stage.
When you start training you will be given a log book that the instructors use to sign off the progress that they have seen evidence of. This means if you do not complete a stage during a training block then the instructors can see what is still outstanding the next time you do a course. Certificates can be pasted into the log book for safe keeping.
If you are new to the area, and have the experience but not the paperwork, we are also happy to arrange assessments to make sure you are capable of independently sailing the club boats. In this case, you need not sign up for classes, but the other membership costs still apply.
If you already have the ability to sail independently (i.e. NSS level 2 for adults or YSS stage 3 for juniors) you can try organized racing on Thursday evenings or simply go free-sailing when stewards are present.
We operate as a club, with an annual membership fee, so unlike commercial centres there is no charge per hour to take a boat out.
On organized training nights (Monday, Wednesday, Friday), priority for access to club boats goes to course participants. You can still do free-sailing on those evenings, just check with the instructors what parts of the Loch they will be using, and bear in mind that new sailors may need more space.
In a similar way, if free-sailing while races are held on a Thursday evening keep out of the way of people racing. Be aware that the course can change over the evening to adapt to wind conditions.
There are dedicated free-sailing sessions on the club calendar for Tuesday evening (6pm-dusk) and Saturday and Sunday afternoons (1pm-4.30pm). If you book in online then the steward knows to expect you and has ready access to your emergency contact details. If no sailors are at the Loch or booked in by 7pm for evening sailing or by 3pm at weekends then the steward is at liberty to close up early.
Note that free sailing can be suspended when:
When you turn up at the club for free sailing:
Both these steps help keep everyone safe.
The steward will have a powerboat ready to provide assistance if required.
No.
Unlike many other clubs, we have boats that club members can use.
Currently we have about 70 boats, with a good range to suit all ages and abilities:
Boats are provided for all classes that you sign up to.
For sailing outside classes, once you have proven your ability to sail independently you can just come down to the club and take a boat out.
If you decide to invest in a boat of your own (e.g. so you can set it up exactly the way you want it), then we offer an on-site dinghy park to members for a small fee (although check with us for availability of spaces).
Yes.
Although the dinghy section has a long tradition of providing boats for members to sail, members are welcome to sail their own boat at Bardowie Loch (see the following answer for information on parking it).
You can of course sail during free sailing times (as described above), as part of racing or within regattas.
You can also sail your own boat outside of these times, as long as:
Keys for the site are held by members of the committee, senior instructors, and by stewards (so why not volunteer).
We have a boat park for members that intend to sail their dinghy on the loch. It can accommodate 49 dinghies, with other spaces around the club house and to the rear of the boat shed bringing the total storage capacity on site to 70 boats.
There is a nominal charge of £35 per year (2024) to cover maintenance of the park. We want to support sailing on the loch, rather than just have boats parked here and forgotten about.
To request a space for the first time, register your boat and then simply email dinghy@clyde.org with the details. The first available space will be allocated to you.
Note however that the dinghy park is popular so there can be a waiting list for spaces. It is not guaranteed that a space will be available. Do not park in a space that is not yours.
At the start of each year an email will be sent asking you to renew your booking. Having a space one year is no guarantee that you will be allocated a space the following year (for example, if the boat has not been sailed).
The downloads section below includes the full terms and conditions (note in particular the requirement to have insurance) and a dinghy park plan.
Note that having a boat in the dinghy park does not entitle you to keys for the site: these are only provided to committee members, senior instructors and stewards. So if you need access to move or maintain your boat why not volunteer for one of these roles or come along when the club is already open (e.g. free sailing sessions or the Monday Morning group).
The dinghy section is keen to support those with disabilities into sailing.
A fleet of accessible Hansa 303 dinghies are available. These boats are designed so that they cannot capsize and are crewed by one or two sailors in a seated position, with all ropes within reach and steering located either between the two sailors or between the legs of a solo sailor.
A jacket, gloves and possibly a pair of waterproof trousers are all that is required to sail Hansa 303s. Personal buoyancy aids are provided by the club.
The club also hosts a fleet of Challenger trimaran dinghies. Again, these boats are sailed from a seated position, with all ropes within reach and steering located directly in front of the sailor. A buddy seat allows a friend to provide directions to visually impaired sailors. The trimaran design makes them very stable.
Access to the boats is accommodated either via the ramp down to the pontoon for those that can maneuver themselves into the dinghies or via a hoist for those that cannot (please note you will need to bring your own sling for use with the hoist as these are specified to your personal requirements).
All buildings on site are wheelchair accessible, with the new clubhouse offering a disabled changing room / wet room.
Parking is also available, with some spaces at the clubhouse.
For more information on our commitment, see our program for disabled sailors.
Yes.
The four main sections of a DofE programme are defined here. The following guidance is based on our undertaking of these requirements.
For the skill or physical section our instructor team will sign off for anyone undertaking regular training or sailing (3 months for Bronze and 6 months for Silver, with 1 hour per week).
The volunteering section requirement can be met by training as an Assistant Instructor. The pre-requisites for this are for the sailor:
It can also be met by being an Assistant Instructor.
In both cases for the Bronze award the length of the volunteering period is either 8 weeks pre-Summer School or 4 weeks of Summer School. For the Silver award the required duration of volunteering can be met by Summer School plus assisting with Spring and Autumn evening lessons plus instructor / power boat training.
Yes.
The Scout Association Sailing Staged Activity Badge for Scouts, Cubs and Beavers is aligned with the RYA Youth Sailing Scheme (YSS) courses that we run.
You can read the requirements for this badge here.
Our training courses are available to club members, allowing them to progress through YSS stages 1 to 4, with each meeting the requirements for Sailing Badge stages 1 to 4 respectively.
As a volunteer-run organization we do not have the capacity to provide separate sessions for individuals to meet this requirement, but are happy to discuss partnering opportunities with other organizations to facilitate group training.