Sailing site: conditions of use

To use the site you must be a member of WSYC. Membership will include insurance sourced by the BFSLYC ( The Fed.) and currently, no other insurance is permitted, although some other insurance policies are recognised by the Fed for events. Regattas are covered by different conditions as all entrants are documented.

Authorised craft

The risk assessments created (separately) by the club and the Wirral Borough Council (WBC) cover the type of craft that are permitted on the site, and form the basis upon which the licencing agreement between the club and the WBC was created. These currently include class three, five and Standart sandyachts, mini-yachts and class eight parakarts.

Please note that sailboards, mountainboards and similar craft having 'weight-shift' steering are not permitted as they are considered unsafe by the Wirral Borough Council.

Guests/Visitors

The licencing agreement with the WBC and rules imposed by The Fed also lay out guidelines under which invited guests are permitted to use the club facilities and sailing site. These currently state that members of sand/land yacht clubs are welcome to visit other clubs' sites on an occasional basis. If they intend to use the other club on a regular basis, they are required to join that club too.

This unfortunately excludes members of the Parakart Association (PKA), the Scottish Power Kite Association (SPKA), the British Power Kitesports Association (BPKA) and other similar organisations. Further information is available from the club - contact details here.

We are also prevented from offering any form of 'first-time' or 'have-a-go' sessions as the club currently has no training facilities, other than the limited training that it can provide to inexperienced members of the club.

Regattas and race meetings

Please note that the above rulings DO NOT affect visitors who are taking part in regattas/race meetings organised or hosted by the club. These would include for example the annual sand yacht regattas and Hoylake rounds of the PKA's National Race Series, where the usual range of facilities will be available as in previous years.

Arriving visitors

Guests of the club are required to sign the visitors' book at the clubhouse. In addition, familiarisation of the club's rules relating to the use of the facilities and sailing site are also a requirement of the WBC, and documentation is available in the clubhouse. Please note that visitors are not permitted to use any of the club's vehicles, due to insurance restrictions. If you are planning a visit and wish to familiarise yourself with the basics prior to arriving, please contact us.

Non-members

WSYC members have an obligation to mention local requirements to you as your insurance is invalid if you are not a member of the WSYC. The rangers may also ask to see your insurance and club ID number. Please remember that the rangers are there to enforce the local authority's policies - they do not make them. Please be courteous as their priority is safety for all sandbank users, and failure to do this may jeopordise future use of the sailing site.

Further requirements

All pilots must wear a safety helmet when in sand yacht or parakart. Eye protection is strongly recommended. Other safety equipment is also recommended as it reduces injury during accidents and helps to project a safety-concious and responsible attitude to people who see us out on the sailing site.

The sailing area is so large that you will be able to find huge areas that ensure that you do not conflict with other users. Please bear this in mind, and give way to all pedestrians, horse riders and the like.

We do not recommend that any pilot uses the sandbank on their own. It is such a huge site that if you got into difficulty, it would be highly unlikely that anybody on the parade would spot you. When the site and weather conditions are suitable for land-sailing expect a fair few pilots to arrive eventually, so please wait until you have some support available before setting out.

With the increase in the area of mud near the sea wall, it is important that all pilots returning from the sand bank make an effort to clean as much lose mud as possible from their craft. This prevents the courtyard from getting covered in mud and reduces the amount of cleaning required. This is especially important when attendance is high eg. good sailing weekends, regattas, etc.

The club's rules are also available here