Reg won with his model of HMS Cambletown (1/96th scale) .
Racing and Results
Our Club
Our History
Click on a logo below
to link to relevant website :
to link to relevant website :
Rugeley Model Boat Clubwww.rugeleymodelclub.org.uk
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 Welcome to the Rugeley Model Boat Club,
at our home at Manor Park Sailing Club, near Kings Bromley, Staffordshire.
(We used to sail at Rugeley Power Station until it closed in March 2017!)
Success for Rugeley Members at the Blackpool Model show 2024
Members had a successful visit to Blackpool this year for the annual Model Show. With over 2,500 models on show the competition was intense but Reg Preece won best in the Semi-Kit category, and Mark Hawkins won Best In Show.
Mark won with his model of a R.N.A.S. Rolls Royce (1/6th scale). .
Race Officer - End of Season
We have now completed the race programme for the 2024 season.
In a year when the worlds best athletes have been demonstrating their excellence our RMBC mariners have also been excelling.
Over the year in the two competitive classes we have had over 50 races with a total of about 400 participations.
On a few occasions as members will remember we were defeated by the winds on the lake and occasionally the lack of wind resulted in very slow races.
12 members participated in the Victoria/DF65 competition and 20 in the DF95 one.
I have posted the race results as I have collected them on this site. Please check you are happy with the results recorded and let me know of any problems before the podium positions are derived.
Secretary's Update September 2
Please do not believe that the weather will be as bad as the forecast.
The forecasters always promise that the weather will be twice as wet as it is, in an excess of caution, ever since the hurricane in 1987. They are not true sailors and are intent on spoiling everyone's fun. We had a splendid day's sailing on Monday, as the sun popped its head out straight after lunch. There were only 3 scale modellers with a trawler of Steve's that I had not seen before. Ken made a special effort and Paul Golder was at home, helping a stair lift to rise again.
Colin started the meeting by welcoming everyone and saying how well the club is going. We have with a new member, Paul Kerrigan, with his Df95 yacht all ready to sail.
We have smart new RMBC and MPRSC signs by the entrance gate and very clear numbers on the 6 new yellow pickup buoys. A new safety handrail alongside hedge by the steps, is due any day. No accidents have been reported and everyone either requesting assistance with launching or walking safely down the steps carrying yachts in the approved fashion. Please do ask if you would benefit from help of any kind, especially launching and retrieval. I have a spare yacht and spare everything else in the car. Charges for yacht rescue from the lake are currently waived… On Wednesday a dinghy set off beautifully from the beach, without any crew. The red rescue boat caught up with it beyond the far side of the island. So it is not just us.
(The new yellow buoys are staying smart due to an unexpected feature. On Wednesday, further round the lake, every single red, blue, black and white buoy had a sea gull perched on top. There were no birds at all on the RMBC buoys, as the birds evidently cannot perch on the handles).
The coal bunker is acting as a safe store for the Scale Modellers, so we do not not risk stuff becoming damaged in the original shared cabin.
The website is working. We have plans to update the format on Paul's behalf.
Funds are currently £547.17, secure in Alan's red cashbox, as he has mislaid the keys. To be invoiced are the buoys and weights, total about £200. It is planned for Dave Marsh to try picking the lock of the small cash box, before resorting to more forceful access measures, for which there were quite a few volunteers. Colin said that we are benefitting from bequests and clear-outs, which include life jackets, yachts and scale models. This is much appreciated and helps keep us thriving.
There is a static yacht, on a plinth, on the window cill that has been donated. Rather like some rehomed animals it has not been accepted by its target family and would benefit from repair to the ratlines and regular dusting. Please take it if you have a spot available.
There followed a discussion about dredging the launching areas for both the the yachts and the scale models. There is not quite enough draught at low lake water levels to launch. We have a new groundsman, Liam Hookham. Colin feels that at the right time removing several more barrow loads from these areas to the drive way or car park, with his assistance, will suffice.
For information MPSC has a big programme to add one more container in the car park for the scouts paddle boards, canoes and kayaks, who fill the lake every summer evening. Then replace this month the 2 rotten leaking containers opposite the the scale modellers launching, ready to buy two newer rescue ribs, this year and two more ribs next year. The ribs are showing their age and need a lot more maintenance, sometimes stopping the sailing. Following that the bank to the ditch behind the containers will be raised to reduce the force of any winter flooding. The 4,000 mm scaffold poles are on site to drive down into the soft bank. 300x1800mm gravel boards will fill the gaps.
I have spare radio lanyards, toolbox numbers, hook eye threaders to pull string through bowsies - all at cost price.
There is an RMBC locker in the clubhouse hallway to the toilets, with race sheets, membership forms and how to buy a Df95. Anything else???
Following sailor's input, we will be having an RMBC Christmas Social Celebration, probably with fish and chips, a presentation of certificates (rather similar to the village dog show prize for the dog with the waggiest tail), at a Monday in December. Paul Golder is keeping a list of all the race results and I am looking forward to handing on the glass trophy.
Club Banner
Following it's appearance on this web site our new logo has now arrived on the fence at the entrance to our club. Colin sourced new banners to replace the aged and peeling historic plaque that has welcomed visitors up to now. The new weatherproof banner preserves the club's links with the region's industrial past. Thanks to Colin, Steve and David for fixing the signs.
Club News
Since Peter died the RMBC has a new webmaster, Paul Golder. The plan to modernise the club website on rugeleymodelclub.org.uk. to be more mobile friendly. In the meantime he will try to keep the growing membership informed about club activities. Any member with news items to share are invited ( begged?) to send them to Paul on paul.a.golder@lerot.org.
Dot Buttress has kindly agreed to continue with the birthday cards.
The main thing is the growing membership and more importantly the growing number attending on Mondays.
Derek 93 is now brought by his daughter, Helen, so we can have 12 yachts (DF95s) sailing or possibly swarming on the water. Further along the bank into the windless corner, the 10 or so scale modellers are launched by Mark Hawkins or John Clarke in wellingtons. There are electric whirring noises with some clever motor sounds loudspeakered on top. We have been pleased to welcome strong contingent of skippers from Aldridge with Black Country accents, who are always enthusiastic and are challenging in both racing categories as well a contributing to the growing scale-model activity. The new membership have also brought a few Victorias so that our Victoria/DF65 races which had declined to three or four contenders are now boasting in excess of 6 chasing glory. Racing format seems to have settled to twice clockwise round 6 yellow buoys in declining order, followed by twice anticlockwise in rising number order.
However given our notoriously unstable and contrary winds the race format is frequently modified even in the middle of a session.
We have lots of plans. We could get the ballast back out of the lake by the bank to restore the scale model launching depth from the Guides area. Thanks to the volunteer sanders and painters the benches have all been repainted and new signs are going up by the gate with the new cooling tower logo. The rescue boat gets some use each week and not just for the newer members tangling with the buoys. Hunt the yellow buoys has stopped for a while as the numerous new teenage groups throughout the week became inspired, taking them horizontally in all possible directions. Nessie, our American GPS buoy, with a mind of her own when to adjust her position in the lake, makes an occasional swivel and rush. Useful for start lines apparently.
Hope to see you in the sunshine, with sandwiches at 12.30 on Mondays (not Christmas). WHO ARE WE?We are a small friendly club that sail both radio controlled scale models and yachts on this beautiful lake. In the summer we have a marquee type sun shelter to protect us while saiing. We share the lake facilities with another Model Yacht Association club, the main dinghy sailors, SUPs, cubs, scouts and other affiliated groups who all enjoy the three big lakes, all river water lakes (The River Trent passes through the lakes.)WHAT DO WE SAIL? We are an open club and sail many types of yachts
around buoys for pleasure. Several members have scale models and these are sailed as well. In fact one of the best days after Lockdown was sailing seven
types of yachts around our buoys! That is why we limit class racing heats to four on a day - and schedule the day on the calendar so you know
what to prepare. We even have specific "mixed yacht days" Many of us have though settled on sailing the well-balanced
DragonFlite 95's (DF95) yachts as they are suited to the winds at our lake.
In fact a few members still sail the kit-built yacht class known Victoria's, but they prefer lighter winds, such as those found
at our former lake at Rugeley Power Station. We have regular informal heats during the summer, competing for our RMBC annual trophies -
great fun. Click on Yachts & Racing
on left. See picture on right of some our members with their DF95s.
One of the more enjoyable events is our annual meet with our friends from the Aldridge Model Boat Club. We first got to know them, many
years ago in our Power Station days, when they were the former "Sandwell & Dudley" club. This friendly competitive
day is great fun, and the first meeting of 2023 was on 13th May held at Aldridge in idyllic surroubdings. Eight yachts took part, with no dinghies on
the water. The cloud cleared to revceal a hot blue sunny day, with variable winds - quite challenging. We managed six very competitive heats.
In contrast the repeat event at Manor Park on 25th September was a blustery day, again with eight yachts, but only four heats were possible in the strong winds
- two yachts having to withdraw due to damaged rigging! The heat results are shown at Yachts & Racing. The AMBC/RMBC Challenge winner in May was Sid Sims, and in September was Barry Salt. Roll on next year for the repeat events.
 In calm weather we also sail our scale models, often built from scratch with fine details, often including "lights, smoke & horn!"
Click on our Member's Models on left side to view some. We also have a couple of medium-fast electric model boats that sail.
Our members have great confidence when sailing knowing that their models can always be recovered. Our rescue boat, shared with the other Radio
Sailing Club, shown on the right, was bought with a fantastic grant from the Post Code Lottery Local fund - Thank you.
WHEN DO WE SAIL?We sail nearly every Monday afternoon, throughout the year, often including Bank Holiday Mondays, and usually meet up with
our sandwiches and a flask about 1230, have a sit down and chat in the clubhouse, then go on the water. We finish about 15.30 but we will often stay later in
the summer. We have almost unrestricted access to the water on Mondays.
As Mondays is restricting for those still in employment, some of our members in 2024 have started to meet on a Sunday morning. They need to be aware
of our Operating Rules and that in the summer, the MPRSC have priority in the Training Lake.
HOW DO I JOIN?Before joining it is best to make contact with the club and visit on a sailing day (Monday afternoons 1pm to 3pm) to see us inaction. Make contact by email enquiries@rugeleymodelclub.org.uk first, to ensure someone is expecting you. On your first visit you may be able to experience sailing the club yacht or one of the members will let you have a go with one of theirs. Members pay a small subscription to our club, essentially to cover the required model boat insurance, but you need
to join the main sailing club as category "radio sailor" first. See link "How to Join" on left
of this web page.
A common question is "What's the difference between the two model yacht clubs?"
The MPRSC use more sophisticated and much more expensive yachts, enter and host both National and International competitions, and go by
the strict MYA rule-book! At RMBC we are much more laid back and just enjoy our sailing -
We often quote "We go round buoys; so if you touch boats near a buoy - what's the problem?"
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3rd June 2024 : Paul Golder
( The number of hits in a year averages a staggering 5,815 per month.#041;