RQYS – the jewel in the Moreton Bay crown
by Bob Wonders on 21 Jan 2010
Swaying palm strees, the translucent water of Moreton Bay and a club house like this - what more could a boater want? - RQYS Bob Wonders
With its thousands of kilometres of coastline spread along the Pacific, Indian and Southern Oceans, Australia can claim to be home to many outstanding yachting and boating clubs.
Few, however, could match the stunning setting enjoyed by the prestigious Royal Queensland Yacht Squadron.
Dominating the Moreton Bay shoreline at Manly, only a short drive east of the state capital, Brisbane, the RQYS boasts a history dating back more than 120-years.
Haydyn Johns, the club's general manager for the past eight-years, rates the club's fabulous waterfront area as 'one of the best positions for a yacht club anywhere in Australia.'
'We're very proud of our facilities,' he adds, 'we lease the first 30.0-metres of the water's edge land from the Port of Brisbane, but we have 5-hectares of land which, thanks to our forebears we own freehold.
'That's something a club would simply not be able to do these days,' he added.
The club's marina has just been expanded, from 464 marine berths to an imposing 573 following the recent addition of 109 berths.
Many are rated to cater for multihull vessels and some can handle craft up to 32.5-metres overall.
Although rated as ‘a yacht club', Haydyn Jones says membership and boat ownership is roughly 50-50 between power and sail.
Both divisions, power and sail, remain extremely active, with numerous sailing regattas and powerboat log events and joint cruises staged every year.
I was able to meet with Ed Boast, Commodore of the Powerboat Division during my visit to the club and he was, like so many members I have met, dedicated to the club and its operations.
In addition to its imposing headquarters, the RQYS also has the unique island setting at Canaipa, on the north eastern point of Russell Island, roughly halfway between Brisbane and Southport, on the Gold Coast.
'Canaipa is a great destination for our members, there's a jetty, ample anchorage area and ashore we have toilet and shower facilities, barbecue areas, a swimming pool and plenty of open lawn areas,' Haydyn Johns explained.
'It's a great place for a weekend getaway and is just another attraction for members of the club.'
Although Haydyn Jones might be ‘the boss', he's quick to point out that RQYS is anything but a one-man operation.
'Our hard-working committee has developed a master plan which takes us forward one, five, 10, 20 and 30-plus years, and in addition to our valuable staff, now at 26 full time and a further 60 part time, we have an enviable group of volunteers, ' he pointed out.
'We probably have 80 to 100 volunteers and every one of them is dedicated to the club and its operations.
'Suellen Hurling looks after out marine sports, covering all our activities from sailing to powerboats and cruising.
'Tom Johns coordinates our sailing school activities, where we concentrate on the learn-to-sail areas and contract out for the higher level of sailing.
'Jennie Bridge does a marvellous job coordinating and maintaining results from all our activities and with our other volunteers helps in looking after our large fleet of marine sport boats.
'All our volunteers, headed by our coordinator Dougal Henderson, are an absolute credit to the club,' he added.
Not surprisingly, Haydyn Johns believes the club has a volunteer program that is the absolute envy of other clubs around Australia.
As he pointed out, things have changed drastically in terms of club volunteers, particularly in the last 10-years.
'Risk management, insurance and all those sorts of things are a key issue these days, so with all our volunteers we run a strict and professional support program to ensure each is qualified sin their own area of expertise,' he explains.
'We've done a lot of work training and establishing a good team of race officers in all areas.
'We make a point of looking after them, with the cooler of free drinks at day's end, their lunch when out on the water, team shirts and we ensure they receive plenty of pats on the back for their efforts and time,' he added.
Current club membership stands at 3200 (2400 members and 800 associates) and I was somewhat surprised to learn that membership is open.
One particular club member obviously finds the facilities on offer to his liking; Bill Wright has been a member since 1931, an unbroken 78-years!
If that surname seems familiar, no surprise there, Bill is of the boat building dynasty Norman R.Wright and Sons.
'We did have a waiting list for membership a few years back, but we're certainly in a position to accept new members at present,' Haydyn said.
'We've made a conscious effort to keep membership prices down and look at increasing membership numbers.
'Another aspect we're considering is a mail out to the people in the many new housing estates that have been developed along the east coast here outside Brisbane.'
While the club boasts the mandatory facilities one expects in such premises, such as bars, restaurants and functions rooms, for die-hard boat owners it's the hard-core waterfront attractions that appeal.
Extensive hard stand areas, a 35-tonne Travel Lift, rigging areas, 24-hour fuel and on-site contractors for all manner of maintenance from engineers to welders, upholsterers to shipwrights are among the expertise available to boat owning members.
The imposing marina is under the care of a man who certainly knows his way around a marina arm in Andrew Monks, a Certified Marina Manager who prior to joining RQYS nine-years ago spent 13-years caring for the Sanctuary Cove Marina.
Andrew played a major role in the development of the additional 109 berth marina, with the work carried out by The Jetty Specialist, and he takes a certain amount of pride in his surroundings when he looks out over the marine from his waterfront office.
'This is one of the finest facilities in the state,' he says.
'We can handle up to 12 vessels at a time on our hard stand area and we also have a slip way that can handle multihulls when need be,' he added.
The Royal Queensland Yacht Squadron can easily claim to be one of the most progressive institutions in the state.
'We certainly like to think so,' Haydyn Johns says.
'We been progressive in the sense that we have also become a landlord, with Yachting Queensland building their premises on our land and in 2007 we built and opened a 39-room motel.
'That has been leased out to management, but we own the facility and that will be a legacy for our members for years to come,' he said.
Although a qualified accountant, the Adelaide-born Haydyn Johns has more than 30-years experience in the hospitality industry, including a five-year stint as general manager of the Darwin Sailing Club.
'I've seen some dramatic changes over the years, and it could certainly be termed challenging,' he says.
'Nevertheless, I'm looking forward to the next few years of progress and the opportunity to move further into the 21st century.'
For further information, The Royal Queensland Yacht Squadron, 578 Royal Esplanade, Manly, Queensland 4179, telephone (07) 3393-3554 or visit the website, www.rqys.com.au
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