It was just after 10am on the morning of 1
May 1976 that 21 yachts crossed the start line off the Royal Clyde Yacht Club at
Rhu, on a race to Colintraive in the Kyles of Bute. Nothing unusual about that
you might say but this event was unique in the annals of sailing and medicine,
for every yacht was entered by a doctor.
For once the gods were against us, for
my log of that day records rising winds reaching gale force, with very heavy
seas off Cloch Lighthouse. Prudence and sea-sickness overcame valour and
foolhardiness. I was forced to retire, along with 18 others. On return to the
moorings, my crew and I set off by car to Colintraive where to our amazement, as
we came over the hill, we found a beautiful, tranquil scene with yachts moving
gently to light zephyrs and basking in a glorious sunset. What had we done
wrong?
At Colintraive Hotel, we met up with
Alex Gilchrist of Siemens Ltd, who had generously put up a number of cups for
the race and were told, "It's only been like this for the last 30
minutes." However, two yachts did finish the race, John Elias Jones in
Stardust of Ashton and Rosemary Weir in Siolta. An even stranger sight was of a
late straggler, Taal, arriving with only a husband and wife crew plus a 2 year
old daughter. "A splendid sail," said Ernest, a psychiatrist of
course, "where are the others?" Norma let the cat out of the bag,
"We spent the afternoon at anchor in the Holy Loch - asleep." Perhaps
Ernest should have received a prize for sound seamanship!
From such an inauspicious start, great things
can however mushroom, and in August that year a meeting of like-minded persons
was called and held in the Victoria Infirmary, Glasgow. About 30 or so persons
turned up, and the Serpent Yacht Club was born. Membership is open to
all persons whose employment pertains to the National Health Service, and as
such members include not only doctors, but dentists, nurses, physicists,
radiographers, physiotherapists, engineers, occupational therapists, together
with their spouses & children.
Over the years the Club has held
musters on the Clyde and the West Coast of Scotland. Each year a hardy band of
about 15 - 20 yachts and mixed crew race or cruise to the musters. The Schering
Salver is awarded to the overall winner of the Spring and Autumn Regattas, and
the Club has been fortunate in receiving donations of a number of trophies,
enabling yachts to race in classes suitable to their size and performance.
Popular venues for SYC musters have included Colintraive, Rothesay, Carrick
Castle, Tarbert, Troon, and more recently the Holy Loch, Craobh and Gigha.
Much has changed in sailing in the time of
the club's existence, not least has been the average size of the boats owned by
club members. Waterline length has increased by about eight feet per decade.
Paper charts and parallel rulers now tend to take second place to GPS or chart
plotter. No longer is the Clyde the only base for club members' boats. As we
enter the new Millennium, a unique group of sailing friends - the Serpent
Yacht Club - go from strength to strength.
