www.ramegigclub.com

PRESS RELEASE

Rame Gig Club is delighted to announce the completion of their newly converted and refurbished boat house. The work has been long awaited and is part of an ambitious £200,000 development to increase and improve the storage area for the three Gigs, Spirit of Rame, Minnadhu and Penlee Point, as well as provide toilet and kitchen facilities to the ground floor.  The development boasts a new 1st floor training room which can also be used as a meeting facility. The training room is to be named the Tony Jago Fitness Suite, in memory of one of the clubs original founders and constant fund raiser, who sadly passed away recently.  The new facility will provide a training area for the entire local community. Over the last 5 years the Club has worked hard to promote the concept, develop the design, gain planning permission and secure sufficient funding to be able to award the development contract. 

The Boat House and Fitness Suite are based in Cawsand Square with balcony views over Cawsand Bay.  The venue is the base for the Rame Gig Club who train and race Cornish Pilot Gigs most evenings and weekends, racing in local Regatta's and attending the annual World Championships for Cornish Pilot Gigs held in Scillies each May.  The intention is to expand in numbers and offer a wider choice to include indoor rowing hopefully to competition standard, and to increase the partnership with the local Schools in encouraging more youth to participate in the sport.

We have been extremely fortunate and  proud to secure grant funding to allow this development to become a reality from Viridor Credits, East Cornwall Local Action Group, SITA Cornwall Trust, British Rowing, Sport England, Lottery-Awards for All, Torpoint Lions and with Maker Rame Parish Council.  It is imperative that we also give thanks to our members in their fundraising efforts as well as the numerous members with trades that have freely donated time and skills.  Our thanks also to the numerous and generous donations received from so many within the community.  This facility could not have been achieved without their continuous support.

Don Seymour Chairman of Rame Gig Club , is delighted:
"To realise our Club vision we had to transform an almost derelict gig shed into a modern facility that will be an asset for the club and community for the foreseeable future.  A newly refurbished and extended clubhouse will provide improved facilities for the Sport as well as a much needed training and meeting area. With our members becoming affiliated with British Rowing, we will be well placed to benefit from their expertise in training to compliment our existing regime in order to develop our sport and maintain the art of Cornish Pilot Gig Rowing for generations to come".

Gill Gibson Vice Chair, said:
"This has been a long  hard slog, and a huge team effort. It is wonderful that we were able to carry a large number of vital funders with us to get the project off the ground. We owe it to future generations to put facilities in place that will secure the long-term existence of an excellent sport. This is great news, not only for our current members, but also for the community in Cawsand and Kingsand and the surrounding area who will also benefit from this fantastic facility."

There is to be an official open day on 9^th April to which everyone is invited.  The programme of the day will be as follows:-

11:00 hrs         Formal opening of Gig Shed and Tony Jago Fitness Suite and Meeting Room

12:00 hrs         Light refreshments

13:00 hrs         Row past of Junior rowers

14:00 hrs         Invitation Men's Gig Racing

15:00 hrs         Invitation Ladies Gig Racing

20:00 hrs        Celebration party in Gig Shed

FORMAL OPENING OF GIG SHED AND TONY JAGO FITNESS SUITE AND MEETING ROOM.

There is to be an oficial open day on 9th April to which everyone is invited.  The programme of the day will be as follows:-

 11:00   Formal opening of Gig Shed and Tony Jago Fitness Suite . 

We anticipate the works to be completed towards the end of February when we can gain access to decorate and carry out its final transformation.  We are in the process of organising an official Open Day on the 9th April.  Our thanks are extended to all the local businesses and the wider community for your continued support.

JANUARY 2011

I'm sure you will all agree that the work being carried out on the gig Shed is making a tremendous difference and we look forward to its completion, along with the fitness suite that will be installed on the 1st floor.

NOVEMBER 2010                    

With work well under way for our new Gig Shed, we would like once again to thank everyone within the community for your much appreciated help and support.   Our thanks are extended to all the local businesses who have once again shown their generosity in providing raffle prizes for the end of season presentation night held on 16^th October 2010 at the Cawsand Bay Hotel. Your help as always is very much appreciated by all members of Rame Gig Club.

SEPTEMBER 2010

Many of you will have noticed that there is a little disruption to our usual routine with the Gig Shed rebuild now firmly on target.  The demolition of the old site is the obvious start and keen members all assisted in the clearing of all our possessions to a safe haven while still requiring kit to train with, it is going to be a fine balance to enable everything to go smoothly.  We have all proven that if we work hard enough anything can happen, so once again, with trust in our committee and support to those that need it most, we will plod on towards the targets we have been set.  It is a very proud act that only a very few seem to be against.  The sight of a beautiful new building will blend into our village benefiting all the properties in its view.  We will endeavor to be mindful of our neighbours and hopefully they too will be empathetic to our needs and reasons for continuing with our development.  Regular photo's showing the progress will be posted on this page for all to see.

WORK TO START - AUTUMN 2010

Don's succeeds in progressing the rebuild to our Gig Shed.  We will soon begin the mamouth task.  Once again, we all need to support Don and the Committee to ensure that the works are completed on time and within budget.  We will have a busy , expensive and stressful 9 months ahead.  Please be patient, it will be worth it.

RAME GIG CLUB - UPDATE AS OF 06.06.10 

As you are all aware, we have been attempting to secure grant funding for some time now and although we have had many knock backs, we are able to update you with some good news.   We have to date, in excess of £30,000 in our Refurbishment account thanks to our efforts in fund raising events, local donations from within the community as well as £2,000 from the Parish Council.  In addition to this, we have been promised grants from both Virador and Sita with an additional grants pending from Eclag and British Rowing Association.  We are incredibly hopeful funds will be granted which will enable our long awaited new Gig Shed to become a reality.  The conditions are, that works begin as soon as our rowing season ends and will be completed by Building Regulations standard by March 2011.  We have planning permission, building regs, survey and costings all in place waiting for the final go ahead once the funds have been agreed.  We are in the last stages of the Eclag grant and would hope most sincerely that the deciding panel can see our vision of a community project widely available to the majority. 

THANKS TO EVERYONE WHO HAS HELPED US SO FAR.  YOUR CONTINUED SUPPORT IS VERY MUCH APPRECIATED

URGENT NOTICE FOR ALL MEMBERS - 09.05.10

Please take time to read this update...it really is important to us all.

I wish to advise and update you all as briefly and as relevantly as possible...

Don, our Chairman has battled relentlessly to attempt to secure grant funding to enable the rebuild of the Gig Shed.  For almost a year now, members of your committee (Don taking the Lion share of this) have been attending numerous meetings making and receiving phone calls, completing mountains of paperwork and applications... The majority going nowhere..

The position now is that we are almost at the point of receiving a combination of Grant Funding, put alongside the balance we hold from donations and our own fund raising events we believe we may have sufficient to enable us to rebuild our Shed.  There are lots of conditions attached before the Grant funds can be 100% secured.  The conditions largely involve our "footfall" figures and the community involvement/usage.  Also, to a very large degree, we need to prove our community involvement in other projects!! We are already entering into a partnership with Torpoint Community College with a Learn to Row scheme for students, which should increase our youth involvement and hopefully secure newer younger rowers for the future to compliment those existing rowers.

As you may or may not know, some of our members repaired "Longpool" last weekend, we assist in the running of the Christmas lights, and provide refreshments on New Years Day for the New Year Day Dip.. plus many many more.

Areas that we have agreed to assist in this year include providing a fun day/refreshments for the Morris Dancers Anniversary gathering in Cawsand Square on 15^th August and to assist Mount Edgcumbe with their Bandits, Brigands and Buccaneers event.  Volunteers for these events are urgently required.

It is now urgently required that we all pull together to assist Don and the Committee to comply with all our promises to ensure the funds are forthcoming.  In the first instance, volunteers are required to simply have loads of fun over the bank holiday weekend at Mount Edgcumbe as per the poster on Gig Shed Wall. Secondly, anyone with any trade, building experience, with time to commit by way of donation, please make your offers known to Don.  This will assist by way of match funding.  Rather than meeting the grant pound for pound, we can convert offers of labour and trade against our contribution. The main bulk of the building work we expect to carry out over the winter months after all our rowing commitments.  i.e. from late September onwards.

Never before have we been so close to the reality of a new Gig Shed, and your support and help is now required in a positive way.  It is too late for any negativity or criticisms. All our efforts are for the survival and progression of the club for future ge