Arthur Lane has been elected the 40th Commodore of the Cruising Yacht Club of Australia.

Commodore Lane became a Director of the CYCA in 2010 and has served as a Rear Commodore and most recently Vice Commodore.

You can find out more about Arthur’s background and his Board of Directors.

In his first message to CYCA Members, Commodore Lane discusses his pride at taking on the role and his ambitions for his two-year tenure.

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I would like to begin by thanking Noel Cornish for all he achieved during his nine years on the Board and especially whilst serving as Commodore.

Noel managed to navigate through some serious storms with great skill and determination.

There is a saying that if you want a job done, give it to a busy person. How right that is.

Noel sits on other prestigious Boards outside of this Club and I have a small inkling of the stress he would be under.

However, he always managed to be totally focused on our Board and also attended all committee meetings, where he provided sage advice whenever needed.

I have never seen Noel flustered. He always gives anyone he meets his time and undivided attention. It is an extraordinary art.

Noel has brought a level of professionalism to the CYCA Board that is going to be very hard to beat. I think I speak for the whole Board when I say he has done an extraordinary and exemplary job as our Commodore. Thank you, Noel.

Thank you Bradshaw

Bradshaw Kellett has stepped down from the Board as he is currently working overseas and felt at this point in his career he didn’t have the time to dedicate to a Board position.

Over the years, Bradshaw has been an integral part of our Sailing Committee, Premises Committee and the History and Archives Committee, which he chaired.

On behalf of the Board, I wish Bradshaw well in his endeavours overseas and look forward to his return to Australia.

Welcome Jules and Kevin

I would like to extend a warm welcome to our two new Directors, Jules Hall and Kevin Whelan. (Find out more about their backgrounds).

Both Directors will be familiar to many Members and have extensive sailing experience.

Kevin and his team on Reve seem to sail every event possible, from the Monday and Wednesday Twilight Series, to weekend offshore races and the Audi Centre Sydney Blue Water Pointscore.

Before coming to Australia, Jules had a series of boats called Disko Trooper, on which he secured divisional wins in Fastnet Races, Cowes Weeks and JOG Offshore Series.

He completed his fifth Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht Race last year, and won the inaugural Two-Handed Division alongside Jan Scholten on his J/99, Disko Trooper_Contender Sailcloth.

Your new Board

The key responsibility of the CYCA Board is to provide for the future growth and health of the Club.

Your new Board is full of active sailors, with a broad spectrum of skills and experience, from blue water sailors, to coastal racers and around-the-buoy competitors.

This variety will help us prepare the best policies and protocols in order to support our Management Team and the Sailing Office in their running of our outstanding and varied sailing programs.

Over the past decade, governance and Directors’ responsibilities have become more and more complex, but we have Directors with extensive legal and fiscal abilities to ensure that the Management Team operates at best practice, including a governance structure that ensures we remain in compliance with all applicable laws.

Member engagement is a top priority for the Board. With record Membership numbers, we need to work closely with the Management Team to ensure that we retain and continue to grow our Membership base.

Many of the Club’s Members are quite happy to just come and enjoy the social aspects that the CYCA provides, but we will be focused on converting as many as possible to become active sailors as well, particularly as many boat owners are finding it increasingly difficult to find crew.

The Concierge Program has been a great initiative to provide Members with an opportunity to link up with yacht owners looking for crew.

We will continue to work on attracting volunteers to help support our sailing programs.

The Board is very well placed to provide the skills necessary to ensure that the Club remains the premier keelboat sailing club in Australia and one of the finest in the world.

Through our policies and protocols, we will continue to provide our Members, Management and Staff with a safe and secure environment in which to operate.

Thank you

As the 40th Commodore of this wonderful Club, I reflect on what Noel, other Past Commodores, Life Members and our milestone Members have achieved over the years, giving so generously of their time.

It is a truly humbling experience and a responsibility that cannot be taken lightly.

It seems a long time ago that Past Commodore and Life Member Matt Allen originally nominated me for a position on the Board. It has been a wonderful and rewarding journey.

The rich history of this Club has to be respected and honoured. I will do all that is possible to protect and promote our shared goals and values.

During my term as Commodore, I am keen to update our constitution, which has not been updated for a considerable period of time.

I also wish to develop a more structured approach to identifying and encouraging Members to join our various committees, and the Board.

Thank you. It will be my great pleasure to serve as your Commodore.