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Simon Fox
Wet
298 Posts |
 Posted - 14 Feb 2010 : 11:11:24 PM
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What has happened to the weather station?
Not working for nearly two months now... |
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Colin Newman
Wet
277 Posts |
Posted - 16 Feb 2010 : 2:54:18 PM
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You really know what you appreciate when it is taken away. On Sundays I tend to come sailing whatever the wind is doing but on other days it really is a help to check if there is a 'foiling breeze' on the water to make it worth driving the 20 miles I live from the club to go out for a blast in the Moth. It is only worth coming if the wind is averaging over 8 mph and not more than 18 mph, that is 'baby bear' conditions, just right (and at this time of year, that it is not too cold!) I guess a lot of the windsurfers in the club also appreciate the missing facility even if they are just getting keen at the wind speeds when I start putting the Moth away!
It always surprises me how what ever day of the week or time I come for a sail, there is usually someone else out as well. Quite often even on a non-racing days there is a lot of activity on the water, teaching, windsurfing, the Canoe club, fire brigade practise in RIBs and boats out cruising around. The weather station information is very useful to a lot of members I imagine.
Colin
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rodgerwebb
Completely dry
29 Posts |
Posted - 17 Feb 2010 : 10:05:07 PM
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I know this topic has been aired before and the fact that it is down to the good nature of a couple of volunteers to make this work has been mentioned. Out of interest how much would it cost to have a good weather station giving out accurate information that didn't require volunteers to repair it every five minutes?
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Simon Fox
Wet
298 Posts |
Posted - 18 Feb 2010 : 01:00:34 AM
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Colin is quite right, in his rather eloquent response, the facility is useful for windsurfers.
But, a main gripe is that we (windsurfers) do not get value for money from our membership - why should teh weather station be the responsibility of volunteers?
Sorry, but just received membership renewal letter! |
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robbersdog
Drenched
1427 Posts |
Posted - 18 Feb 2010 : 08:15:35 AM
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"But, a main gripe is that we (windsurfers) do not get value for money from our membership"
Water open 364 days a year with professional rescue cover every day and warm showers every day? Sounds awful.
I think Roger's got the right idea. I know the club isn't poor, and I'm sure there must be systems out there that would just work. Whilst the effort of the volunteers is very much appreciated I'm sure their lives could be made easier by just buying a system that works.
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Chris Smith
Flying Fifteen 797
Sailing Photos
http://www.sushidesign.net/
http://www.gs-illustration.co.uk/ |
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chris
Poke It With A Stick
1847 Posts |
Posted - 18 Feb 2010 : 08:24:32 AM
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quote:
Originally posted by robbersdog
Water open 364 days a year with professional rescue cover every day and warm showers every day? Sounds awful.
For £6.73 per week. (Going on individual membership with first board fee)
Chris
 425  720  "ERICSSON"
sailing pictures My pictures |
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rodgerwebb
Completely dry
29 Posts |
Posted - 18 Feb 2010 : 09:20:39 AM
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Must get a life and stop spending so much time on the computer!
My thoughts in asking about the cost of the weather station were that maybe we could get some sponsorship in exchange for logos etc being displayed on the weather pager.
I would be interested in contributing, maybe other members with companies might be? In fact thinking about it I think I did sponsor it some years ago. (grey cells disappearing fast!)
Rodger
www.hirecentres.com
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chris
Poke It With A Stick
1847 Posts |
Posted - 18 Feb 2010 : 09:27:43 AM
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From my point of view that sounds like a good idea Rodger.
Chris
425 720 "ERICSSON"
sailing pictures My pictures |
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Simon Fox
Wet
298 Posts |
Posted - 18 Feb 2010 : 9:40:50 PM
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Rodger - a sponsored weather station (that works) sounds like a great idea, thanks for your positive response.
'chris' and 'robbersdog' - your use of statistics is tenuous, if we had 364 days, or 52 weeks, of wind a year, I might agree, but the odd weekend now and then is more realistic. The majority of windsurfers do not even turn up if the wind forecast is less than F4, and most don't use the warm showers (I do though), or club house. Don't even start on rescue cover...
Simon |
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Mikey 14778
Poke It With A Stick
1631 Posts |
Posted - 19 Feb 2010 : 09:40:49 AM
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Simon, it seems to me that the fact that you don't use all the facilities is a matter of your personal choice and does not alter their intrinsic value for money. We can't open the club only on days when there's a F4+. We must have rescue services, and the windsurfers DO use them. And so on. There is more to DWSC than just supplying the bare minimum that you personally need for windsurfing.
Back at the weather station, and it is maintained by volunteers because it is part of the club IT system which is also maintained by volunteers. Buying a new one is easy, but first you've got to specify something which is reliable and compatible with the current infrastructure, then get the sensors mounted (dropping the club mast in the process), install the back-end hardware and software and configure it to work with the webserver. It's not a trivial task, and it's not just about paying for a new gizmo.
The easy fix is always to make do and mend, which is what's been happening for the past few years. Eventually you have to accept that certain parts at least are defunct and replace them, which is why we're currently without a weatherstation. If all goes well, it will be back up before the weather gets warm enough for most people to notice.
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robbersdog
Drenched
1427 Posts |
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Simon Fox
Wet
298 Posts |
Posted - 19 Feb 2010 : 6:54:42 PM
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Guys, this is going nowhere - I asked a simple question and ended up getting bamboozled with detail from 'Mikey' and, in expressing a personal opinion, completely mis-understood by 'robbersdog' (controlling the wind?!).
Having said that, I have been a member for nearly a year now and have really enjoyed the experience of sailing at Draycote. In my one rescue during this time, it was gusting F8, the staff member concerned was highly professional and courteous.
Simon
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stumcb
Damp
195 Posts |
Posted - 19 Feb 2010 : 8:12:36 PM
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couldn't we just point the webcam at a wind sock, the current veiw while pretty, is a lot of sky.
seems to me that a lot of people are grumpy at the moment, no wind for weeks and the membership invoice on the doorstep.....
relax
www.claridgeswarwick.co.uk
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Mikey 14778
Poke It With A Stick
1631 Posts |
Posted - 19 Feb 2010 : 9:03:04 PM
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quote:
Guys, this is going nowhere - I asked a simple question and ended up getting bamboozled with detail
Sorry, simple questions often have complicated answers, and that one was no exception.
But it's good to hear that you have enjoyed sailing at the club and that you appreciate the rescue service (which incidentally is the best and most professional I have ever encountered). Positive feedback is always well received, particularly by those who have to give up their time to do these things.
Stu, people will keep messing about with the camera. No, I don't understand why either. |
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Paulr
Soaked
559 Posts |
Posted - 21 Feb 2010 : 2:42:44 PM
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| Thanks to whoever put the webcam pointing back in a sensible direction, lets hope its not messed with again. |
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skifftim
Quite dry
72 Posts |
Posted - 03 Mar 2010 : 8:42:52 PM
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For my sins I have volunteered to look at the options for replacing the weather system. This will be a long-term project with the aim to have a robust and usable system in place next year. I would welcome comments and thoughts from everyone and will post my findings as I go. So please respond to this or email me on the PM system here.
Please also note that this is nothing to do with the present system which I understand is being repaired by another volunteer.
Tim Le Mare
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DWSC Weather Station
