Safety
Safety on and off the water is of paramount importance. Everyone, member, and guest, must fully comply with the rules and processes of the club. Yes, there are several pages of these but these come from the extraordinary freedom members get by being able to use the club facilities on their own. In addition to the policies outlined below all the safety rules in the TRC waiver must be always followed.
EVERYONE any TRC equipment purpose MUST complete TRC online waiver and the Jean Street Shipyard waiver (click to download). The waiver should be inserted into the JBL Waivers folder in the TRC file drawer on site inside our kiosk shed onsite.
Rowing Log
The Rowing Log notebook is prominent in the kiosk and a key safety item. One entry is required for each boat that leaves the dock and every column except Comments is required and must be legible. Each rower name in the boat must be entered uniquely which is typically the first name and surname initial.
The Location
In addition to being a busy and active workplace the shipyard is the home to a number of people who live on their boats. We need to be considerate and keep our activities as unobtrusive as possible, especially in the early mornings. We must keep our noise to a low level in the early morning.
Parking is limited and we park only in the parking spots to the left or right. There is no parking in the turnaround area. If the interior parking spots are full you can either park on the street or in the vacant lot at 6204 River Terrace as shown here.
Most of the boats at the shipyard are being rebuilt or altered. No photographs of any part of the shipyard containing non-TRC boats can be made or published in any form without express permission of the shipyard owner.
Boats and Oars
We currently are limited to having two set of racks, each capable of holding 10 shells and 9 sets of sculling oars. Since the equipment is outdoors it is CRITICAL that every item is secured when not being used. We are using bungee cords and straps to secure the items to make it easy to access and secure items. Here is a photo of the Velcro strap on some shells.
There are Velcro and bungee cords to keep the oars in the racks. The oar bungee cords must always be connected, at all times. The bungee cords must be replaced as soon as oars have been removed to keep the oars safe. Here is a photo of the Velcro straps on the oars (in this case, bungee cords in place of velcro. Be certain that you secure all lines at all times.
Oars should in the racks with the blades parallel to the back of the rack so the edges do not touch other oars.
The rack numbers are on the racks as shown in this photo on the last stack. Use these rack numbers when logging a boat being taken.
The cargo straps on boats must be loosely tight and securely in place after the boat is returned to the rack.
Equipment Care
All equipment must be washed after use using soap. Be sure to rinse all metal parts completely to remove river water and debris. Please, rinse off any debris off the boat before using the sponges with soap to keep the soapy water as clean as possible. Be sure to thoroughly rinse oarlocks and seat wheels.
Clean the oars: (see this image for before and after) -- The buckets are labelled Soap & Bleach.
- Use the gentle scouring sponge to remove the dirt from the grip, then use the 10% bleach to further clean the grips. We HOPE this cuts down on the nasty black stained grips!
- Sponge the remainder of the oar from the soap bucket.
- Rinse with fresh water.
Leave the wash bucket outside the slipway curb with the water filled almost to the top. Remember to replace the lid tightly on the bucket, please.
We have a hose for our use connected to the faucet is on a pole about 80 feet north of the ramps. Please use the right valve to turn water on and, of course, be sure to turn it off when you are finished and relieve the water pressure by draining from the nozzle. The hose must be coiled back up, boat slings can be left setup in the wash area. Please, take care to not drop the nozzle on the concrete as the impact damages the nozzles.
Boat Maintenance
Maintaining the boats is always a challenge and having the boats outside adds more stress and damage on them. Each rower should inspect the boats before and after each row. Note any issues in the Rowing Log and Maintenance Log, if serious.
Some boats have covers. The covers have Velcro straps at the bow and amidships with a pocket for the stern and skeg. Remove the cover starting at the bow and replace after the row starting at the stern. Be sure all straps are tightly and securely connected.
First Aid
There is a first aid kit in the kiosk for use in case of minor injury. Please, complete the form on the case if you use any of the items.
The Dock
There is a steel rail top on the south edge of the dock which can cause damage to boats. This cannot be removed. It is at the point of the post in this photo and the rail itself is visible in the inset in the photo.
Given that we have a small dock surface it is important that members launch and recover quickly when other boats are waiting. It is easy to launch and recover singles on the north edge of the dock between the dock and crane pier.
Recovery can be a bit tricky on the dock since it is perpendicular to the river flow and the flow can be deceptively swift. Many singles scullers have found that backing into the north side between the pier and the dock and keeping the boat aligned to the dock edge works easily. An alternative is to approach the south edge at a 45-degree angle and catch the southwest corner with your hand. Coming into the south edge aligned with the dock only works if the current is slow or nil.
The Kiosk
The kiosk shed contains the materials to support rowing, including the logbook and boat lights. There is a light that is set to come on automatically when the lid is opened in the dark – unless someone pushes the power button. Boat lights are in the small box on the shelf. Return boat lights to the box but leave any needing a recharge inside the correct labelled box.
Please return all cleaning equipment, except buckets, to the kiosk if you are the last person leaving the site. Take care to close the lid, being careful to have it latch on both sides.
Remember to turn of the hose and drain it at the nozzle to relieve water pressure. Please, clean up any pieces of trash.
Please coil the hose back where you found it, we're trying to keep the areas in front of the "live on" boats clean and neat.
Last edit: v24 10 July 2021 1230