Letter from our SWS 2023 President

November 16, 2022

 

Dear Members,

I hope you were all able to take advantage of great late season conditions this year, and perhaps have plans to chase the wind off sunnier shores over the winter months. My name is Mike Palethorpe, and you elected me as your new Squamish Windsports Society President for the 2023 season. And I would like to introduce Olivier Corbeil, your new Vice President.

2022 was a year of change and learning for the SWS. With the removal of the Spit Road, we needed to acquire a boat to maintain access to one of the best wind locations on the West Coast. The cost of memberships went up, and we needed to manage our operations and expenses very carefully to end the year in a financially viable position for next year. I want to thank Sean Millington, Nikki Layton, the 2022 SWS Board and staff  for their leadership guiding us through rough waters last year.

This winter there is significant work to do to make 2023 a success. We need to partner with the District, Squamish Nation, Province and our counterparts with the SRWS to ensure the next phase of CERP completes on time for our opening day, and with adequate parking, turnaround and safe access to the water. We need to upgrade our boat to work in the more powerful flow of the river, and the jet skis need to be replaced. We have infrastructure projects to improve the website and check in procedures. And we are working hard to elevate Squamish Windsports and the Spit in the Sea to Sky region to attract more visitors who come to enjoy the wind and ocean access.

With that I would like to introduce the 2023 Squamish Windsports Society Board of Directors, who are here to serve you the members, and to ensure 2023 is a fantastic season for all who come to enjoy the Spit.

For those of you who missed the 2022 AGM, here are links to both the Minutes and AGM recording, both of which can be found on our website.

We look forward to seeing you all on the water in 2023!

Happy Sailing,

Mike Palethorpe, President

Oliveir Corbeil, Vice President