RIB Owners' Club

What the Club is about...

The overall strategy for the Owners' Club is for our team to offer the events and do all the work behind the scenes to enable you to recognise the full potential of the life style choice of owning a RIB. We want you to get the most from your ownership, from discovering hidden gems around the Solent to voyaging to places overseas! The events will range from pure relaxation to adventure and sporting fun, but they will all involve enjoyment of your RIB.

The Club is intended to be all about you, your family and friends. There are popular annual favourites (like Wight Dash when we circumnavigate the IOW) but your feedback will be essential to ensure the success of the Owners’ Club and to keep it fresh and fun. In short if we are not doing what you want we need to hear your views.  
This is your club and we want to make it work for you. You share your ideas and we will do the work to make them a reality.

2023 Dates for your diary...

Wight Dash - Saturday 22nd April 2023
This is now an annual favourite and is always a great start to the season to blow away the cobwebs, catch up with old friends and meet new RIB Owners Club members. We'll circumnavigate the IOW in approx 4 hours when we include the stops to collect everyone up. We'll take a break "round the back" and break out the flasks and biscuits followed by a photo op at the Needles before coming back up The Solent. We will have a celebration drink on completion in Warsash with a free berth on our marina if you need one. 
All timings TBC but we will start at Stone Pier Yard and pick up others at Hill Head Port Hand Mark (East of Bramble Bank) and Bembridge before going round the back of the Island. Don’t forget your foulies - even on a dry day, jeans are not warm enough as a few from last year can confirm – just saying! 

Folly Evening Feast 5th May 2023
We made the trip to The Folly Inn last year to give an opportunity to return in the dark. It turned out most had not been before and those that had had not been for years. We decided to return for two reasons. One, it is a great location for a night navigation exercise home (the main reason for this event) and two, because the pub is undergoing a major refit so it will be a completely different venue.

Please note the idea of this evening is to have an early evening daylight sprint across The Solent to a meal at The Folly Inn followed by an accompanied trip home in the dark. With that in mind we will get away at dusk at the earliest and allow up to an hour back to Warsash as we are a big group and will take it slowly going home. This will ensure everyone can track the route and navigate themselves in the dark. You can spend a lot of money with an RYA instructor doing this and you’re getting it as part of your night out FOC! If concerned about your ongoing trip home that evening talk to us about options.

By all means bring kids but it will be a late evening, however, it is a long weekend Thanks to the Kings Coronation!

River Yar Ramble 20th May 2023
A first for the RIB Owners Club is a trip to Yarmouth where we will take a short term berth and ramble up the West bank of the Yar to the Red Lion at Freshwater for our lunch. On completion of lunch, we can amble back the way we came or complete the circuit down the East bank of the Yar before returning to the RIBs to get home.

It has been mentioned a few times that a chance to amble and chat would be good, so this is it, with a great opportunity to run kids and dogs too. There is no option to berth boats at the top of the Yar but if you fancy a paddle board up the Yar that’s a great option.

Gins Evening Escape 8th June 2023
For the third year in a row this is proving to be a firm favourite with the RIB Owners’ Club as we have a run to the Beaulieu River and potter up to the Royal Southern YC “Gins Club” river side club house. We will have the space on the Club Jetty to moor the RIBs and the run of the club house and be served canapés while we have a few drinks to welcome the summer long evenings. For those that come to the Folly Evening Feast you will have a bit of experience of night but all of you will have the opportunity for an escort home. This is not intended as a night exercise but the chance to see a glorious maritime sunset is your final treat of the evening.

Seaview Splash 24th June 2023
Another first is the chance to visit Seaview where the Seaview YC will provide mooring buoys, a water taxi and the club to feed and water us while we enjoy the sandy beach. This is billed very firmly as a trip for all Club members, but we will be running some beach games so it’s a great day for young kids and some of the older kids amongst us – A dad with a spade on a sandy beach is a powerful force!

For those that want to play on the beach you may prefer to bring a picnic and for those that want to escape the beach the bar and food at the club will be open. With any luck we will have something for everyone in the family.  

Power To Poole 8th & 9th July 2023
We will be taking bookings and deposits for this event in January 2023 to ensure the hotel room bookings are secured.
We’ve listen to the many of you that have requested a trip to Poole so instead of the Channel Islands this year we are going to Power to Poole on the Saturday morning where we will check into Poole Quay Hotel overlooking the Poole Quay Boat Haven where your RIB will be berthed. From here we are in the heart of Poole so can walk to an evening venue for a RIB Owners’ Club night out. Beware…Henry will start to reminisce about life as a Royal Marine if he drinks too much on his old stomping ground!

Poole Harbour has a lot of options for easy anchorages and places to explore on the way in or out so you will have time to enjoy the area before returning to The Solent on Sunday afternoon.

Mad Cowes 2nd August 2023
The usual Mad Cowes event is where we can get close and personal to watch the racing and admire some of the huge yachts before going to the a lunch together to reminisce on a another seasons fun. The location for lunch is TBC…something we can discuss over the early season before booking.

Bramble Bank Cricket

Bramble Bank Cricket Match - Dates still to be announced (usually late August or early September)
Once each year the tide falls low enough to exspose The Bramble Bank for a short while. It's just about big enough for a game of cricket; albeit with a rather soggy out field! The Royal Southern Yacht Club, Hamble and the Island Sailing Club, Cowes have been competing in this annual Test Match since the 1950's. In a quintessentially British competition the winner is decided beforehand and both teams colude to ensure the correct team wins! This is a fun spectator event and the novelty of being on the bank makes it the just good fun. 
The tide dictates the timings - sometimes it's at dawn and sometimes in the evening. Fingers crossed for your prefered option!
If this event is too close to the Southampton International Boat Show it will not be hosted by Marine Matters due to preparation for the show - its grest fun and you should get together and attend if you can.

Other Events for 2023...?
We usually end events in August due to holidays and the Boat Show in September but we are very happy to look at a winter warmer if anyone has an ideas for an event that can work during the winter let us know and we'll get it up and running for the benefit of the members of the RIB Owners Club.

What we did in 2022...

Wight Dash - Saturday 30th April 2022
This is now an annual favourite and is always a great start to the season to blow away the cobwebs, catch up with old friends and meet new RIB Owners Club members. We'll circumnavigate the IOW in approx 4 hours when we include the stops to collect everyone up. We'll take a break "round the back" and break out the flasks and biscuits followed by a photo op at the Needles before coming back up The Solent. We will have a celebration drink on completion in Warsash with a free berth on our marina if you need one. 
All timings TBC but we will start at Stone Pier Yard and pick up others at Hill Head Port Hand Mark (East of Bramble Bank) and Bembridge before going round the back of the Island. 

Lazy Days Lunch - 7th May 2022
Lazy Days Marina is a new location on The Solent for pretty much everyone as they have recently put in new pontoons and are in the process of making this a bit of a destination. Tucked up at the top of Wootton Creek this trip will give us the opportunity to travel up this beautiful and very much under used waterway before we go alongside at the top of the Creek and be welcomed by Peter and Valetina to Lazy Days Marina. This is a tidal location so the Marine Matters team will lead you in and once discovered you will be able to return in future to this complete gem of a place. On this occasion we will lunch at The Sloop where we have the option of outside or inside spaces. For those bringing young kids there are local walks to run off some energy.
All Timings TBC but we'll be aiming for arrival at The Sloop between 1300-1400hrs but we will be working a tide window of 4 hrs +/- HW @ Ryde which on this day comfortably gives us 1230-2030.

Folly Evening Fodder 27th May 2022
For many of you this location is a bit of a standard visit but equally there are many of you that will be unaware of this option so its time to put it back on the map. Easily located in all states of the tide on the IOW Medina River at Whippingham you will find the Folly Inn with plenty of berthing all round. The bar and inside dining area is large and the outside eating can double this so we can get a large group in here. This is a great location for those that fancy an easy day afloat with a good meal. Our evening trip is partly to encourage a foray into dusk or darkness for those of you that are new to this while ensuring a simple navigation exercise. Anyone traveling a long way home across The Solent and wanting an overnight berth at Warsash we can provide for you. 

Although we are doing an evening event, when returning by day if you like your walking or need dog or child exercising there is the beautiful Whippingham countryside to enjoy while you are here. 

Gins Evening Getaway - 9th June 2022
This is an evening trip to the Royal Southampton Yacht Club (RSYC) Gins Club on the Beaulieu River. A short cruise through the Solent and then just a 15 minute potter from the entrance and we will be welcomed in by the staff at the appropriately named "Gins Clubhouse". We will enjoy evening drinks and nibbles before cruising home at sunset. Anyone that feels a bit cautious about the home journey as night beckons will be given an escort to their Solent destination or if they prefer a free berth at our Warsash Marina until they can retrieve their RIB by the Weekend. As always we will be ensuring your safety while you reach out to new horizons. 

Itchenor Scratch or Knot - 16th July 2022 (date changed from 25th June)
We recognise that over the last few years we have not explored the Eastern Solent enough so to help all those from this end of our playground we have opted for Itchenor. We can go alongside and if required overflow on to visitors buoys. Our destination is the The Ship Inn in the sailing village of Itchenor. A warm welcome awaits, and for those not local you will add another excellent watering hole to the list of go to places on you RIB adventures. There is plenty to do locally from the East Head anchorage inside the harbour entrance, to the waterkiing options in Langstone Harbour, sailing clubs galore and of course plenty of other pubs!
All Timings TBC but we have no real tide concerns on this one - just a lovely spot to enjoy. 

Alderney Race - Friday 1st July - Sunday 3rd July 2022  (date changed from 15-17 July)
In 2019 we took 7 RIBs to Alderney for our first cross channel event. Despite the outbound trip being a bit of a mission we had a great time exploring this amazing island by foot and bike along with excellent food and drink in good company at The Braye Beach Hotel. The trip home was done in two hours in a F4 and everyone was happy. We'd like to repeat this experience in 2022 having not been able to complete it due to COVID in 2020 & 2021. We will pick better weather for the trip out and starting a bit earlier on the Friday to get more from the weekend.

To make the the journey and planning easier we will not leave The Solent in anything more than a F4 wind. If you ensure you have cancellation insurance on your annual holiday cover, Marine Matters will pay your insurance excess if you need to cancel and invoke this cover provided that you do so within the terms of the contract and you recieve a payout. This means we can plan with your early commitment and you don't get financially hurt. What's not to like? 

We are open to helping set up a Channel Island cruise for those that want to expand this event a little and make more of a holiday of it but our lead boat will need to return to UK on Sunday 3rd July. 

Mad Cowes - Wednesday 3rd August 2022
The chance to end the annual events calendar with a tried and tested favourite. We'll meet up late morning and cruise to the Solent and check out some impressive sail boats engaged in Cowes Week Racing before going to a lunch time venue and getting the chance to talk about all the fun we've had during the year. As always there will be the opportunity to go to Cowes on the way back to have a beer in the heart of the world famous racing festival. 

What We Did in 2021...

Wight Dash - Saturday 24th April 2021 
This is now an annual favourite and is always a great start to the season to blow away the cobwebs, catch up with old friends and meet new RIB Owners Club members. We'll circumnavigate the IOW in approx 4 hours when we include the stops to collect everyone up. 
All timings TTBC but we will start at Stone Pier Yard and pick up others at Hill Head Port Hand Mark (East of Bramble Bank) and Bembridge before going round the back of the Island. 

Horse & Jockey Nosebag - 15th May 2021 
This local event can even go ahead if we are social distancing now that the Horse & Jockey under new ownership have built an open barn with very well spaced tables for safe dining. They have no pictures of the new barn on the website at the time of writing this but it is huge and complete with Heaters if its not as warm as we hoped. For some of you this will be an old favourite but for others its a Hamble gem to discover.

Gins Evening Jolly - 4th June 2021
Another first for the RIB Owners Club this year is an evening trip to the Royal Southampton Yacht Club (RSYC) on the Beaulieu River. A short cruise through the Solent and then just a 15 minute potter from the entrance and we will be welcomed in by the staff at the appropriately named "Gins Clubhouse". We will enjoy evening drinks and nibbles before cruising home at sunset.

Keyhaven Kick - 12th June 2021
Keyhaven is hidden away in the western Solent behind Hurst Castle. Very much a local spot for those in the know but once discovered it will become a regular haunt for those seeking the peace and tranquility of a quiet anchorage, a beach to run the kids on up to Hurst Castle and back, and of course when the tide is right our destination which is the village of Keyhaven itself which is picturesque and about as English as it gets. You can decide if you have a picnic or a Yacht Club or Pub lunch at the Gun inn and we'll do the navigation planning to keep you safe. 

Itchenor Scratch - 26th June 2021
We recognise that over the last few years we have not explored the Eastern Solent enough so to help all those from this end of our playground we have opted for Itchenor. We can go alongside and if required overflow on to visitors buoys. Our destination is the The Ship Inn in the sailing village of Itchenor. 

<6m Wight Dash - 10th July 2021 
This event is in recognition of Newbies. Its hard to keep 5m RIBs and 8.5m+ RIBs together when doing a 60 mile trip round the IOW - It is a simple fact of life that the smaller RIBs can't always keep up with a larger RIBs "comfortable" cruising speed. This year we are going to have a special Wight Dash event for RIBs of under 6m. We will bring at least one larger RIB of 6.5m or more as safety cover (spare fuel, towing etc) and as usual we will have engineering cover for the whole trip. 

Alderney Race - Friday 16th - Sunday 18th July 2021
In 2019 we took 7 RIBs to Alderney for our first cross channel event. We had a great time exploring this amazing island by foot and bike along with excellent food and drink in good company at The Braye Beach Hotel. The trip home was done in two hours in a F4 and everyone was happy. We'd like to repeat this experience in 2020. The difference being the weather for the trip out and starting a bit earlier on the Friday to get more from the weekend. We are open to helping set up a Channel Island cruise for those that want it by way of expanding this event a little. 

Mad Cowes - Wednesday 4th August 2021
The chance to end the annual events calendar with a tried and tested favourite. We'll meet up late morning and cruise to the Western Solent and check out some impressive sail boats engaged in Cowes Week Racing before going to a lunch time venue and getting the chance to talk about all the fun we've had during the year. As always there will be the opportunity to go to Cowes on the way back to have a beer in the heart of the world famous racing festival. 

Bramble Bank Cricket Match - Dates still to be announced (usually late August or early September)
Once each year the tide falls low enough to exspose The Bramble Bank for a short while. It's just about big enough for a game of cricket; albeit with a rather soggy out field! The Royal Southern Yacht Club, Hamble and the Island Sailing Club, Cowes have been competing in this annual Test Match since the 1950's. In a quintessentially British competition the winner is decided beforehand and both teams colude to ensure the correct team wins! This is a fun spectator event and the novelty of being on the bank makes it the just good fun. 
The tide dictates the timings - sometimes it's at dawn and sometimes in the evening. Fingers crossed for your prefered option!

What we tried to do in 2020 COVID Year...

Wight Dash - Saturday 6th June 2020 (resheduled due to COVID 19)
We had record numbers attend this event in between lockdowns - despite the weather not being great. There are pictures of the event - including some drome shots - on the Facebook page - RIB Owners' Club

Ski Sundowner - Friday 5th June 2020 - Cancelled due to COVID 19

Sandy Shindig - Saturday 13th June 2020 - Cancelled due to COVID 19

Alderney Race - Friday 10th - Sunday 12th July 2020 - Cancelled due to COVID 19

Ladies that Lunch - Monday 20th July 2020 - Cancelled due to COVID 19

Gins Evening Jolly - Thursday 23rd July 2020 - Cancelled due to COVID 19

Bembridge Bonanaza - Sunday 2nd August 2020 - Cancelled due to COVID 19

Mad Cowes - Wednesday 12th August 2020 - Cancelled due to COVID 19

What we did in 2019...

Binfield Bash - 11th May 2019
A chance to visit one of the IOW's child and dog friendly places in the heart of the Island. plnty of space to run both kids and dogs and a bar and restaurant that cleverly has the secure play area in the rear garden and the adults dining in the front! A fun long lunch stop for everyone.

Wight Dash - 8th June 2019 
Complete a circumnavigation with a dash around the IOW. Bring your flask and biscuits for a stop round the other side before a photo shoot at the Needles on the way back when we can celebrate our efforts with beer at the pub!

Ski Sunday - 23rd June 2019
Another chanvce to take skiing or wakeboard instruction from the Marine Matters team and their instructors. Motley Crew, the Marine Matters Sealine F42/5 motor cruiser will be on station to allow for a bit of privacy to get changed and have hot drinks after being in the water. 

Ladies that Lunch - 1st OR 3rd July 2019 - date TBC around your preferences
A new event for women run by women. As with all events we run, safety will be of paramount importance so this will be hosted by Lisa our office manager, assisted by Jazz Willis,our female Suzuki engineer, and one of our female powerboat instructors who will plan the trip. Current thinking is to leave from the Hamble to lunch with a bit shopping in GunWharf Quay. However, nothing is in stone. It would be good to get a team of ladies out there leading from the front other than that its up to you what you do! 

Alderney Race 19th - 21st July 2019 
The big one for 2019. This trip has 24 hour tide access to the port of Bray in Alderney where we can tie to mooring buoys and go ashore to the Hotel that overlooks a glorious beach and enjoy champagne to celebrate what for most of you will be your first Channel Crossing by RIB. The island is beautiful for playing on the beach, walking and chilling in the bars - a very relaxed weekend no matter what. We are happy to take kids if you are happy to bring them. from the Neddles we'll be there in 3 hours - and for those that are wondering... we are only out of site of land for about an hour. This trip is the same time frame as round the IOW. 

Mad Cowes - 14th August 2019
This was a real hit last year with a mid week trip checking out the Cowes Week racing on the way to lunch at The Bugle Hotel in Yarmouth. After lunch those that fancy it can go up to Cowes for a beer with the races to soak up the atmosphere of this world famous yacht racing event.

Some RIB Owners Club Events from 2018...

Wight Dash
The Wight Dash was an opportunity to shake out the last of Spring and get the Summer started with a Dash around the IOW at the end of April. The Marine Matters Team planned and managed the day so for those of you that just want to go boating without any consideration to the planning and navigation that was fine – as an RYA Training Centre we are more than qualified to do this.

Shalfleet Shuffle
The Shalfleet Shuffle was a leisurely trip to Newtown River to visit the New Inn at Shalfleet for lunch. The trip from Hamble was less the half an hour at 20 knots and the walk to the pub took less than 20 mins in flip flops, so nothing strenuous. The pub had a good kids menu as well as good choice of food from the adult menu from sandwiches to full meals - and lovely pudding of course!

Ski Sundays
The two Ski Sundays were a great opportunity to make your first splash on waterski’s or a wakeboard or simply meet our instructor and get some top tips on how to improve your technique. This is a great spectator sport so lots of fun was had by all cheering on those that "got up" for the first time.

Mad Cowes
Mad Cowes was an opportunity to view the world class racing that is Cowes Week and an excuse to visit The Hut in Colwell bay for some respite from the sailing! Fantatic location and service to chill everyone out before returning to Cowes for a beer amongst the racers as they came off the water. 

The Marine Matters team are looking forward to sharing these events with you, both on the water and the inevitable time at the bar that goes with this!