Royal Victoria Yacht Club - Oak Bay, British Columbia, Canada - Sailing and Yacht Clubs on Waymarking.com

Sailing races started being held in Victoria in the 1880s, typically contested by locals. In 1892, after four American boats entered and swept the races, the local outrage spurred some of the locals to form a yacht club and the Victoria Yacht Club was founded. That year, the club acquired a water lease in Victoria's Inner Harbour and built a clubhouse.

In 1910, with increasing membership and conflicts with shipping in the harbour, the club started looking for a new location. In nearby Oak Bay, a former farm was being transformed into the upper-class Olmsted-designed Uplands residential neighbourhood, and in 1912 the club acquired their current property on the shore of Cadboro Bay at Flamborough Head. The clubhouse was built and completed in time for the official opening on July 13, 1913, and it continues to be used today.

In 1911, due to the club's stature, it was recognized by King George V and granted permission to add the "Royal" prefix to their name, thus becoming the Royal Victoria Yacht Club.

The yacht club has expanded many times over the years, adding more docks and slips, and building a breakwater in 1972. A satellite site called Tsehum Haven opened in 1964 near Sidney, 27 km to the north. In 2014 and 2015, the docks at both Cadboro Bay and Tsehum Haven were rebuilt and upgraded.

The club is private and has several levels of membership: Junior, Affiliate, and Full Member. Full Members have voting privileges and can moor full-size sailboats.

Royal Victoria Yacht Club hosts many sailing races, including the annual Swiftsure races. They also operate a number of sail training programs, ranging from introductory programs for 4-6 year olds, to more advanced courses for adults.

The Cadboro Bay site has the following features:

• 6 floating finger docks with approximately 250 slips
• Several small floats for storage of dinghys
• Boat crane
• Marine railway
• Boat ramp
• Dry-land area for maintenance
• Century-old clubhouse building

The club has received recognition for its excellence on a number of occasions. They have been recognized multiple times as the best sailing school in Canada, and hosted the 2018 Melges 24 World Regatta. In 2020, the Royal Victoria Yacht Club was selected as one of the top 50 yacht clubs in the world by Platinum Clubs of the World.

Facility Rating: Address of Facility: 3475 Ripon Road Victoria, BC Canada V8R6H1 Public/Private: Private? Clear overhead clearance at ramp for mast: yes Good trailer/rig parking: no Good dock alongside of ramp: no Overnight docking available: no Good staging area for rigging boat: yes Clubhouse facilities: yes Racing committee at facility: yes "On the hard" trailer/boat storage: yes Website of Club: [Web Link] Fees: Not Listed

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