It is with regret that we inform the Royal West community that Willie Bell has stepped down from his role as Paddle Sport Convener. Willie has been an outstanding convener whose presence will be sorely missed. Some of the notable achievements during his time as the Paddle Sport Convener have been the growth of paddle sports at the Royal West, the introduction of the pool sessions, the resurrection of the Tail O’ the Bank Surfski/Kayak race and the strengthening of links between the Royal West and the SCA. This is only a partial listing of the work he has done to enhance paddle sports and to support a wide range of other activities at the Royal West. The Committee will miss his calm manner, support across all the sporting disciplines and his commitment to widening access to paddle sports. He tells us that he is looking forward to being back at the Club once current COVID restrictions are loosened to allow travel between local authorities and the weather for paddling is a bit warmer.