History of the Ravenswood Sanctuary Model Boat Club (RSMBC) Inc.
The RSMBC held its inaugural meeting on May 1st 1997 under the name of the Mandurah City Model Boat Club. A constitution for the Club was prepared and within a few months the Club was registered as an incorporated body. The MCBC Inc. commenced it operations at the Dudley Park Gardens with Scale Steering and Yacht Sailing competitions on the 1st and 3rd Sundays of the month, the remaining Sundays were meeting or free sailing days. The initial rescue boat was an inflatable which was soon abandoned (due to leaks) and an 8 foot fibreglass dinghy purchased. The initial yacht class was the 10 Rater which was later replaced by the International One Metre (IOM) class. Static displays and Club visits also were part of the Club activities.
In the early days membership was 10 members with fees set at $10 per year and $2 each competition day. By the end of 1998 membership had grown to 30. During 1998 the W.A. Nautical Modellers Association (WANMA) was formed with MCMBC as an inaugural member and the Club remains a member to this day. In May 1998 the Club was invited by the developers of the Ravenswood Sanctuary to an on-water display at Egret Lake. This event was highly successful and resulted in the Club being offered the permanent use of the lake, the developer had indicated that they would provide a boardwalk, a finger jetty, a shade area and shirts provided that the Club change its name to acknowledge the area. The requirement to change the Club name was met with opposition from some members, however the Club continued to use the Ravenswood Sanctuary on occasion.
In January 2001 the members decided to change the Club name to Ravenswood Sanctuary Model Boat Club and therefore cemented their relation with the owners and secured the current location. This commenced a stable relationship with the original developers which has continued with the succeeding owners including the current owners. This allowed the Club to erect the current shed in 2001 providing storage for equipment.
Fast Electric racing was incorporated into the Club calendar in 2002. In the meantime the Club participated in the Perth Wood Show along with the other member Clubs of WANMA on annual basis. In more recent times the Club has waterproofed and concreted the shade area, rebuilt the boardwalk and re-clad the shed together with many other improvements.
In 2009 the availability of a low-cost yacht, the kit built Micro Magic, gave members a new class of sailing vessel. Various lakes around Mandurah were used to introduce this class including Port Kennedy, Lakelands, Singleton and Halls Head. The Micro Magic class has since been superseded by the Dragon Force 65, all events are now sailed at Egret Lake, Ravenswood Sanctuary.
