Information on Willem III Rowing Club

Welcome to Willem III, one of the largest and oldest rowing clubs in The Netherlands. Willem III is run by volunteers, who take care of the bar, organize activities, and form the board. We therefore also expect from you, as a future member, to contribute to the club by doing some volunteers' work. New members are obligated to work a shift behind the bar once every quarter during their first membership year. Willem III is not a club where everything is done for you after you have paid your membership fee, it is a flourishing club thanks to the joint efforts of the members.

Membership costs

The membership of Willem III runs per calender year and is renewed automatically every year until you cancel it. The membership fee consists of several components (see below). There is a yearly inflation adjustment.

New members also pay an entrance fee of €55.00. In exchange for this fee you will receive a voucher that can be exchanged for a Willem III rowing shirt or a discount on a Willem III rowing suit. You will receive the voucher with your welcome letter,

The mandatory KNRB-supplement (for the Dutch national rowing association) is € 15.50 for youth and junior members and € 31.00 for all other members. It is also mandatory to have one subscription to our magazine De Landtong per address. This magazine is distributed 11 times a year as part of the KNRB-magazine 'Roeien'.

If you become a member after January 1st, you will obtain a discount based on the number of complete months since the start of the year. If you enrol e.g. at March 10, you will receive a 2/12 discount (equal to the months of January and February).

The membership and entrance fee are collected automatically from your bank account. Subsequently it is collected automatically every year in January. The new amounts for the membership fee are published every year in De Landtong in October.

By signing the membership application form, you declare that you have read our Statutes and Regulations and agree with them. A copy of these is available during are new members welcome hour, and will be sent to you on request.

More information on the procedure

After you have sent your membership application form to use, you will receive an e-mail from our members secretary (ledencommissaris) within two weeks. Depending on your rowing skills there are three possibilities:

• New members with ample rowing experience (being able to row well in a C1x or comparable boat) can immediately join our club. They have to do a rowing exam to show their level. The level attributed (between 1 and 5) determines in which boats you will be authorized to row. There is an exam every month. You can sign up on the list next to the door of our bar. The membership fee is collected on average within two weeks after your application.
• New members without rowing experience can start rowing lessons three times a year (mid-January, mid-May and mid-September) provided we have room for additional people. You become a member as soon as we have added you to one of the groups. That will also be the moment from which you will pay the membership fee.
• New members with some rowing experience will have to take rowing lessons until they obtain level 3. They can also participate in the lessons that start mid-January, mid-May and mid-September. To determine your level (and hence in which class you should start), you need to do an exam. The membership fee is collected on average two weeks after your application.

Rowing 'well' at Willem III means you are sufficiently secure in a boat, have good technical skills and can row without a high risk of injuries. If you meet these criteria you will be attributed Level 3 at the exam. With Level 3 (or higher) you can row independently without an instructor present in boats of your skill level (and below).

Lockers

The lockers in the locker room can be rented per year to store your personal affairs. A small locker costs € 9.00, a medium-sized one € 11.00 and a large one € 14.00. If you find a locker without a padlock and name tag, you can add your own nametag and padlock. Subsequently, you should send an e-mail to our treasurer (penningmeester@willem3.nl) to tell him you have taken the locker.
 

Ending your membership

The membership of Willem III runs per calender year and is automatically renewed with one year when you do not cancel it before November 1. You can do this by sending a letter (or e-mail) to the administration (ledenadmin@willem3.nl). Please make sure that you receive a confirmation so that you are sure the cancellation has been processed correctly. There is no partial restitution of the membership fee if you cancel your subscription in the course of the year.

Rules for boat use; 'the ten commandments'

1. Register your boat before you use it
   Write your name in the log book (afschrijfboek) in the boat house
2. Do not register it more than 15 minutes before using it
3. Register a boat for a maximum of one hour
   Wherries are an exception to this rule, you can register these for more than one hour.
4. Only use boats your are authorized to row in
   All boats are marked with a level ranging from 1 to 5, use only the boats which correspond to the Level you have obtained at your exam. Use boats which are suited for your weight, you can check this on the list above the log book.
5. Boats need to be fully occupied
   It is not allowed to have empty seats in a boat.
6. Respect the navigation rules
   Always row on the starboard side of the river, do not cut corners, or lie still in the middle of the river or behind a turn
7. Do not row during fog, frost, storm, thunder or with floating ice
   Rowing is not allowed if you cannot see the house boat on the other side of the Amstel due to mist. It is also not allowed when the temperature is below 0ºC or the wind-force is 7 or above.
8. Dry the boat before returning it to the boat house
9. Report damage in using the damage forms
   The damage forms can be found next to the boat log book.
10. It is everybody's responsibility to take good care of our fleet

Contacts

This document has provided you with a summary of the most important membership rules of Willem III in English. If you do not speak or understand Dutch you will have to do an extra effort to stay informed. All our members will be happy to help you with questions. If you are uncertain about rules, procedures or other issues, please contact one of the people below

For questions regarding rowing lessons, the new member welcome meeting and exams you can contact our members secretary:
Marina Keessen
ledencommissaris@willem3.nl

For membership cancellations, changes of address and related mathers you can contact our administration:
Ber van der Veen
ledenadmin@willem3.nl

For questions regarding the membership fee you can contact our treasurer:
Kristiaan Wolf
penningmeester@willem3.nl

Willem III
Jan Vroegopsingel 8
1096 CN Amsterdam
www.willem3.nl

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