Keep the duty rota off one person
SailHQ brings duties, tickets, racing, member boats and subs into one club system. Members can arrange suitable swaps themselves. The sailing secretary sees the remaining gaps instead of carrying every change by email. SailHQ is already live, and Irish clubs with up to 20 active members receive all features without a monthly charge.
- Free under 20 active members
- Nothing to install
- One login for the whole club
What is sailing club management software?
Sailing club management software is a practical system for running duties, race series and membership together. It records the rota, checks qualifications for safety jobs, holds the fleet register, collects subs and tells everybody when racing is abandoned. For an Irish Sailing club, it replaces the noticeboard calendar and the email chain that handles each swap. General software may keep a member list, but it usually cannot prevent an unqualified volunteer taking safety cover or keep a weather-hit season joined as one series.
The rota from the secretary's phone
This real SailHQ screen shows 26 coming duty days and 14 unfilled positions. It also lists swaps for review and provides the roster tools below. The secretary sees unfinished work immediately rather than opening every date or searching emails. Qualification checks continue behind the view, so filling a gap does not weaken the safety rule.
- Duty days and vacant positions are summarised together, making the most urgent gaps easy to spot.
- Swap reviews stay with the rota, giving the secretary one current version of every assignment.
- Each role carries its required ticket, so only suitable members can fill safety cover.
SailHQ on a phone. Nothing to install.
What sailing asks for that generic club software does not do
Any club platform will hold your members and take your subs. These are the parts clubs end up running in a spreadsheet alongside it.
Every race day starts with its rota
The race officer and safety boat crew are essential. Galley and bar duties matter to the rest of the club day. Vacancies should be obvious well before Sunday, not discovered when people arrive.
The role should enforce its requirement
First aid, powerboat and race officer qualifications affect which members may cover a job. Put that rule on the duty itself. SailHQ can then stop an unsuitable assignment and let an eligible person step forward.
A series must survive lost race days
Discards, results and handicaps connect the season. When conditions abandon racing, the remaining dates still belong to one series. A simple event calendar does not keep those relationships straight for the race committee.
The members' boats belong on the register
Classes, sail numbers and handicaps are relevant even when the owner is a member rather than the club. The fleet list should cover what is on the water without confusing ownership or creating a second record.
Tell the club when racing changes
A late weather decision affects competitors and rostered volunteers. Everyone needs the same notice, including people already on the road. Publishing it once through the club system reduces mixed messages and unnecessary journeys.
Routine swaps need no email referee
A member who cannot attend can find a qualified replacement inside SailHQ. The rota updates when the exchange follows the rules. The secretary remains informed without acting as the messenger between both people.
What SailHQ handles
The short version. SailHQ has its own site with the full detail, demos and pricing.
Duty rota rules
Set duty types, qualification gates and points without chasing members.
Race programme
Schedule the full season quickly from reusable race series templates.
Boat records
Keep club and private boats with current availability in one register.
Member portal
Members find their next duty, weather and club news after login.
Local forecast
Show wind and conditions taken straight from the club's coordinates.
Club calendar
Place racing, training and social events on one shared calendar.
Moving over without losing a season
The usual reason a committee stays on something that half works is the thought of moving. It is a smaller job than it looks, and you do not have to do it in one go.
What clubs come from
- A duty rota spreadsheet
- The clubhouse noticeboard
- Standing orders and subs chasing
- Email chains about swaps
- Results on one person's laptop
Most clubs arrive with three or four of these running at once. That is normal.
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Send us what you already have
A membership spreadsheet, a CSV export, or the list your treasurer keeps. It does not need tidying up first. Messy is what we expect.
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We load it and check it with you
We import members, kit and your season, then sit with one person from the committee to check it looks like your club rather than a demo.
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Run both for as long as you want
Nothing forces you to switch everything on day one. Plenty of clubs run the old rota alongside for a few weeks until people trust the new one.
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Leave whenever you like
Your data exports in full, at any point, at no charge. A system you cannot walk away from is not one you should sign up to.
Not sure how much work your club's move would be? Send us what you have and we will tell you honestly.
Who is behind SailHQ
There is no published sailing case study yet, and we are not going to invent one. What we can point at is the engine underneath. RowHQ runs Oundle Town Rowing Club day to day, with real members, real money and real race entries going through it.
SailHQ is a different sport on the same foundation, built by the same people. It is live now, and early clubs get a direct line to the people writing it.
Questions about sailing club management software
What is sailing club management software in Ireland?
It is one place for duty rotas, qualification records, race series, boat details, subs and club messages. An Irish Sailing club can replace the paper calendar, duty spreadsheet and swap email chain. The software understands that particular roles require particular tickets and that each day forms part of a longer racing series.
What does SailHQ cost an Irish club?
SailHQ is free while the club has fewer than 21 active members. The 21 to 30 member band is €18 monthly excluding VAT. The highest published band costs €140 each month for 251 to 300 active members. Every band has every feature. SailHQ takes no transaction fee, and Stripe pays member card money into the club's own Stripe account.
Can the club keep Garda vetting information in SailHQ?
Relevant vetting information can sit on the member record. Garda vetting is required for work with children or vulnerable people and is only processed for registered organisations. The club applies through its national governing body rather than asking the individual to apply. Clubs in Northern Ireland use AccessNI. SailHQ stores the record, while the club follows the applicable process.
How are duty swaps handled?
Members can arrange a replacement within the role rules. If a safety duty requires a qualification, the incoming volunteer must have it. The confirmed change appears on the shared rota, so the secretary sees the result without managing every email and both members work from the same version.
Can yacht clubs use SailHQ too?
Yes. Dinghy and yacht clubs share the same core jobs: qualified duty cover, a race calendar, privately owned boats and subs. SailHQ was built at a dinghy club, so some language reflects that setting. The fleet register still handles members' boats, and the rota and series tools apply across both types of club.
Is there funding an Irish sailing club could use for this?
Yes. Irish clubs lean on the Sports Capital and Equipment Programme for bigger purchases and on their Local Sports Partnership for smaller supports, and committees routinely fund running costs that way. The free band under 21 active members costs nothing, and annual billing is charged at ten months rather than twelve.
Rather ask a person first?
Not everyone wants to sign up to find out whether something fits. Tell us how your club runs and we will tell you straight whether SailHQ suits you.
If it does not, we will say so.
The rest of the HQ family
One app per sport, sharing an engine underneath. Plenty of clubs run more than one.