South Marine Park, model yacht club

South Shields Model Yacht Club was formed by local aldermen in 1886 at the newly created South Marine Park. It claims to be the oldest such club in the north east. The club may have gone into abeyance during the two world wars. Nowadays the boats are navigated using radio transmitters around a course defined by buoys. Each yacht is controlled using two separate radio channels on a single frequency. One battery-powered motor operates the rudder, another a winch which adjusts the sails. The rules of model yacht racing are the same as for full sized boats. They are governed by the Model Yacht Association.