Sark’s two Island Games medal winners, Stefan Roberts and Nick Dewe. (Picture courtesy of Richard Dewe, 0810489)

SARK Shipping’s booking service has gone online, which means that clients on both sides of the divide can now get tickets from the comfort of their own computers.

I say on both sides of the divide because the company’s previous system catered only for customers travelling to Sark.

Attempts by Sark residents to book a journey to and from their home island used to be rejected on the grounds that they could not return from their trip before they’d started it. Happily, that’s a thing of the past now and with a bit of luck the new system will fulfil the dual purpose of improving efficiency and cutting costs – something that will no doubt please the taxpayers of this small rock.

For those interested in using the facility, the website address for bookings is www.sarkshippingcompany.com and reservations can be made up to an hour before scheduled sailing times.

However, a word of caution to potential customers. Once booked, you can only change your sailing time by paying a fiver and if you are forced to cancel – and I have personal experience of this – then your ticket becomes void (without any refund) unless you can give a specific time and date on which you will travel.

That might explain why so many Sark residents book single journeys only now, unless they are absolutely certain of the time and date of their return. Perhaps a season’s experience of these arrangements will persuade Sark Shipping to modify them slightly – possibly by stipulating that by agreement unused tickets must be used within two weeks of a postponed trip.

It seems unfair that, in the case of illness, for example, people who have booked in good faith but been forced to cancel should lose £25.50 simply because they can’t immediately specify the dates and times upon which the ticket will be used.

Perhaps that issue might be raised on Monday evening when the company holds what is described as the AGM of members of the company. The convening notice states that it is for Chief Pleas members ‘as shareholders of the company’ but the public may attend as observers.

Belated congratulations to Sark’s shooters for their success in the recent Island Games in Aland. Games (and shooting) stalwart Richard Dewe kindly supplied me with a picture of medal winners Stefan Roberts and Nick Dewe, who took silver in the automatic ball trap clay target team event.

In addition, Stefan took silver in the individual event – with Nick narrowly missing out on a bronze by coming fourth – in which the gold medal winner from Menorca was not only that island’s champion but also Spanish national champion.

Once again in what is often accurately described as its national sport, Sark punched well above its weight.

My reference the other day to Sark’s new monthly publication, Sark Scribe, prompted a couple of readers of this column to ask me how to get a copy.

For anyone else who’d like information on this, the email address of Bob Parsons (editor, publisher and general factotum) is bob@sark4me.com and I know he’ll reply to all queries. I’m also grateful to him for providing pictures of the recent Candles on the Creux event when my own camera’s battery died on me at a crucial moment.

While on the subject of news from Sark, Sue Daly has published the first of her fortnightly reports (monthly in the winter) for the Sark Tourism website which can be found at sarktourism.com and which also provides a comprehensive list of forthcoming attractions as well as details about tourist accommodation.

The email address for comment is fallesark@sark.net.