I have a new found respect for Sailors after my 1st weekend of the Basic Coastal Cruising course. Although I learned a lot I still have many questions and much to learn. It is not as easy as I had imagined. Unless you are the skipper and all you to is hand out orders I found sailing to be a mentally and physically challenging in the windy part of the bay. Not to mention there is much to learn about sail trim and the affects of the wind, tides and currents. To be honest it is a lot more work then I imagined at least aboard the boat that we learned on. I know it is important to learn the hard way but I am also learning about what not to do and how I will want my boat to be configured so that sailing is enjoyable for me.
We learned in the SF Bay which is known for strong winds, currents and constantly changing conditions. I learned aboard a 32 foot sloop rigged monohull without a roller furled Jib. This meant dragging a sail to the front of the boat and manually connecting the sail. Most importantly when the wind conditions suddenly changed and became very windy our teacher decided this would be a great time for us to experience changing the Jib in rough conditions. Since we had not practiced this in calm conditions we experienced this for the 1st time in rough conditions. We donned our wet gear and attached ourselves to life lines with safety harnesses and self inflating life vests. Although we completed the task successfully with our teachers guidance and without any issues it was by far the most nerve racking and physically challenging adventure so far. I can only imagine what it would be like to be caught in a storm in the ocean with swells and waves and wind. Even keeping the boat cruising in a straight line required a lot of concentration. I imagined being caught in a storm for 12 hours or more under these conditions which I am sure is not uncommon during an extended crossing.
As I am learning I am realizing what my limits are and what it will take for me to warrant the charter and eventually the purchase of a sailboat. I imagine inviting friends many of which will not have any experience. I will need a boat that can fairly easily be single handed. I will require a boat with a boom that is high enough so as not to knock anyone out do to an accidental Jib. Although performance will be important I may choose a self tacking Jib option for those days when you are entertaining non sailing guests. It will have to have a roller furling Jib. I will require a wind direction gauge located in the cockpit so I don't have to look up to the top of the mast. From what I can tell so far my only acceptable boat choice will be a well thought out performance cruising catamaran. From what I can tell a catamaran is the only choice to balance comfort, performance and ease of sailing.
We still have one more weekend to complete the Coastal Cruising course. After that I believe I have two more courses to round out my experience and prepare me for bareboat charters on a Catamaran. I will be very happy once I have completed the training and hope to have answered the majority of my questions and concerns about sailing. It has been an adventure to say the least. This phase however is the hard part and I look forward to the part where sailing is less of a challenge and more of an adventure.
We are taking our sailing lessons through the AfterGuard Sailing Academy. I have been very pleased with their operation and highly recomend them.
book by Gary Jobson. I have a lot of reading to do although I am sure I will do fine on the tests. three weekends and 3 or 4 weeknight sails and I should have completed the Basic Keelboat and Basic Coastal Cruising courses. After that it is on to bareboat and Catamaran classes at which point I will be ready to sail.
