So, the Olympic sailing circus has left Rio. Has it improved opportunities to learn to sail there? While Brazil came away with a Gold medal at the sailing events, and the waters are some of the most beautiful on the world (at least on the surface) there isn’t much for those inspired to learn to […]
So, the Olympics is over again. More smiles on the podium, and hundreds of young sailors who can move on with their lives with ‘Competed in the Rio Olympics for my country’s team’ on their CVs yet who confidently could say they had no hope at a medal from the start. This isn’t to slag […]
Most yachtsmen and many of the non sailing public will be aware of the ultra fast foiling classes of boat such as the America’s Cup and the GC32 catamarans that captivate audiences around the world while blasting along at 50mph. Technology has raced ahead of boating qualifications and where photographers boats were once seen as […]
Sailing has been perceived as a very masculine sport and this can be very off-putting to a woman who may wish to learn to sail. Even though there are a number of women who have made it to the very top of the sport (Ellen MacArthur is a household name in the UK) the […]
Through my work with The Boating Hub I have come to the understanding that there are two types of sailing nation – the developed sailing nation with a good, structured sail training scheme and the underdeveloped sailing nation that either has none at all or relies upon its elite sailing clubs to get people sailing. […]
Over the last year I have talked about being a good all rounder and how it benefits you as a boater. There is a common misconception, that I myself have fallen prey to, that just because you have learned to sail while doing 1000 miles on a tall ship it makes you an expert yachtsman. […]
Every year there are a number of oceanic and short course yacht races all over the world that people of all levels of experience participate in. There are three classics (amongst others) – the Fastnet, the Transatlantic Race are major oceanic races, while Cowes Week is one of the oldest and most famous short course […]
As a youngster I grew up in awe of the world’s great yacht race the Whitbread (now the Volvo Ocean Race). Giants of men put their vessels and teams together and went around the world as fast as possible with few electronic navigation or weather forecasting aids, and achieved great feats by comparison to what […]
Looking at single hulled boats (monohulls) and two or three hulled boats (multihulls) there is the obvious difference of the number of hulls (nah, really?!) but there are also a number of differences in the way they sail. The differences are great enough that it is advisable to do either a Multihull Conversion Course or […]
All clubs thrive or die by the input of their membership. Last week, for the first family fun race of the season, no one had volunteered as a race official at my club. With 15 sailors turning up, the perfect mix of sun and winds, there could have been some very disappointed sailors until the […]