The more we do it, the better we get! Today was the second of eight lessons in our fall session of Youth Sailing. Each Saturday will look the same. We are divided into two groups: the beginner sailors, ages 9-12, who attend our STEM class, the SYSTEM, and the intermediate sailors, ages 12-17, who attend our NEXT LEVEL program. Both groups began at 10 AM and finished at 3 PM. The SYSTEM classroom is indoors, and the NEXT LEVEL meets in the second-floor breezeway. The SYSTEM is based on REACH (US Sailing's STEM education series), while the NEXT LEVEL is based on US Sailing's Intermediate curriculum.
The weather in Miami, and many other places, follows a pattern: one day looks like the next. The weatherman calls for southeasterly winds of 5-10 knots, but it's calm in the morning. Then, as it gets warmer throughout the day, the land heats up, and the sea breeze kicks in. The wind on the water is affected by local topography, where land, buildings, and other structures block the wind and create turbulence. Also, there is usually a big difference between the highest and lowest wind speeds. We refer to this as puff and lull. Today, the puffs (gusts) were much stronger than 10 knots. In reality, after the fact, when we all know what happened,….
Today was a big Fleet Week celebration next door at the Coral Reef Yacht Club (CRYC). Hundreds of young sailors were invited for fishing, sailing, and boating. The first busload showed up at 0645 hours for a lovely breakfast buffet. As luck has it, the day coincided with our regular Thursday Veterans Sailing. Two uniquely named veterans, who had never sailed with us, arrived at about 1000 hours. The weather and wind were perfect for sailing across the Bay and joining the festivities at Stiltsviille. We tied the boat next to an anchored sailboat in what can best be described as a small lagoon behind the building. The CRYC dockmaster was on hand to ferry us to the lapidated building. We mingled with the sailors for a while and had some snacks and refreshments before heading back to the US Sailing Center. We had to leave before the current started ripping. The sail home was smooth and very relaxing. It was …
Perhaps I might be getting forgetful, but today felt like the best Veterans Sail ever! We had two boats, six veterans, one veteran family member, plus me. Two of the veterans had never sailed with us before. Today was a perfect day on the Bay. The weather conditions were ideal, with just the "right" amount of wind speed. We aimed for the Biscayne Bay channel as we left the Seaplane channel behind, spotting some Dolphins along the way, then tacking through Stiltsville, we turned around and headed back home with the flooding tide pushing us along Bill Baggs State Park, Nixons Beach,..,
Old friends meet new friends. Today, a young man who had just returned from active duty in Syria was visiting. It was super rewarding to offer him and his significant other a soothing and relaxing experience sailing on Biscayne Bay. As always, thank you guys for serving our country.
Today was about sailing around two marks, upwind and downwind, in the most efficient way. It includes: being able to sail in close proximity to other boats; keeping the boat speed up; and knowing where the next mark is, in order to sail the shortest distance. the breeze eventually faded out and we towed everyone back to por
Growing a program organically to me is when gravity works to your advantage. “Things” simply come together without a lot of effort, just like our Veterans Sailing Program. No advertising is necessary. As explained in the previous blog, Dreams Come Through, we do not mind keeping it small for now.
The wind conditions were perfect for continued learning. Not so windy so that everyone would capsize, but windy enough where some do. We had nine students and two coaches, so we decided on double-handed sailing using Four RS Fevas. Teams were established and then send off to prepare the boats. We had a short skippers meeting just before leaving the dock.
Our regional Siebel Sailors Program coach McKenzie MacGuggin joined our session today. She brought Palm Beach Siebel Coach Jenny with her. It was the perfect timing because we were a bit short-handed. We divided up the teams for two RS Ventures, the Castildo Safety Boat and the Boston Whaler coach boat. The plan was to sail around for a while and then stop at the sandbar. While on our way there, coach McKenzie came on the radio and strongly suggested that we skip the sandbar and head back for a penalty meeting in the classroom.
We had 6-sailors participate in the morning session, so we rigged three RS Fevas with main and jib. Today’s drill was to sail Beam-Reach between two markers, clockwise around. The trick is to stay on a straight line between the marks, keeping the spacing between the boats at 2-3 boat lengths. On a whistle, all boats are to trim in and begin sailing a Close-Hauled course. Does this sound like the beginning of racing? (The pictures below have a frame describing the drill).
Looking at the wind and weather forecast too far in advance can sometimes be intimidating, especially when we know that our coaching staff will be short-handed. I may take a peek at the forecast a few days out, but other than that, my final plan comes about the morning of the event. Coaching sailing is not much different than coaching any other team sport. Who is available to play and who are the coaches to assist me?
Our Team was almost back at ‘full strength’ today. We used five RS Fevas of which three boats sailed singlehandedly with mainsail only and the other two boats sailed doublehanded with jib. We had perfect wind conditions for what we wanted to accomplish. The day began with a short chalk talk on the Safety Position, continued with a Land Drill, and then hands-on Sailing Practice. In my view, this focus skill is the beginning of racing. The Safety Position is where you slow the boat down, which is perfect for waiting for other boats to catch up so that everyone can Line-Up and sail together, just like when Racing. What’s equally important is to learn how the get started quickly so that other boats do not have to wait for you. Otherwise, it could take all day to Line-Up!
All the boats were on the first run when I realized that none of them had a stern plug! Boats started to float lower and lower. Everyone capsized numerous times, and some more than others. I was glad to be in our propeller-less safety boat. I was very close, motivating the kids to keep fighting! Each boat had to be rescued and towed back in, one by one.
Great sailing today! Captain Bob, gave really good sailing lessons to a couple of Veterans. The other boat was skippered by Guy Siegel, who had his family members aboard. Yours truly launched the coach boat and went out to take pictures (see below). Guy’s team was also practicing docking the boat, several times. It can be a bit intimidating, especially when there is a lot of boat and traffic.
Today was extra special! The US Sailing’s Siebel Sailors Program Manager, Blair Overman, took part in our afternoon programming. Our Regional Headcoach, MacKenzie McGuggin was also in attendance. They contributed both on and off the water. We always learn from MacKenzie when she coaches visit us. She is the best!
Great sailing today! Captain Bob, gave really good sailing lessons to a couple of Veterans. The other boat was skippered by Guy Siegel, who had his family members aboard. Yours truly launched the coach boat and went out to take pictures (see below). Guy’s team was also practicing docking the boat, several times. It can be a bit intimidating, especially when there is a lot of boat and traffic.
Thanks to the Siebel Sailors Program, we have plenty of stuff to do on days when we can’t go sailing. We spend almost 3-hours in the classroom this morning and the kids were focused and engaged the entire time. The classroom lessons are much-needed because we normally do not have a lot of time for this during a 3-hour sailing session.
Our intermediate students are being tested on the beginner level knowledge base to ensure that we all fully understand each other. Our Siebel Coach, MacKenzie McGuggin, has created a series of Jeopardy games which was very well received by the kids. We also handed out a couple of worksheets on Knot Making and Points of Sail. Their scores will be entered into the new app, Skill-Up, by US Sailing. Skill-Up tracks the progression of each student and it contains valuable information with videos and lectures on sailing. The Siebel Sailors Program is Awsome!
Today was a great day for sailing. The breeze was up, partly cloudy, a couple of nice Sonar sailboats with nothing but wonderful people aboard. Captain Bob, our senior sailing instructor, gave lessons to a couple of veterans and a first responder. The other boat had a veteran, a veteran’s family member, and yours truly aboard as a coach and navigator.
We observed how the current flows around fixed objects in the water. Then we wanted to prove that the earth is round. The kids were asked if they could see Soldiers Key, which is the first island south of Key Biscayne. The water was flat so we aimed south for about 20-minutes. Sure enough, the island popped up and we hung around for a while catching up on knot-making. Everyone was signed on the important Bowline and Square knots.
The weekend was pretty unusual for Miami! The weather forecast for Saturday looked windy and cold. I was concerned that kids would not be able to stay warm unless they brought layers of proper sailing gear. But they did! We communicated well with Parents/Guardians and shared the “What to wear when sailing” blog.
