Best way to gain experience

[RekkaBell]

I joined a match club last week to try and meet some people and it worked out pretty well so far! They race every week, we went with them last sunday and we shot a bit of footage:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VZdt...ature=youtu.be

We experienced everything: 40 knots of wind, boat was heeled over, man overboard (he's ok though!), sails ripped too. We went all the way around Moresby island, 14 miles in all. The skipper was amazing, handled the boat really well despite the terrible weather. It was stressful but i had an amazing time, learned a lot of stuff!

Hoping to join them every week, but need to get my own gear first. If anyone in the sidney area has some small-sized weather gear">foul weather gear they need to sell let me know!

Me and my partner have been talking to people on the docks, but we haven't met everyone yet. We're trying to find rides on other boats, seems harder to ask people to come onto ours though (i would love that). Anyone here who wants to spend time on our boat to show us the ropes let me know! If you can spare a few hours, a day... anything at all!

[UNCIVILIZED]

Originally Posted by secrabtree

I agree with the others that suggest that racing will teach you about all aspects of sailing much faster than gunkholing. I'll go further though.
Racing as crew you learn a lot. But to learn YOUR boat well race YOUR boat. Find some "laid back" local club races. Borrow an experienced skipper to crew for you and to teach you (and maybe take the helm in scary situations).
The advantahes of racing - even if you're really not interested in being a competitor, are many. Just a few:
1. You CAN'T use the motor and must do everything under sail
2. You have ample opportunity to observe experienced skippers
3. You will learn to handle YOUR boat in situations you might otherwise avoid, like crowded start lines and mark rounding
4. The "shooting the ----" at the bar after the race will get you pointers of what mistakes you made AND congratulations for things you did right
5. Having to SAIL to the next mark even when it is directly to winward

Most "cruisers" (not real ocean passage cruisers, but just guys that motor-sail around the bay) never get the experience that will, for instance, allow them to sail into their berth or to the dock when their motor failed. Notice I said "when" their motor failed, not "if" - because you WILL have that occurrence eventually.

You will become a safer cruiser if you have experience racing. You don't have to be a died-in-the-wool competitor.

And when I had inexperienced crew on my boat I always told them that when I speak loudly it is NOT yelling in anger, it is that I want to be heard the first time so I don't have to repeat, and that "PLEASE" and "THANK YOU" are to be understood even if I forget to so state.

But go racing and LEARN.

BRAVO!

[DumnMad]

Lot of good advice re sailing and boat handling.
I'm a bit old for the racing stuff but found for cruising its very important to learn how to monitor and manage the batteries and how to ensure clean fuel was going into the motor.

[RekkaBell]

Originally Posted by DumnMad

Lot of good advice re sailing and boat handling.
I'm a bit old for the racing stuff but found for cruising its very important to learn how to monitor and manage the batteries and how to ensure clean fuel was going into the motor.

Yea im still trying to understand how to manage electricity on my boat, we have a lot of devices on board that use up a lot of juice. Id like to switch to LEDs but they're so costly :/... 20$ per set is crazy.

Ill try and attend a course on engine maintenance too in the next month.

[UNCIVILIZED]

Originally Posted by Rustic Charm

There is a saying,

"Racing teaches you sailmanship, cruising teachers you seamanship"

My input, just get out there and learn by doing. Be conservative as you learn.

I can't say that I concur on this. As it is due to my racing experience, that the majority of my seamanship was learned.
For when you're racing, you're often out in condtions (Under Sail ONLY) where most cruisers would remain in port during said weather.
So that you have to learn how to handle the boat in hairy circumstances. So much so that it becomes second nature, & you become a much, much better sailor for it.

That, & also, given that you're both pushing the boat & gear far harder than a cruiser would; & that at times, you cross the line, in terms of what's prudent, or how much the gear can take, etc. Then you learn (several ways) for how to recover from same.
So that your depth of knowledge & experience, as well as confidence, is that much greater for it. Thus contributing to your; safety/safe boat handling, & that of any vessel which you happen to be on, ditto with regards to your impact of the safety of her crew.

Bottom Line: From said experiences, comes the practice of automatically thinking several steps ahead, & figuring out multiple contingencies, for each possible "what if", type situation.
And the more this type of thinking is practiced (& tested), be it in sailing, or elsewhere, the better you get at "playing the game". So that after a while, little surprises you, & you "know" how to handle most everything which comes up.
Plus, said modality of thinking transfers to nigh on every aspect of one's life. Regarding which, anyone would be hard pressed to call such a bad thing (trait).

Also, even when racing in tame weather, one learns huge amounts about seamanship.
For instance, in a race which we did, coming down the SoCal coast, & finishing in San Diego. Based on our paying attention to the port's currents & tidal flows, in a manner far superior to our competition, we gained almost half a day's distance on them, in the last 7nm (1.5hrs) of the race.

It was a pretty abject lesson for the dozen of us. Which, had we just turned on the engine, & motored home, for those last few miles...
To me, that's a Seamanship thing.

[Macblaze]

Originally Posted by RekkaBell

Hoping to join them every week, but need to get my own gear first. If anyone in the sidney area has some small-sized foul weather gear they need to sell let me know!

Not sure how broke you are but Trotac had a sale of old Gill jackets when we were there last week. Something like $100 for a $300+ jacket.

[TrentePieds]

Listen to Uncivilized, and remember that no more was Rome built in a day than you learn seamanship on a one-week croose'n'learn let alone a one day buoy-bashing race. Learning seamanship is a lifelong endeavour. And you seem to be off to a wonderful start :-)!

You say it's hard to ask people to come aboard your own boat. But haven't you just done it? "Anyone here who wants to spend time on our boat to show us the ropes...If you can spare a few hours, a day... anything at all!"

That's precisely how we used to do it. Get up from your table in the bar. Call for silence. Use precisely the words you've used here. You'll get plenty of takers, cos we all enjoy sailing in/on boats that are different from our own. That's part of the lifelong quest to become a better seaman.

TrentePieds

[RekkaBell]

Originally Posted by TrentePieds

Listen to Uncivilized, and remember that no more was Rome built in a day than you learn seamanship on a one-week croose'n'learn let alone a one day buoy-bashing race. Learning seamanship is a lifelong endeavour. And you seem to be off to a wonderful start :-)!

You say it's hard to ask people to come aboard your own boat. But haven't you just done it? "Anyone here who wants to spend time on our boat to show us the ropes...If you can spare a few hours, a day... anything at all!"

That's precisely how we used to do it. Get up from your table in the bar. Call for silence. Use precisely the words you've used here. You'll get plenty of takers, cos we all enjoy sailing in/on boats that are different from our own. That's part of the lifelong quest to become a better seaman.

TrentePieds

Thank you ill give that a shot . I suppose im just not used to asking for help, but its very important.

[Stu Jackson]

Originally Posted by RekkaBell

Thank you ill give that a shot . I suppose im just not used to asking for help, but its very important.

One of the earlier suggestions was to read, read, read.

Here's something that I can say is the BEST sail trim guide I've ever seen, and I've read almost all of them. It also includes a great section on how to race:

Sail Trim Users Guide

If you buy Calder's book (Boatowners Manual) and this one, they're the only two you could "need" for a long time.

Good luck.

[Cadence]

Originally Posted by Macblaze

Not windy? You should be out there today :-0

Anyway, sailing in 5 knots of wind is a great way to get to learn your boat. you will surprised how fast you will mosey around and you will have lots of time to screw up and correct your errors.

Are you in Sidney or Tsehum?

I love no BS practical responses.

[TrentePieds]

All a matter of perception - I wouldn't see it as "asking for help". I'd see it as offering an opportunity ;-)!

TrentePieds

[Uricanejack]

Originally Posted by RekkaBell

I joined a match club last week to try and meet some people and it worked out pretty well so far! They race every week, we went with them last sunday and we shot a bit of footage:

We experienced everything: 40 knots of wind, boat was heeled over, man overboard (he's ok though!), sails ripped too. We went all the way around Moresby island, 14 miles in all. The skipper was amazing, handled the boat really well despite the terrible weather. It was stressful but i had an amazing time, learned a lot of stuff!

Hoping to join them every week, but need to get my own gear first. If anyone in the sidney area has some small-sized foul weather gear they need to sell let me know!

Me and my partner have been talking to people on the docks, but we haven't met everyone yet. We're trying to find rides on other boats, seems harder to ask people to come onto ours though (i would love that). Anyone here who wants to spend time on our boat to show us the ropes let me know! If you can spare a few hours, a day... anything at all!

Looks like you were having fun. So long as its fun its a good experience.
If its not fun. At least its still experience.

[cwyckham]

Originally Posted by RekkaBell

I joined a match club last week to try and meet some people and it worked out pretty well so far! They race every week, we went with them last sunday and we shot a bit of footage:

We experienced everything: 40 knots of wind, boat was heeled over, man overboard (he's ok though!), sails ripped too. We went all the way around Moresby island, 14 miles in all. The skipper was amazing, handled the boat really well despite the terrible weather. It was stressful but i had an amazing time, learned a lot of stuff!

Hoping to join them every week, but need to get my own gear first. If anyone in the sidney area has some small-sized foul weather gear they need to sell let me know!

Me and my partner have been talking to people on the docks, but we haven't met everyone yet. We're trying to find rides on other boats, seems harder to ask people to come onto ours though (i would love that). Anyone here who wants to spend time on our boat to show us the ropes let me know! If you can spare a few hours, a day... anything at all!

Glad you had fun. Looks great. A man overboard in winter in the PNW is a dangerous thing. I'm glad he's fine

Chris - SailMentor.com