Whatever Happened to Learn by Doing ? Read a Book and Go for it !

[jackdale]

Originally Posted by VirtualVagabond

There is a new thread further down this page by a new member called Heeling and New Sailor..

This poor guy has just got keelboat certification, and hasn't been taught how to reduce heeling with sail adjustment!!!

It's a hell of an argument supporting the title of this thread

Not sure what certification he got. We teach such things in our first courses. "Reef early and reef often." Ease the main in the gusts. Keep the weight to windward. (Later we teach them to put some weight to leeward in light air.)

[capttman]

Originally Posted by jackdale

Not sure what certification he got. We teach such things in our first courses. "Reef early and reef often." Ease the main in the gusts. Keep the weight to windward. (Later we teach them to put some weight to leeward in light air.)

Hmmmmm he didn't get it so did he get to read about it then go on the water and experience it???:de vil:

[Unicorn Dreams]

Without reading all the posts, when you do that, people will start crying about you not having thousands of hours of school and 100 yrs of experience or you paint with the wrong color of paint.

Take a read of the www.bumfuzzles.com and see the crap that went on about them not doing the way some people thought they should have..

[MarkJ]

Originally Posted by Jahmi

plan on jumping in with the purchase of a boat in the 32 - 36 ft range .

Go the 36 footer.

[roger.waite]

Tarnation, what a bunch of grumpy ol' folk. (Me too!)

Some of us were lucky enough to have a good 'n cranky skipper to learn from. (I did!)

Some of us were lucky enough to have a sailing dingy to learn on. (I did!)

Most of us needed instruction in something to hone our skills. (I certainly did!)

Better they go to a course than motor towards me on the port side of the channel. Yeah. I know some newbies will commit a thousand sins in our eyes. Including a bunch of silly, unskilled sods that refused to go on courses!

[Ironhorse74]

I for one am glad that the Wright brothers didn't have to go to pilots school before learning to fly.

Go out and do it

[rgscpat]

Jahmi, you aren't limited to learning in only one way, from only one instructor, or only on one boat. There most certainly isn't a single best way to learn for all people in all circumstances -- that's quite impossible. If you're already strong on boat handling, rules & regs, coastal nav., etc., you could get an instructor / mentor to help you in specific areas, such as intermediate sail trim. And, if you're near a coastal city, all sorts of organizations sponsor seminars on very specific topics (such as using marine radar or getting into celestial nav or downloading marine weather info) that generally go beyond what would be in basic sailing classes.

[VirtualVagabond]

Originally Posted by jackdale

Not sure what certification he got. We teach such things in our first courses. "Reef early and reef often." Ease the main in the gusts. Keep the weight to windward. (Later we teach them to put some weight to leeward in light air.)

Jackdale,
You're an instructor, and probably a good one so it must frustrate you when posts here are derogatory about sailing courses. It must also frustrate you when other sailing schools don't do as good a job, because it reflects badly on the whole industry.
I think the tone of the OP was more aimed at the mindset that you can't do anything without a course these days.
It's my guess that you probably learned to sail before ever taking a course, as most of us did in the "old days", so you're probably better placed to see both sides than most.

[Talbot]

Originally Posted by Jahmi

I see a lot of you suggest starting small and working your way up. Let's say someone has 30 plus years of power boating experience of handling various boats between 16 -40 ft. They also have several years experience in wind sports such as windsurfing and kiteboarding but have limited experience sailing have only been out only a handful of times on someone else's boat but got involved with the sailing process. Would you still suggest the start out with a dingy and work their way up?

The reason that mot advise starting learning to sail in a dinghy is that the boat responds immediately to your actions, thus it is much faster to learn what to do, and what not to do. However, other skills such as navigation and boat handling alongside are easier to teach on the larger boat.

Your experience level is a special case, where the windsurfing should already give you an understanding of the sailing skills; and the powerboating, the skills of boat handling. Your actual level of knowledge is something that only you can answer, but I would suggest that you go direct for assisted tutealage on the cruising vessel.

[Rhapsody-NS27]

I'm one who learns more by hands-on experience. I like to actually do things to see what the outcome is. I've been reading a lot of books, and info on this forum. I feel confident that I can probably take a small daysailer or trailer sailer out on the water and figure things out as I go. Instead of just Going for it, I will be taking an ASA course to get started. I thought it would be good to learn from someone else in hopes not to learn any bad habbits. So, in a few more weeks, I'll be in the Kemah area to take lessons and see how it goes with hands-on learning. I've been looking forward to it for a long time. While I wait for my class, I'm reading up what I can on how things are done, but I just wish I was closer to a marina where I can ask questions and get out on the water to actually DO what I am reading about more often.



BTW: I saw a couple times "L Plates", what is that?

[Unicorn Dreams]

Dan 78

That is a long drive from Germany to Kemah to make everyday.
Mifgt see you down there one day..

[GordMay]

Unfortunately, in the trial & error “school of hard knocks”, the exam comes first ... only then do you get the lesson.

[allanpeda]

I don't hate ASA, but I do keep in mind that they have every reason to sell you more and more ASA certifications. When I took their class, they never ever briefed me on the New York State Boating Safety Certificate, or USCG Auxiliary inspections for my boat. Probably because they made no money from either. The school was sure to let me know that they have a barge in NY Harbor with excellent mixed drinks (the Willy Wall).

Personally I keep an open mind, and I try very hard to temper my respect for others with more experience with what makes sense to me. Most of the time the reasoning for certain actions explains best practices.

[nautical62]

I think there are many factors.

First, a book does not give instant feedback the way a knowledgeable person does. Hands on experience lets you know you are doing something wrong, but often does not tell you how to do it right.

Another thing is that different people learn different ways. Reading first and practicing is good for those who are linguistic (reading) and experiential, not as good for those who are auditory learners.

Obviously money is a factor. Reading a book is certainly much less expensive than traveling to a sailing course. However, as Gord indicated, learning by the school of hard knocks can be expensive if "the knock" is a biggie. As an outdoor instructor, I've bailed out many beginners who have gotten themselves in quite a jam trying to learn themselves.

I disagree that sailing a small dinghy is a good start for someone who's goal is cruising. It's like saying one should ride a bike to learn to drive a semi. A small keelboat gives great feedback, has systems and will provide feedback more consistent with the person's ultimate goal.

[MarkJ]

Originally Posted by Dan_78

BTW: I saw a couple times "L Plates", what is that?

What Learner drivers adorn their cars so we may avoid them.




New sailors can wear one too: