Bareboat certification

[KAB]

I've been on 4 catamaran charters w/ family & friends in the past 4 yrs ,2 crewed & 2 captain only , and i would now like to captain the next charter myself. Those of you who regularly do it yourself how long before you took your maiden voyage. I'm checking in to some sailing schools here on the west coast but none that i have spoken to specialize in catamaran , i know some of the basics of monohulls are the same but im only interested in chartering a cat so it would best to learn on a cat. Im willing to do what it takes a this has become a passion of mine ,kinda bitten by the bug i guess. Any info on any sailing schools or advice would be greatly appreciated & thanks in advance.

[pete33458]

Try this:

Blue Water Sailing School - Catamaran Sailing Bareboat Charter Instruction

[CaptKirk]

I have used North South in the BVI twice. They are a second generation bareboat operation. Everyone is going to want a sailing resume before they entrust anything of value to you. If you don't have the required experience or can't prove it or they have doubts of some type, they might want you to hire a captain for a day or two to be satisfied with your level of competence. Once they are satisfied you will be able to captain the boat yourself and have a great vacation. Sailing in the BVI is very easy as compared to many other places and I recommend it highly.
Good Luck

[Vasco]

Most charter companies will charter to anybody. It's not their boats and they're in the business to sell weeks of charter. If you look really inexperienced some will make you take a skipper for a day or two. If you are confident that you can do it, go for it.

[NW Craig]

From what I've seen with the Moorings out of Tortola, I totally agree with Rick. Seems all you need on your resume is a VISA card!

On a more serious note, If you look at the ASA courses, they have a catamaran class/certification in their series of courses.

craig in the sunny NW (after a cold rainy Saturday for Opening Day)

[harryrezz]

It's sad, but too many charter companies do seem not to particularly care about your experience. I have witnessed a number of fiascoes involving bareboat charters where the captain clearly didn't know his butt from a barstool! Take the classes. Get your certification. Take a captain along for a day or so on your first trip so that you are completely comfortable .... then have a great time!
BTW - the Virgins are much easier than the rest of the Caribbean so start out there. Conditions can be quite challenging farther south!

[Tempest245]

Hi KAB.

I've Bareboated 47 foot Catamarans from the Moorings in BVI twice.

As I recall, they wanted a Boating/sailing resume, and letters of recommendation. Based on a resume they seem to set limitations on the boats they are willing to let you bareboat. I can't speak to other companies. Though, I did charter a monohull on Lake Tahoe once and all they wanted was a passing grade on their 10 minute written test.

In the BVI, I am fortunate that two of us held our US Coast Guard Masters licenses and are Certified as Instructors through ASA. (monohulls). Prior to that I had spent little time on Cats. We found no problems sailing a cat in the BVI. It's paradise!

I do not believe they would have given us the keys to their 1/2 million dollar vessel, on a credit card and a smile.

If you've crewed and chartered before, you could have had the charter company certify your time and kept you in their files. The moorings maintains a file on your charters, and gives a returning captains discount.

Taking the ASA catamaran course or another recognized course, getting certified, a letter from your instructor or the schools owner and a resume of all your previous time should do the trick.

Good luck and good sailing
Tempest..