Important steps

[Papasail]

Hey all,

I have signed up with Maryland School of Sailing for ASA 101~105 courses this summer. This is a big step for me… sort of solidifies all the years of “dreaming” into an action plan.
Given that Island Packets keep coming up as my boat of choice (for purchase), it will be a great experience, since this school uses Island Packets exclusively. *If I sense a problem with this choice, I’ll be able to consider other boats if need be.

It stands to reason that some coursework for sailing is a prerequisite for the uninitiated…. but it comes to mind that at some point, you should cast off the lines and run your own ship.

What do you think is reasonable in terms of ASA courses, and what other courses would you add, if any? Not sure if other countries expect to see any certifications… I’m rather doubting it. My expectations are to run a season in Maine after the coursework, then to the Caribbeans, and feeling good, off I go!

[wholybee]

ASA 106 might be worth it if you plan to head offshore. But that might depend on the quality of the school. Some schools may be hardly worth it, but my experience of 106 was quite good.

If you are mostly decided on Island Packets, and the school is all Island Packets, my biggest recommendation is to sail on as many other boats as you can. Otherwise, all you are doing is affirming your decision without the objective view of how they compare to other boats.

[Papasail]

Originally Posted by wholybee

ASA 106 might be worth it if you plan to head offshore. But that might depend on the quality of the school. Some schools may be hardly worth it, but my experience of 106 was quite good.



If you are mostly decided on Island Packets, and the school is all Island Packets, my biggest recommendation is to sail on as many other boats as you can. Otherwise, all you are doing is affirming your decision without the objective view of how they compare to other boats.

Yes, great idea…. while I’m down there, I’ll run through Annapolis, and some big brokers.

[Scubaseas]

What wholybee said. Having the basics taught to you is a great start. Plus if you can learn to park an "Island Piglet" you should be able to park pretty much anything. Full keel, barn door rudders are not noted for being nimble in marinas and tend to back up like drunken elephants. But they'll be able to show you how to back and fill with the rudder and the engine's propwalk to get the back of the boat where it needs to be. Having the basics is good but experience will be your best teacher. Whatever you do get a copy of Eldridge for anything North of NJ. Have fun!

[Sailor Sailor]

Originally Posted by Papasail

What do you think is reasonable in terms of ASA courses, and what other courses would you add, if any?

None. Sailing and cruising is not rocket science. You are starting in the Chesapeake Bay, which is a fairly forgiving area, with lots of well-protected anchorages. Read some books.

Join Boat/US and take the required safety course for motoring.

There are also lots of used sailboats for learning. Forget the courses, buy a boat, read, and start sailing. Classes are B.S. Certificates are a joke.

[thomm225]

Yeah learning sailing can definitely be done on your own and without costing you much at all.

My first sailboat was a dinghy sailor that I traded and old Mauser 7MM Deer Rifle for. This in 1982 or so.

After I learned to sail out and back on it on lakes in Tennessee and Mississippi, I bought a Hobie 16 and started racing.

Then another Hobie 16, then two Nacras all for racing mainly in Tennessee, Mississippi, and along the Gulf Coast Florida Panhandle, Mississippi, Alabama, etc.

Now I have an old Bristol 27 that I have been sailing up and down the Lower Chesapeake Bay on for the last 12 years or so.

I paid $1700 for the first Hobie 16 and $2,000 for the Bristol 27.

The two Nacra Beach Cats were new and the one pictured was $10,500 plus a replacement Carbon Fiber Mast that I broke in heavy winds with the spinnaker up which cost $4500

[Sailor Sailor]

Yeah, buy a fun little keelboat to practice on. There is a listing for a Catalina 27 with an inboard diesel at Grab Bay Sailboats in Mayo, MD, for $6,500. There is also a O'Day 272 for not much more. There is a J/24 with trailer in Annapolis on Craigslist for $4,000.

You could buy a little boat, have fun learning, and spend less money than you would on the set of ASA courses. When you are ready to buy the IP, sell your small boat and step into your bigger boat.

By the way, I saw the Delmarva course for $3,300! Seriously?? WTF?

[ranger58sb]

Originally Posted by Papasail

What do you think is reasonable in terms of ASA courses, and what other courses would you add, if any?

Not ASA-related, but I think you'd find a basic diesel course useful over time.

Annapolis School of Seamanship offers a stand-alone 2-day Basic course, and they also offer a follow-up 2-day intermediate course meant to build immediately on the first one. (Assumes you'll be in or around Annapolis.)

-Chris

[Sailor Sailor]

Most of the cruising sailboats have smaller, simpler engines than large powerboats. Many are pre-common rail engines that you can maintain and repair yourself with a simple guide book, in addition to the manual. You can usually use a step-by-step approach to diagnosing and repairing your inboard. Problems are usually either fuel, air or compression. Rather than taking a course, buy a marine diesel maintenance repair book. Nigel Calder's Boatowner's Mechanical and Eletrical Manual is a good comprehensive repair book.

[boatman61]

Originally Posted by Papasail

Hey all,

I have signed up with Maryland School of Sailing for ASA 101~105 courses this summer. This is a big step for me… sort of solidifies all the years of “dreaming” into an action plan.
Given that Island Packets keep coming up as my boat of choice (for purchase), it will be a great experience, since this school uses Island Packets exclusively. *If I sense a problem with this choice, I’ll be able to consider other boats if need be.

It stands to reason that some coursework for sailing is a prerequisite for the uninitiated…. but it comes to mind that at some point, you should cast off the lines and run your own ship.

What do you think is reasonable in terms of ASA courses, and what other courses would you add, if any? Not sure if other countries expect to see any certifications… I’m rather doubting it. My expectations are to run a season in Maine after the coursework, then to the Caribbeans, and feeling good, off I go!

It all depends on your sailing ambitions.. in country (USA) just take it to a level that you feel comfortable with.
If sailing farther afield is your goal then take it to an internationally accepted standard.. you may not be asked for your qualifications at every port but, you only need it to happen once for it to really mess with your life.
I sailed into Portimao (Portugal) on a delivery with owner as crew.. while there we met an Irish couple on a Catalac8 that had been barred from sailing by the Harbour master because the skipper had no qualifications.
Now I know not what triggered it, HM got outa the wrong side of bed, he'd just found out the wife was being banged by an Irish man in Alvor... Whatever.!!!
Basically he was stuck till he either hired a skipper or got and passed a course. The situation was resolved when I got the owner of the Bene I was delivering to take command of the Catalac and we left Portimao in company.. 20nm down the coast I went alongside and picked up my owner and advised the Catalac to keep going till they crossed the border into Spain some 30nm down the coast.
Had we not shown up the two weeks they'd been stuck paying marina fees for a place they did not want to be could have stretched into much longer.
But.. the decision is yours..

[Papasail]

Originally Posted by boatman61

It all depends on your sailing ambitions.. in country (USA) just take it to a level that you feel comfortable with.

If sailing farther afield is your goal then take it to an internationally accepted standard.. you may not be asked for your qualifications at every port but, you only need it to happen once for it to really mess with your life.

I sailed into Portimao (Portugal) on a delivery with owner as crew.. while there we met an Irish couple on a Catalac8 that had been barred from sailing by the Harbour master because the skipper had no qualifications.

Now I know not what triggered it, HM got outa the wrong side of bed, he'd just found out the wife was being banged by an Irish man in Alvor... Whatever.!!!

Basically he was stuck till he either hired a skipper or got and passed a course. The situation was resolved when I got the owner of the Bene I was delivering to take command of the Catalac and we left Portimao in company.. 20nm down the coast I went alongside and picked up my owner and advised the Catalac to keep going till they crossed the border into Spain some 30nm down the coast.

Had we not shown up the two weeks they'd been stuck paying marina fees for a place they did not want to be could have stretched into much longer.

But.. the decision is yours..

Thank You for this post…. I do have larger ambitions, and trying to find out what countries require sailing certifications is about as clear as mud…. I’ll be trying to find if there is a definitive list, for both countries, and for typical requirements…. and for what educational institutions are the gold standard, as well.

[JoeRobertJr]

Hi, Papasail,
The 101, 103, 104 series helped me to prepare for chartering and proved to be sufficient proof of experience for the charter companies that we used in Rock Hall, MD and Penobscot Bay, Maine.
The MD School is great. The best class my wife and I took was their 118 docking class. Two days of practicing all sorts of techniques, bumping someone else's boat against the docks and pilings!
After that class, we made the Lankford Bay Marina our home marina. If that is where you take the classes, we'd love to say hi in person.

[Papasail]

Originally Posted by JoeRobertJr

Hi, Papasail,

The 101, 103, 104 series helped me to prepare for chartering and proved to be sufficient proof of experience for the charter companies that we used in Rock Hall, MD and Penobscot Bay, Maine.

The MD School is great. The best class my wife and I took was their 118 docking class. Two days of practicing all sorts of techniques, bumping someone else's boat against the docks and pilings!

After that class, we made the Lankford Bay Marina our home marina. If that is where you take the classes, we'd love to say hi in person.

That would be terrific fun!
I moved up to Maine 2 years ago during CoVid (quite the adventure). CoVid stopped my sailing plans, but now that it’s in the past, I’m moving forward again. I’m hoping to find sailing friends….

[Scubaseas]

Originally Posted by Papasail

That would be terrific fun!
I moved up to Maine 2 years ago during CoVid (quite the adventure). CoVid stopped my sailing plans, but now that it’s in the past, I’m moving forward again. I’m hoping to find sailing friends….

Where are you planning on keeping a boat in Maine? I keep looking and other than some outrageous (compared to Texas) rates I've not found any place that can park my 42' Tayana. Mooring spots seem to have years long waiting lists. I did find a spot that might be able to haul and store for the winter but no dockage or moorings available.

Where in Maine are you if you don't mind me asking. I'm in Scarborough. At least until I head back to Texas for more boat yoga.

I got a lot out of the 101 through 105 ASA courses which I took on LI. NY back in the 80s' even after having been boating for years. The Admiral got more out of it than I did but it never hurts to learn small stuff from other people on other boats. Other than the hit to the wallet, it was worth it to me.

I would look into RYA Yachtmaster as an eventual goal if heading to Europe. What Boatman61 said. I hope to do it just because. and because I've heard the ASA certificates are not held in high regard in Europe. Maybe in the next couple of years and may do the course over in the UK if they'll have me.

Signing up as crew is a good way to get experience. Crap shoot as to if the owner is a (fill in) or not.

[Yojimbo]

All of what Scubaseas said and an analogy- would you turn the keys over to a new driver without some basic training? All sail training courses are a profit driven enterprise and as such will vary as to their commitment to competence. As others have testified one can learn with a book and a sailboat on their own- my first experiences were a 14' centerboard dingy on a N. New York bay and a sail with a neighbor who'd sailed in college. Learned the points of sail and the simple controls of that vessel. Folks had a rock ledge to drag her ashore at the end of the day- all was good. Keel boats have a lot more power in\ their sails and learning to depart and enter a marina around other vulnerable vessels takes practice and some instruction to keep it friendly. I don't regret my ASA courses or the instructors who got me sailing again. The last 1 1/2 year of instruction and practice sails are leading me to competence and confidence and meeting people in the racing/sailing community I've earned the chance to crew for has exposed me to a wealth of new understanding. ASA course are a lot cheaper than the liability of damage to other peoples boats or your own inexperience. BTW- have had the opportunity to crew a friends IP 32 a few times- thinks that's one of your picks- and that is one gorgeous sailboat to be helming in an 15-18 knot breeze for a novice and I'd swap my living room for her interiors in a heartbeat. Would you try to fly a plane without at least a lesson or two? The classes won't make you a sailor but help establish some basic understanding to grow your confidence. Best of luck.