"It is the set of the sails, not the direction of the wind
that determines which way we will go."
The YMCA Sailing Club is not just about races and regattas. We have a strong emphasis on families and the development of young people. Read more below to find out what we can offer to assist in the development of your children and/or improve you and your family's sailing skills.
Junior Sailing and Development:
There is a common path that junior sailors follow as they grow in the sport of sailing. This pathway is a key factor in the development of junior sailors. The pathway includes both competitive sailing and, as instructors, helping other young people to discover the joys of sailing.
Our experience is that by the time our young sailors reach 18-19 they have developed into pleasant, confident and cooperative young adults well equipped to enter the modern world.
This is a result of the skills they learned through their participation in our club, including; team work, leadership, problem solving, determination and resiliency. If you are interested in learning more, information on our Junior Development Pathway can be found here. Information on our Junior Sailing Pathway can be found here.
One of the best ways to improve your sailing skills is to sail a lot. The club races on Saturday afternoons (1300 to 1700 hours) and has twilight races on Tuesday evenings (1700 to 1900). The club offers boat storage to members, with priority given to juniors. Competent juniors can take their boats out at any time. Juniors who don't own their own boat can hire club boats, but only when a safety boat is available (basically Saturdays and Tuesdays).
Continue your Development as a Sailor:
Our Sailing Pathway
Our Club focus is on crewed boats and our senior boat is the Sharpie, a large dinghy with a 3 man crew. We have developed a pathway that leads the novice sailor through activities and events that develop the skills and experience to crew or skipper a Sharpie. We recognise that not all of our sailors may want the Sharpie experience and our pathway offers other options. We have a formal sailing pathway for juniors (see above). Coaching for seniors is tailored for each individual.
Coaching:
In addition to our training courses we can also offer coaching to assist our sailors, both juniors and adults, to improve their sailing. Participating sailors meet at 1700 hours on Tuesday evenings where they will discuss the day's activities with our coaches. At 1730 sailors launch and participate in coaching exercises. From 1800 they sail in our Tuesday night twilight races, with the coaches observing and tutoring. After racing (about 1900) sailors meet for a 10 to 15 minute debrief.
The cost is $25 per session, which includes entry fee for Twilight Sailing races ($15).
Intensive one-on-one coaching on Tuesday evenings may depend on the size of the coaching and twilight group. If there is sufficient demand the Club is willing to consider Saturday pre-race sessions (from 1100 to 1300). Interested sailors should contact Michael Leydon mikelaus46@gmail.com or Hamish Balfour sailor.hamish@gmail.com or 0410 767 730.
The next steps...Buying a Boat
A major milestone in a any sailor's life is their first boat. Information on points that should be considered when buying a boat are here. We stress try before you buy and consult experienced sailors. Feel free to consult us if you would like advice when buying a boat. We want you to enjoy your sailing, not to give up because you buy a boat that does not suit your style and needs.
