Im a sailing novice, a beginning sailor, what is important in learning to sail?
In a nutshell, the right boat for the right class is critical. We strongly believe that adults should be taught on smaller keelboats in the 19 to 23 foot range rather than much larger keelboats. The reason is that the boat is small enough for you, a novice or beginning sailor, to “feel” the boat and how it interacts with the wind and waves. This “feel” develops from various maneuvers under sail and power. The “feel” gained from the smaller keelboat experience then transfers very well to larger keelboats used in the follow-on Basic Cruising and Bareboat Charter Certification Courses. (We routinely combine Basic Cruising and Bareboat Charter Certification.) The second critical element in adult sailing instruction is that the boat does not tip over. Almost all adults and a large majority of kids (of all ages) do not like “unscheduled” swims. This is why we do not teach adults on really small boats which have great “feel” but they insert a “wariness” into the process which is detrimental,
