Book a Refresher Course ASA 111

Who is this course for?

Actually, it’s for my friend Dawn. That’s who came to mind when I started to devise a refresher curriculum for folks who got started sailing but then couldn’t find time to continue beyond ASA 103.

Dawn took lessons with me years ago but hasn’t had many opportunities to work on her sailing skills. Now she wants to refresh those skills and intends to take ASA 104 …. eventually.

So the course is for Dawn and anyone who has been off the water long enough that they’ve begun to feel rusty.

And it’s for people about to sign out a boat that’s bigger than they’re accustomed to and for folks who would like advanced maneuvering training.

BVI and the Med

Other folks come to me in preparation for trips overseas. The BVI couldn’t be much easier, though grabbing a mooring for the first time can be colorful. We can simulate that here in the harbor.

The other BVI “moment” is getting underway when twenty or thirty other boats are in the same process. Add the fact that nearly everyone is new to the size boat they’ve rented, getting out of the marina can be a real goat-roping. At the end of the trip the group is more experienced, but they’ve likely never docked a boat that’s twice as heavy and 10 feet longer than their accustomed vessel.

The Med offers a different docking challenge: You’ll be dockside, but “stern-to.” If you haven’t practiced backing (a lot), you’ll be colorful in the Med.

We can practice old-fashioned Med-moor tactics and walk through the more modern set ups that use a fixed mooring line for the bow cleat.

It’s different in the Med.

Just a reminder, in the Med it’s red right GOING. Yup, it’s upside down in Europe and Africa. They also use cardinal marks, which are very useful and you’ll wonder why we don’t have them at home. Soundings are usually in meters. They have sector lights, but your charter agency probably doesn’t want you to sail at night. Finally,  if you’re not tied up by 1700, don’t expect to find the capitaine de port (harbor master) for help finding an open slot. You’re on your own. He’s at the harbor side cafe or off to his cinq à sept. 

It’s all private

All of my lessons are one-on-one, just you and your crew. I tailor the curriculum specifically to your needs. For most people seeking refresher training, that starts with docking and getting underway.

More than one student has come back to me telling me they’d had a close call or marked up their boat and had stopped sailing because they had lost confidence. But they came back and we worked on those specific skills.

A bad landing will shake anyone’s confidence. And, confidentially, I’ve had my share of less-than-perfect landings. Ask the guys at the fuel dock, where all approaches are downwind and frequently with increasing current close in. I haven’t broken anything, but I have bounced off the tire/fender hard enough to leave black streaks.

So I get it. And I won’t let you get us in over our heads. And that goes for any other skills you’d like to build or refresh: reefing, anchoring, MOB, navigation …. whatever.

Give me a shout 805.750.7828 and we can talk about what you might need.

Prerequisites:

None.

Text:

If you’ve laid off for a long time, I recommend you read ASA’s Sailing Made Easy, especially about the skill that are concerning.

ASA 111 course objectives:

• Get you back on the water at a level of competence and confidence that will allow you to relax and enjoy the day. BTW – you get an ASA 111 sticker for your logbook to remind you to sail more often.

• Get you up-to-speed for Mediterranean and BVI adventure.

Call us: 805.750.7828 

or e-mail captdan@sailchannelislands.com