Chicago Sailing Techniques And Skills

By Martha Miller


Learn to sail with confidence when you know the safe, easy way to put sailboat winches to work. These mechanical devices save you time and effort and help you trim sails for power and speed. Read on to learn how to put these Chicago sailing workhorses to work aboard your sailboat.

Imagine that you need to trim your sail in a heavy breeze. You grab the line, pull hard, and find it almost impossible to hold because of the tension created by the wind. Enter the sailboat winch! These mechanical helpers have shaped something like an hourglass. The middle part--called a drum--has gears inside. These gears, along with a winch handle (more on this later), multiply the mechanical advantage of the winch to save you a lot of back-breaking work!

A new environment. Have a whole new perspective of learning as you have the water on your campus and your boat as your classroom. A significant amount of learning will be done on dry land but the majority of the time you will be in the open waters to directly apply all the skills and theories you have received.

Physical challenge. Cruising is a physical activity, and you may be overwhelmed during your first few days of learning. Even keeping your balance on a buoyant vessel can be physically challenging let alone cruising it while keeping your balance.

Intellectual challenge. The adventure of learning how to sail does not end with the physical tasks that you will face, knowing when and how to use the elements of nature for a satisfying cruising activity is as demanding as pulling the anchor as you get ready to set sail. Discernment and judgment are commonly used in cruising, and it plays a very significant role in determining cruising success and safety.

Working with nature's powers and elements. During your cruising lessons, you will be taught how to work with the wind, weather, water and what lies beneath. In a way, respect for nature and what it brings you will be primarily emphasized; not taking each element for granted will also be appreciated. Using nature to your advantage and knowing when not to also plays an important role in your future cruising adventures.

For example cruising a tall ship with a crew of say over 20 will be a completely different set of skills to a two-manned sail sail-boat. Some of these different sail boat types include sharpie, skiff, cruising dinghy, clipper ships, and catamarans. Each has their own unique set of skills although all follow the above general rules and methods of cruising.

If you're learning the cruising techniques and skills make sure you choose the best option for you. If you want to get together with a large group of people then learning on a tall ship may be better for you. If you are learning to sail for the reason of buying your sail boat then learning on one of the smaller sail boat options may be best for you.




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