Sailing courses

[BrendanS]

When I did my RYA powerboat Advanced, that similarly is supposed to be taken in waters familiar to you, I went for a course in Salcombe, on basis I knew Solent and south far too well for it to be of any advantage to take anywhere near the Solent.

Doing it in Salcombe, I knew the local waters (we covered quite a few miles from Salcombe) well enough to be able to know features on charts before visiting, but didn't know it well enough that it wasn't a bit more of a challenge. Worked quite well.

Having said that, having done the course, in retrospect I'd have been happy doing it anywhere that was totally unfamiliar. I didn't do it for that Nav bit though, just to check that boat handling and other areas were up to speed and that I hadn't introduced lots of errors in the way I did things, through years of familiarity, a bit like driving introduces bad habits.

 

[Sailfree]

Having read many posts I come to the conclusion that Gibraltar/Portugal makes it more of a holiday with better chance of good weather. The Solent/South Coast can be busy and more testing.

As the DS is more about boat handling basic navigation I would go for the weather but for YM I would go to an area where tides are more difficult. If I could avoid my normal sailing area I would for interest sake unless I wanted a handholding introduction to my own area.

The more I learn the less I know. Last year I sailed through some Granite Cliffs on my chartplotter which has caused me to loose faith and want to do more eyeball confimation that ever before.

After some 10 years I think I would now be more concerned say doing the SW passage around Jersey than when I knew nothing but believed in GPS and chartplotters!

 

[jimi]

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After some 10 years I think I would now be more concerned say doing the SW passage around Jersey than when I knew nothing but believed in GPS and chartplotters!

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Perhaps this relates more to increased levels of monoamine oxidase as you age rather than anything else ..

 

[Stemar]

Even for those who intend to sail in non-tidal waters - Med or Baltic, it seems to me that doing a DS/CS/YM course in tidal waters makes sense. Even Solent tides and currents could come as a bit of a surprise to someone who's never experienced them, never mind those around the Channel Islands & Brittanny.

I seem to remember that something similar happened to a bloke called Julius and his mates. It seems that veni vidi vici wasn't the whole story. It was more like veni, vidi, got his arse kicked by the locals, so scarpered back the boats to find the tide had gone out, so it was vici or die, which does tend to concentrate the mind a bit.

The rest, as they say, is history...

 

[trouville]

Tide is a suprise even when used to it! I ran aground or rather the water vanished before i was where i wanted to be often i ran aground on the way to Maldon in Donegal (Irland) the water vanished while seals laughed, I was stranded just 100yards from a pub, but with a very deep chanel between pub and boat!

In Strangford lock i was washed out trying to get in! (You have to begin to steer as if your going astern) Going to Le Havre (from Burnham on thing) i ended up in Jersey after that i gave up, my boat was just to slow. and went to the med!

Tides are only useful for antifouling scrapeing and other things under the water line. I really dont miss not haveing much tide!

Imagin haveing tides in the Baltic!! Real strong tide with all those rocks and Islands scaterd around!!

 

[Sailfree]

No just inaccurate Charts. I don't mind entrances like Arcachon being wrong due to shifting sands but not granite shores!