Capt. Dan answers Frequently Asked Questions about sailing lessons

What do I need to know?

Nothing. Absolutely no knowledge or previous experience is necessary. If you want to get a head start, get hold of the official American Sailing Association Text. You can do that right here at Sailing Fundamentals. There are a couple of other good references on that page that you might consider for your library at some point. Capt. Dan by Paul Fow

What is the advantage of private lessons, aren't they much more expensive?

There are two big advantages: I mesh my schedule with yours and you get 1:1 training. In terms of your time, it's much more efficient than sharing a boat and instructor with four to six other students. In those set-ups you do much more watching and listening than sailing. There is some benefit to watching others. I think couples learn about as efficiently as singletons, but learning efficiency declines rapidly with more than two students.

Yes, it is more expensive than classes. I don't recommend my program to people who have loads of free time and can carve out 6-10 consecutive Saturdays to devote to sail instruction.

How long is this going to take?

People of average intelligence and average athletic ability usually complete ASA 101 in three or four sessions. Each session runs about four hours, though the first one - the only one where I do a lot of talking - runs a bit more.

There is also a written (mostly multiple choice) test for ASA 101 and another for 103. Each of those takes about 90 minutes.

I hate lectures ... is there a lot of that?

Personally, I'm a hands-on learner and I get your hands on the tiller within about 45 minutes of meeting you. There is a little bit of pre-sail talking, but not very much.

I present the skills in several different ways: You read about them in the text, I talk about them, I demonstrate, you try it, then I coach as you practice. Finally, before the written test, you will go through our online study guides, and, if you want (but this is overstudy for most people), you can work through the practice tests in the book.

Ninety plus percent of the time you spend with me is hands-on-boat.

Is this a good program for kids?

If you want to take instruction with your children, this is a great set up. But there are a couple of summer programs that I think would be more fun for kids if you intend to send them off on their own. Give me a call and we can discuss the options.

What should I bring; what should I wear for lessons?

Bring a sweater or sweatshirt and a jacket. If you've got one, bring a hat that shades your ears and the back of your neck. Smear on sunscreen. Even on cloudy days, I wear SPF 50 and a hat. It's a good idea (dermatologist recommended and all that) to use sunscreen that lists titanium or zinc oxide among its active ingredients.

Sailing lessons aboard Pup

Does anyone have real trouble with learning to sail?

Every once in a great while I have a student who is left/right challenged, but I have ways of working with just about any problem.

The only other thing that gets in our way is scheduling lessons too far apart. Muscle learning seems to take uninterrupted practice on sequential days. Ideally, I'd like to schedule four days in a row. It's almost as good to schedule ASA 101 over the course of two weeks, but if it drags on longer than that, we're in a position of doing Lesson 1 over and over.

Shoes?

Wear 'em. White-soled court shoes are the best.

Life jackets/pfd's?

If you have one you like, bring it along. If not, I have one that will fit you. Let me know what size jacket you wear when we talk so that I can have the right one aboard.

Mal-de-mer/seasickness

Knock teak, it's never happened during lessons.

American Sailing Association Seal

Can I bring a friend?

I encourage that. I like to train you to sail as a team. And I prefer to take everyone to certification; however, if you want, you can bring a second or even third person to participate in your ASA 103 and ASA 104 training for orientation purposes. That is, they'll get solid training as crew, but will not earn a certificate from ASA.

Can I smoke?

Only if you suffer personal spontaneous combustion.

Besides, both hands will be busy most of the time.

What good is the ASA certificate?

It's what most boat rental agencies want to see before they'll turn you loose on one of their craft. If you have your own boat, it earns a discount with most companies.

My wife wants to take pictures but doesn't want to go on the boat

ASA 101 is all conducted in the harbor. I've got a couple of vantage points that she can drive to catch you on film .... or digits.

Where are you, what's your phone number, etc. etc.

Click here - Find the Boat, find Capt. Dan, Call us etc. etc.

Do you accept plastic?

You bet.