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Find Out All You Need to Know to Start Dinghy Sailing

Ralph Varcoe — Tue, 17 Aug 2010 00:11:48 +0000

For an exhilarating sailing experience which is easy to begin and full of fun, there is no better way to enter the sport than with dinghy sailing.

Where to Start

You’ll find many dinghy sailing clubs around the lakes and rivers of the UK coast. Always keen to take on new members, especially families, you’ll find them welcoming and friendly.

Cost

Fees vary depending on the level of facilities, but a good club will cost around £150 per year for a family and may include a dinghy parking place. Individuals joining on their own will expect to pay around £50 per year. There are no fees to use the water but you will need insurance. This should cost a further £50.

Equipment

There are two vital pieces of equipment that you will need. A buoyancy aid or life jacket and a pair of non-slip shoes. Trainers are fine to begin with but they offer no protection from the water. You’ll also need to invest in a good waterproof jacket in the summer and a wetsuit for the winter months. Wearing layers of clothing is always advisable.

Buying a Dinghy

Some clubs will lend you a boat and a sailing centre will provide a boat as part of a course. It’s a good idea not to rush in and buy a dinghy straight away. It’s best to start with a used dinghy while you’re new to sailing. Beginners to the sport will normally start with an older boat and after a few months, when you’re sure you want to continue, you can upgrade to something to a newer boat.

Types of Dinghy

- Car portable such as Toppers. – Fixed keel dinghies. – Performance dinghies such as Catamarans. – One person dinghies like the One Man Lasers. – Two person such as Fireballs. – Family dinghies like Wayfarers.

Courses

Dinghy sailing is always taught by RYA qualified instructors starting with beginners courses. Courses are designed so that the skills you learn in one boat are transferable to the next. And you can complete courses in stages, so you can finish one section and continue with the next when you are ready – on holiday for instance.

Learning to Sail on Holiday

Learning to sail a dinghy on holiday is a great way to enter the world of sailing. With better weather and time on your side, you’ll feel more relaxed and possibly learn to sail much faster. With warmer waters you’ll almost certainly feel more confident when you capsize the dinghy.

Inshore Lakes or Costal Waters

Dinghy sailing on an inshore lake is generally considered safer. You’ll be sailing within easy distance of a rescue boat, making it popular with families. It’s also easier to lean this way. Without the distraction of the tide and avoiding other craft, you’ll feel more comfortable able to concentrate fully on your sailing. With stronger winds and greater challenges, coastal sailing is for the more experienced dinghy sailor.

Start Racing

It won’t be long before you feel ready to start racing and most clubs run novice courses. Boats designed for one or two people, and even high performance dinghies with a crew, can be raced without any official qualification. You will, however, need to learn to handle the dinghy and have a good grasp of the basics for your own safety.

Cruising

There is the option to cruise rather than race and there are clubs for people who simply wish to sail with others and discover new waters. Smaller boats for cruising are slightly different in that they are not designed for speed but for comfort. This means they handle easily in all weathers and are safer when away from shore with no rescue boat. Larger and heaver dinghies are known as day boats. You will also need to complete a course for cruising and have a good understanding of the basics.

Buying a Dinghy

Before you buy a dinghy you must bear in mind that your requirements will change as your sailing develops. You should also consider whether you want to sail alone or with a crew, if it needs to be portable and if you need a faster performance boat more or one more suitable for cruising. Newer, high performance boats will come at a higher price but there are bargains to be had with older boats.

Further information on dinghy sailing is available from TheYachtMarket.com. Their website also lists many new and used sailing dinghies for sale.

Skandia Sail for Gold 2010 Gold Medals Decided

Ralph Varcoe — Sun, 15 Aug 2010 09:39:15 +0000

Medal day in Weymouth find out who the winners are……

Australia went home laden with gold after an astonishing week of racing in Weymouth Bay – the 2012 Olympic venue. The Aussies picked up gold in four classes; Nicky Souter, Nina Curtis and Olivia Price in the Women’s Match Racing, the Skud-18 was won by Daniel Fitzgibbon and Rachael Cox on Friday, Tom Slingsby took gold in the Laser Men, and Nathan Outteridge and Iain Jensen made up the top quartet with a win in the 49er class.

The French team pushed Australia all the way, with three gold medals – Pierre Leboucher and Vincent Garos won the 470 Men, Charline Picon took gold home in the RS:X Women, and in the 2.4mR, it was Damien Seguin who did the business for France. The Dutch team then edged the home nation out of the gold medal table with wins in two classes, Marit Bouwmeester in the Laser Radial and Udo Hessels, Marcel van de Veen and Mischa Rossen in the Sonar. While Team Skandia GBR were left with a single gold, which was Giles Scott in the Finn. The consolation for the most successful Olympic sailing nation of the last three Olympiads was a hatful of silver and bronze – two silver and four bronze.

The venue, Weymouth and Portland National Sailing Academy is the 2012 Olympic venue and it threw everything at the competitors this week – saving the best for last, with a medal race day that was the best of the British summer; wind, rain, calms and even a little sunshine right at the end. The huge entry of 975 sailors from 57 nations spread across 712 boats in 13 classes will go home having learned to expect the unexpected in August 2012.

470 Men Results

Gold Leboucher and Garos FRA 31 points

Silver Belcher and Page AUS 35 points

Bronze Patience and Bithell GBR 58 points

470 Women’s Results

Gold Kondo and Tabata JPN 74 points

Silver Pacheco and Betanzos ESP 91 points

Bronze Maxwell and Kinsolving USA 91 points

49er Results

Gold Outteridge and Jensen AUS 65 points

Silver Kruger Andersen and Thorsell DEN 82 points

Bronze Morrison and Rhodes GBR 84 points

Finn Results

Gold Scott GBR 60 points

Silver Lobert FRA 63 points

Bronze Kljakovic Gaspic CRO 66 points

Laser Results

Gold Slingsby AUS 62 points

Silver Goodison GBR 74 points

Bronze Leigh CAN 93 points

Laser Radial Results

Gold Bouwmeester NED 40 points

Silver Multala FIN 43 points

Bronze Winther NZL 46 points

RS:X Men’s Results

Gold Rodrigues POR 38 points

Silver Van Rijsselberge NED 42 points

Bronze Dempsey GBR 43 points

RS:X Women Results

Gold Picon FRA 44 points

Silver Manchon ESP 50 points

Bronze Shaw GBR 63 points

Star results

Gold O’Leary and Kleen IRE 52 points

Silver Loof and Tillander SWE 61 points

Bronze Kusznierewicz and Zycki POL 65 points

Women’s Match Racing

Gold – Souter, Curtis and Price AUS

Silver – Leroy, Bertrand and Riou FRA

Bronze – Tunicliffe, Vandemer and Capozzi USA

2.4mR Results- Final

Gold Seguin FRA 12 points

Silver Schmitter NED 13 points

Bronze Kol NED 27 points

Skud-18 Results- Final

Gold Fitzgibbon and Cox AUS 11 points

Silver Rickham and Birrell GBR 14.7 points

Bronze McRoberts and Hopkin CAN 26 points

Sonar Results – Final

Gold Hessels, Rossen and Van de Veen NED 21 points

Silver Robertson, Stodel and Thomas GBR 26 points

Bronze Cohen, Vexler and Efrati ISR 27 points

via Skandia Sail for Gold 2010 – News Alert – Skandia Sail for Gold 2010 Gold Medals Decided.

Top 3 Ways to Go Sailing Without Breaking the Bank

Ralph Varcoe — Tue, 27 Jul 2010 19:36:42 +0000

In a recent post we gave you the cheapest possible way to get on the water – in an inflatable. But, knowing that a rubber dinghy is not everyone’s idea of fun and that some people may like to go sailing in a boat that has a loo, this post provides 3 ways of sailing at a fraction of the cost of owning one.

myBoatshare.com is a membership sailing club that provides an alternative to owning a boat. From around £300 a month you can sail boats from 31ft to 39ft for up to 50 days a year.

You actually pay a higher monthly fee the more days you want, so don’t expect 50 days for £300. This is likely to get you 24 days, depending on the boat you sail. Other packages give you 36 or 49 full days sailing a year.

One of the really attractive things about a fractional club (as this one is) or fractional ownership is that the home marina mooring fees, boat maintenance and depreciation are all covered in the costs.

With myBoatshare.com you don’t join an individual boat, but do join membership to a class that best suits your sailing needs. It means you’re not tied to any sailing base, nor to a particular craft. You are free to book and sail any yacht in your membership class from any base at no extra cost.

There’s no capital investment but there is an annual membership of £199 (inc vat) on top of the montly fees (range from £299 – £699) which covers your consumables. There is a security deposit but no joining fee. This is good news as joining fees can be a real turn off, especially since you have to pay the security deposit as a lump sum up front (though you get it back if you do not damage the boat when you leave the scheme).

They have an online booking system which means you can book a single day, a mid-week break, a relaxing long weekend, or a family holiday.

myBoatshare.com is currently looking to expand their fleet and their locations so if you fancy a return of 5.5% (their claim), 63 full days sailing a year, no mooring fees, no insurance premiums, no maintenance costs or anti-fouling to pay then this could be right up your street (or creek).

On the basis that no single boat meets all your boating requirements, most people want to sail in a variety of locations, boats are very expensive and time consuming to own, and most owned boats are hugely underutilised, chartering is a good option. Except that boat charter can be very expensive too.

Pure Latitude looked at boating from every possible angle and set themselves up as a limited membership boat share club based on the Solent. They offer high quality yachts for fractional sailing.

Like myBoatshare.com, they don’t tie you to a particular boat. Instead they have a points system which are used to ‘buy’ the use of the boats in the fleet on a daily basis. Obviously, taking a bigger boat uses more points than a smaller boat, and taking a boat in high season uses more points than low season. Likewise, taking a boat at the weekend or bank holiday uses more points than weekdays.

The Pure Latitiude sailing fleet are split into five categories and membership to three levels from £300 (240 points), £400 (340 points) and £500 (460 points) per month. Each level is a little cheaper if you pay for annually. There is a joining fee to pay of £600 which may put some people off, however this goes towards a full induction and training on the boats so is a good investment.

Below is the points chart per day to give an idea of the way the points can be allocated (correct at time of publication July 2010)

Boat Category		Low Season		Mid Season		High Season
	examples	week	weekend	week	weekend	week	weekend
1	Ballistic 6.5	10	12	10	14	10	16
2	First 27.7	10	14	12	18	14	21
3	Dufour 34	12	19	15	25	18	28
4	Hallberg-Rassy 36 & Bavaria 29	14	22	18	30	20	33
5	X Yachts 37	16	25	21	34	24	38

SailTime provides a more traditional fractional ownership programme for sailing. You are guaranteed a minimum of seven sailing times each month, at an affordable cost. You can schedule your sailing using their online scheduler which is really handy.

Each yacht is shared by seven other members and one owner-member, who are each guaranteed, but not restricted to, at least two weekend sail times and five weekday or weeknight sail times every month. A ‘sail time’ is either a day sail from 10.30 am to 6.00 pm, or a night sail from 6.00 pm to 10.30 am the following morning. Additionally, each member is has access to unlimited “as-available” use on a 24-hour notice at no additional cost.

SailTime say that ‘most people who own a sailboat use it 2-3 times per month but the cost of ownership is very high: marina fees are £300-£700 per month, your monthly payment to the bank could range from £500-£2000, yacht maintenance is expensive – then there is insurance and . . . the list goes on and on!’

With SailTime you become like a part owner of a boat in that you are likely to sail the same boat each time you go out, even though you don’t technically own it. Only the owner member owns the boat and they get a 4-7% return on their capital plus zero berthing and maintenance costs.

MyBoatingInfo.com

In all cases, the companies and the boats’ owners need to make sure that the sailors using the yachts are well qualified with the best RYA sailing qualifications (or equivalent). To make sure your sialing cv is kept up to date you can use the service at www.myboatinginfo.com to log your qualifications, all your miles and create a printable PDF sailing cv.

A Comprehensive Database of Boats on SailBoatData.com

Ralph Varcoe — Fri, 23 Jul 2010 16:28:33 +0000

: Image via Wikipedia

I came across a great tool for all boat enthusiasts while browsing the web the other day. The Sail Boat Guide is a database that contains information on more than 5,000 production and semi-production sailing boats going back as far as 1900.

The majority include photos and or drawings, mostly from their library of original plans and brochures. The library is not yet completely ‘catalogued’ so it’s constantly having records added and it is updated every day.

Other details have been contributed by users when there is a reasonable certainty about accuracy. Also included is information on the designer, original builder, links to related websites and there are a number of search options.

Access to the info in SailBoatData.com is completely free, and no registration is required to use the service.

It’s a great site to search for your next boat.

Click Here to Access: http://www.sailboatdata.com/firstpage.asp

Over 2,700 Marine Businesses Listed at BoatGoblin.com

Ralph Varcoe — Sun, 25 Apr 2010 04:50:34 +0000

BoatGobin.com has over 2,700 UK based companies listed in the Marine Directory.

If you want to find a broker, mooring, someone to service your engine or a sail maker, just go to the Directory and search for a company in your area.

BoatGoblin.com is also for you to list your items for sale as either a classified or an auction. Each listing is free and you can have one photo free as well.

FlagRag & BoatNe.ws Clothing

Ralph Varcoe — Mon, 15 Feb 2010 16:21:22 +0000

Looking forward to some warmer weather when you can wear a T-Shirt without fear of freezing your nipples?

Me too. Brrrrr.

In fact I’m dying to get on the water again, something that selling my Laser this week isn’t going to help with. But then again, sailing a singlehanded dinghy meant for ‘fit young things’ (which I’m not) in minus 3 degrees is not my idea of fun, and hence why the Laser bites the bullet this week.

So instead I can concentrate on sailing bigger boats next season where there is less chance of getting a full soaking, where I don’t need to wear a full length drysuit or wetsuit (which always seem to make me too hot or keep me too cold) and where I’ll no longer have that revolting feeling of peeling neoprene from my sweaty, clammy body. (Nice image!)

This season I’m going to wear some clothes that are truly exclusive and where I can keep all that is good and growing about Harbour Exchange close to my chest.

Harbour Exchange has launched FlagRag where some great new designs are on sale: – on T-Shirts, long-sleeved tops, hats, bags, clocks, coaters and even cushions for your boat. Starting off with 3 main designs there are more in the pipeline and I’d also like to hear from you all about your ideas for new exclusive future designs.

The three designs we are launching today are the main ‘FlagRag‘ logo which is pictured on the T-Shirt above, the ‘BestBoatNe.ws Starfish‘ (pictured here) and the ‘Hawaiian Go Sailing, Go Boating, Get Wet‘ logo (below).

With FlagRag, the idea is very simple: We want to create fun clothes and other items with nautical based Flag Messages. Be honest now and say “Aye Aye Cap’n” if you truly knew what the flag for ‘L’ was before looking at the T-Shirt above. Or if you knew what ‘F’ was. I’d probably believe you if you said you know the ‘A’ flag as this is a pretty standard one for any boat going person to know (Diver Down).

So, if you want a name spelled out in Marine Flags, or even Semaphore, let us know and we’ll make one up for you.

And, if you have any really good design ideas we’ll be happy to add these and share any money made from your designs. The more fun we can have, the better.

You can can in touch by clicking Here.

‘AllNews’ and BoatNe.ws

SailTimer – YASIA iPhone Sailing App

Ralph Varcoe — Wed, 10 Feb 2010 09:27:31 +0000

What does YASIA stand for? “Yet Another Sailing iPhone App”. You may be forgiven for thinking that of late we only write about iPhone apps on Harbour Exchange, and actually you may have a point. There will be other interesting articles coming shortly for people who want to spend their time sailing, out on the water, rather than fidling with an electronic swiss army knife, but for now here is a YASIA.

In response to a couple of the other articles we’ve posted on sailing iPhone Apps (including our own HarbourX) I was contacted by In Depth Navigation saying that I might like to write about their SailTimer App. This approach was lazy for a start. It’s like putting someone down as a referee for a job interview who you have never met before. My approach would always be to ensure that whoever acted as a referee, or was going to write a review at least knew something about me or the product. And why does this make me cross? Because in order to find out about the App first hand, I would need to part with £7.99 of my own money. If I’m going to be asked (or assumed, presumed, suggested) to review something, at least let me have a copy of what I’m going to write about. Does Ferrari ask Jeremy Clarkson to buy the latest car before he writes a review? No, they loan it to him.

This is why the approach from In Depth Navigation was lazy. As you already know, I think many iPhone Apps are just too expensive for what they are, and I’m not convinced I need this App yet which means I am definitely not going to part with £7.99.

So based on what I can read on their website and see from various YouTube videos, it looks quite clever. What is the best tacking angle to keep distance between current position and future, desired position as short as possible? Plug in the wind direction, speed and other variables like waterline length of your boat and the app will give you the desired angle. Overlaying this on a google map is nice and you keep track along the way with the built in GPS of the iPhone.

I can see the benefit in this App as a back up to real navigation skills and as a quick ready-reckoner while short course tacking, but there are a few things I just don’t get.

While this could be useful in short course tacking during a race where shaving the time off by sailing the shortest course may be desirable, no-one is ever going to use this (even in a waterproof pouch) during the hustle and bustle of a frenetic race
It doesn’t seem to take into account anything to do with the tidal flow, which has quite a significant impact on the course to steer and could dramatically determine how many tacks to put in and consequently whether the shortest course distance-wise is really all that relevant. In heavy tidal areas it is often faster to sail a longer course out of the main head-on tidal stream.
There is an assumption that the wind is a constant speed and angle and we all know this just isn’t the case. Good sailors will play the wind shifts to get extra lift and pointing ability in order to sail a course closer to the wind. We know that wind bends around headlands and that the wind angle is different depending on how close to the shore you are.

The App is a nice idea and I can see how it could be useful in certain circumstances. However I can’t see that it really solves a problem, and anything that is going to cost me eight quid really should justify its price by solving a real problem. If it were free then I wouldn’t mind that it is only partially specified or useful, and I’d definitely have it on my iPhone. I may even actually use it. The sad thing is that there used to be a ‘Lite’ version of this app for free, but In Depth Navigation decided to remove it saying that users preferred to have the full set of features. Really? And they are happy to pay £8 even though they don’t know what the App really does and can’t play on one before buying?

The thing that In Depth Navigation don’t seem to understand is that there are plently of people for whom this price is a significant barrier to usage. The logic of withdrawing a free de-featured version saying that most people want the fully featured version is idiotic. It is basic product promotion strategy to have a free taster to entice users to part with their cash for the all singing and dancing version (or in this case the all humming and limping version).

How to be Safe at Sea – IT’S WET

Ralph Varcoe — Mon, 01 Feb 2010 17:53:23 +0000

Every year in the UK more than 8,000 rescues are made by the RNLI, with more than 50% of these being responses to leisure sailors like us. While many of these are real accidents that no-one could have forseen, a great proportion are rescues or incidents that could have been avoided by better preparation before setting off.

The Lifeboat service is voluntary and the men and women that brave all weathers deserve a little more consideration. Should they really have to launch in truly foul weather, risking their lives, to rescue a yachtsman who didn’t check the weather well enough, or who didn’t have the right equipment on board before setting out? I’d argue that our own families deserve a little consideration too, as do the crew that trust in us as their all knowing skipper on what for them should be a pleasant day out.

The RNLI have a mnemonic for safety at sea: IT’S WET

I – Inform. Tell others about where you are going. Make sure others know what your pasage plan is and make sure they know when to raise the alarm if they don’t hear from you. Shortly Harbour Exchange will be launching a service to help sailors do this effectively.
T – Training. Think about you and your crew. Do you all have enough knowledge of the plans, how to sail or handle the boat? Would they be able to cope if it got rough or if the skipper got sick or injured? Make sure there are at least a handful of experienced sailors and the longer and more involved the planned journey, the more experience you should have on board.
S – SOS Device. What if you got into trouble? Do you have a working VHF with DSC and just as importantly does your crew know how to use it and what the calling protocols are? If you are on a longer passage offshore, do you have an EPIRB, SART or other means of raising the alarm if out of VHF range. It can take minutes for a problem to become a disaster at sea and so having these in easy reach (with a hadheld VHF and personal EPIRBs in the grab bag) and a well briefed crew is essential.
W – Wear a lifejacket. It’s so obvious that it’s trite to say it, but a lifejacket can only save a life if it is attached to a living being. Othervise it is just an inflatable bag with straps!! Wear it or drown. I see a lot of people sailing in the Solent with no lifejacket, oblivious to the effect of the cold water should they hit the ‘drink’. To demonstrate the effect, a few years ago some of our Olympic swimmers were tossed in to a cold Solent without lifejackets and they struggled to swim. The cause: the shock of the cold water. If our Olympians struggle, imagine what an overweight, middle-aged, booted and foulweather-geared up crew member would do – and you don’t even need to be submerged to drown – you can drown in the spray you cause trying to stay afloat. Worth thinking about. Wear it!
E – Engine and fuel check. Do you have enough fuel for your journey? What if the wind dies and you need to motor all the way? What if you need extra power to get out of danger? Is the oil at the right level and do you have enough spares in case something breaks? Obvious things to ensure you have are spare impellers. If you have ever been thrown around in a rouch sea, you may know that the cooling system could get an airlock and not circulate when you fire up the donkey. Do you and at least one member of the crew know how to prime the system and get it back to life so you don’t ruin the engine or worse still cause a fire?
T – Tides and Weather. Check the weather regularly before setting out either online or via radio/TV. The best sources are the shipping forecast on BBC Radio 4 or the Coatguard’s broadcast following announcements they make on Channel 16. Marinecall.co.uk is also a good source, and if you phone them for a weather update, a portion of the cost of your call supports the RNLI. You can also check out our weather pages on for a range of up to date services. Then there are the tides – make sure you know what these are doing even if you are only day-tripping, as a strong spring tide ebb could make it impossible to get back to your morring if your engine is under-powered. Also a ‘wind with tide’ passage is bound to be much more comfortable for you and your crew than a ‘wind against tide’ passage. Check out some good tide resources on Harbour Exchange.

These are real basis ‘Sailing 101′ tips, but given that more than 4,000 call outs are made to yachties each year it seems like we could all be doing with a refresher.

And the last thing….if you aren’t already a supporter of the RNLI then go to http://www.rnli.org.uk and support them. You hope never to need them but if you do you’ll feel so much better knowing you conributed to their efforts to keep us safe.

No related posts.

Just like flying

Ralph Varcoe — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 08:05:43 +0000

My photo of the week on Sunday was of an International Foiling Moth and I’ve been looking for videos too. These things really are rather amazing. So I give you a video of foiling Moths at Rutland Water in the UK in 15mph winds and upwards, taking part in the Tiger Trophy. The hull weight is just 8kg with an all up weight of 28kg. Sail area is 8m. Sailor must be pretty good.

Then I found some other great ‘foiling’ videos. Check out this one of a foiling winsurfer:

…. and this one of a foiling kite surf:

…. and lastly the record breaking Hydroptere:

Want to Race on a VOR70?

Commodore — Thu, 26 Nov 2009 08:36:49 +0000

You have to be slightly mad. I mean to spend 8 months with no women around, sharing a pillow with 11 other men, sleeping in 4 hour shifts and having to ‘dump’ on a gimbled toilet. Madness! Oh yes, and you are permanently wet from spray or sweat, you’re dirty and the food is pretty bad too.

The upsides are….that you get a colour chart to check your urine to see if you’re clinically dehydrated and a lovely crew uniform – waterproofs, jackets, caps….

These guys are purists in the extreme. The goal is to sail. Sail fast. Sail the right weather pattern. To beat the opposition.

What most normal and sane people consider to be basic needs are of secondary importance to the VOR racer. He has one goal in mind and nothing gets in the way……sailing fast and winning…in a giant surfboard with sails.

Me? I’m happy to let them do their thing and to watch their progress from the comfort of my own computer.

If you want to see what it’s like have a look at this video: