Youth Sailing, STEM
Magnus Liljedahl
SYSTEM S7-E2

The more we do it, the better we get! Today was the second of eight lessons in our fall session of Youth Sailing. Each Saturday will look the same. We are divided into two groups: the beginner sailors, ages 9-12, who attend our STEM class, the SYSTEM, and the intermediate sailors, ages 12-17, who attend our NEXT LEVEL program. Both groups began at 10 AM and finished at 3 PM. The SYSTEM classroom is indoors, and the NEXT LEVEL meets in the second-floor breezeway. The SYSTEM is based on REACH (US Sailing's STEM education series), while the NEXT LEVEL is based on US Sailing's Intermediate curriculum.

SYSTEM S7-E2
Youth Sailing
Magnus Liljedahl
Saturday Youth Sailing S6-E7

The weather in Miami, and many other places, follows a pattern: one day looks like the next. The weatherman calls for southeasterly winds of 5-10 knots, but it's calm in the morning. Then, as it gets warmer throughout the day, the land heats up, and the sea breeze kicks in. The wind on the water is affected by local topography, where land, buildings, and other structures block the wind and create turbulence. Also, there is usually a big difference between the highest and lowest wind speeds. We refer to this as puff and lull. Today, the puffs (gusts) were much stronger than 10 knots. In reality, after the fact, when we all know what happened,….

Saturday Youth Sailing S6-E7
Veterans Sailing
Magnus Liljedahl
Veterans Sailing S2-E10

Miami Fleet week

Today was a big Fleet Week celebration next door at the Coral Reef Yacht Club (CRYC). Hundreds of young sailors were invited for fishing, sailing, and boating. The first busload showed up at 0645 hours for a lovely breakfast buffet. As luck has it, the day coincided with our regular Thursday Veterans Sailing. Two uniquely named veterans, who had never sailed with us, arrived at about 1000 hours. The weather and wind were perfect for sailing across the Bay and joining the festivities at Stiltsviille. We tied the boat next to an anchored sailboat in what can best be described as a small lagoon behind the building. The CRYC dockmaster was on hand to ferry us to the lapidated building. We mingled with the sailors for a while and had some snacks and refreshments before heading back to the US Sailing Center. We had to leave before the current started ripping. The sail home was smooth and very relaxing. It was …

Veterans Sailing S2-E10
Veterans Sailing
Magnus Liljedahl
Veterans Sailing S2-E9

PERFECT DAY ON THE BAY!

Perhaps I might be getting forgetful, but today felt like the best Veterans Sail ever! We had two boats, six veterans, one veteran family member, plus me. Two of the veterans had never sailed with us before. Today was a perfect day on the Bay. The weather conditions were ideal, with just the "right" amount of wind speed. We aimed for the Biscayne Bay channel as we left the Seaplane channel behind, spotting some Dolphins along the way, then tacking through Stiltsville, we turned around and headed back home with the flooding tide pushing us along Bill Baggs State Park, Nixons Beach,..,

Veterans Sailing S2-E9
Veterans Sailing
Magnus Liljedahl
Veterans Sailing S2-E8

Home, sweet home!

Old friends meet new friends. Today, a young man who had just returned from active duty in Syria was visiting. It was super rewarding to offer him and his significant other a soothing and relaxing experience sailing on Biscayne Bay. As always, thank you guys for serving our country.

Veterans Sailing S2-E8

Youth Sailing

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SYSTEM S7-E8

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SYSTEM S7-E8

There wasn't much boat traffic today, and the wind direction and strength were perfect for sailing over to Key Biscayne. I realized we could lay Hurricane Harbor on a long port tack. The wind was supposed to increase throughout the day, making a fast reach sailing back to Coconut Grove possible. The last time we sailed to Key Biscayne was before summer camp. We always stay close because of weather, wind, and safety. When we sail across the Bay, our safety protocol includes a coach boat and the group staying close together, representing a bigger picture to alert oncoming boat traffic.

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SYSTEM S7-E7

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SYSTEM S7-E7

The conditions were near perfect with about 15 kn of breeze out of the east. The wind was supposed to increase, so we wanted to sail early. A few of our regular sailors were missing, but there were still 27 people out on the water, including students, coaches, and counselors. Chris filled in for Josh, coaching the Next Level sailors using the Boston Whaler. We had both our RS   Ventures out there looking good. The rest of us were in our propeller-less safety boat. Our system sailors started in the classroom with module six, which was about marine debris. 

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SYSTEM S7-E6

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SYSTEM S7-E6

When learning a new sport, playing with someone more skilled than you is always beneficial. Today, we had the opportunity to do just that. Josh brought along Chris, a student at the University of Miami. Chris sailed with Adrian, and they took turns as skipper and crew. I was impressed with Adrian's performance; he looked fantastic out there. Everyone looked great except for me. I was driving the safety boat and trying to film a video simultaneously, but I didn’t realize my phone was set to the wrong mode. What I thought would be a video turned out to be just a picture. It's okay, though—I’ll do better next weekend.

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SYSTEM S7-E5

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SYSTEM S7-E5

Sailing can be compared to a simple machine in several ways. Like a simple machine, sailing utilizes fundamental principles to accomplish work. For example, the sail on a boat can be likened to an inclined plane or a wing, using the force of the wind to propel the boat forward. The rudder can be likened to a lever, changing the boat's direction by applying force at a certain point. In this way, sailing shares similarities with simple machines by utilizing fundamental principles to achieve a specific purpose.

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SYSTEM S7-E4

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SYSTEM S7-E4

What is remarkable is when teaching moments appear out of nowhere in real-time, like turning something that most people would experience as unfavorable into a positive experience. It's not always easy because, as always, the timing has to be correct.

The weather forecast was a bit "iffy " this morning. One parent contacted us, saying, "The weather is bad now. Are we still on for today?"  I responded, "We will have a morning briefing and a chalk talk, and then hopefully go sailing."

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SYSTEM S7-E3

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SYSTEM S7-E3

Today was special. It felt like the first day of the fall season. The air temperature was perfect, with low humidity and the perfect breeze for what we wanted to accomplish. It was a beautiful day. The next-level sailors took off into the bay with coach Josh. Our SYSTEM sailors stayed closer to shore. We followed them until we had the perfect picture of the two RS Ventures. Then, we sought more shallow waters for the water comfort test three of the new kids had to perform. It was all good. We moved even closer to the port and dropped the anchor again. This is where all of the boats eventually would meet up. The foam mattress was rolled out, and everyone seemed to enjoy it themselves. The pictures and video below will tell you more about our day...

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SYSTEM S7-E2

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SYSTEM S7-E2

The more we do it, the better we get! Today was the second of eight lessons in our fall session of Youth Sailing. Each Saturday will look the same. We are divided into two groups: the beginner sailors, ages 9-12, who attend our STEM class, the SYSTEM, and the intermediate sailors, ages 12-17, who attend our NEXT LEVEL program. Both groups began at 10 AM and finished at 3 PM. The SYSTEM classroom is indoors, and the NEXT LEVEL meets in the second-floor breezeway. The SYSTEM is based on REACH (US Sailing's STEM education series), while the NEXT LEVEL is based on US Sailing's Intermediate curriculum.

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SYSTEM S7-E1

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SYSTEM S7-E1

The Team Paradise “SYSTEM” (Sailing + Youth + STEM) program has launched! We will measure the wind, test water quality, analyze marine debris, observe marine life, learn geometry and how to sail, and have so much fun! Biscayne Bay is the perfect classroom for our sailors to take their STEM experiments out on the water.

For our first class we learned about and observed the wind, then took what we learned out on the water and took a little time to splash around and get to know each other better!

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USSC-City of Miami Parks Sailing 2024 Week-2

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USSC-City of Miami Parks Sailing 2024 Week-2

Team Paradise is honored to work for the US Sailing Center Miami (USSC), which provides the ultimate Sailing Summer Camp experience for children in Miami, our Magic City. Beginning on July 22nd, we will have kids from twelve different parks. Each day, campers from different parks in the city will be brought. USSC will serve approximately 150 kids in a couple of weeks.

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USSC-City of Miami Parks Sailing 2024 Week-1

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USSC-City of Miami Parks Sailing 2024 Week-1

Team Paradise is honored to work for the US Sailing Center Miami (USSC), which provides the ultimate Sailing Summer Camp experience for children in Miami, our Magic City. Beginning on July 22nd, we will have kids from twelve different parks. Each day, campers from different parks in the city will be brought. USSC will serve approximately 150 kids in a couple of weeks.

Summer Camp - Week One, Two and Three

Summer Camp - Week One, Two and Three

Our Summer Camp with Genesis Hopeful Haven is unique because it begins at 8:30 AM and ends at 11:30 AM daily, Monday through Thursday, for three weeks. At first, I was skeptical about the hours of the day, but then I realized they were perfect for us. Exposure to the sun for over three hours might be a good idea. The campers had never sailed, so the light morning breeze was preferred over too much wind. Also, by the time the afternoon thunderstorms roll in, we are already back on shore. What's important is…

Saturday Youth Sailing S6-E7

Saturday Youth Sailing S6-E7

The weather in Miami, and many other places, follows a pattern: one day looks like the next. The weatherman calls for southeasterly winds of 5-10 knots, but it's calm in the morning. Then, as it gets warmer throughout the day, the land heats up, and the sea breeze kicks in. The wind on the water is affected by local topography, where land, buildings, and other structures block the wind and create turbulence. Also, there is usually a big difference between the highest and lowest wind speeds. We refer to this as puff and lull. Today, the puffs (gusts) were much stronger than 10 knots. In reality, after the fact, when we all know what happened,….

Saturday Youth Sailing S6-E5

Saturday Youth Sailing S6-E5

Several classes were scheduled to race this weekend, including the J-24, Snipe, Ilca, Sunfish, and Finn. The US Sailing Center was very busy. The weather forecast for today called for sustained winds above 20kt. It was predicted earlier in the week, so it was no surprise. 

When planning a successful day, it's often best to figure out what can go wrong first! My risk assessment was easy to make. Boats would capsize, sails could rip, and masts could brake, but we would survive. There was no significant, solid benefit to going sailing today…

Saturday Youth Sailing S6-E4

Saturday Youth Sailing S6-E4

Several classes were scheduled to race this weekend, including the J-24, Snipe, Ilca, Sunfish, and Finn. The US Sailing Center was very busy. The weather forecast for today called for sustained winds above 20kt. It was predicted earlier in the week, so it was no surprise. 

When planning a successful day, it's often best to figure out what can go wrong first! My risk assessment was easy to make. Boats would capsize, sails could rip, and masts could brake, but we would survive. There was no significant, solid benefit to going sailing today…

Saturday Youth Sailing S6-E3

Saturday Youth Sailing S6-E3

Today was a beautiful day for sailing on Biscayne Bay. The warm temperatures and moderate winds made it a pleasant experience. Although the kids from the Camillus House Verde Gardens housing project couldn't make it due to transportation issues, we had good attendance from both coaches and our regular students. 

Coach Josh led the intermediate group, sailing the RS Fevas as usual. The rest of us stayed with the beginners in the RS Ventures. It's interesting to observe how the beginners are improving and catching up to the intermediates and how some intermediates are becoming skilled enough to belong to a more…..

Saturday Youth Sailing S6-E2

Saturday Youth Sailing S6-E2

Today was great in Paradise! The kids returned their homework and began the day with a written test on parts of the boat and sails. While we were sailing, Ms Susan reviewed their work, and at the end of the day, she gave everyone small rewards. Weather conditions were ideal: sunny with blue skies and breezy. Despite the small craft warning, none capsized, and everyone stayed upright. Sailing skills have come a long way. The new RS Venture sails look good and are a significant upgrade. Our new compact VHF radios, so generously donated, provide for much better safety. Ten units with private channels enable us to communicate between the Ventures, coach boat, and propeller-less safety boat without anyone listening in or interrupting our messages. Despite a few kids not attending, we had a sizeable group. Camillus House added one new student to the program. As such, she is required to perform our water-comfort test. At first, she hesitated to jump in despite the shallow clear water and sandy….

Saturday Youth Sailing S6-E1

Saturday Youth Sailing S6-E1

The first Saturday of the SYS Spring session was postponed for a week due to "nuking" wind conditions a week ago, The first Saturday of the SYS Spring session was postponed for a week due to "nuking" wind conditions a week ago, but it happened today. We had a smaller group of kids because of spring break and the Easter holiday. Our students from Vera Gardens could not attend due to transportation issues. Nevertheless, today was an extra special day for us. The RS Fest is going on in Regatta Park. It's the first-ever multi-class RS event in North America. Team Paradise entered the regatta with one RS Feva, but they could only compete for one day. The rest of our team used our RS Ventures to sail around and watch the racing. ..

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Spring Break with the Miami Waterkeeper

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Spring Break with the Miami Waterkeeper

During spring break, we took a day to introduce our Sailing + Youth + STEM (“SYSTEM”) initiative. Partnering with the Miami Waterkeeper organization, we had student-sailors, coaches, and three graduates from the University of Miami's Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science participating in the class. We began the day with a presentation on water quality monitoring.