pointing the boat in the right direction!
TODAY...East winds 5 to 10 knots. Bay waters a light chop. Slight chance of showers and thunderstorms. TONIGHT...Southeast winds 5 to 10 knots becoming south after midnight. Bay waters a light chop. Chance of showers and slight chance of thunderstorms after midnight. Low tide 2.12 pm.
Intermediate Sailors - Morning Session
Seven kids came to sail this morning. Everyone was pretty much on time. After a short review of what we learned in the previous lesson, the kids headed down to the boats and rigged four RS Fevas. There was not much wind, so coach Ed and I were ready to tow them out, but the wind did come up enough and everyone was able to sail out.
Today was about sailing around two marks, upwind and downwind, in the most efficient way. It includes: being able to sail in close proximity to other boats; keeping boat speed up; and knowing where the next mark is, in order to sail the shortest distance. The breeze eventually faded out and we towed everyone back to port.
Given the relatively short time the kids sail with us, they do remarkably well. With two sessions remaining, everyone is expected to successfully complete the beginner curriculum.
Homework
In order to speed up the learning process, I’m encouraging the kids to visit www.teamparadise.org/classroom in order to prepare for their next lesson!
Beginner Sailors - Afternoon Session
Today was the kids from Breakthrough Miami’s turn to come sailing with us. It’s a bit different now after spending more than one year together. We are now a group of friends meeting on a regular basis and we all get along together.
We rigged two RS Ventures and three RS Fevas. Yours truly skippered one of the RS Venture. Some of the kids did really well steering the boats and nothing is more rewarding than when they say, “I love sailing!”
We stopped at #ParadiseIsland305 on our way back to port. Some of the kids had to pass the capsize test, while some sailed a bit more. Time flies when having fun and all of a sudden it was time to head back to port. The kids were smiling and so was I. Everyone helped out to put the equipment away. Coach Joe led the Student Voice segment, KEEP - STOP - START to end another great day of Saturday sailing!