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Learn these Cruising Skills on a learning vacation with hands-on instruction.
Sailing:
- Points of sail and sail trim
- Heaving to
- Reefing and reducing sail area
- Use of preventers
- Discuss anchoring and docking under sail
Systems:
- Engine checks: oil, coolant, raw water strainer.
- Engine start procedures
- Use of heads and holding tanks
- Battery charging and monitoring
- Safe use of stove and oven
- Preventing roller furling jamming
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Maneuvering:
- Docking practice
- Docking as a couple or family
- Docking with spring lines (to hold the boat at the dock, especially
when the wind is blowing the boat away from the dock)
- Leaving the dock with spring lines (especially when the wind
is blowing the boat on the dock)
- Picking up a mooring ball
- Safest methods for tying to a mooring ball
Safety:
- Daily weather forecasts
- Use of life jackets and harnesses
- Person Overboard Recovery: Rescue Sling, Quick Stop, Figure 8
- VHF radio procedures
Anchoring:
- Calculating scope ratio and swing diameter with tide allowances
- Use of an electric windlass
- Setting and retrieving a second bow anchor, stern anchor, and shore line
Navigation:
- Familiarity with charts and symbols
- Understanding and applying "The Rules of the Road"
- GPS navigation, Velocity Made Good (VMG)
- Familiarity with tide and current tables
- Plotting a course
- Determining course headings and distances
We can suggest some excellent resources for reading in advance.
But many guests find reading is of limited value before receiving
focused, hands-on instruction on Solstice. After a charter, however,
those same guests find reading easier far more helpful. Continue
your education at home! |
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