Now in sailing: Learn to sail better

For many sailors, earning a RYA Yachtmaster certification is an important achievement. But this certification is not the end of the learning process. Robert Holmes identifies fourteen skills that make you a better leader.

With the RYA Yachtmaster training program, you take your sailing knowledge to a higher level and learn a lot about yourself. But there are some things that even the best students can’t master in the time available. It is always about a combination of experience and reflexive learning. Or, as John Chittenden, then a secretary at RYA and then captain of two round-the-world sailing races, once told me: “A good sailor is one who thinks about the maneuver that has just taken place on a ship and how it can be improved.” In short, only gaining experience is not enough. You also have to learn from that experience.
The Yachtmaster course cannot cover everything; There is a lot to learn now over fifty years ago, if only because yachts and the systems on board have become more diverse and complex. At the same time, some things never change – for example, an uncontrolled situation is still as potentially dangerous as it was before. In addition, courses and exams vary from state to state. While in the UK less attention is paid to maneuvers related to entering and exiting crates, in Northern Europe you do not learn how to moor with the keel to the pier and anchor at the bow, as is customary in Mediterranean countries.

1. Involve everyone

You can identify a good leader by the way he makes decisions. Whether you are in charge of a charter boat or a private yacht, if you care about the opinions and preferences of all crew members, you increase the chance that everyone will have a good time and want to come back next time. By discussing potential options and challenges up front and keeping everyone informed of potential changes, you keep everyone engaged. However, as a master, you are the one ultimately responsible for when the action is taken – if you don’t, there is a lack of clarity about who is responsible.
Doing excercise: If you prepare for the voyage in advance, studying all the elements of navigation, course preparation, meteorology, tides and conditions of departure and arrival, you will be able to save enough time during the voyage to develop a good style of boating. I usually set up my own cruises a few days in advance, especially if I’m sailing to a lesser known sailing area.

07/2021 lines

Curious about the rest of the story? Why should you sail on as many different boats as possible? How can you learn to be stress free? Why is a work schedule useful for top sailing? Why is it useful for action camera To install it on a pushchair and photograph yourself crossing the reef? Do you want to read more about using the sail? You read it all in lines 07/2021. Buy the number here online in the online store or read (in the article) lines Here Digital. The release is also available in stores until Wednesday, May 23. And do you want to read these kinds of stories every month from now on? Then become a subscriber here.

Text: Translated by Robert Holmes: Clemens