Welcome, new sailors of Fall 2017

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Our fall sailing class is off to a good start, we held an on-land session at the school today.
Head Sailing Coach Rezab gave a short talk on what we will be doing, gave everybody a practice lesson with some knots, then we headed out to a Javelin in the parking lot.

Our Sailing Lessons On-Line, Table of Contents Page

Today's lesson covered 'Parts Of The Boat' and terminology. Beginner sailors will need to know more than this drawing here.


But this is a good place to start. If you go to our sailing lessons, the beginners should know the first three: Basic Boat Parts (The Rig), and Directions, and Basic Boat Parts (The Hull).


Advanced sailors should know all the lessons! There is plenty more to learn after this.


This web site has some links on the left-hand margin which will always be showing. The sailing lessons Table of Contents page is always there.



 When looking at a boats rigging, any piece of it must be either standing rigging or running rigging. This is a good starting point to know the rigging. Halyards and sheets are............ running rigging, you have a 50/50 chance to guess. But it's better to know.

When you look at this picture, which way does you hand move when you say "Halyard"?


BTW this is the same word for the rope that raises or lowers a flag.


Most people think the word "sheet" must mean the sail itself, but it means one of the sets of ropes that control the sail.





When we look at parts of hull, most boats are very similar. All boats and ships have a BOW and a STERN, a PORT and a STARBOARD, a rudder, etc etc. They can look quite different and still be easily recognized for what they are, and what they.



It's nice that some things about sailing are just common sense.


But it's not ALL the same. One difference between the FJs and Javelins is that the Javelin centerboard is hidden. But it is still there, and it is very important.



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Another thing we learned today was two very important knots. We will use these knots every time we rig & sail the boats, so you will get lots of practice.

This first knot is a CLEAT HITCH. The fitting which holds a line or rope is called a CLEAT.

What is one of the most important things about all "sailor's knots"?








Everybody knows the phrase "learning the ropes." This originally meant learning the rigging on a ship, which seems very difficult and complex to most people.

Fortunately, our boats are relatively simple. Learning the ropes is still a good description for learning any new knowledge which requires putting things together as a system.

This second picture shows the "Figure 8" or "Stopper Knot".  You should already know why it is called a Stopper Knot.

You will tie a couple of these every times we rig the boats, too.


I hope this little refresher will help, and remember to check the On-Line Lessons for your class.

See you next Monday!