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Advice from Experienced sailors!

3K views 15 replies 9 participants last post by  sailorjim99 
#1 · (Edited)
Hello every one,

My name is Dean, im 19, live in london.. Currently manager of a bar, in kensington, and i just joined this forum today... Been looking through it, and it seems to be very helpful, and it's active which is a bonus!

I've been speaking to UKSA and im looking at doing there 'ocean graduate' course.. im very new to sailing, and dont have many logged miles.. Do you think this is a good way to get into it.. Any adivce, and tips would be greatfully appreciated!

Thnxs a lot for any help you may be able to give me..
Dean
 
#2 ·
I checked out the UKSA web site. The Ocean Graduate course bills itself as an intensive program preparing students for commercial work and is 23 weeks long. I think the UKSA Leisure courses RYA Competent Crew or RYA Dayskipper might be more suited to a beginning sailor.
 
#3 ·
SailinJay said:
I checked out the UKSA web site. The Ocean Graduate course bills itself as an intensive program preparing students for commercial work and is 23 weeks long. I think the UKSA Leisure courses RYA Competent Crew or RYA Dayskipper might be more suited to a beginning sailor.
well, im going on my competent crew course in a few weeks, down in the solent.. To see if i get 'the feel' for it.. personally i think i will.. i love the water, and water sports... i dive quite a lot too... It says that the course is fine for beginners? I'm not stupid, and im a good learner...

Thanks for your comments though mate...
 
#4 ·
Dean-

Good luck with the course... and enjoy... but do turn off the boldface. All boldface is a bit annoying...
 
#5 ·
Best of luck!

Without knowing any particulars about the course you are in it sounds like proper start. You will learn a lot and hopefully make some contacts that will set you up for the next round of adventures when this first school is over.

Best Wishes, and see you on the water.....
 
#6 ·
Writing the exams . . . .

The only problem with doing these "zero to hero" courses is that when it's all over and you want some sort of recognition for what you've learned, they often tell you "Oh, but you have to have 400 hours at sea, 40% of which has to be at night and 30 % has to be as a watch captain and 20% has to be more than 50 miles from the coast and the hours have to include two or more ports before you can write the exam" and this list often goes on and on.
So if you're just after a good learning experience and no particular qualification afterwards, you're probably going to achieve your objective.
Hope you enjoy it all.
 
#7 · (Edited)
Beg to Differ...

Omatako said:
The only problem with doing these "zero to hero" courses is that when it's all over and you want some sort of recognition for what you've learned, they often tell you "Oh, but you have to have 400 hours at sea, 40% of which has to be at night and 30 % has to be as a watch captain and 20% has to be more than 50 miles from the coast and the hours have to include two or more ports before you can write the exam" and this list often goes on and on.
So if you're just after a good learning experience and no particular qualification afterwards, you're probably going to achieve your objective.
Hope you enjoy it all.
Thanks for all your comments and adivce every one.. It's been helpful..
I beg to differ, about this whole 'zero to hero' thing, im sure its just a phrase.. but dont we all have to start some where, and in my experience it lies solely on the person, and their capabilities! I dont mean to sound big headed but i believe i'm more than capable of achieving my goals..

The reason i'm taking up sailing is because i love the water, there'll be plenty of chances for me to dive..Get to meet new people, and travel the world again.. and well, c'mon its a damn cool thing to do :D

If there is any more advice to be shared.. keep it coming, once again.. Thanks for your time and advice...

Dean

P.S - Have you seen the UKSA Ocean Graduate Course, i do believe on completion of the course, you do obtain a few good qualifications.. A friend of the familily done the fast track when he was 19, hes now 20, and in charge of a flotila of 14 yachts in greece for sun sail.
 
#8 ·
20 years old and in charge of a flotilla!

This sounds like a very good reason not to book with Sunsail in Greece.

I cannot believe that any 20 year old has enough life experience and people skills to be in charge of a flotilla, even if his sailing is okay.

We employ commercial skippers and, in my opinion, the fast-track courses provide a quick method of getting basic competence to skipper a yacht. The problem is when their graduates come out with an over-inflated perception of their abilities and especially their experience. Companies like Sunsail who hire these people and put them in responsible positions add to the trouble.

The reason Sunsail hire them, I believe, is because they are cheap. A yachtmaster with several years experience would demand a higher salary and would probably also have some questions to ask about the yachts and equipment he/she is in charge of.

How would you feel about a fastrack airline pilot of 20?

Do the course by all means, then get in as much sailing as you can with different skippers, different types of yacht, different weather, different countries. After a few thousand miles of this you should be getting there.

Good luck.
 
#9 ·
Isn't the sunsail flotilla in Greece the one that had a drowning on a small beach catamaran just recently??
 
#11 ·
Yup, that's the story I was talking about... very sad...tragic...but unfortunately, it was totally avoidable...
 
#12 ·
"I can see why they'd need more employees, after this troupe didn't do their jobs. " Actually the article indicates they DID do their jobs, as they had been taught and to the standards that were applied.

Which sadly did not include carrying and using a safety knife or having masthead floats. It sounds very much like the usual world-wide standard of hiring young inexperienced help and looking after profits first and foremost.

The same practice which gives us freighters and cruise liners running with no bridge watch, and Princess lines claiming a junior officer had the bridge but didn't know how to turn the Crown Princess so recently.
 
#13 ·
Most prudent sailors I know carry a knife, regardless of what they're sailing on, what the weather is like, or who is with them...

Sailboats have way too many ways to snare a person who doesn't have a knife handy to not carry one.
 
#14 ·
Don't you know, knives are so Politically Incorrect these days. Some years pre-9/11 I was taking the NYC subway down to South Street to hop a boat and stopped to wonder how the NYPD would react if they noticed my sheath knife. I suppose these days they'd lock down the entire city and call out the anti-terror teams.

But I don't recall that the sailing schools ever "teach" to carry a knife. I think what surprises people most is that I won't let mine be used for things like lunch. (Keeps the blade sharper that way.)
 
#15 ·
Yes, but even as paranoid as the idiots in charge currently are, carrying a personal pocket knife is still legal on the street/in public, provided the blade is shorter than 2.5" or so. It would be a problem on an airplane, but if the TSA could stop the terrorists from getting aboard, then carrying a lighter or knife on the plane wouldn't be a problem.
 
#16 ·
Hey fellas, this young bloke started out asking for advice. You gotta take into account he is a young fella and at that age lacks experience in certain fields.
Lets just give him advice that he can use and let him figure out what to do with it.
I have a son that age and it works for him.
As for his mate who is involved with Sunsail or whatever, let them work on that.
Don't crush him too early in life or he wont attempt to get those valuable life skills and experience.
Yeah..I know...I am a softie...:D
 
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