ASA schools around Annapolis?

[IslandExpress]

Can anyone recommend an ASA101 style course in the Annapolis area? I am in Reston, VA (about 1 hour west of Annapolis). The 3 day course here looks good annapolissailing dot com (sorry under 10 posts) anyone have experience?

[SailorMitch]

Checkout the April copy of SpinSheet. It's all about sailing schools, including a fascinating article about teaching old salts new tricks.

BTW, ASA sets standards for class content, so in theory you should walk away from the class from any school with the same knowledge and skills. But that doesn't factor in a good instructor vs. a so-so instructor.

[speciald]

Annapolis Sailing School has been there for more than 30 years and offers ASA cetification courses.

[sck5]

I went to the Maryland School of Sailing in Rock Hall. They were great - they do their ASA 101 courses over 4 days in an IP 32. You can sleep on the boat if you want. Once you get comfortable handling that anything else seems very easy.

[chucklesR]

I took the Annapolis School of Sailing class for 101 thru 103 in May of 2004.
The instructor was a old salt, lived on board in NJ.
The boats are well maintained.
We had rain and winds over 35 knts all three days - keep in mind they will NOT cancel classes or refund. They go out and if you refuse you are out your money.

Having said that, learning in heavy weather beats the crap out of learning in 5 knts.
I'd do it again, with them.

[SVAuspicious]

If you are just starting out I strongly recommend J/World. Very good school, good instructors, discounts for renting boats for graduates and for follow-on classes.

[eryka]

Another vote for Maryland school or J/World instead of Annapolis school - if for no other reason than I can't stand the thought of getting a certification from a place whose acronym is "A.S.S."

(Okay, and the fact that one of our friends was ill-treated when he worked for them)

[Sapperwhite]

Originally Posted by SailorMitch

Checkout the April copy of SpinSheet. It's all about sailing schools, including a fascinating article about teaching old salts new tricks.

Shameless self promoter .

Thanks for not making me sound like an ass in the article even though I had verbal diarrhea over the phone. There was much debauchery the night before and i was still in recovery mode.

I'd advise that the OP or anyone else decide what type of sailing they want to do or are doing now, then figure out which school to go with. Are you a racer or a cruiser? I was shopping for and eventually buying a cruising boat when I took ASA101, so the decision to go to the Maryland School was easy because the learning platform is an IP32. If I had gone to Baysail in HdG instead, I would have been on a light little 20' or 22' boat with an outboard. While the sail theory, trim, and basics are the same, the differences between the IP32 and a Capri are substantial. Call the schools you narrow down, gather the info on them, then compare and decide. After all, you want to get your moneys worth.

[svsirius]

My suggestion is learn to sail on small boats. Once you can sail well on a small boat then learn boat handling on a larger boat. It means more classes but in the end you will be a better sailor. If they could teach you on a Laser that would be ideal cause you know when you're doing it right vs wrong [upside down in the water .

But seriously learning on a boat without all the stuff let's you focus on sailing. There are a number of good schools in Annapolis, personally I'm a J-World fan cause they focus on boat handling and sailing skills. Later you will need to take the cruising/navigation etc.

[sck5]

svsirius has a point - before i did 101 i sailed a dinghy in the lake where i live. it was a Pico, a sloop rigged dagger board boat that is very very responsive - ie. you go fast when you do it right and you go swimming when you do it wrong. it was really good practice for moving up to big boats. fun too.