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We arrived this year on a hazy Sunday wondering if the show would be on. The first friends showed up at the club gates with their two boys (ages four and five) complete with Batman face paint. I figured we might as well take the boys and my daughter with us to get the boat off its mooring. While we were waiting for the water taxi driver, my daughter charmed her way onto a 34-footer already at the dock and began her usual inspection of other people’s boats. This ended with her noting the TV and bunks in the cabin and asking the usual question of “Daddy, when are we getting a bigger boat?”. Hmm, useful leverage!
The boys were a little nervous getting into the water taxi, however their fear quickly dissipated when we gunned off to the mooring. The five-year old asked me whether we were on the Batboat.
Once we got the boat to the club dock and tied up, the three kids climbed on board and had a secret meeting in the cabin. As our other friends arrived, their kids ended up on the dock within a few minutes. Soon we had about 15 kids taking turns jumping and climbing on the boat with my daughter proudly giving safety instructions. When lunch was ready, the kids reluctantly left the boat only on the condition that they could resume their climbing afterward.
After lunch, we waited for the air show to start. Thankfully the kids were fascinated by the club and my boat. A number of them rooted around the club, delighting in inspecting the dinghys on the lot. A few of the more adventurous ones discovered the “bone yard” and were fascinated by the derelict boats and trailers left behind. It reminded me of my childhood at my parents’ yacht club. I remember how large the grounds seemed back then and how we loved finding old abandoned boats and dreaming of fixing them up ourselves.
After an hour of waiting, we were disappointed to learn that the air show had been cancelled due to the hazy conditions. The kids were disappointed since they love watching the jets and planes scream by. I surveyed the number of guests, about 12 adults and 15 kids and thought that I could probably take everyone out in a series of half-hour sails.
 With four kiddies on board, the author makes a note to self: Bring more adults next time! | |
The second trip consisted of myself, two adults and some of the younger kids with ages ranging between two and eight. This time the sails went up quickly however the once three-foot waves had grown significantly. The kids loved our close-hauled stint and screamed with delight every time a soaker came over the side. After 15 minutes of this, I turned the boat around and we went on a screaming reach back to the club. The kids loved planing on the waves.
By the third trip, the sun and heat were starting to get to me so I enlisted two of my racing buddies to help out. This did not seem distasteful to them since their response to my earlier announcement of plans had been “Hey, we’re kids too!” We took my older cousins with us this time (ages 10-12). By now the waves had eased off a bit but the wind had come up. Up to now, these cousins had always been hesitant about the boat. Their parents seemed to perceive lake Ontario as some dangerous flesh eating body of water so even getting them to the club had been a challenge (it had only been their father’s fascination with airplanes that had brought them that weekend).
 A happy crew of new sailors and a tired skipper return to the dock. | |
By the end of the third sail, I was exhausted. It was 5:30 and everyone was ready to head home. I had taken 11 kids out and had a bunch of new sailing converts asking me when they could come out on the boat again. My wife commented that every kid coming off the boat had ear to ear grins and that my boat had “saved the day.”
Lessons for the Teachers As long as everyone has a life jacket and follows the rules, it’s good to let kids explore the boat while it’s safely tied up at the dock. This is often the most exciting part for younger kids since their movement is not restricted. Sailing clubs are fascinating places for kids. What seems like small, plain space to you and I is vast to smaller kids complete with forts to build, boats to inspect, and areas to explore. - Take at least two adults with you when you head out. It’s important to have at least one other adult comfortable with sailing and a third to comfort any of the younger ones that might get scared. - Make sure everyone has a life jacket and pack changes of clothing for both yourself and the kids. Last year one of the kids fell in the lake and I ended up jumping in to get her out. While she had a change of clothing, I froze for a bit in my wet clothing while waiting to dry off. - When you’re out sailing make sure you’re wearing a life jacket as well. It sets a good example. Most of the other kids did not think it fair that they had to wear life jackets on the docks while their parents roamed freely without. - Make sure you have help on the boat. I normally don’t think of sailing as requiring a lot of energy so I was surprised at how taking the boat out and back so many times drained me.
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