RYA DAY SKIPPER

  Venue: Cowes   Duration: 5 Days   Price Per-Person: £499  

GirlsforSail Verdict

"Take the step and become your own skipper!! We will coach you in our calm manner so you are confident and happy taking your friends and family out on the water.. And being in charge!"

What the girls had to say...

"Their calm and clear instruction taught me more in 5 days than I'd learnt in 12 months cruising" Allison 2011

 

 

 

 

 

 

About the Event

This is a great chance to get out there and become the skipper!

Get that qualification that you've been telling yourself to do for years now. You will meet with your fellow crew members on the first evening and get to know each other over a cup of tea. You then spend the next 5 days sailing the Solent and exploring the ports, including Portsmouth, Yarmouth and Lymington*. Not only do you spend the days sailing you get the chance to do a night sail, what better way to really appreciate sailing but in the peace and quiet with clear skies...

The Day Skipper course includes everything you could possibly need to be in charge of a boat, and most charter companies will require a Day Skipper to be able to charter a boat.

This 5 day course gives you a chance to meet other like minded ladies who want to get out there just as much as you do, don't worry if you are coming on your own, by the end of the week you will feel like you've known your fellow crew members forever!!

Take advantage of your RYA qualified instructor who loves being able to teach. She is there to help you as much as possible and loves watching everyone progress and achieve their Day Skipper, she will take you through the Day Skipper Syllabus and ensure that both of you are confident with every aspect of it

The RYA Day Skipper course teaches the basic practical skippering skills to enable you to be a confident and happy day skipper of a yacht on short passages by day. During the week each person has the chance to act as skipper. This will include planning on where to go, when to get there and obstacles that may be in the way. You will practice mooring in many different ways and go through things in as many difficult ways in case you ever feel you may be caught out. Your instructor will always advise you on the safest way to do things, and to remind you, you aren't in a rush..

Your instructor will advise and coach you on general day to day runnings of the boat such as preparing the boat for sea, engine checks, checking weather forecasts and being able to present a safety brief to your crew. Whilst out sailing your instructor will run through various practices such as reefing, how to trim the sails, rules of the road and general deck work and any other areas you may not be confident or confused with. Take advantage of her knowledge and better yours in any way possible, she will explain it to you in a way that make sense for you!

By the end of this course you should be a successful RYA Day Skipper and be able to undertake short passages by day in tidal and non-tidal waters.

Pre-Course Experience

Before taking the Day Skipper practical course it is advised that you  have knowledge up to RYA Day Skipper Theory, 5 days sailing, 100 miles and preferably with some night sailing experience (although not necessary). Don't have enough experience?

The Boat 

We coach on yachts in between 34-40ft, the average is 37ft. They are suitable for ladies to sail comfortably. They generally have 3 cabins which sleep 6 in shared cabins & there is additional room in the saloon for 2/3.

Other Activities

During the 5 days you get the chance to spend nights at anchor and in marinas. We try and make an allowance for one night to take a trip to one of the local pubs for a meal with all of your crew mates to relax and reflect on the previous days work.

What's included?

• Exclusive use of yacht
• Professional RYA qualified Skipper
• Mooring fees
• 3 evening meals as well as breakfast and lunches
• Certificate on completion
• 5 day course starts 1930hrs, ends 1600hrs
• FUN! FUN! FUN!

 

RYA Day Skipper Itinerary UK

Sunday - Meet on the boat at 7.30pm at Shepherds Wharf Marina, Cowes. Your skipper will be onboard with the kettle on! Tonight you will cover a few safety briefings to get you settled onboard before retiring to the pub to get to know your new crew mates!

Monday - Wake up to bacon butties, before your full safety brief on the boat. A lot of information this morning, but don't worry, it will all sink in. After the safety brief, refresh your knowledge of sail hoists and drops, and head out into the Solent to start learning about how the sails work. Tonight we will pick up a mooring buoy outside Yarmouth.

Tuesday - First thing we will practice picking up mooring buoys, as Yarmouth gives us the best playground. After digesting a lot of information yesterday, today will put it into practice, repeating the lessons of the day before and incorporating more tacking and gybing. The short distance to Lymington optimises the time honing our new found skills, and learning more - its time for MAN OVERBOARD!! You will be meeting our very careless mate Bob! It's also time to refresh your knots and help the competent crew members learn theirs!

Wednesday - A longer trip lined up today, after a hearty breakfast we will set off out to the Western Solent, saying goodbye to the needles, and head back to the central Solent using Osbourne bay as a practice area, learning more about running a slick crew. We will anchor up for dinner and while the "mother" whips up a feast, you Day Skip navigators will plan our passage because tonight is the night for sailing! We will end up in Haslar Marina, famous for being the best showers on the Solent... not to mention they're on a ship!

Thursday - After eggs for brekkie, we will head out of busy Portsmouth harbour heading back to the comparable peace of the East Solent, you will navigate us around the Forts planned originally to protect from Napoleonic invasion, but sadly completed too late! More training today, no rest for the wicked.. Ending our day at East Cowes marina (more great showers!). This evening will be your chance to teach your instructor a thing of two... presentations!! These will be on anything from, how to send a MAYDAY to where to find a forecast.

Friday  - More parking this morning! For the rest of the day we will spend time polishing up anything that you wish to cover again. Before heading back to Cowes, to debrief, and clean up. You will depart the yacht at 4pm.

*subject to wind and tide

If you have any questions please take a look at our FAQ's

Feel free to call us on 01983 28 28 67 or email us at info@girlsforsail.com or add us on Skype girlsforsail