Welcome to the Learn to Sail website!
AFLOAT SKILLS
SECTION III - Preliminaries
- Coil a line correctly.
- Make a line fast to a cleat.
- Under the direction of an instructor, get in and out of a boat safely at a dock or mooring. Demonstrate correct weight distribution, smooth movement, maintenance of own balance and ability to correct for weight shifts of others.
SECTION IV - Rigging
- Rig a training boat by attaching sails, attaching and rigging sheets, attaching halyards, fitting sail battens, fitting the rudder and tiller, adjusting the centerboard and hoisting sails. (Mast is already stepped).
- Demonstrate how to properly secure all essential gear for sailing (as a minimum the MOT list of required items) in a training boat.
SECTION V - Boat Handling (Under Instructor Direction)
- Identify the direction of the wind.
- Perform simple sheet adjustments while underway to keep sail just on the point of luffing while on a reach.
- Perform simple rudder adjustments, keeping a boat going in a straight line on a reach for at least two minutes.
- Demonstrate how to right a capsized boat and clear it of water.
SECTION VI - Derigging and Securing
- Secure a boat at a dock clear of hazards (other boats, rocks etc.):
a) by the bow only - Using the proper knot and size of line and leaving an appropriate length of line.
b) by the bow and stern - Using proper bow and stern lines and fenders to prevent unwanted boat movement and rubbing. - Secure a boat at a single mooring, using the appropriate size line and knot, and leaving an appropriate length of line.
- Derig a training boat by lowering and removing the sails, removing and stowing the rudder and tiller, and properly securing the boom and centerboard (where applicable).
- With assistance spread out, free of wrinkles, and properly fold and bag a loose sail.
- Demonstrate how to properly secure all gear in a training boat following sailing (e.g. for the night).


