A Day on a RYA Coastal Skipper course

See howCarol Letten (Manager of Hayling Island Sailing Club) fared, when she took her RYA Coastal Skipper course with Universal Sailing School in “A Day in the Life…on a RYA Coastal Skipper Course”

Arrival and Pick of the Cabins!

So first night arrive at 5pm in the marina, a fit young man called Jamie, our instructor for the course, appears and carries my bag to the yacht Saleana, which will be home for the next 5 days.

Being the first to arrive I get the pick of the cabins so I naturally pick the best one – in the forepeak with its own loo! I knew the others were all chaps , so having my own cabin took away a lot of the stress of “who will I be sharing with”.

Ed from London was next, he was also doing his Coastal skipper course and had a share in a yacht in Gosport. Malcolm arrived from Cheltenham, he was doing his Competent Crew having been inspired to learn to sail after reading an autobiography by someone who had sailed the world.

Off we all went to dinner in the marina restaurant , a few glasses of wine and a nice supper and it was time for bed. Visit The Waters Edge Bar and Restaurant 

Tea Drinking and Man Overboard!

In the morning, breakfast was sorted from the provisions on board. Cereal and tea all round, safety briefings and we were all set to work.

I was given the first Skippering task of pilotage out of the Hamble, organising the crew and passage plan to our first stop. Lunch on board in Osbourne Bay. I managed to get us there on the course that was set and in the time estimated , not bad I thought! Jamie thought differently, he wanted me getting the sails up quicker, communicating more assertively (not something anyone has ever said to me before) and being more accurate with the tidal curve. It was made very clear that this was no Day Skippers course and if we wanted to be Coastal Skippers we had to earn it!

Malcolm , who was just brilliant at keeping us all topped up with tea, made us a lovely lunch. Cheese, ham or cheese and ham sandwiches with more tea. In the drizzle it was just what we needed. On a boat in the rain you can never have enough tea.

Then it was Ed’s turn to take the helm, he had to take us from Osborne Bay to Newtown Creek. Tides were calculated , course was set and off we set. As we got into Newtown Creek Jamie looked at the depth gauge and quickly took over the helm , steering us back out of the shallows. Fortunately it was just a misunderstanding on where the depth gauge was reading from the yacht, Jamie being accustomed to it being from the water line and the yacht being set up from the bottom of the keel. Anyway a little bit of excitement does us all good and off we go below to get out of the rain and to make some more tea.

Making Friends

From Osborne Bay we headed to Lymington. A quick vote on board and it was agreed that we would go into the marina, in order to get the heating on, on the yacht and get all our wet gear dry. Dinner at the Ship pub on the dock with a few glasses of wine and we felt that we were falling into a nice steady routine. The Crew all got to know each other very quickly , and whilst maybe not the people you would meet in your everyday life, we all got on very well. Conversation was varied and interesting and we laughed a lot! If you were to randomly pick three people, whose day jobs were; a sailing club manager , an investment banker and a software developer, you might have been worried about how they would all get on but somehow it just works. The sailing, tasks, catering, cleaning, mooring and tea making all happened. Everyone took their turn and not one sharp word was heard, even when things went wrong noone blamed anyone we just got on and sorted it out, truly amazing.

Jamie was no easy task master, he put us all through our paces with no excuses permitted. I struggled with the man over board under sail task, I would have just given up, but Jamie wasn’t having any of it. We did that man over board until I could do it. It was a bit like goldilocks – the first was too fast , the second was too slow, the third I went the wrong way but by the fourth time it was good , not perfect but good ! This was no 9-5 course, we were learning and being tested constantly. Jamie had so much time for us all, even when I quizzed him about the tools I would need for my yacht he happily furnished me with a comprehensive shopping list. By the end of the week I was preparing to leave the mooring buoy at night from Fareham creek. “Let’s put the main sail up before we leave” I said. Jamie looked at me and replied “ You would never have done that at the start of the week”. Which was true.

Rain, Rain and some more Rain!

We had rain, more rain, wind, and just a little sunshine. We coped , we laughed and we got wet. You were always dry and the weather doesn’t spoil the sailing in the way you think it might when you are sat at home contemplating going for a sail. I knew I liked fair weather sailing, I now like any weather sailing.

Success!

We all passed and were awarded our certificates, said our goodbyes and went on our way. I am sure we will all meet up again on the water around the Solent. If you are thinking about learning to sail or improving your skills then I would recommend Universal Yachting. They truly deliver a great experience.