Is Sailing In The USA Dead..?

woodster · Sep 26, 2013

at this time I am pumping new life in a 34 year old boat in order to go sailing and have been doing so for almost five years now....theses things take time and money...and being on a limited budget has made it very slow coming ...but with in the next three or four months hopefully there will be one more on the water ...and then it will be time to share my efforts with others and learn a lot more as i go...

regards

woody

Don S/V ILLusion · Sep 26, 2013

Hardly dead. Youth and local sailing events are often reported in our news as major events.

As to the AC races, nothing epitomizes the perception this is a rich man's hobby than these do and especially Ellison spending an amount of money with which few can compete. Add the fact there were hardly any Americans inboard and you get racing logos.

And the AC made front page news here in Sarasota

JK_Boston_Catalina310 · Sep 26, 2013

When we were in York Maine earlier this year we saw something very cool. There is a yacht club there entirely for kids. It is really a sailing day camp. They had several different boats up to a J22.

It was mainly run by kids, the older teenagers taught the younger kids and ran the whalers to retrieve the kids that got out too far.

In Boston we have a couple of sailing clubs.

I think supporting these groups with the goal of helping them get some cool sailing tech, like a foiling moth or fast cats and tris, is a good start.

Also promoting big races like the Volvo and the Clipper. Those need to get on TV again.

Tim R. · Sep 26, 2013

Some thoughts.

I was walking my dog on the beach last night and noticed that the mooring field there was at least 75% sailboats.

The local schools here in Portland share a fleet of boats so kids can learn to sail and race. This includes the local universities.

Portland has a non-profit group "Sail Maine" that promotes sailing and provides lessons to all. http://www.sailmaine.org/

When I was the racing committee chairperson at the local YC a couple years ago I did my best to get non sailors and new sailors crew positions. I am sure MaineSail remembers a few newbies we took along on my boat.

Yestersday and this morning I had non sailors come up to me to remark on the cool AC racing. This never would have happened if they were sailing mono hulls(I am not against them) or if the US had not come back from an insurmountable lead by the kiwis. The new AC is the X-games of sailing and hopefully will attract some adrenaline junkies from other sports. Who knows, maybe Travis Pastrana will be driving a foiling boat soon.

Tim R. · Sep 26, 2013

Locally we have seen some gains and losses in racing. At CYC the Wed. night summer series had 33 boats racing including 5 j22s in a one design class. That is more than some of the weekend regattas around here.

The MS regatta used to attract over 120 boats but has been declining recently.

CYC also has a youth sailing program they run in conjunction with SailMaine. Many of the kids are also non-members. Lots of ways for kids to get started in this area.

The really cool thing is that we have had some come from behind victories that led to summer series overall wins. MaineSail, remember the race when we beat Moondance right at the line in front of DiMillos? I can say I know what those guys were feeling yesterday when they won race 19.

Rob19574 · Sep 26, 2013

Maine - nice post here.

I think local clubs are accessible to most communities -- you need to do some work trying to find them. Most people don't like to "work hard" for things these days. Face it, other sports are much easier to access and join -- with low entry barriers (ie pair of cleats, shin guards, sneakers, etc). I think most parents are also intimidated by boats if they themselves have never been exposed to such -- then compound that with the fact their child will be out on the water potentially alone (which we know is not the case).

I think all of use here need to to our best to stop what we are doing on our "Big Boats" occasionally and take time to roll the Opti or Sunfish down to the launch and cram ourselves in with our kids for a sail (if you have any). My kids are probably the only 1st and 2nd graders in their school that can launch, rig and sail an opti by themselves. I know this particular skill is something they will use a lifetime as they graduate up to larger boats. Its not easy and I introduced the sport to them at a young age.

What can we all do? Maybe these are some additional thought starters:

- When given an opportunity, offer to introduce the sport to someone new that has kids and show them how to get involved. It needs to be intorduced to the parents to ultimately trickle-down to the kids.
- If you have an old Sunfish or Opti that you may never use, donate it to a local club that may be able to use the boat or parts.
- There are many talented writers on this board, if you're one of them then write about sailing, kids and the family experience of such and submit your stories to your local papers / regional magazines. They are always looking for broad-appeal content and anything that relates to the entire family will get printed. Include mention of the nearest club they can join.
- There are tons of parents out there looking for alternative sports and activities they can expose their children to (for various reasons) -- they just need a push with some awareness to get them over the hump. Try to promote a local club at a nearby school or town fair.

- Rob

Roadking Larry · Sep 26, 2013

The marina where I keep my boat advertises 105 sailboat slips. As far as I can tell everyone of them is occupied/rented. On the other hand just a guess about 50% of the boats have not let the dock in a couple of years at least.
As far as getting the kids interested, there are so many activities these days, soccer, baseball, football, video games...
I'd love to get the grand kids sailing but since I bought my boat and put it in the water the week before Memorial day I haven't been able to catch a free day to get them out there.

rufus1138 · Sep 26, 2013

larry my marina is the same story, not as many slips but largely sailboats, and a small club of us that have left the dock inside a years time (even i drag my barnacles out for a romp now and then). the racing side i see on the gulf coast is contentious in keelboats and theres a large gap down to the affordable racers and nothing for anyone over college age at that, it truly is a rich mans sport here but you can still get a crew spot if you work hard (like me), if i hadnt moved onto my boat and met the ppl i know now i wouldnt have had the chance to be foredeck on a tripp 26 thats headed to nationals in a year or two.

Jackdaw · Sep 26, 2013

The real question is not 'Whats wrong with sailing in the USA',

its 'what wrong with the America's Cup'?

I enjoyed the racing, but its a game for billionaires, and does not resemble my kind of sailing. I love to race, but have no desire to do THAT.

JK_Boston_Catalina310 · Sep 26, 2013

The difficult part for me is that I don't actually like racing. I just like sailing and cruising. But I do recognize that racing is the best way to get young people into sailing.

I think some of the boat manufactures are recognizing some of these issues to and trying to do things to help. The new J/70s (http://jboats.com/j70-one-design-sailboat) for instance could do a lot to help the situation. Instead of kicking around in a 70s J24 that is limited on hull speed, you could be in a boat that can plane and hit speeds close to 20 kts. More boats like this can attract more sailors, IMO.

What we really need is a good movie aimed at teens. I was talking to a guy at the gun shop the other day and he told me he can't keep youth compound bows on the shelves. Since the Hunger Games came out there have been a lot of kids getting into archery. If there is a good movie that promotes sailing in this way it could be huge for the sport.

zeehag · Sep 26, 2013

sailing is only dead if you donot see the waterfront.

RobChichester · Sep 26, 2013

AC organizers out of touch with the common man

Remember when Australia III revealed its winged keel? How long was it before that technology became de rigeur on all cruising yachts? When the 12 meter boats raced, everyone of us could imagine being Dennis Connor or Ted Turner at the helm. We understood...even if only in basic terms...what it took to do what they did. We understood how those boats operated. And all of their hardware was familiar to us.

These other-worldly catamarans that fly on thin blades seemingly in defiance of all natural laws do not resonate with me. I don't see a translation of technology to my world from this event.

Larry Ellison said he wanted to make the AC like NASCAR. With NASCAR or even Formula 1, I can picture myself in the seat steering a vehicle that I recognize...operating the accelerator, brake, and clutch. With these AC72 boats, I don't recognize anything that looks like sailing as I learned it. I also miss the "national" part of the competition. If it is ONLY the money that comes from a given country, does that really make the boat that country's representative in the competition.

And lastly, I am just too disgusted with obscenely rich men arguing in court over the rules of a sport whose rules should be really quite simple. Hoist your sails. Sail your way around the marks before the other guy. Period.

Congratulations, Mr. Ellison...but I am not sure what this "victory" really means to anyone.

Capt. Rob Chichester

Maine Sail said:
Yesterday after watching perhaps the most epic comeback in ALL OF SPORTS HISTORY in the America's Cup I sadly proclaimed to my wife that by 7:00 am this morning it would have been forgotten about and would be second page news on Yahoo etc... When I awoke this morning at 5:30 it was already on the second page barely 12 hours after one of the biggest comebacks in sports history...

This is a great moment for the America's Cup but a sad day for our sport.

My questions are:

*How can we fix this, or slow the bleed?

*What are YOU doing to try and pick our sport up by the boot straps and get new sailors on the water?

We are doing our part by trying to expand the sport by starting our daughter out very young in the sport. We also recruited her friend for sailing camp and she is pictured in the bow. They are six......

Not just sailing all things water help to breed the love of the sport......

Tim R. · Sep 26, 2013

Jackdaw said:
... I love to race, but have no desire to do THAT.

Are you kidding? I would give my left n*t to race on an AC72. Sign me up!

jviss · Sep 26, 2013

RobChichester said:
Remember when Australia III revealed its winged keel? How long was it before that technology became de rigeur on all cruising yachts?

When, exactly, did winged keels along the lines of Australia III's, become "de rigeur" on all cruising yachts? (unless you are being sarcastic)

jviss · Sep 26, 2013

Two questions;

1. Is sailing really declining? It seems to me most places are more crowded every year, and there are rental moorings where we once anchored for free;

2. who cares? I would prefer fewer boats out there, in anchorages, etc. More demand will certainly make things more crowded, eat up anchoring area, and raise prices for all things related.

JK_Boston_Catalina310 · Sep 26, 2013

Jackdaw said:
The real question is not 'Whats wrong with sailing in the USA',

its 'what wrong with the America's Cup'?

I enjoyed the racing, but its a game for billionaires, and does not resemble my kind of sailing. I love to race, but have no desire to do THAT.

Personally I think this was the best America's Cup in my lifetime. It was exciting, televised reasonably well and featured cutting edge boats.

It has always been a game of billionaires. The Oracle types are nothing new. Remember Sir Thomas Lipton?

Bad Obsession · Sep 26, 2013

Some of the issue is perception.

Take this example and you will see what I mean.

I have grown up around sailboats. I have owned boats since I was 12. I have cruised all over the Chesapeake Bay.

My wife has no prior boat experience before me. She has cruised for 4 years with me. This year she has taken a break, as have I, because the boat is up for sale.

My wife believes, with her limited knowledge, that sailing is a rich person's sport. When we have gone into nice places like Solomons Island and Annapolis she has seen the nice, newer, high dollar boats. Her perception is that you have to have a lot of disposable income to sail, boats are expensive, they are expensive to maintain, and the average person can't afford this.

It has been impossible for me to explain to her that there is a huge range out there for budgets for boats. Some sailors don't have the high dollar boats. Some sailors spend very little on their hobby. They are not the upper crust of society but the everyday middle class person who loves the water. Despite that I have observed this all over the bay she still won't change her mind about this.

So let's say that there are a lot of people with a similar perception to my wife. They believe that it is a rich man's sport and it is unaffordable.

Then let's add this to the new generation coming up. They want everything right now! Everything is at the touch of an app or the turn of a key. How can you sell sailing to them when it isn't instant. They would rather crank up the engine on a powerboat or jetski because they get there faster. They don't understand it like we do, that the journey is not the destination but getting there.

JK_Boston_Catalina310 · Sep 26, 2013

RobChichester said:
I also miss the "national" part of the competition. If it is ONLY the money that comes from a given country, does that really make the boat that country's representative in the competition.

This event has almost never been a "national" event. In 1899, the best thing that anyone on the Columbia side did was steel Charlie Barr from Sir Thomas Lipton.

And lastly, I am just too disgusted with obscenely rich men arguing in court over the rules of a sport whose rules should be really quite simple. Hoist your sails. Sail your way around the marks before the other guy. Period.

Again, finding ways around the rules has also been a long tradition of the Cup. I think this last Cup was the best attempt yet to setup some decent rules and keep it out of court. I hope he keeps it similar for the next one.

Jesse