1. I learned to sail on a small boat (beach cat). That, in combination with being a person who learns easily from books, made for a pretty steep curve. I think as an engineer that sail trim, rigging, balance, and leeway were all pretty obvious, though learning the nuances takes a lifetime. I'm still learning.
2. The hard part. For me, that was learning that blocked practice of things you don't do often, like docking or reefing, is required. You can learn to do them just sailing, but learning to do them WELL and RIGHT is best learned by taking yourself to school for a few days. Just repeat and repeat, focusing not on getting it right, but on understanding the problem. Then you'll get it right. Just ignore the people that are watching.
3. Finally, there is continuing education. You get a new boat and everything changes. I like that. It makes you dig up those fundamentals again.
2. The hard part. For me, that was learning that blocked practice of things you don't do often, like docking or reefing, is required. You can learn to do them just sailing, but learning to do them WELL and RIGHT is best learned by taking yourself to school for a few days. Just repeat and repeat, focusing not on getting it right, but on understanding the problem. Then you'll get it right. Just ignore the people that are watching.
3. Finally, there is continuing education. You get a new boat and everything changes. I like that. It makes you dig up those fundamentals again.