Lots of Opportunity
Steve, You sound like me two years ago. I took the ASA classes 101,103,& 104 from Kieth Binnersley of Upper Bay Sailing School. He recently received the ASA Instructor of The Year award. It was a week long (7 consecutive days) class out of Wortons Creek which is near Chestertown on the Eastern Shore of the Chesapeake. Cost was $1100 for all three classes and materials. You can live aboard one of his two boats, a 1985 Beneteau First 35 and a 1998 Beneteau 38. Both very nice boats. The first two classes involve day sails of about eight hours. Each evening you come back to the dock and Keith goes home and leaves you with the boat. The last class is a three day, two night sail. We left the dock in a storm with sustained winds of about 22-23 knots. We sailed to the Inner Harbor under jib alone in about four foot seas averaging 7-8 knots. Spent the first night tied up at the Inner Harbor. The next day we sailed to Rock Hall and spent thenight on the hook. It was a blast for a new sailor like me. Those three classes were very valuable to me as a new sailor. I still refer to my texts all the time. Another way I've gotten out to sail is by using the internet. At least once every other week I get a request to crew on someones boat. In the last eighteen months I've sailed twice in the Florida Keys, flew to the Bahamas to sail a boat back to the Chesapake, had another trip scheduled to crew on a boat to sail from the Keys to the Bahamas that I got right here on this web site, and in November I'm sailing in the Carib 1500 from Norfolk to the BVI on a Saga 43. I've turned down numerous offers as well. Best part is that to crew all you pay is your own transporation to get to the boat and back home once you're done. SPINSHEET magazine has crew listngs online. I think you can find them at www.spinsheet.com. That's where the majority of the hits come from. Also do a search on the internet for things like "saling crew needed". There's lots of opportunity if you just look for it. Many of the captains don't mind if your knowledge is minimal as long as you're willing to work hard and take orders when nesseccary. Good luck. Joe
