If you are not quite ready for advanced sailing classes and want to learn what its like to live on a sailboat in calm and protected waters come Sailing with Captain Margie and I in the Florida Keys. In any case don’t wait to start cruising, it’s a lifestyle that can’t be beat!

Sailing Cruising Consultants

1. Listen when she speaks- when Margie hears a sound thats different, wants to reef the sails or just doesn’t like the way something is going, I find after my instinctual  response (what do you know), that she is/was right.

2. Don’t lay the boat over on its side (heeling more than about 10 degrees).  The boat will make less leeway and go faster this way as a bonus.

3. Take your time, explain whats happening, enjoy the serenity of sailing. If you are in a hurry get a boat with 3-300hp outboards.

4. Know what the weather is, the boat can probably handle much more weather than you want to be out in. Know and teach her how to make the boat safe when the wind and weather picks up.

5.  Show her where the safety equipment is, the basics of how to use it, and what to do when you fall overboard. If you have been nice maybe she will come back to pick you up!

6. Teach her about navigation, charts, and markers. When you know where you are going you feel much more in control of your environment.

7. Give her the helm, when she gets comfortable go make lunch for her.

8. Sailing is all about where is the wind coming from. Make sure she knows this first. Then you can teach how to set the sails.

9. When you do something stupid don’t lash out at her. Yelling is a sign that YOU do not know what you are doing.

10. I just asked Margie for some input, she suggested that if the above does not work you might try just lying about how great it will be. I guess that means I must have made some of the mistakes above in the past!

Island Dreamer sailing on a close reach

Margie and I have spent the last few days sailing the backcountry of the Florida Keys on our journey  to Key West to pick up our next couples sailing charter. I am reminded once again how pleasant it is to sail along at 6 knots in 15 knots of wind and still have calm seas and not have the boat heeled over to the rails.  The combination of having the sails reefed and set properly and the protection of the many small islands and shallow water makes it easy to relax and enjoy gliding through the water.

We are looking forward to spending some time before our charter with our friends Captain Holley and Captain Denny who own the Schooner Conch Pearl. They do Liveaboard sailing scuba trips based out of Key West. We got to be good friends when Margie and I were running the Schooner Heritage of Miami for the Boy Scouts High Adventure Seabase and our days off coincided two summers ago.  Because they have a compressor on board to fill their Scuba tanks they are able to dive locations that diving day trip boats don’t go to in the Florida Keys Marine Sanctuary.