GENERAL INFO
Cal Sailing is a non-profit cooperative that owns and operates a fleet of about 23 sailboats from 14 to 26 feet in length, and about 50 sailboards including novice and advanced designs. Located on the south side of the Berkeley Marina, CSC's major activity is teaching sailing and boating safety to its members. The boats are also available to members for recreational sailing, cruising, and racing.
All activities are free to members -- there are no charges for lessons, cruises, or boat and sailboard use beyond the quarterly membership fee. Qualified members can bring non-member friends out sailing as their guests.
Membership is open to the public. The Club is open all year, from noon to sunset on weekdays and from 9:00 AM to sunset on weekends. Instruction, maintenance, and administration are all done by volunteer members.
Minors (under 17) may join by obtaining special permission from the CSC Executive Committee. Children between five and fourteen years old may take lessons, but cannot receive ratings until the age of sixteen (fourteen for windsurfing). Children younger than five are not permitted in CSC boats under any circumstances. Swimming ability is not required. Club-provided life jackets are worn at all times, except under some conditions while windsurfing.
The Cal Sailing Club is not part of the University of California. The U.C. Aquatic Center, which occupies the site immediately to the east of CSC, is a separate facility run by Cal Adventures and the University of California.
Open Houses are scheduled to coincide with high tides in our home waters--the South Sailing Basin--and community events held in the Berkeley Marina. Club members volunteer to provide free sailboat rides to the general public and there is no obligation to join. This is a great way for anyone to discover the joy of sailing and learn about CSC. Swimming ability is not required, but be sure to let your skipper know if you are a non-swimmer. Children must be at least five years old and accompanied by a parent or guardian. Arrive between 1:00 PM and 4:00 PM, wear warm, waterproof clothing, and bring a change of clothes in case you get wet!
The fee for a three-month membership is $50 ($45 for students and senior citizens). Annual membership is available for $175 ($150 for students). The membership fee covers unlimited lessons and unlimited boat or sailboard use. There is no other monetary charge for any Club service, but there is a two-hour work requirement every three months for all active regular members. Most of the CSC's active members find that they enjoy participating in various activities to the extent that they donate many more hours of their time. The nature of your work contribution is almost entirely up to you. The Club always needs people to be instructors, to help with (and learn) boat maintenance, and to assist with administration and publicity jobs.
Membership sign-ups are handled our at clubhouse during our normal club operating hours. Payment must be cash or check. Credits cards are not accepted.
Annual memberships payments by check only may be mailed to:
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Treasurer Cal Sailing Club 124 University Ave. Berkeley, CA 94710 |
Please allow 3-4 weeks for payment by mail.
Racing Associate Memberships
Low cost membership in the Cal Sailing Club provides eligibility to race in YRA and SBRA events. Please contact Hester Burn-Callander at (415) 388-5116 for more information.
Sailing Lessons for beginners are given on Monday and Thursday afternoons, and on Saturday mornings. To take a sailing lesson, members arrive at the Club anytime between 1:00 PM and 4:00 PM on Monday and Thursday (between 1:00 PM and 6:00 PM when Daylight Savings Time is in effect), or between 9:00 AM and 1:00 PM on Saturday.
A lesson takes about an hour, with one instructor and up to three students in the boat. There is no charge for lessons, and no limit to the number of lessons that can be taken. People with no previous sailing experience will usually require about 10 to 15 lessons before they are able to pass the sailing test which will enable them to take out the boats by themselves, and bring non-members out as guests.
Life jackets are provided, but note that protective clothing is not. Rain gear or foul weather gear is recommended, especially for afternoon lessons during summer months when winds are strong. Most CSC members has learned that it is a good idea to keep a change of clothing in the car!
Instruction on the larger keelboats is available to advanced students on Wednesday evenings beginning at about 6:00 PM and ending about 9:00 P.M.
Windsurfing Lessons are usually given on Saturday mornings and occasionally on Sunday afternoons. Novice windsurfers can also practice on their own anytime the Club is open, after completion of written and rigging tests and a self-rescue exercise. Wetsuits are not provided, but are highly recommended.
CSC Hint! Be proactive: ask a skipper or windsurfer to schedule a lesson with you. Most members are happy to give lessons on the spot, or even schedule to meet members at some arranged time for a lesson.
See also the lesson section of The CSC Calendar
Cruises. Scheduled day cruises in the 22-foot and 26-foot boats leave the Berkeley Marina on most weekends for destinations such as Angel Island, Sausalito, Pier 39 in San Francisco, the Oakland Estuary, and Point San Pablo. Any member can sign up in advance to be part of the crew, and can also sign up one non-member as a guest. No CSC rating or lessons are required to participate in a cruise. Cruising Skippers can also arrange to use the boats for private cruises.
Racing. Small boat races are held every Sunday morning from 9:30 AM to 1:00 PM. Any member or guest can crew, but only members with a Junior Skipper rating or higher who have passed the Racing Rules Test can skipper. On many Sunday mornings there is a shortage of crew, and new members are encouraged to participate (although racing can be a very intense introduction for the beginner!).
The Club's larger boats are frequently entered in races on the Bay. During the summer months, CSC also cosponsors a weekly racing series with the Berkeley Yacht Club, and crew positions are readily available. When Daylight Savings Time is in effect, there is a race almost every Friday night. A number of members also own their own racing yachts, and there is usually a demand for crew at all experience levels. Some CSC members have even found crew spots on boats sailing to Mexico, Hawaii, and the South Pacific as an indirect result of their involvement in the Club.
The CSC sailboat fleet as of November 1996 consists of eight 14-foot Lido's (used for basic instruction, racing, and recreational sailing); two Rhodes 19's (larger, drier, and greater capacity than the Lido); four Lasers and two Bytes (high performance single-handed dinghies); and one 470 and one JY-15 (very high performance dinghies). The keelboat fleet consists of three 22-foot Pearson Ensigns and two 26-foot Pearson Commanders, berthed in the Berkeley Marina.
We have over 50 sailboards, including Bic and Hifly longboards for Novice Windsurfers, and long and short boards by Bic, Mistral, Fanatic, Hifly and others for more advanced windsurfers, along with a large assortment of RAF and camber-induced sails.
San Francisco Bay is a challenging and exciting place to sail. It is well known for strong wind, big waves, and cold water! Although the CSC dock is partially protected, most of the sailing area is exposed to the full force of the Bay's wind and waves. Sailing in these conditions requires considerable skill and experience, and as a result the tests which must be passed to achieve various qualification ratings in CSC are quite rigorous compared with those of most other sailing programs. The major features of the rating system are outlined to the left under "Sailboat Rating System" and below under "Windsurfer Rating System."
Sailboat Rating System
The Junior Skipper Rating is the rating held by the majority of active CSC members. This rating allows a member to sail most of the smaller boats in the daysailing area between Berkeley and Emeryville. Jr. Skippers can bring non-members out sailing as guests, and can also earn credits towards free memberships by teaching lessons.
The Jr. Skipper rating is obtained by passing three tests: a written test covering terminology, basic sailing skills, and CSC rules (all covered in the CSC handbooks); a rigging test demonstrating ability to properly rig and launch a CSC boat; and a practical sailing test demonstrating skill and ability in boat handling. The sailing test requires at least ten knots of wind, and includes a capsize. Members must also contribute a minimum of two hours of work to the Club, in addition to the normal two hour quarterly work requirement, before the sailing test can be given.
More advanced ratings are earned by members who demonstrate an extremely high level of sailing skill. The Senior Skipper rating allows members to sail any of the CSC sailboat fleet, including the larger keelboats, within an area extending out into the Bay along the Berkeley Pier, and, for keelboats only, within a much greater area ranging from Emeryville to Richmond. The Cruising Skipper rating allows members to sail the Club keelboats anywhere within the entire San Francisco Bay and Delta system. These ratings are obtained by passing advanced written and sailing tests, and (for the Sr. Skipper rating only) contributing ten additional hours of work. Sr. and Cr. Skippers are expected to take a leadership role within the Club in return for these privileges.
Because all CSC instructors are volunteers, the beginner is often exposed to teaching methods that vary from one lesson to the next. Some students find that this impedes their progress, while others appreciate the exposure to a wide variety of techniques. Once the Junior Skipper rating is achieved, members are encouraged to begin giving lessons themselves -- and teaching is by far the fastest way to become a highly proficient sailor. Experienced CSC members are widely recognized as among the best sailors on the Bay.
Another reason for CSC's low-cost program is that members are expected to contribute some time and energy. The minimum contribution is two hours of work per three-month membership period. Involvement in work projects not only enhances the social aspects of the Club, but gives members the opportunity to acquire specialized skills in all aspects of boat maintenance and repair.
Windsurfer Rating System
The Novice Windsurfer Rating allows members to sail the CSC sailboards in a small practice area. Novice Windsurfers can practice any time the Club is open without waiting for an instructor. The Novice Windsurfer rating is obtained by passing a written test covering sailboard terminology, basic windsurfing concepts, and CSC rules and procedures (all covered in the CSC handbooks); a rigging test demonstrating competence in rigging and handling the equipment; and a self-rescue (paddling) test. There is no work requirement at this level.
The Junior Windsurfer Rating allows members to sail the CSC sailboards in the daysailing area between Berkeley and Emeryville. The Jr. Windsurfer rating is obtained by passing a practical sailing test demonstrating skill and ability in sailboard handling. The sailing test requires at least ten knots of wind. Members must also contribute a minimum of two hours of work to the Club, in addition to the normal two hour quarterly work requirement, before the sailing test can be given.
More advanced ratings are earned by members who demonstrate a high level of windsurfing skill. The Junior Plus Windsurfer rating allows members to use camber-induced sails and high-performance Junior boards. The Senior Windsurfer Rating represents an extremely high skill level, and allows members to use any of the CSC-owned sails and boards, and extends the sailing area out into the Bay along the Berkeley Pier. These ratings are obtained by passing advanced written, rigging and sailing tests, and contributing additional work ( 2 hours for the Junior Plus rating, and 10 hours for the Senior rating).
YRA Racing Boat owners who need a yacht club affiliation for YRA or SBRA racing can join as Associate Racing Members for $75 per year. CSC is a member of the YRA and the SBRA.
Associate Racing Membership sign-ups are only done on-site at the Cal Sailing Club and payment must be by cash or check. We do not accept credit cards.
Community Service In addition to providing the public low-cost membership and free Open House rides, CSC often makes one of its larger boats, along with a qualified skipper, available for use by local community organizations. Schools, youth groups, or senior centers interested in arranging a sailing trip on the Bay should contact the Club. There is no cost to the organization Weekday mornings during summer months usually provide the best sailing experiences.
Windsurfer Storage Lockers Cal Sailing Club maintains a total of 45 storage lockers on the premises for windsurfing boards and sails. Associate membership in the Club, for a fee of $225 per year, is available to the general public and entitles the Associate Member to store personal windsurfing equipment in an assigned storage locker anytime throughout the year. This allows immediate access to one of the most popular windsurfing areas in the Bay.
Tax Status The Cal Sailing Club, as a non-profit educational organization, is tax exempt under the Internal Revenue Code Section 501(c)(3) Donations of boats, sails, and other equipment can be extremely valuable to the Club, and donors can sometimes recover substantial tax savings.
The Cal Sailing Club's programs are designed to provide minimum cost access to educational and recreational sailing facilities. The cost of participating is far below the cost of taking lessons or renting boats from a commercial sailing school. We are able to operate at such a low cost primarily because all the instruction, maintenance, and administration is performed by unpaid volunteer members. (The only exception is the "Dayleader", a work-study student assigned to CSC who is paid jointly by the Club and the federal work-study program. If you are a student with a work-study grant and an interest in sailing, you should talk to us about working as a Dayleader. Contact the Port Captain for employment opportunities.
The Cal Sailing Club also replaces its equipment at less frequent intervals than commercial operations. The boats are strong, safe, and functional, but will not win any beauty contests.
