GENERAL INFO
Instructional Guidelines
for
Teaching in Lido 14's
Phase I - Getting Started; Points of Sail
A. GENERAL PROCEDURES
The following general procedures should be followed each lesson, regardless of the phase:
1. Sign out students. Check the lesson sign-up sheet, and round up the next three students on the list. Put your name on the skipper list, writing down the required information, including boat and sail number next to each student going with you. This helps the Dayleader know where people are, and students and other instructors figure out who's next in line. Sign back in when your lesson is complete.
2. Talk to your students. All students need instruction and feedback on their performance. Don't just sit there and expect them to learn on their own. Ask students about their sailing experience. Explain the requirements for a Junior Skipper rating. Be friendly and supportive.
3. Don't keep students waiting. Less than three students per boat is preferable if there are plenty of instructors, but the main thing is to prevent students from waiting around when they can be on the water getting instruction. You should therefore always take the maximum number of students if there are people waiting for lessons, unless wind conditions are so gusty as to make a smaller number safer. Keep the lesson limited to about an hour (i.e., about 20 minutes per student).
4. Be flexible. Other instructors will vary in their teaching techniques and sailing methods (particularly with regard to looking fore or aft when tacking and jibing). Do not confuse students by insisting on using a method different from what they have been previously taught -- instead, familiarize yourself with the different techniques in order to assist the student in perfecting the one particular method they are comfortable with.
5. Reefing. Reef the mainsail when winds are even slightly strong, unless all students are advanced. It does no good for inexperienced students to be distracted by their fear of capsizing.
B. AT THE DOCK
1. Define basic terms. Point out the mainsail, jib, sheets, and tiller. Either at the dock or while underway, define heading up, falling off, close reach, beam reach, broad reach, close-hauled, and running. Encourage beginning students to thoroughly study the blue CSC manual.
2. Ask students if they can swim. You should know what students may need special assistance in a capsize. All students and instructors must wear life jackets. It may seem obvious, but remind students to stay with the boat if it capsizes.
3. Boarding the boat. Explain how to get into the boat -- i.e., walk down the centerline of the boat, holding onto the forestay, mast, etc., and be sure that people already in the boat do not all sit on the same side of the boat.
4. Seating position. With three students, it's usually best to place one student on each side in front, with you sitting next to the student at the helm or straddling the centerboard case, ready to grab the mainsheet and/or tiller if necessary.
C. USE OF TILLER AND MAINSHEET
1. Leaving the dock. Let the most experienced student (or yourself if all beginners) take the helm leaving the dock. This is usually too complex for a basic beginner, and could result in crashing into other boats or the dock.
2. Initial course. Have the beginning student initially sail on a beam reach, with you controlling the main sheet. All Phase I lessons should be started on a beam reach.
a) Tiller use. First explain how to hold and move the tiller. The student should sit forward of the tiller, with the hand closest to the stern on top of the tiller. You should control the mainsheet at this time. Explain that when you say "head up" you mean turning the bow into the wind (accomplished by moving the tiller toward the sails); "fall off" means to turn the bow away from the wind (accomplished by moving the tiller away from the sails).
b) Using tiller and mainsheet. Once the student is comfortable steering the boat, teach the student to control both the tiller and the mainsheet. This can be very confusing for some students, since they must concentrate on two separate tasks simultaneously, and in strong winds you must be prepared to release the mainsheet if a capsize seems imminent. Do not let a beginner use the hiking stick; this should be used by experienced students only.
c) Weight distribution. Explain how to distribute weight to correct the heel of the boat.
d) Preventing a capsize. Explain three methods to prevent capsizes: releasing mainsheet, heading up, and/or hiking out. Emphasize that releasing the mainsheet is the most effective method for a beginning student to handle a large puff of wind. Heading up and hiking out are more efficient when the students become more experienced.
D. POINTS OF SAIL
1. Practice sailing different reaches. Have the student steer the boat through the various points of sail. In explaining the various points of sail, describe the relationship between the position of the sails and the course the boat is sailing. Note the major difference between the use of sails when sailing a close reach or beam reach (sails act as airfoils -- telltales on jib stream straight back; mainsheet is let out until mainsail luffs, then pulled in until the mainsail just stops luffing), and the use of sails when sailing a broad reach or running (sails act like parachutes - jib sheet is let out until jib just starts luffing; mainsheet is let out all the way, or until boom is close to but not touching the shroud).
2. Keep sails full. Note that regardless of the heading the sails should be kept as full as possible without luffing. There is an exception -- the mainsail may have a luff in it when beating (sailing close-hauled), particularly in heavy winds (i.e., a "fisherman's reef" -- having the mainsail out enough so that excessive heel is reduced). The jib should generally be kept sheeted down when beating. If you find that you continually need to carry a "fisherman's reef", you should reef the mainsail to minimize damage, reduce the risk of capsizing, and calm nervous students.
3. Running. Discuss the danger of accidental jibes. If you teach jibing while looking toward the stern, the student should be facing that direction at least half the time while running, so that s/he begins to have some conception of the direction from which the wind is coming. This will make it easier for the student to jibe.
4. Tacking. Unless the student is a quick learner or you are able to give a long lesson, you should delay teaching how to tack for their next lesson. If a course change is required to keep the boat within the sailing area, you could just have the student steer the boat through a tack (tell them what point on the shore to steer to) while you handle the mainsheet.
On to "Phase II, Leaving the Dock; Tacking and Heaving To"...
