With the Christmas holidays over and winter tourist season here, the St. Thomas Yacht Club welcomed the public on a Sunday afternoon for free sailing lessons.
Organizers called their January Open House part of their annual membership drive. But one board member called the afternoon outing a chance to spark interest among those who have never sailed before.
About 90 people signed up on Sunday for their learn-to-sail opportunity. In groups of four, they made their way down the finger piers outside the clubhouse in Estate Nazareth. Club members took turns taking groups out into Cowpet Bay, where visitors took turns learning how to steer their vessel through slightly choppy waters and 12-knot winds.
Commodore Chris Rosenberg explained the principles of sailing to novice crew out on the bay. First came vocabulary — the main sail, the jib, the main sheet, rudder, and tiller.
… and the boom, a metal bar that holds the bottom of the mainsail and swings from port to starboard — whichever way the wind blows. Over the span of one-half hour, each visitor took a hand at the tiller.
Rosenberg told his students when to push and pull the wooden bar and gave them an object to steer towards — a cay in the distance, the green roof of a house along the shore. Student Bob McCann, vacationing on St. Thomas from Minnesota, took a turn at the boom, offering resistance as the wind shoved the bar back towards his face.
“Push, no, push harder,” the commodore said. The vessel coasted in and slipped along the dock. McCann said his stop at the Yacht Club was part of his annual winter stay on St. Thomas, and learning to sail was something he’d been wanting to try.
Yacht Club and Sailing Center board member Laura Martin said Sunday’s event was intended “to introduce people in the community to what programs are available here. There’s a broad range; if you don’t sail there’s Learn to Sail that you can do as an adult or as a youth.”
“If you do sail, you can come in and sign up for a membership and boat access and then have an opportunity to take out one of the 24-foot boats or the Hobies. The larger boat is currently on a waitlist; you can take that out if you have membership,” Martin said.
She also described another list of courses offered by the yacht club, possibly leading those interested students to gain skills that might one day allow them to rent and sail their own boats around the island.
Rosenberg said he enjoyed having a chance to share his love of sailing with others. “It was a joy to take community members out for a sail in Cowpet Bay this afternoon. We had great winds and let everyone take a turn to drive if they’d like, under the supervision of our professional team at the St. Thomas Sailing Center. Sailing is a sport to enjoy at virtually any age, and we saw that today with kids and adults alike.”
For those who’d like to find out more, the St. Thomas Yacht Club plans to hold its next open house on May 12.
