RBC Youth Sailing

Skills You Will Take Home From Camp

How to check the weather and tides

How to row

How to read wind direction

How to put on a life jacket in the water

Parts of a Boat and a sail

How to rig a boat

How to read and steer by a compass

How to read a chart

How to anchor

All about tides

How to steer a boat on all points of sail

How to trim sails

How to dock a boat

How to put a boat away and fold sails

All about knots, coiling lines and cleating off boats

How to capsize

Basic rules of the road

How to talk on a marine radio

What to do in an emergency, man overboard, and safety

How to reef a sail

And most Importantly being kind, communicating in a healthy way, and treating each other, equipment and our environment with respect!

Goals & Values

Program Goals:

Safety

Fun while learning

Sailing Oriented  

• Boat handling 

• Respect for Equipment  

• Seamanship 

• Racing Skills  

Values

• Respect for Others  

• Respect for Property  

• Sportsmanship  

• Rules Compliance  

Morning Class Star Chart

While the beloved Star Chart makes the beginner curriculum clear to all morning class Turnabout students, below is an outline of the curriculum goals for the other classes.

Considerations: 

No curriculum fits all students perfectly. Rather, a curriculum must be designed to meet the needs, as closely as it can, of as many students as possible.  

US Sailing trains our Level 1 certified instructors to teach with three forms of communication:  

Beginner to Intermediate JC9

Safety 

  • Follow program and harbor rules  
  • Be safety conscious  
  • Stay protected from the sun and hydrate 
  • Use a safety whistle appropriately  
  • Avoid collisions  
  • Put on and take off a properly fitted PFD  
  • Get in the safety position  
  • Capsize and recover 

Seamanship 

  • Be comfortable in an JC9 on the water  
  • Tie a figure 8-knot, square knot, cleat knot, and bowline  
  • Rig and de-rig  
  • Name the parts of a JC9
  • Know where the wind is coming from  
  • Take care of the boat: proper and neat towing and securing, washing  
  • Steer responsibly on a tow  
  • Stay out of the no-go-zone except when tacking  
  • Recover from irons 
  • Avoid contact with other boats  
  • Use Starboard/Port  
  • Identify points of sail
  • Identify north, south, east, west
  • Use sailing as a way to get somewhere 

Boat Handling 

  • Leave the dock  
  • Return to the dock  
  • Maintain proper body position and weight placement in the boat  
  • Hold the tiller and mainsheet correctly
  • Stay out of the no-go-zone except when tacking  
  • Recover from irons
  • Use telltales for upwind steering     
  • Gybe  
  • Tack  
  • Reach  
  • Run  
  • Sail upwind  

Sportsmanship 

  • Respect others 
  • Respect equipment 
  • View sailing as a team sport  
  • Work in a team during rigging and activities  

Racing 

  • Understand sportsmanship in racing  
  • Use tacking rules  
  • Sail a starting sequence   
  • Round a mark    
  • Finish 

Intermediate JC9

Safety 

In addition to Beginner JC9 skills, an Intermediate JC9 sailor will…

  • Follow towing procedures for multiple JC9s

Seamanship 

In addition to Beginner JC9 skills, an Intermediate JC9 sailor will…

  • Use windward/leeward 
  • Use clear ahead/clear astern    
  • Recognize the approach of puffs and lulls 
  • Explain how a sail works
  • Recognize and sail in currents and tides  
  • Identify simple weather systems  
  • Identify clouds and what they mean   

Boat handling 

In addition to Beginner JC9 skills, an Intermediate JC9 sailor will…

  • Gybe  

• pull in sail and center tiller  

• mechanics  

• rolling  

• gybing in waves  

  • Tack  

• mechanics  

• rolling  

• tacking in the waves  

  • Sail downwind  

• reach  

• run  

• sail trim dictated by where wind is  

• adjusting trim  

• adjusting sail controls  

• body position and placement  

• steering  

• awareness    

• steering by waves  

  • Upwind sailing  

• sail shape and trim  

• close-hauled   

• sailing over waves  

• hiking  

  • Stop and start  

• heading into wind  

• back winding sail   

  • Adjust the daggerboard for different conditions and points of sail 
  • Adjust sail shape 

• outhaul=adjust foot tension and control depth of sail  

• boom vang = downwind leech tension   

• sprit tension = control shape  

• for different weather conditions  

• for different points of sail    

• sail ties  

  • Position body weight  

• challenging the body on the boat  

• steering with weight  

• how body placement and movement affects the boat  

• for different weather conditions  

• for different points of sail  

• quiet and gentle movement 

• Execute a 360  

• Sail backwards  

Sportsmanship 

  • Respect others  
  • Respect equipment  
  • View sailing as a team sport  
  • Work in a team during rigging and activities  

Racing 

  • Organizing his or herself for competition in a regatta  
  • Understand sportsmanship in racing 
  • Sail all standard race courses

 • triangle  

 •modified triangle  

 •modified Olympic  

 •windward/leeward  

 •offset marks  

  • Assess wind on a course 
  • React to wind shifts   
  • Sail through puffs and lulls  
  • Adjust sail controls for different legs  
  • Adjust weight for speed 
  • Find clear air  
  • Apply racing tactics  
  • Start  

• mechanics  

• favored end  

• current  

• line sight  

• strategies & tactics  

• timing   

• rules and things to watch for  

  • Round a mark  

• the mechanics of it  

• wide and tight  

• tactics  

  • Finish   
  • Execute penalty turns 
  • Use rules in racing  
  • Deal with protests  

• knowing the rules  

• knowing who to ask  

• sportsmanship and hearing  

• mock protests and scenarios  

Beginner 420

Safety  

  • Follow program and harbor rules  
  • Stay protected from the sun and hydrate 
  • Be safety conscious
  • Use a safety whistle appropriately  
  • Put on and take off a properly fitted PFD  
  • Avoid collisions  
  • Get in the safety position  
  • Capsize and recover  

Seamanship  

  • Avoid contact  
  • Use windward/leeward  
  • Use Starboard/Port  
  • Be comfortable in a 420 on the water  
  • Tie an 8-knot, square knot, cleat knot, and bowline  
  • Know where the wind is coming from  
  • Name the parts of a 420 
  • Identify points of sail     
  • Rig and de-rig properly each day  
  • Steer responsibly on a tow 
  • Do simple navigation  
  • Identify north, south, east, west  
  • Use sailing as a way to get somewhere  
  • Recognize and address the approach of puffs and lulls   
  • Recognize and react to wind shifts  

• headers  

• lifts  

Boat handling  

  • Leave the dock  
  • Return to the dock  
  • Stay out of the no-go-zone except when tacking  
  • Recover from irons  
  • Maintain proper body position and weight placement in the boat  
  • Hold the tiller and mainsheet correctly  
  • Understand what is required of the different crew positions in a 420 
  • Stop and start  

• heading into wind  

• back winding sail  

• pull in and head off  

  • Gybe  
  • Tack  

• position duties  

• mechanics  

• rolling  

• letting the jib go  

• trimming jib and main  

  • Sail downwind  

• reach  

• run  

• sail trim dictated by where wind is  

• body position and placement  

• steering  

• sail by the lee  

• jib trim  

• main trim  

• skipper and crew’s job  

• centerboard position  

  • Upwind sailing  

• close-hauled  

• steering a straight course… paying attention  

• setting main trim  

• setting jib trim  

• steering by telltales  

• angles  

• hiking   

  • Fly a spinnaker  

• rigging the spinnaker

• hoists and takedowns  

  • Gybing the spinnaker 

Sportsmanship 

  • Respect others  
  • Respect equipment  
  • View sailing as a team sport  
  • Work with a team member in the same boat  
  • Work as a team during rigging and activities 
  • Understand sportsmanship in racing   

Racing 

  • Start  

• mechanics  

• sequence  

• keeping track of time  

• rules  

• clean air  

• favored end  

• first row Find clear air    

  • Round a mark  

• the mechanics of it  

• basic application of Rule 18  

• wide and tight 

  • Execute a 720  
  • Assess wind on a course 
  • Act on puffs and lulls  

• tack on headers  

• stay on lifts  

Use rules in racing 

Adjust weight for speed  

Advanced 420

In addition to the skills learned in Beginner/Intermediate 420’s, Advanced 420 sailors will…

Safety  

  • Follow program and harbor rules  
  • Stay protected from the sun  
  • Be safety conscious (Rule 1)  
  • Use a safety whistle appropriately  
  • Put on and take off a PFD in the water  
  • Avoid collisions  
  • Get in the safety position  
  • Capsize and recover  

Seamanship  

  • Avoid contact 
  • Use windward/leeward   
  • Use Starboard/Port  
  • Use clear ahead/clear astern   
  • Use changing course rules 
  • Be comfortable in a 420 on the water  
  • Tie an 8-knot, square knot, cleat knot, and bowline  
  • Identify points of sail  
  • Name the parts of a 420 
  • Relate the 420 to a larger boat  
  • Know where the wind is coming from  
  • Explain actual vs. apparent wind  
  • Recognize the approach of puffs and lulls  

• how to spot  

• what to do  

  • Recognize and react to wind shifts  

• headers  

• lifts