Why Sailor's need more education than
Power boaters - or do they?
By Wayne Spivak, ADSO-CS 1SR
United States Coast Guard Auxiliary

Let's face the facts. To pilot a power boat, all you need to do is put it in gear and steer. But to properly pilot a sail boat, it takes a far greater amount of skill, training and education.

Navigation, weather, sail trim, currents and their set and drift, are all elements that make sailing what it is, a great great historical and traditional pastime. But, it takes training, education and practice.

At least, that's what we've been led to believe for years. To be a Sailor, you need to be a better sailor, than a Power Boater. Everyone knows this, so it must be the case. But is it really the case?

Granted, there are more tangibles involved with sailing. Again, you have wind, current, sail, trim, and tacking. But a power boat also has wind, current, sail to some degree, and trim. Navigation for a sailor is more complex, only because a sailboat tacks.

What's tacking and why do it? Sailboats can't sail directly into the wind, so they need to take routes that are at least 45º off the direction of the wind. This causes the sailboat to take one or more legs to reach a waypoint, should that waypoint be to windward. As we all know, the closest route between two points is a straight line (except when the distances are large, then great circles are shorter, but that's another story).

Since a sailboat many times needs to tack, they are actually traveling farther then a power boater who just has to deal with set and drift. Set and drift refer to the direction and speed of a current. Typically it used to refer only to the water current, but wind plays an important part in determining set and drift. In fact this is a major factor when the Coast Guard is performing a Search and Rescue mission and trying to locate a lost vessel based on sketchy or old information, as to the last known position.

If you're a new boater or sailor and you realize that you didn't really understand many of the terms that have been used (and or defined), maybe you should consider under-taking some boating education. Boating is fun, sailing is fun, but they do require more information than just jumping behind the wheel or tiller and starting an engine.

Boating and sailing can also be dangerous, since they are a sport which relies on Mother Nature. The seas can be affected by weather patterns hundred's of miles away. The weather can change dramatically in just a few minutes. Coast lines, shoals, rocks, submerge objects can take a leisurely afternoon and turn it into either a 6 to 12 hour wait or even worse, if you happen to hit bottom (called grounding).

In the final analysis, all boaters, regardless of whether you pilot a personal watercraft (PWC), a skiff, a row boat, a cabin cruiser or a sail boat, need to understand and appreciate what boating/sailing is all about.

The Coast Guard Auxiliary has been providing public boating and navigation courses for sixty-three (63) years. We provide basic boating safety courses, basic and advanced navigation courses, as well as a on-the-water program where you can put into practice some of the information you've learned with trained members of the Coast Guard Auxiliary.

To find out more information, and to locate a course near you, contact either your local Coast Guard Station or visit the Auxiliary on the web at http://www.cgaux.org.