JibeTalk

Will You Be a New Sailing Instructor in 2015?

Will you be a new sailing instructor in 2015? Winter is still holding on, yet it is important to start making plans for your training as required by JSA of LIS member programs.

US Sailing Smallboat Level 1 Instructor courses on the early spring calendar are great opportunities for new instructors to get a jump on their certifications. Getting certified now will alleviate stress from end-of-school-year calendar conflicts and avoid the problem of sold-out courses in May and June. Here are two upcoming courses in the western Long Island Sound region:

    - March 30-April 2: the American Yacht Club, Rye NY, Level 1 course runs concurrently with Westchester and Fairfield county school spring break.

    - April 6-9: The WaterFront Center, Oyster Bay NY, Level 1 course runs concurrently with Long Island public school spring break.

    To register, go to http://www.ussailing.org/education/training-courses, select “Smallboat Instructor” and browse by date to find these courses. Both courses require drysuits.

Full details about other training required by JSA of LIS member programs may be found at http://bit.ly/1BMU3fm, including the upcoming Safe Powerboat Handling courses available in the western Long Island Sound region on April 11-12 at SUNY Maritime and also at Pequot YC.

And view this short video to get psyched for your Level 1 course!

 

 

Learn Something New during Coffee Break at JSA of LIS Meeting

Another benefit of coming to the JSA of LIS Midwinter Meeting this Saturday morning March 7 at Larchmont Yacht Club is the people you rub shoulders with as you grab a coffee or pastry during breaks, or find yourself sitting next to during the open discussion following the featured sessions.

Some of these folks could themselves be presenters at the front of the room, yet choose to come to our JSA meetings because they are willing to share their knowledge with people they meet and they believe there is always something to learn from gatherings of like minded people. 

- Paul Risseeuw is one such person who will be in the audience. In the current edition of WindCheck, Paul’s letter to the editor reads, “…a recurring theme at many of the sessions at the National Sailing Programs Symposium was how to keep junior sailors and women involved in sailing. The vast majority of the juniors enrolled in our programs, it turns out, are not interested in competitive sailing and we need to find other paths to keep them engaged and involved in our sport. Ideas such as Adventure Sailing, STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Math), destination sailing, windsurfing, stand-up-paddleboarding, and kayaking are all ways to keep juniors and women interested.”   Paul is junior sailing chair and past commodore of the Eastern Connecticut Sailing Association. He also manages the summer sailing school and safe powerboat training at the Pettipaug Yacht Club in Essex CT. 

- Alicia Martorella is another who has attended many JSA meetings, and has herself presented to JSA audiences. Alicia was recently named Outstanding Community Sailing Director by US Sailing for her notable contributions to promote public access sailing in the development and organization of a sailing program. From junior summer programs to racing to captained cruises to thirty-two hours of basic keelboat practical training, she has sculpted sailing courses that suit every level of interest. Alicia is Sailing Director at The Waterfront Center, Oyster Bay NY, and previously managed the junior program at Seawanhaka Corinthian Yacht Club.

- Marilyn Shapiro is attending her first JSA meeting and recently accepted the Creative Innovations in Programming award from US Sailing on behalf of The Young Mariners Foundation, Stamford CT. Marilyn is executive director at Young Mariners, which was recognized as a program that has successfully found new and different methods for teaching sailing.  At the National Sailing Programs Symposium she conducted a discussion about what metrics can mean to sailing programs utilizing the REACH Curriculum for STEM education for Middle Schools.

The JSA Midwinter Meeting is free to all who register in advance for the Saturday morning meeting 0830 - 1230. After the meeting, share ideas with neighboring program leaders during optional lunch. You may register the representatives from your club’s junior program at this link.

 

Brad Read Speaking at the JSA of LIS Midwinter Meeting

JSA of LIS welcomes Brad Read to its Midwinter Meeting at Larchmont Yacht Club on Saturday March 7.

“Linking Inspiration to Aspirations - the Volvo Ocean Race 2015” will be a featured presentation by Brad, executive director at Sail Newport and director of the Volvo Ocean Race Newport Stopover.

Brad’s keynote will feature the online educational tools sailing programs may access to get their junior sailors involved in the Race. Brad will also present a highlight of the Race, detail the plans for the Newport Stopover May 5-17, and provide junior programs with the tools to connect STEM and sailing through the Race.

Brad was the leader of the Rhode Island team that created and won the city and state bid for the Volvo Ocean Race to come to Newport. The event marks the global race’s only North American stop. Visitors to the stopover will have many unique opportunities to see the high performance Volvo Ocean Race 65s up close at the Sail Newport docks and to watch the practice, Pro-Am, In-Port Races and Leg Start within yards of the shoreline. In addition, admission to the Race Village will be free for all ages to see up close the working boatyard, sail loft, team pavilions, Volvo exhibits, and the Exploration Zone - a family friendly interactive marine education program.

Brad has been at the helm of Sail Newport since 1998 and has led the community sailing center to its current standing with a nationally recognized sail education program and status as a world class regatta management organization. He has been a sailor since his youth and is a nine-time world champion in several one-design and off-shore classes. He began his sailing career in Barrington and went on to sail for Boston University where he was named an All-American for three years at Boston University. He was the 1986 College Sailor of the Year. Currently Brad sails all over the world as a tactician in many distance race and one-design regattas.

The JSA Midwinter Meeting is free to all who register in advance for the Saturday morning meeting 0830 - 1230. After the meeting, share ideas with neighboring program leaders during optional lunch. You may register the representatives from your club’s junior program at this link.

 

Nevin Sayre Speaking at the JSA of LIS Midwinter Meeting

JSA of LIS welcomes Nevin Sayre to its Midwinter Meeting at Larchmont Yacht Club on Saturday March 7.

Nevin will describe alternative program curriculum ideas that encourage on water activity, beyond the race course.

Nevin currently serves on the Junior Sailing Committee at the Vineyard Haven Yacht Club, and has been a long-time proponent of Youth Programs. He has partnered with BIC Sport which is the producer of the Techno 293, the world-recognized one design windsurfer for youth, as well as the O’Pen BIC, a modern dinghy for kids. Nevin has played a key role in developing the O’Pen BIC concept and pioneered the “Un-Regatta” event concept that focuses more on fun than results. Nevin attributes his success with Junior Programs by closely evaluating what has worked and what hasn't with his own kids and their peers.

Nevin is a life long sailor from Martha’s Vineyard, MA. He grew up sailing dinghies and local keelboats, and became the first four-time College Sailing All-American. After graduating from Tufts University, he jumped on the Professional Windsurfing circuit at the peak of windsurfing’s heyday and prize money. He climbed up the rankings to number two in the world. During his career as a professional windsurfer, he became the founding chairman of the highly successful Professional Windsurfing Association.

During the meeting on March 7, Nevin will describe the need for alternatives to keep all juniors excited about sailing, and go through ideas that are proven successful. Those successful programs have seen their drop out rates decline.

Attendees at the meeting will go home thinking outside the box, and excited to offer more variety for those not necessarily at the top of the racing pyramid.

The Midwinter Meeting is free to all who register in advance for the Saturday morning meeting 0830 - 1230. After the meeting, share ideas with neighboring program leaders during optional lunch. You may register the representatives from your club’s junior program at this link.