By Captain Ray
Published: May, 2011
It’s easy to recognize that some vessels plying the waters of San Francisco Bay are work boats. Tugs and barges transport bulk cargos—fuel, gravel, fill, and dredging spoils—cheaply. Tankers arrive almost daily with crude oil for our refineries. Tour boats carry visitors on narrated historical and scenic tours. Ferries shuttle commuters in and out of San Francisco, and carry fans to see world-champion Giants games at AT&T Park. Crabbing and fishing boats provide our food. Container ships and freighters bring us an endless supply of manufactured goods from all over the world. Our exports—commodities as diverse as scrap steel and the agricultural products of the Central Valley—reach the rest of the world on these same ships. That these are working vessels is obvious; others, not so much.
It may seem like sailboats are always out on the Bay, using its wonderfully consistent wind. I’ll bet you’ve had thoughts like, “That sure looks like fun, but I don’t know how to sail or even know anyone who has a sailboat!” or, “Those lucky folks, out playing while I’m off to work!” Well, it may not look like it, but some of those sailboats are hard at work.
Sailing is both remarkably simple and surprisingly complex. And while it is possible to learn sailing without any professional guidance or instruction, it is often an ineffective, expensive and potentially dangerous way to go.
People who sail their own boats are frequently looking for crew and are willing to teach you what they know in exchange for your labor. The price is right—free—but you often get what you pay for. Most yacht clubs host races and there are always boats looking for crew on race day. All you need to do is show up and ask around. You won’t find a spot on the best boats—one of the reasons they are the best boats is because they have regular crew—but it will get you out on the water with someone who has some experience. However, the best place for a novice to learn may not be in the midst of spirited competition, and the “instruction” you may get in these settings is likely to be limited.
There are better methods. For the adolescent and pre-teen set, many yacht clubs offer juniors programs. I often see groups of dinghies in the Oakland Estuary, off the St. Francis Yacht Club, and just outside the entrance to the Richmond Harbor, sailing in controlled chaos with very young people at the helm. In the midst of the disorder, instructors (often certified by the United States Sailing Association) offer basic sailing skills. The courses usually finish with a series of supervised races. This can be a great summer adventure for youngsters.
For us adults, there are commercial sailing schools. In the interest of full disclosure, I work as an instructor for one of them here on the Bay. Additionally, in my capacity as an Instructor Trainer for the United States Sailing Association, I visit many sailing schools around the country. What I see is a fairly uniform pattern: Adult training begins on larger boats, typically about 25 feet long. As student skills increase, so does boat size—up to about 50 feet in length. These boats, with accommodations for living aboard, are used to teach not only the skills necessary to handle larger boats, but also to prepare graduates for chartering abroad in exotic locales such as Greece, Tonga and the Caribbean Islands.
Even though the days of Captain Jack Aubrey and tall ships are behind us, some of the sailboats you see out there on the Bay really are hard at work, just like the tugs and tankers!
Ray Wichmann, is a US SAILING-certified Ocean Passagemaking Instructor, a US SAILING Instructor Trainer, and a member of US SAILING’s National Faculty. He holds a 100-Ton Master’s License, was a charter skipper in Hawai’i for 15 years, and has sailed on both coasts of the United States, in Mexico, the Caribbean, and Greece. He is presently employed as the Master Instructor at OCSC Sailing in the Berkeley Marina.
