Sail School

For thirty-some years, Dave and I have spent our summer vacation volunteering at the week-long, Eugene Yacht Club sail school. Dogs aren't allowed at the yacht club. While a dog sitter waters the gardens and watches our kids and home, we teach members and their children how to sail. I have taught all of the various courses but my true love is the Laser and beginner students. This year I had 20 amazing kids.

Lasers are an Olympic class boat - very fast, maneuverable and full of quirks. They were designed for 190 lb, 6' tall guys. Many of my students barely made it over 100 lbs and none of the tall guys were any where near190 pounds.

 Overturning the boats is inevitable.

Dave is in-charge of the fleet of "rescue" boats. With 130 participants in sail school, he often has his hands full - or gets a good tan depending on the wind.

Monday and Tuesday the winds were light and variable allowing the students to get a good feel for the wind, sails and their boats.

Wednesday the rains came along with blustery winds and whitecaps. 

My camera stayed on shore the rest of the week. As expected, in 15-20K winds, I was jettisoned off my overturning boat along with my students. Every year it gets harder to get my boat back upright and my body back on board but once flying along, I forget my age as I soar with the wind.