Junior Learn to Sail- Optimist

Learning to sail is an amazing and empowering activity for children. As well as being outside in nature and learning the fundaments of how to sail a boat, children learn about boat set up, maintainence and repair. Sailors develop valuable life skills such as independence and resilience, team work and problem solving. The sheltered waters of Charteris Bay make an ideal spot for children to experience sailing for the first time.

The courses cover on-shore theory, rigging, launching, on-water coaching and fun activities, capsizing and retrieving boats. Parents are expected to be actively involved and to stay at the club. It is a great opportunity for adults to learn new skills. We encourage all Green Fleet sailors to participate in club day sailing, every second Sunday during the season as well as their Monday and Tuesday instruction.

Children must be comfortable being in deep water in capsize situations and have basic swimming skills. If they are unable to swim 50m in a lifejacket you must let the course organiser and coach know.

Learn to sail programs run after school in terms 4 & 1. The annual Spring Clinic (date TBC) opens the sailing season and is a great way to get sailing over 2 full days.

To allow us to plan for demand for the coming 2024/2025 season (starting October), CBYC are asking for expressions of interest in our coaching programs. This information will allow us to plan for required course numbers and required coach staffing etc. See yellow button on this page. Please note, completion of this form does not guarantee a place should demand exceed our capacity but we will make every effort to accommodate everyone. Please complete one form per sailor. You can contact us at cbyccoaching@gmail.com if you'd like to discuss these options in more detail.

Lastly, please assume lessons will be run on every 2nd Monday and Tuesday after School for all classes except Open Fleet which will probably be Tuesday/Saturday.

CBYC are seeking to align our courses with the new NZIODA framework. Our planned levels will offer:

Learn to Sail 1 - First introduction to sailing in an Optimist
Learn to Sail 2 - Progression from LTS1, still sailing in a Club supplied Plastimist
Green Fleet (beginner) - Sailing your own boat for the first time, still focused on basic skill development and fun
Green Fleet (for fun) - Any age, has sailed their own boat previously. These sailors enjoy sailing for fun but aren't currently looking to sail competitively
Green/White Fleet - Developing towards competitive racing. These sailors would normally attend Club Day racing and may be interested in working towards sailing at Regattas
Open Fleet Our competitive sailing program for Intermediate to Advanced skill levels

Expectations: Please note, Learn to Sail at CBYC is a volunteer run program and we need your support to make it happen and to ensure a good experience for all.

Start time is 4:30pm sharp and sailors should be changed, have suncreen on and be ready to go at this time.

Parents/guardians are required to stay throughout the session and we need a minimum of one adult to two kids. If you are sharing supervision duties, please ensure you have someone available throughout the entire session within this ratio.

Parents need to be suitably dressed and prepared to get wet if required (e.g. retireving or launching boats).

For more information please contact us at cbyccoaching@gmail.com