Like I said, our club does NOT require membership fees to take sailing lessons. If you do want to join, it is $500 first year, $250/yr after that, and your kids can use the boats for FREE when they aren't out on lessons. Maybe we are too cheap and need to charge more ????
Joe Della Barba Coquina CRYC -----Original Message----- From: CnC-List [mailto:cnc-list-boun...@cnc-list.com] On Behalf Of Colomba Sent: Monday, November 04, 2013 2:23 AM To: cnc-list@cnc-list.com Subject: Re: Stus-List Getting young people into sailing? My 2 cents ... My father bought his first boat when I was 2 years old, with 6 years I`ve owned my first Optimist dinghy followed by 470, Laser ect ect... My kids started their life to sail and live during the summer on a boat. Of cause they`ve got their Optimist dinghy in the age of 6 ... Now my daughter does not sail anymore, but try to visit us on our boat for 1-2 weeks in the summer, my son is sailing an International 14 footer and will start to study naval architecture next year ... Of cause, when we are not out, my son take the 34` and sails with friends or his girlfriend. My dream is that they will sail the boat i.e. to Norway and we would sail the boat back to have the oportunity to go further away during the short periode of vacation. But ... that`s a dream, we will see what will happen in the future. BUT ... we had no chance to be a member of a sailing club. When kids were young, we just had enough money to pay for the boat, but did not had the money to pay, in that time app. 2000 Euro, the entrance to be a sailing club member. Also they asked for three warrantors and a visit of the managing committee to have a seriouse look, if you as nothing, would be acceptable to be a part of their holy sailing club. Ok ... kindergarden ... and today retirement home, with the result that they have big problems to keep the sailing club running. In that time we still studied and our parents were only "workers". I think the main problem was and is, that a lot of sailing clubs are more or less elitist clubs, trying to keep themselfe closed against "normal" people. But as matter of fact, this elitist people they invested more time to make career insted of getting kids ... so in the end, this elitist group is a threatened species. To get more young people onto sailing boats, I think first of all the sailing clubs have to change their behavior and have to invest into young people, i.e. one idea would be to cooperate with schools and to be open for all kids who are willing to sail and ... to give boats like Optimist dinghy or Pirat or 470 .... next to sailing clothes to the kids (because it`s a huge investment for people without big money to buy and perhaps to realize that kid would be interesting in sailing only for one summer). Like Hiscock said, sailing is 90% experience, 5% knowledge and 5% luck. That`s why the best sailors are sailors started sailing as kids. best regards Peter Colomba, C&C 34` _______________________________________________ This List is provided by the C&C Photo Album http://www.cncphotoalbum.com CnC-List@cnc-list.com _______________________________________________ This List is provided by the C&C Photo Album http://www.cncphotoalbum.com CnC-List@cnc-list.com
