The whole idea of breaking free of the rat race and the oh so cheesy “sailing off into the sunset” is obviously a very involved process that requires a TON of preparation. There is crap loads to think of including finances, health, getting rid of personal belongings, and choosing a boat. There is plenty more to think of but my mind is still in off mode from work. I’m sure we’ll post a check off list at some point as we work our way there to see how far we’ve come and how far we have to go. But where to start?
For me one of the most important parts is learning to sail! Putting me with my current experience in a cruising cat that costs two to three times more than my house would be the equivalent of, letting a toddler get behind the wheel of an Italian sports car. Ok, so maybe it wouldn’t be that bad. But it’d be pretty close.
Most of my boating experience has been power boating. I’ve been sailing all of four times in my life, and obviously I’ll need a ton more experience with it. Chris has had more than I’ve had I’m sure. So what kind of experience is needed? It may not be news to you, but there are actually certifications available from the American Sailing Association (http://www.asa.com). I won’t go into them here, just check out their site. I've been told a book on basic sailing with all the terminology and theory behind basic sailing is also a good place to start and that if you take the classroom part of sailing classes you'll be getting one.
The K.I.S.S. Guide to sailing by Steve Sleight is a great book. I’m about halfway through it and it’s far more colorful and enjoyable of a read than the standard than the ASA book Sailing Fundamentals. I’m told the written part of the certification tests come straight from the ASA books though so both have their advantages but its pretty much the same information in both.
I've taken the first step and started educating myself. In the next couple of weeks I'm going to sign up at an ASA certified school for a basic keel boat 101 sailing class. You can find the full list of ASA certified schools on their site. I'm planning on signing up for the boating part only as its much cheaper and I can hopefully gain what knowledge I need for the written part from the books.
There's a long ways to go to see this to the goal, and tons more to do. Hopefully I've chosen a good way get started with sailing.
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