Online Cruising Course
Course Outline
No Frames   Frames

I. Basics of Sailboat Cruising

A. Types of Cruising Boats

B. BVI as Favorable Place to Cruise re Boat Size & Expected Conditions

C. The Sailbag

D. The Anatomy of a Cruise

II. The Cruising Sailboat

Sloop parts & jargon

A. The Boat as a Sailing Machine

1. Mast, Standing Rigging and Boom

2. Mainsail, Jib and Running Rigging: Halyards & Sheets

3. Knots, Lines and Deck Hardware

4. Good Seamanship

B. The Cabin: Rudimentary "House," Systems

1. Sleeping quarters

2. The marine head

3. Cooking, etc.

4. The electrical system

5. Radiotelephone

6. Paperwork

7. Safety equipment

8. Law Enforcement

C. Sailboat Motors

1. The outboard engine

2. Inboard motors

III. Operating the Sailboat

A. Motoring and Docking

1. Docking

2. Moving the boat without motor power

3. Motoring Out

4. Motoring in General

5. Motoring In

B. Raising & Lowering Sails

1. Preparing Sails for Hoisting

2. Hoisting Mainsail and Jib

3. Lowering Mainsail and Jib

4. Reefing Main

C. Pure Sailing

1. Sailing as a series of control stages

2. Changing course

3. Safety issues

4. The captain's overview

D. "Driving" Boat in Traffic, ie Aspects of Navigation

1. Rules of Road: Who has the right of way?

2. Safe driving

3. Night lights

E. Anchoring or Mooring

IV. Man Overboard & Emergencies

A. Man overboard

B. Towing

C. Knockdown or Capsizing

D. Thunderstorms & Bad Weather

V. The Cruise Itself

A. Planning a Cruise

B. Navigation (Piloting), or Not Going Aground

1. Reading a Chart

2. Using compass

3. Use of depth meter

4. Maintaining windward margin of safety to shoals, etc

5. Getting off after going aground

C. The Destination: An Integral Part of a Cruise