Elwood Sailing Club Training Centre
Elwood Sailing Club Training Centre (ESCTC) is a Yachting Australia certified Discover Sailing training centre currently running introductory ‘Tackers’ and ‘Start Sailing – Dinghy’ courses open to the general public and intermediate ‘Introduction to Club Racing’ courses aimed at ESC club members who have completed the Start Sailing -Dinghy course and wish to progress their sailing to a level where they can participate in club races.
ESCTC also runs one off sailing/boating related courses such as Marine Radio Operators, First Aid, Power Boat Handling and Race Official courses on an irregular basis, keep an eye on our members emails and web site for information on upcoming training opportunities.
Tackers is aimed at providing kids aged 7-12 with a fun, safe, and affordable way to get into sailing, please see the Discover Sailing Tackers website for full details.
Tackers 1 – Having Fun
- Tackers 1 introduces children to the basics of sailing through games on and off the water.
- Participants will receive a blue Tackers t-shirt, Tackers water bottle, Tackers cap and a certificate.
- 20 hours of structured sailing with qualified Yachting Australia Tackers Instructors & Assistant Instructors – all equipment provided and no sailing experience needed
- Sailing in OziOpti boats in pairs.
Tackers 2 – Tricks & Techniques
- Tackers 2 aims to build on the fun participants had at Tackers 1, progressing their sailing skills, prerequsites and Tackers 1 or Start Sailing – Dinghy.
- Participants will receive a Green Tackers t-shirt, dry bag and certificates.
- 20 hours of structured sailing with qualified Yachting Australia Tackers Instructors & Assistant Instructors – all equipment provided.
- Sailing in OziOpti boats single handed.
Start Sailing – Dinghy 1 & 2
Start Sailing – Dinghy 1 & 2 are intended to provide an introduction to sailing for people who have not previously sailed or need a refresher course. It is open to adults and provides the training they need to become competent sailors with the aim of progressing to competitive club sailing.
For an Enrolment Form click here.
Introduction to Club Racing
This course is open to ESC club members, senior & junior, who have completed the ‘Start Sailing – Dinghy’ course and wish to progress their sailing to a level where they can participate in club races. The course is hands on/on-water using ESC fleet of 4.7 Laser training dinghies and runs for 2 x 5 session semesters on Saturdays from late October – December in the first half of the season and February – April in the second half of the season from Midday – 2pm . Students are encouraged to join in to ESC club races that follow the sessions using the training boats.
For Enrolment please contact the ESC training co-ordinator at training@elwoodsc.com
Introduction & First Training Sessions for ‘Start Sailing – Dinghy 1 & 2’
Enrolments must be made using the training enrolment form available here or from the ESC website Training page and need to be finalized before the Information Briefing, which precedes the first training session.
All students should attend the Introduction Session at the Elwood Sailing Club, which will be held:
- 1st Session – 9am Saturday 12th October 2013
- 2nd Session – 9am Saturday 8th February 2014
Introduction Sessions will run from 9:00am to 10:00am and are intended to provide students with an overview of the training syllabus and of the club and its facilities. Following the Introduction there will be a 2 hour training session which will include a rigging and familiarisation session with the yachts you will be sailing during the course and a brief theory session, concluding around 12 midday.
For the 2013-2014 season, two training semester of 8 lessons each will be held on Saturday mornings in October – December 2013 and February – April 2014 as follows :
|
Lesson |
First Semester |
Second Semester |
|
1 (including Introduction) |
12th October 2013 |
8th February 2014 |
|
2 |
19th October 2013 |
15th February 2014 |
|
3 |
26th October 2013 |
22nd February 2014 |
|
4 |
9th November 2013 |
1st March 2014 |
|
5 |
16th November 2013 |
15th March 2014 |
|
6 |
23rd November 2013 |
22nd March 2014 |
|
7 |
30th November 2013 |
29th March 2014 |
|
8 |
7th December 2013 |
5th April 2014 |
|
|
Each lesson will run from 9:00 am until 12:00 noon). Please note that 9:00am is the actual commencement time for training and students are expected prepared, changed and ready to go by that time.
Instruction
Instruction is by qualified Instructors with many years of dinghy sailing and teaching experience. Instruction will be given both on-land and on-the-water in club-supplied boats.
Course Syllabus: Start Sailing – Dinghy 1 & 2
- Environment and Safety
- Boat familiarisation
- Parts of a boat
- Rigging
- Steering
- Capsize and recovery
- Sail trim Sailing techniques
- Rules of the road
Yachting Australia Sailing Pathways
At the end of each semester all students will be assessed on number of lessons attended and standard of sailing achieved and those who have reached a satisfactory level of sailing ability and attendance will be granted a Yachting Australia Certificate of Completion for either Start Sailing Dinghy 1, or Start Sailing Dinghy 1 & 2. Trainees are welcome to re-enroll for another Start Sailing Dinghy course if they wish to achieve a higher level certificate, and once the trainee has attained the Start Sailing Dinghy 2 certificate they are ready to progress further along the Yachting Australia Sailing Pathways.
Venue
The courses will be held at Elwood Sailing Club, Foreshore, Elwood, off Ormond Esplanade. (Melways ref 67B4). A Council-controlled car park is adjacent and meter fees are payable.
What to Wear
Weather conditions may vary from cold to hot, so students should therefore bring:
- Bathers & TowelWetsuit (if available) or Thermal underclothes
- Shorts (also good over wetsuit for protection)
- Polyester or lycra shirts and tops recommended (not cotton)
- PFD/ Buoyancy Vests are available on loan from the club, or bring your own PFD (subject to inspection).
- Woollen jumpers or thermal jumpers / jackets Windproof / waterproof jacket
- Old sneakers / wetsuit boots
- Sun hat / sunglasses / sunscreen (hats and sunglasses must be fitted with sports straps)
- Sailing gloves if available (golf, weight lifting, bike gloves etc. all good)
Enrolments
Enrolments will only be accepted on the official Yachting Australia Student Enrolment Form.
The number of places available in both adult’s and children’s training squads is limited, so enrolments will be accepted on a first-in basis in the order completed Enrolment Forms are received together with full payment, until the squad limit is reached. This rule applies to all applications, including Club members and in the interests of fairness to all will be strictly enforced
Juniors
Juniors are instructed to sail the clubs training Optimist sailboats single handed. At least one parent is to be present each day and involved in their children’s training activities by assisting in the preparation of boats, or helping on-the-water, or helping children with the cleaning and storing of boats, or general help with club activities during the training sessions. Parents will thus also become familiar with the sailing environment and their assistance will enable instructing staff to have more time available for actual teaching.
Fees Payable per Session
| ESC Club Member | $100 |
| Junior Non-Member | $250 |
| Senior Non-Member | $350 |
| Personal Accident insurance (optional extra for non members – same coverage for members provided by Y.A. Silver Card) | $6 |
Boats used by ESC Training Centre
Junior training utilises the Optimist Class of sailing boat. From the drawing and pictures you can see that the Optimist is an “ugly duckling” but do no let looks deceive you. The Optimist is built for kids, it is stable, forgiving, robust and exciting enough to hold children’s attention as well as giving them a thorough grounding in the basics of sailing. Most of the worlds Olympic sailors started sailing in Optimists!
The Elwood SC program focuses on one person per boat, and in the junior classes this is possible due to the suitability of the Optimist Class of sail-boat.
Senior training uses the Laser class of boat with the smallest of its three rig options – the Laser 4.7. The Laser is also a single person boat, and is an Olympic class, but by using the smallest sail plan the boat is most suitable for novice sailors.
Again our policy is one person per boat so that all students have the opportunity to experience and become self reliant in the basics of sailing.
If you Google “Laser sail-boat” or “Optimist sail-boat” you will find that these classes are the two most popular classes sailed throughout the world today.
Further Information
Bookings and inquiries may be made to the ESC Training co-ordinatore on 03 95314743 or via email to training@elwoodsc.com
Windsurfing Lessons
If you are seeking Windsurfing lessons contact Repeat Performance Sailboards who store their training equipment at the ESC by phone on 03 9525 6475 or go to their website for further details.