Home ⁄ Articles

Articles

10 Phrases You Never Knew Came From Sailing

Sailing was the hinge of western civilization for hundreds of years, as result sailors’ slang & terminology are rooted in the English lexicon and still exists profoundly to this day.

Frederick Douglass: The Sailor You Should Know

In October of 2021, I sailed on the Chesapeake Bay on an American Sailing Charter. As with all of these charters, I am fortunate enough to meet many great people who love to sail. We anchored in Cambridge, Maryland, on this particular charter and went ashore. I am almost embarrassed to admit to this, but I never really understood the

Parts of a Sailboat – The Sails

It’s safe to say a sailboat is only as good as its sails when you consider that capturing the wind’s energy is the premise behind what sailors do to propel their boats in a forward direction. A good captain will trim those said sails to be as efficient as possible and the proper heading will help with overall performance, but

Product Review: California Cowboy

American Sailing has a new partner in its member benefits program and it may be one of the most useful products that casual sailors will utilize. If you are a racer and you do not need superfluous stuff on your boat, you may think I am wrong. If you are a racer and you love to celebrate your Wednesday night

Featured School: Marina Sailing Newport Beach

Marina Sailing is California’s largest sailing club. Since 1962, they have offered a welcoming environment for new sailors to learn and pursue their sailing passions. As a member, you have access to six beautiful locations maintaining a fleet of over seventy yachts. On top of that, there are thousands of members to share your passion with. The Newport Beach

Twelve Steps To Becoming A Sailor

While scrolling through Facebook I was introduced to the Women’s Sailing Association of Santa Monica Bay (WSA) sailing group. This post appeared and I had to share it with our American Sailing Readers. We all have dreams about sailing and the author of this piece, Yosh Han, outlines her twelve steps to living her life as a sailor. Even though

What to Expect When You Go Sailing With Friends

This Multi-Part Series will focus on what to expect when going out for a leisure sail with friends. This is different from what you might expect when taking your first sailing lesson or sailing with an instructor. Part #1 Getting To The Boat You arrive at the sailboat with excitement for your first day of sailing. You’ve listened to Jimmy

A Love Letter to Sailing

It is that time of the year when we feel like expressing our love for the special people and things in our lives. This year I am professing my love for sailing. This is my public love letter to sailing. Share your love letters to sailing and we will publish some of them on the American Sailing website and on

11 Tips For Bareboat Cruising

Night sailing is a bit of a different animal so we’ve cobbled together seven tips to keep in mind as you sail off into the wild black yonder.

Who Do You Sail With?

ASA school Spinnaker Sailing in San Francisco shared this photo of Romain and Lucio taking ASA 101 Basic Keelboat Sailing as a father and son team. All you need is this photo to explain what sailing is all about. Meanwhile, take a look at some of these and hopefully, they will inspire you to share your love of sailing with

The Process of Buying Sails, and How to Protect Your Investment

Buying New Sails For Your Sailboat While there are plenty of types of sails out there ranging from golliwompers, fishermen, and in the old days, bloopers, for most of us, sails simply come in three different forms. Main sails Genoas and jibs Spinnakers, both symmetric and the new gennakers Let’s discuss these three sails, and the options that are available,

Danger Areas on a Boat

When you take ASA 101 Basic Keelboat Sailing, your instructor will reinforce many safety lessons in the curriculum. You will become so well versed in safety terminology that your ability to sail safely and confidently will be rooted in the basic mechanics of being aware while on a sailboat and underway. However, there are a few things that you should

7 Spots To See With Cruise Abaco

If you are looking for the ideal beach getaway with a combination of sailing and sightseeing, Abaco might be what you are looking for. ASA school Cruise Abaco offers a unique “Captained by Day, Bareboat by Night” ® program which allows the Captain/Instructor to sail and instruct, stopping to snorkel a reef or visit a settlement and then each night

7 Exotic Locations To Learn To Sail

It would seem that a sailor is always seeking the exotic in an adventure. While sailing can be the entire focus of a vacation, often learning to sail or brushing up on your sailing skills is just a fraction of your vacation time and budget. The ocean calls you and as much as you would want to spend so much

Featured Instructor: Captain Genevieve Evans

Captain Genevieve Evans is the owner of two sailings schools Go Sail Flathead Lake in Montana and Go Sail Virgin Islands in the US Virgin Islands. She seems to have a perpetual smile on her face and she loves nothing better than being out on the water sharing her love for sailing with new students. Captain Genevieve Evans is ASA’s

The Winners of the 2021 Hands Across The Sea Sweepstakes

Each year, Hands Across The Sea and American Sailing team up to raise money to help literacy projects in the Caribbean. To date, ASA members have raised hundreds of thousands of dollars that have supplied over half a million books to over 167,000 children in the Eastern Caribbean. American Sailing is proud to support The Hands Across The Sea Sweepstakes

Sailing Schools in the British Virgin Islands

Learn to Sail in the British Virgin Islands You’ll leap off the bow and feel the warm water. It is not as refreshing as you would like because the water is warm but it is invigorating. The crystal clear water will envelop you and when you surface, you’ll look back at the boat. Your sense of accomplishment will come from

American Sailing Favorite Stories of 2021

The year raced by and we barely had time to stop and take some time to reread our content. These are the top stories from our ASA content creators as well as some stories that we just loved. 2022 will bring new adventures with sailing charters around the world and expanded learning opportunities. For now, take a look at some