This is suppose to be a photo for Michael and Karen's scrapbook and I am suppose to not be in the picture. In the background you see the mooring cans (big white floating bobber in the water) that other boats will fasten to when docking. In this lesson, we were practicing sailing in and out of our mooring which required three things.
1.) How to leave your mooring under sail (powered by wind)
2.) How to navigate through the channel under sail (powered by wind)
3.) How to approach and stop at your mooring under sail (powered by wind)Sailing is a lot like flying.
The take-offs are calculated series of tasks.
The flying or cruising is easy and fun (while on the open lake or in the open skies). A mistake can easily be hidden in the open skies or waters.
The approach or landing is VERY DIFFICULT and if not properly done, you do a pass by and try again. Landing an airplane is a controlled crash with land where you come to a complete stop. Approaching or docking to a mooring can is coming to a controlled crash with your mooring can where you come to a complete stop, can reach the can from the fore (front) deck and you don't have too much forward momentum making you pass too fast and unable to stop the boat by holding on to the mooring.
One thing that sail boats don't have that airplanes do is an unobstructed playing field and power. Sail boats have to navigate through other boats on moorings and the direction of wind at the moment dictates what directions you can approach your mooring. Add the fact that docked boats on moorings can rotate 360 degrees due to wind and wave current around their mooring so its a constant challenge to execute this task.