Training
Elwood Sailing Club Training Centre
Adults and children (from 8 years old) are provided with the training they need to become competent sailors with the aim of progressing to competitive club sailing.
For further information read on or print off our Training Brochure.
For an Enrolment Form click here.
Final Enrolment Dates and Information Sessions
All intending students are to attend the introduction sessions at the Elwood Sailing Club, which will be held:
- 1st Session – Saturday 2 October 2010
2nd Session – Saturday 12 February 2011
Both will run from 0900 to 11.00 hours and as well as being the last dates on which enrolments will be accepted for each session, will provide students with a preview of the club and its facilities.
Training Dates
For the 2010-2011 season, two training sessions of 8 lessons each will be held on Saturday mornings in October – November 2010 and February – April 2011 as follows :
|
Lesson |
First Session |
Second Session |
|
1 |
9 Oct |
19 Feb |
|
2 |
16 Oct |
26 Feb |
|
3 |
23 Oct |
5 Mar |
|
4 |
30 Oct |
19 Mar |
|
5 |
6 Nov |
26 Mar |
|
6 |
13 Nov |
2 Apr |
|
7 |
20 Nov |
9 Apr |
|
8 |
27 Nov |
16 Apr |
|
|
Each lesson will run from 0900 -1200 hours (9am until 12 noon). Please note that 0900 is the actual commencement time and students are expected to be present before then.
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 – Get Into Small Boat Sailing – Basic Skills 1
- Environment and Safety
Boat familiarisation
Parts of a boat
Rigging
Steering
Capsize and recovery
Sail trim
Sailing techniques
Rules of the road
During the course, students reaching a satisfactory level will be encouraged to participate in the afternoon Club races. Students will also be encouraged to buy their own boats.
At the end of each session, all students will be assessed on lessons attended and standard of sailing achieved. Competency Certificates to those who have reached a satisfactory level of sailing ability and Attendance Certificates will be awarded to those who have satisfactory attendance records.
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
Towel
Wetsuit (if available) or Thermal underclothes
Shorts (also good over wetsuit for protection)
Polyester or lycra shirts and tops recommended (not cotton)
PFD 1 or 2 / lifejacket / buoyancy vest (preferably bring your own, or we will supply)
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 obtainable by clicking here.
Payment is required at the time of enrolment. Please see the Enrolment Form for details.
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 expected to sail in boats by themselves. 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 | $150 |
| Senior Non-Member | $200 |
| Personal Accident insurance (optional extra) | $6 |
Note: For Trainees who provide a suitable boat, Training fee is discounted 50%.
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 it’s 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 Mark White, Club Manager at manager@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.