Dublin Lake Club: The Daily Grind

I'm now about a month into my sailing instructor position at the Dublin Lake Club, across the street from our school, and everything is going quite well. Starting off, I didn't know my broad reach from my close-hauled, now I know how to rig a 420 and an Opti, sail both of them, and I can give some limited instruction to people who know less than I do. I work with two really nice individuals, Brenna and Andrew, who both know far more about the fine art of seamanship than I do, but they are quite patient in showing me the ropes, or lines, literally. Sailing brings out the best in people, and I've found that most sailors are quick to help and friendly with their advice. They try to initiate as many people into the sport as possible and it's about as inclusive as you could desire.

This shot above is the view from our sailing dock of the Club's beach. As you can tell by the glassy quality of the lake, we had no wind on this day, and I had a lot of time to take pics as nobody wanted to take out boats.

This is the sailing cabin that we spend a great deal of time in each day. Lessons are held inside for beginners, ages around 5-9, and intermediates, ages around 10-13, three days a week. We use the white board to demonstrate technique and then spend the better part of two hours letting the kids sail on the lake under our supervision. The little ones sail in Optis that are about impossible to capsize since they're largely bathtubs with sails.

This boat is a 420 and we use them for the intermediate program and for checking out to adult members of the club. The take both a jib (forward sail) and a main sheet and take about 10 minutes to rig if you know what you are doing. It's exciting to me that I knew nothing about putting sails on it about 4 weeks ago, and now I can rig one in my sleep and take it out to sail. I can't believe I get paid for this! I'll have some action sailing shots once we return in August, and most exciting---I get to take Erin out for our first sail together. I can't wait.