Journey to Sailor Captain for two Women Set to Sail

THE EARLY DAYS

Guest Post by Nancy and Deanne It was well over a decade ago now. And it was with sadness, envy, and a hefty amount of admiration that I said good-bye to Deanne in Ft. Lauderdale. She was shoving-off for a week-long American Sailing Association (ASA) sailing certification class. We had been together only a short time and had just begun to build our relationship. Now she would be gone for a whole week – sailing on a 36′ catamaran without me.

Deanne was born in Oregon, lived in Maui, HI for 17 years and has been a boater her whole life. Deanne had been yearning for quite some time to learn to sail. She had lived in Hawaii for 17 years before moving to Florida. She was a power boater, water skier, and had rowed on an outrigger canoe team. Although very familiar with navigating the waters around Maui, she always longed to sail. This certification class Deanne had signed on for was tough, complete with textbook study with certification testing throughout. Asking to sail on a catamaran for this trip proved to be an interesting learning experience as these two-hulled sailboats handled much differently on the water than a traditional V-hull boat or deep keel monohull sailboats.

Multihull Cruising Fundamentals: The Official American Sailing Association Guide to Cruising Multihulls

This trip would seal the deal for Deanne - a catamaran was soon in her future!

As I watched her climb on-board, I reflected on how I had also thought of sailing over the years, most recently after meeting a friend from Sweden who had built her own steel-hulled sailboat with her husband, a sail maker. They had sailed a fascinating trip through the Mediterranean, the West coast of Africa and crossed the Atlantic with their two-year old child on-board. A one-year trip! Deanne called me from various locations along the way on her trip – Key Biscayne – Largo – Islamorada and throughout the Florida Keys. Hearing about her adventures only increased my interest in sailing on a large catamaran as well.

Deanne Raises the Sail

When Deanne returned, not only did she receive her certifications from the American Sailing Association, she was understandably hooked on the idea. And so together we began to look at sail cats, comparing the various makers and models. We finally chose the catamaran that best suited our needs and we purchased the boat not long after.

Nancy Learns to Sail while reinforcing Deanne’s experience with another sailing class

Before we made the boat purchase, and because I hadn’t had the opportunity to spend that week long trip with Deanne, we booked another learning experience with a company that specialized in Women’s sailing classes by chartering a trip with a woman captain.

We thereby gained more time and experience on the water. In the beginning I was intimated a bit by the idea. I thought there were so many terms to learn, so much skill to possess. And my mind kept thinking back to the title of that little humorous book I had in my bathroom:

SAILING: The Fine Art of Getting Wet And Becoming ILL While Slowly Going Nowhere at Great Expense

I had lived in Florida for 25 years, owned my own ski boat on a lake in Orlando and had spent time on the water on the St. John’s River. But I had not sailed!

The trip turned out to be fantastic with our female captain teaching us to hoist, trim and reef the sails, knot tying, and boat maintenance and provisioning. It was fantastic, albeit a manatee trying to climb up the ladder of our boat – in the Manatee River no less!

WOMEN CAPTAINS

When we purchased our boat, it wasn’t the original intent to charter or take others. We purchased the boat strictly for our own enjoyment. We spent every weekend we possibly could on the water. As we gained more confidence and learned the systems and handling, we decided to attend a Southern California Yachting Association’s Women’s Sailing Convention in Corona del Mar, California.

There was nothing comparable in Florida that we knew of. Here we met other women sailors, some very experienced lifelong sailors, some who had traversed the Pacific Ocean many times, some had sailed the World. This convention offered seminars in Diesel Engine Repair, Climbing the Mast, Fixing the Head – all for women.

We were glad we attended. We made friends and learned a lot.

Nancy Sailing Boat

After several years of trips to the Keys and barrier islands in SW Florida, we had gained the confidence in operating our boat but we felt we needed more. We wanted our USCG License (United States Coast Guard), enabling us to accommodate up to six paying passengers aboard. What better way to supplement early retirement than to begin taking paying passengers on our boat? And Deanne’s career as a hospitality professional in high-end resort hotels had armed her with the knowledge to create a charming experience for guests.

Within a few weeks of daily classes, intense book study, chart navigation, and an examination that had to be passed largely with a 90% grade, we were United States Coast Guard Captains. The classes and the examination were intensive. The documentation needed by Homeland Security and the paperwork that had to be submitted to the US Coast Guard had to be complete and accurate. We had to submit our number of hours on the water and the names and descriptions of former boats we had operated. There were doctor’s appointments, eye appointments, and First-Aid and CPR certifications. And a new Homeland Security rule required a Transportation Workers ID Card. This was a separate application procedure from the license.

A lot of work - but all worth it!

After all this, it was with great pride when our paperwork came in the mail and our licenses read: UNITED STATES MERCHANT MARINE OFFICER! Wow!

A SAILING PARTNERSHIP

One of the most remarkable positive aspects of two women partners is the sharing aspect, the equality, and the mutual respect. After meeting many sailing couples at our marina, all husband and wife teams, we quickly recognized that many of these couples had designated themselves as Captain and First Mate. We saw too many of these teams arguing with each other as they docked or prepared the boat for departure. We also noticed that with many of these teams the men did all the boat and systems work and the women too often cooked and cleaned.

So we decided early on that we would consider ourselves to be Co-Captains, even though Deanne had more natural ability to steer and dock the boat – one of the most difficult tasks. But there was no reason we couldn’t equally share all of the tasks, even that of being co-skippers.

This presented an interesting dynamic of equality as we shared duties and responsibilities. We divide tasks equally whenever possible. It makes for a great business relationship as well as a lasting personal relationship.

We wanted something just for the women to enjoy.

As we operate this business together, the tasks seem endless at times: provisioning, boat cleaning, engine and systems maintenance, insurance, emails, marketing, phone calls, faxing, and all the usual business tasks. But a profound satisfaction overcomes us when we welcome other women aboard and witness the exhilaration on their faces as we raise the sails and sail off in the wind in the crystal blue waters of the Gulf of Mexico.

We see in these faces a mirror of ourselves when we first became enamored with sailing.

Operating our business for women seemed like a no-brainer: not only is there a freedom associated with being on the water and away from it all, there is also a profound freedom of being away from the male ego. In the boating and fishing community the men hold the reins in most scenarios. Boating is traditionally a male sport. The male camaraderie rules on many fishing boats.

It has all been so very worthwhile.

Guest Post by Deanne & Nancy of WOMENSETSAIL LLC

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Photos are property of WomenSetSail

Resources

United States Coast Guard

Women Sailing Associations

Brochure from past Women’s Sailing Convention in California (pdf)

Other Things to see and do around Charlotte Harbor Gulf Island

Charlotte Harbor Gulf Islands Englewood Beach Stump Pass State Park Gulf View Grill

Charlotte Sports Park Tampa Bay Rays Spring Training Charlotte Stone Crabs Class A League

Charlotte Harbor Gulf Islands Hampton Inn JD Bistro and Grill Days Inn

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Eileen Lud­wig, travel writer of Free­lance Tourist brings to the world insights about places to travel, dis­counts, Stay­ca­tions, Restau­rant Reviews, movie reviews, and fas­ci­nat­ing tibits. She is owner of three other sites: Pho­tog­ra­phy, Web Design School, and Social Media School Each are in dif­fer­ent stages of devel­op­ment and evolution.

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Sailing Experience and Adventures of Eileen

Eileen has sailed on an off most of her life. Therefore when these ladies started following me on Twitter, I knew there was a story to be told. Eileen has owned a Sunfish, a Catamaran, and a 22 foot Rhodes each with different experiences and adventures. Taking many courses just to be able to go out on boats in other areas. Crew on Sunfish for Fall races

• Sailing Camp (two years)  with Girl Scouts on Candlewood Lake
• Annapolis Sailing School For a chance to sail in that area
• Sailing Books Many of these books I have used or read for the different sailing classes
• Old Dominion Sailing Undergraduate class

Port Charlotte Vacations