TAKING OWNERSHIP

WILL BRUTON ON UPSKILLING ON BOARD

Long considered one of the last bastions of freedom, sailing has an enduring Corinthian spirit, with yacht owners often taking great pride in learning from experience and working things out for themselves. But, with yachts becoming more complex than ever, is it time to invite the experts on board?

What it takes to run a happy, safe – and hopefully fast – yacht demands a diverse range of skills, knowledge, and experience. As a baseline, RYA courses offer an excellent framework to build on, but first-time yacht owners tend to realise quickly how much is not covered, and particularly how much they need to know that is specific to the model of yacht they have bought.

With first time yacht owners increasingly ambitious in their plans, many planning bluewater adventures for their first yacht, the option of getting some expert tuition aboard your own boat is well worth exploring.

Inherently flexible, shaped around the specific requirements of the owner, tuition at a one-on-one level is also far more intensive than the usual 1:4 – or more – students commonly found on a sailing course.

KNOWLEDGE DOWNLOAD

Peter Sterling’s sailing CV is, by anyone’s standards, extensive; 400,000 miles at sea, including 39 Atlantic crossings and skippering two Clipper Round the World Race entries. The latter is perhaps the best indication of his skillset and temperament when it comes to helping others, with varying levels of experience, get the most out of their yacht.