Bluewater Sailing instructors share their love for the sea, provide students with chance to travel the world.
By Rosy Banks
Assistant Living Editor
Wind fills their sails as blue waters lay ahead. Pepperdine students are embarking on a new horizon — for the first time Pepperdine is offering a class that allows students to get nationally certified in basic keelboat skills.
Twenty-four Pepperdine students ship out to sea each week on seven-hour sailing excursions to learn the ropes with nationally certified Bluewater Sailing instructors.
Based out of Marina del Rey, Bluewater Sailing has been featured on NBC’s Today Show and CBS’s Big Brother III, among others, and prides itself on teaching its students to excel at the two aspects of sailing they say matter most — safety and fun.
Sharing their love for the sea, professional instructors bring, on average, more than 20 years of experience and advice.
“The purpose is to provide the opportunity to sail anywhere in the world,” said Dalton Eann, professional Bluewater instructor and sailboat racer. “That is what the credential provides. It is one of the best starts and the sky is the limit from there.”
Beginning with a lecture from acclaimed United Coast Guard Captain Peter Damisch, students spent two hours in the classroom learning about nautical commands, right of way and proper wind position.
Putting their classroom knowledge into practice on the water, students meet in groups of four with one instructor to manage a 27-foot long sailboat, without the help of a motor.
“It’s not too hard, and it’s fun,” said junior Matt Correia. “We went over all the parts of the boat, sail and different turning points. When we were practicing docking, I almost hit the dock, but ended up peeling a donut in the water and making (docking) as tight as possible.”
Although instructors supervise, they generally let the students manage all operations on board, only jumping in to offer safety reminders and pop review questions.
Crews shuffle as rudders turn the boats, lines raise the sails, and students become familiar with navigating each large vessel in the open ocean.
“You learn to carve terrain on the sea, develop insight and the ability to go somewhere you’ve never been,” said Chris Eann, father to Pepperdine student Dalton Eann and fellow instructor. “I hope students recognize sailing as a lifestyle … anyone who has the California dream of sun, beach and wind can experience it.”
Wind direction can shift abruptly and gradually the crew learns to manage this element or take measures if troubles arise.
They also practice a man overboard drill, in which students rapidly maneuver to turn the boat around and save an imaginary victim (played in the drill by a buoy).
Reaching speeds high enough to have the deck touch water, one crew was nervous their boat would capsize. However, instructors insisted that it was totally safe and that the rush is just one of the many thrills of sailing.
“Sailing is therapeutic. It fills the need of being able to harness Mother Nature,” said John-Paul Macy, a U.S. Coast Guard captain employed by Bluewater Sailing. “It’s a feeling you can’t get anywhere else.”
Bluewater Sailing is an American Sailing Association Gold Star School, and was established in 1978 to offer universally recognized standards of certification.
Basic seamanship and practice allows students to prepare for a certification test at the end of the course. Once certified, students can rent sailboats from Bluewater and other companies recognizing ASA credentials, and take them out to sea without the accompaniment of another captain.
After the class, many students said they plan to continue their sailing adventures.
“I have a friend who owns a boat in Hawaii and I want to be able to sail with them around the islands,” sophomore Carmen Heimgartner said. “Even out here I plan on taking some people from Pepperdine out. Who’s not going to want to go sailing?”
Downtime on boats are filled with captains sharing sea tales and students asking questions to clarify instructions. Bluewater sailors get a chance to teach their art and Pepperdine students are converting to shipmates as this new curriculum sets the ocean as the classroom.
“Mastering physics is the best rush,” Eann said. “It’s no new secret, people have been doing it for thousands of years. But I could live another thousand years and still not know everything about sailing in my lifetime.”
Those interested in becoming shipmates can enroll next semester or get more information through bluewatersailing.com or by calling (310) 823-5545.
September 25, 2003