Training
Tonbridge Town Sailing Club is a recognized training establishment under the RYA (Royal Yachting Association) training scheme. This is an internationally recognized scheme.
Courses are run for club members only by RYA qualified instructors under the overall control of Malcolm Jarrett (Senior Sailing Instructor). All instructors are unpaid club members who do training for the love of the sport, but this does mean that courses are only available during term time weekends. We are unable to run courses in the summer holidays.
Adult/Teenager Courses (RYA National Sailing Scheme Level 1 & 2)
The course runs for 6 Friday evenings and 5 Saturdays. By the end of the RYA Level 2 course, you should transform into a reasonably competent dinghy sailor. (A Level 1 course is really only a two day introduction to sailing and we would not normally recommend this for someone wanting to learn to sail).
We recommend that you learn to sail in your own boat - we are happy to give you any guidance you require before buying one. (It's worth checking our club 'for sale' board). There are a limited number club boats available for those who do not have their own boat.
Cost: £70.00 with your own boat or £80.00 using a club boat
Junior Courses (RYA Youth Sailing Scheme Stage 1 or 2)
The minimum age for junior courses is 8 years.
These courses are known also as 'Oppy' courses as they are sailed in Optimist Dinghies (Toppers and Picos are available for older children).
The Stage 1 course is run over 2 Saturdays in early June:
This course is ideal for those with little or no experience. At the end of this introductory course you will have the basic understanding of how a boat sails and some experience of steering and handling the boat.
The Stage 2 course is run over full days on Saturdays and Sunday afternoons on 2 Consecutive weekends in September.
Following on from Stage 1 (which must be completed), this course enables you to develop your knowledge and basic sailing skills. It is presumed that you will continue to sail in the time between the completion of Stage 1 and the beginning of the course.
For these courses, boats are supplied. For older children, some club Topper Dinghies and laser Picos are available.
Cost:
Stage 1:- £45.00 using a club boat or £40.00 using your own boat.
Stage 2:- £45.00 using a club boat or £40.00 using your own boat.
A further discount of £ 10.00 is offered if Stage 1 and 2 are booked at the same time.