Kids, Learn to Sail at Youth Sailing @ Chasewater

Kids, what could be better on a summer Saturday morning than messing about on the water and learning to sail with your mates? Youth Sailing @ Chasewater's latest RYA Start Sailing sessions for Under 18s kick off on the weekend of 6-7 July giving you to perfect chance to find out what all the on-the-water fuss is about. Sailing has everything; whether you want to get involved in a cool, sociable sport, which can be enjoyed by mums and dads too, or really ramp up the adrenaline by eventually getting into racing and attempting to become the next Ben Ainslie! RYA Start Sailing is an introduction to sailing providing all you need to know to get afloat and learn the foundation skills of the sport. You will soon be sailing on your own, as sessions include starting, stopping and turning, launching and recovering, rigging and safety. All equipment, such as buoyancy aids and training boats, are supplied, you just need a change of clothes, old trainers and a towel. Youth Sailing @ Chasewater (YS@C) is a registered charity offering a fun, friendly way for 10-18 year olds to sail, whether learning from scratch or improving skills. It is a recognised RYA Training Centre meaning it conforms to the highest standards of safety and quality. The club meets on Saturdays (9.30am-1pm) to mid-October, and youngsters can follow the RYA Youth Sailing Scheme, from Stages 1-4, while also getting involved in junior racing and club sailing with its parent club, Chase SC. The RYA Start Sailing sessions cost £65 per person, with two follow on Saturday morning sessions at YS@C included in the price. It costs just £5 per week to then carry on sailing at YS@C, which includes the use of kit (boat, wetsuits, spray tops, buoyancy aid etc). Mark Buckingham, Chief Instructor at YS@C, said: "We've just successfully run our first Under 18 RYA Start Sailing sessions. All the kids that did the course have come back sailing with us at YS@C and we hope to see lots more of them in the future too. "For youngsters to stick with sailing and not trade it in for the next fad, it's got to be fun and social. They want to be with their mates so if they are sailing too it's more fun. Kids don't sail to get fit, but once they discover they get better by being fitter it all becomes part of developing an active, healthy lifestyle that happens to come from doing a sport they love." Full details on how to sign up for the RYA Start Sailing Under 18 sessions, and information on all other courses and activities being run at Chase SC this year, can be found at www.chasesc.org.uk or email m.buckingham@btinternet.com