Sailing

Sailing is one of my biggest passions in life. Sailing is not just a sport or a hobby. There are so many things that go into it. Not only are you enjoying the outdoors and feeling the wind in your hair, there is a lot of deep and strategic thinking that goes into great sailing. Aside from strategic thinking, there is also a high demand for awareness on the boat. There is the physical, being athletic enough to raise and lower jib sheets fast enough, hiking out, and other labor-intensive aspects. The mental, sensing the constantly changing direction of the wind, feeling the small movements on the boat and correcting them (balancing the boat for max speed).

I love sailing because experience and chance also play a big part. One never knows what the outcome of a race will be. Some of the best olympic sailors can lose out to rookie sailors in a race because of wind shifts. Racing aside, sailing is one of the most peaceful and calming things, I’ve ever experienced. Below are the books I would highly recommend to those interested in learning more about sailing.

Learning Sailing Right! Beginning Sailing (The Small Boat Certification Series), Sheila McCurdy and National Faculty 
I took a sailing course at the Birmingham Sailing Club, and this was the book used in the course. I thought it was very helpful. It is short, and there are graphics to illustrate the lessons and parts of the boat. It does a fantastic job for beginner sailors who are learning the parts of the boat and mechanics that follow. I would highly recommend this book to start for beginner sailors.

Getting Started In Sailboat Racing, Adam Cort and Richard Stearns
This book is a little longer than the Learning Sailing Right! Beginning Sailing book. It is a little more advanced. I picked it up because, aside from sailing for fun, I always intended to race. I recommend this for those that have been out on a boat a couple of times and are familiar with the key functions of the parts of the boat and want to take their sailing to the next level and race. It does a great job of going through the fundamentals of racing.

The Essential Sailor, Jim Saltonstall
This book is similar to Learning Sailing Right! Beginning Sailing book. It uses real pictures to demonstrate sailing techniques instead of just illustrated graphics. It goes more into detail than the Learning Sailing Right! Beginning Sailing book. It is clearly written and an informative read. I would recommend for beginner sailor to start out with this book or the Learning Sailing Right! Beginning Sailing book.

The Complete Sailor: Learning the Art of Sailing, David Seidman
I found this book to be more technical. It is very thorough and the illustrated graphics are explained very well. It does a great job of explaining the basics but the content is detailed enough to offer insight to even some of the most experienced sailors. For beginner sailors I recommend that this book be paired with Learning Sailing Right! Beginning Sailing or The Essential Sailor. 

The Annapolis Book of Seamanship, John Rousmaniere
This reads like a textbook. I use this as a reference guide and refer back to areas I feel I need to brush up on. It is very thorough and not subject to just small boat sailing. There is a chapter on the magnetic compass, which was very interesting to read. It also goes into detail about formulas for calculating position and how to use navigators tools. It is a very technical guide to sailing.