Hi Cathy & Crew
In the process of buying a yacht when I hopefully pass my RYA Day Skipper course in March/Port Solent! Was wondering two things, Amsterdam? Mainsail how can I get involved? & do you or know anyone whom requires any help with crewing/skipper?
Kind Regards
Adele

Hi Adele, as you can see from the pic, Amsterdam was very hard work! (We were enjoying a reward after a long day trudging round trade stands, finding out about all the new gear to be launched on the marine market in 2007). Where are you based? If there's a racing club nearby, you can almost certainly get as much sailing as you want, crewing on racing boats. (There's always a demand: keenness and willingness to learn are more important than years of experience, and most important of all is reliability: turning up when you say you will!) It's a great way to widen your experience, and also to make lots of useful contacts, and widen out into delivery trips etc. In most clubs the season starts in March, so there's not long to wait! Good luck.

Though Amsterdam is a wonderful place, why have you chosen that as a preferred sailing destination may I ask? It is a good stop as it has lots to offer and you should be able to get on a boat fairly easily; either racing or cruising, to experience it yourself. If you can’t get one across – take a ferry and make a few contacts while you’re over there. It can’t hurt to try anyway and with flights as cheap as £20 return, it won’t break the bank either (though I may be inclined to buy one way in hope of getting a lift back on a yacht).