Understanding weather for your safety at sea

Glyn & Vanessa Stilwell and sons on holiday on board their Westerly Fulmar

Of all the subjects covered by sailing qualifications, we have found the weather component the most elusive. We are constantly aware of an underlying lack of confidence in reading local conditions at the micro-scale (the small areas within which most of us do our sailing, and which often produce conditions which are different to those predicted by the larger Met. Office Area and Inshore Waters Forecasts).

More than once this has left us struggling to make decisions based on Navtex broadcasts, or to reconcile a local forecast with the accompanying synoptic chart pinned up in Harbour Masters' offices.

We have been caught out by rather nasty squalls, one in particularly when we were knocked over 75° when trying to get into Deauville, on the Normandy coast, and lately were caught by a 3-4 metre swell with foaming wave tops when entering the mouth of the Gironde, Bay of Biscay.

Attempting to read the clouds one summer's morning in Devon we well remember a fellow skipper stating “If you avoid sailing in England when cumulus clouds are massing you won't get much use of your boat!”

An extensive search for specialist short courses to improve our skills yielded no results, so we decided to organise our own. Sessions will be held at the Cruising Association's superb HQ at Limehouse Dock, London.

“WEATHER-TO-SAIL”
A New School In Weather Training For Sailors

Specialist one day training courses in weather by fully qualified professional meteorologists from WeatherQuest, a main player providing forecasts for the BBC and for industry. These courses are a new development in weather training, they are designed to be accessible and affordable (only £79.00) and to complement the one-day courses in Sea Survival, Radar and GMDSS. Particular attention will be paid to micro-scale weather and to the practical application of knowledge. The primary objectives are to make a significant contribution to safety for all sailors, including those taking RYA Day Skipper to Yachtmaster exams, and to help sailors maximise their use of weather and weather windows. It is planned to run blocks of courses in the Spring/early Summer and in the Winter at The Cruising Association HQ, Limehouse Basin, 1 Northey Street, London E14 8BT.