Sidmouth Sailing Club is holding free taster sessions offering dinghy sailing and hire and coaching sessions for those who want to learn to sail.

These will give people an opportunity to get on the water with an experienced sailor to help you decide if dinghy sailing is for you.

Taster Sessions will take place on Saturday mornings and will include an onshore briefing before you go on the water and a de-brief afterward.

There will be no charge for the taster sessions and participants will need to sign up as temporary members of the Club for the day for insurance purposes. Designed for adults or young people aged 10 years or older, young people taking part must have a parent with them who can help out during the session. Refreshments will be available at the end of the morning.

Coaching sessions will also take place on Saturday mornings. They are designed for people who either have no previous experience of dinghy sailing or who have done some sailing in the past but need some refresher coaching.

The coaching will focus on the core dinghy sailing skills as set out in the Royal Yachting Association training schemes, adapted for the particular conditions at Sidmouth. The coaching will take place in small groups of 3-5 boats and be led by coaches with extensive experience of sailing at Sidmouth.

The club aims to provide a course of 5 sessions, weather permitting. As with the taster sessions, they want to encourage younger participants, aged 10 or over, whose parent(s) will be available to help out. Participants will need to take up temporary membership of the club for £60. 

Dinghy hire: The Club’s coaching dinghies will be available for hire on a sessional basis during the Club’s regular sailing sessions on Wednesday evenings and Saturday afternoons to allow you to practice.

Details of dates and other aspects of the programme, which will start with taster sessions all day on Sidmouth Seafest, May 18 will be available shortly.

For those interested, email sidmouthsailing@gmail.com and one of our team will get back to you. Or visit the club on Saturday afternoons or Wednesday evenings.