Docking Lessons

The docking chronicals continue. After our disastrous docking of last week, George and I decided to take docking lessons. We chose a private lesson, conducted on our own boat, given by Jeff from The Sailing Academy.

Jeff and George

I was really nervous before the lesson began and actually dreaded it a little. Jeff started by explaining the drills we would be learning and practicing. He then used a model boat and strings to demonstrate the docking techniques we would practice.

I was at the helm as we pulled out of the slip, the marina and then into the channel. We used the markers at the end of the channel as "targets". George and I were both really nervous about getting anywhere near the buoys. We practiced stopping the boat and holding it in place and doing standing turns by using short bursts of forward and reverse. Once we were more comfortable with that, we headed back into the marina. Jeff coached us through a technique using a spring line to tie up to the T head at the end of the dock. He showed us how leaving the boat idling in forward gear while turning the wheel away from the dock kept the boat parallel to the dock. We could swing the stern away from the dock by turning the wheel toward the dock.

After lunch we practiced doing standing turns in the main fairway. That was initially very nerve-wracking. I felt uncomfortable getting so close to the pilings as we turned the boat. After much more practice I became more confident that I wasn't going to hit anything.

Next, it was time to practice entering the slip. Although Breeze On has a bow thruster we did not use it during our lesson. I was at the helm for the first few times we entered the slip. I used very subtle bursts of the throttle in forward with the wheel turned to adjust the placement of the stern. I did it perfectly during my second attempt, but kept over correcting on my third attempt. Instead of aborting, Jeff used the opportunity to demonstrate how to use a spring line to enter a slip. That will come in very handy on windy days, or on days when I just don't get it right! We also practiced using a spring line to leave a slip. When it was George's turn to practice he entered the slip perfectly! It was his first time at the helm while entering the slip. What a good way to end our lesson!

I believe we still need practice, but we all agreed that we made a lot of progress today.

 

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