American Sailing Association Courses
READY ABOUT SAILING on Chautauqua Lake is an accredited American Sailing Association School. Greg Swan has been a certified American Sailing Association instructor since 2003, but has been sailing much longer!
Thanks to Ready About Sailing, you can learn the basics of sailing or prepare for bare-boat cruiser chartering with a certified course from A.S.A. right here on Lake Chautauqua.
At Ready About Sailing we can tailor the instruction to your needs. A variety of boats such as a Precision 15K, Precison 165 and up to a Pearson 27 are available for sailing instruction. Courses focus both on the theory and practical aspects of sailing.
BASIC KEELBOAT SAILING – ASA 101
This course is designed to provide learning of the fundamentals of sailing and to develop practical skills and experience required to sail and crew a fixed keel sloop. Learn:
- sailing theory and practice
- shipboard terminology
- points-of-sail
- rules-of-the-road
- safety equipment
- safety procedures
- crew-overboard drills
- roles of helmsman and crew
- knot tying and much more.
Basic theory and general information is taught in a classroom setting, but the most valuable learning is gained on the water with a certified instructor. Successful completion of the course requires passing a written examination and on-the-water test of practical skills, and results in Certification recognized worldwide. The Basic Keelboat Sailing course is approved by the National Association of Boating Law Administrators (NASBLA) and the United States Coast Guard as a recognized Safe Boating Course. As such, it meets all requirements for mandatory education and licensing for all 50 states. The course is given on Lake Chautauqua at a cost of $449 per person. Discounts are available for parties of 4. The course duration is 2½ days and scheduling is flexible.
CLICK HERE for Complete course description ASA 101
BASIC COASTAL CRUISING – ASA 103
Coastal Cruising : The purpose of this course is to learn the fundamentals of coastal cruising on a sailing yacht during daylight hours. Subjects include Rules of the Road, required equipment, engines and troubleshooting, weather observations, heavy weather, basic navigation, intensive boat docking practice and instruction, and much more. Students successfully completing this course can receive ASA 103 certification and will have the skills necessary to independently skipper one of our Fleet 29 boats.
CLICK HERE for Complete course description ASA 103
Tuition is $449 and includes:
- Engines & Handling Under Power
- VHF Radios
- Sailing Terminology
- Duties of Skipper & Crew
- Seamanship & Anchoring Reefing & Heaving To
- Compass Steering
- Navigation & Chart Reading
- Weather Forecasting
- USCG Required Gear
PREPARATION FOR BAREBOAT CHARTERING – ASA 104 (Intermediate Coastal Cruising)
Gain additional knowledge and skills for coastal cruising in an auxiliary powered sailboat. Subjects include:
- cruise planning
- living aboard
- wind and weather
- boat systems and troubleshooting
- docking
- rafting
- anchoring
- chart reading and interpretation
- extensive sailing drills and practice
- knots and more
This course is not for beginning sailors- both the Basic Keelboat Sailing and Basic Coastal Cruising courses are prerequisites. Successful completion of this course will provide confidence in chartering a boat of 40′ in unfamiliar waters. This course is given in two 8-hour sessions, includes an over night on the boat and may be given on your boat or ours.
Price on customers boat is $449. Price on our boat is $959.
CLICK HERE for Complete course description ASA 104