Gulf Charters Thailand Comments |
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| Date Submitted: | July 29, 2010 |
| Sailing School: | Gulf Charters Thailand |
| Location: | Sattahip, Thailand |
| Classes & Instruction: | 1 out of 10 |
| School Facilities: | 1 out of 10 |
| Accomodation: | 1 out of 10 |
| Cost & Expense: | 1 out of 10 |
| Recommend: | No |
| Review: | Done by employees Most reviews are done by employees. Not to be trusted. Gulf Charters sign you up, have you meet in class, and all their focus is to get you to buy their next course. The exams are designed so everyone will pass them. If you are too stupid or ignorant Gulf Charters will supply you with the answers before the exam starts. All designed for the client to buy the next level of course. These courses have little or nothing to do with seamanship. Money rules, you just happens to come with it. |
| Submitted by: | customer 51 year-old :: Male Reviewer :: FL |
3 comments for this review
| Comment by: Tim McMahon From: thailand July 29th, 2010 |
Hello review reader and sailing school students, as the director of the Gulf Charters Sailing School, i feel obligated to leave a comment here, in defense towards this un-signed un-warranted and un-pleasant review. 1)Most reviews are done by employees. Not to be trusted. TIM-Not true- all reviews have been left here by past students, however 1 comment here was left by a student who had such a rewarding experience during the course that he later became a business partner with us. 2)Gulf Charters sign you up, have you meet in class, and all their focus is to get you to buy their next course. TIM- Yes we want you to complete all 3 of our courses, IYT Crew, Watchkeeper and Bareboat Skipper. We want you to have a complete and well rounded knowledge of boats and the sea. We teach different skills at different points of our carefully organized classes and recommend that all students do the entire 14day Zero to Hero program to ensure the full benefit of our program. This could fall into the "a little knowledge can be a dangerous thing" category. 3)The exams are designed so everyone will pass them. If you are too stupid or ignorant Gulf Charters will supply you with the answers before the exam starts. TIM-When our instructors have done their job properly, through personal instructions,demonstration and hands on exercises then the exams should be no problem to pass. Crew and Watchkeeper exams are used to ensure that students and instructors are covering the relevant info in line with the schedule of the program. We always review exams with students to be sure all are keeping up with the program. The Bareboat Captain final exam is an 85 question exam which includes multiple choice, fill in the blank, short answer, diagrams, chart work and navigational problems. We do not give any students exam answers in advance. That is not to anyones benefit.We will however be fairly specific on what material will be covered in the exam room. Additionally, many of our students do not have English as their first language and some require assistance in understanding some questions. Our examiners will often work with a student to make the question clear. Yes, of course we want you to pass exams and we have a technique that almost always works: excellence of instruction. 4)All designed for the client to buy the next level of course. TIM-students who have only signed up for only the Crew course usually don't need much persuasion to continue on with the program. We have HUNDREDS of students who have returned to complete courses as they fit into their schedules. These students realize that we offer a top quality program with qualified, professional instructors who take a serious interest in every students sailing education. These courses have little or nothing to do with seamanship. TIM- Incorrect. Our courses have every thing to do with nautical training and having student sailors take pride in their own seamanship skills. Money rules, you just happens to come with it. Tim- Yes, we are in business to make money. In this regard we have something with every other sailing school reviewed on this site. Anyone who takes the time to shop around will find our all inclusive pricing is very reasonable and competitive with most other schools for similar courses. At Gulf Charters sailing School we take pride in our ability to teach students to sail in a responsible and seamanlike manner, and to impart our own love and appreciation of the sea. Gulf Charters Sailing School students represent a broad range of backgrounds and nationalities which always keeps the learning environment fresh and inspiring. Social and boating relationships are often formed during the sailing school courses and events which may last a lifetime. Our graduates, men and women and young adults from around the world are currently sailing yachts on their own and they carry the valuable lessons learned and experience gained at Gulf Charters Sailing School with them whether day sailing or circumnavigating. The art and science of sailing and seamanship covers a vast field of knowledge. At Gulf Charters Sailing School, we endeavor to provide a learning environment, both on and off the water, which promotes interest and develops the skills you will need to make the most of your time at sea. We hope you will join us. Please contact me directly for additional info on our sailing program. Tim@GulfChartersThailand.com Fairwinds, Tim McMahon Sailing School Director |
| Comment by: Guy Odell From: Dubai August 2nd, 2010 |
I can only reiterate the comments made by Tim. I have worked at sea for over 25 years and the comments made by the unsigned reviewer are so wrong. Having personally sailed with Tim during my whatchkeeper, flotilla skipper and bareboat skipper training Tim's whole ethos was about seamanship. Personally I suspect that you, the reviewer may have sour grapes because you just did not possess the qualities and abilities to achieve the levels required. :) |
| Comment by: Lynne From: Thailand August 30th, 2011 |
I just completed the 0 - Hero course and I could not disagree more. At the beginning, I was very worried I could not keep up with the curriculum as the learning curve was intense but with their well thought out applied method of instruction and hands on application, by the end, I was able to absorb and apply an amazing amount of knowledge. At this point, I can raise, lower, trim and reef the sails, anchor, dock and do a fairly complete safety check including the engine. I can also plot a passage, find my location via a variety of methods, do dead reckonings, identify other vessels by their light signitures. I understand a great deal more about weather features (GO CHRIS) and can understand and use the VHS radio. Of course there is much more but I only wonder what you were doing with your time during this fantastic course. |
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