Flagship Sailing

Reviewers Male / Female Recommend Yes / No Number of Reviews Classes & Instruction School Facilities Boats & Courses Cost Total Average Rating
1 / 0 1 / 0 1 8.00 5.00 7.00 9.00 7.25

Date Submitted: September 29, 2010
Sailing School: Flagship Sailing
Location: FL - Clearwater Beach, United States
Classes & Instruction: 8 out of 10
School Facilities: 5 out of 10
Boats & Courses: 7 out of 10
Cost: 9 out of 10
Recommend: Yes
Review: A So-So Experience
I participated in a 101/103 Class with Flagship in Muskegon, MI in the summer of 2010. Boats and facilities consist of a single old Catalina 270. The boat is seaworthy, although there were some electrical issues and other concerns that were keeping the boat from receiving its Charter status. It had all we needed to learn on, but don't expect anything more than the basics.
In spite of having paid 50% upfront, Flagship provided no materials until the 1st day of the course. This meant that we had no time to prepare properly. In the evenings we skimmed the book to try and grab answers, but it would have been nice to have material in advance to prepare. My sailing buddy and I got through because we had downloaded material from other schools off the net and we were well prepared.
There were 4 students on the boat when I was there. Four worked well and I think this is the max they take. Anymore would certainly be too much for this little boat. The instructor did a good job of rotating tasks among students, so everyone did everything except anchor. This rotation was a positive and ensured everyone had time at the helm and learned.
The course itself was very segmented so that skills were demonstrated once, performed once by each person, and then not repeated as we moved on to more skills. For example, once each student had circled the boat to pick up a MOB, the task was down. From a learning standpoint, it would have been helpful to reinforce skills by sprinkling in their practice at other points in the time together.
The overall content struck me as very minimal. We all passed the written test and performed the required skills, but it seemed like in the end there were really only about 5 or 6 things that had to be done: anchor, dock, MOB, and sail close hauled, a beam reach, and a run. As each student had some background, there was a real opportunity for the instructor to focus on sail trim and some of the finer points.
There is only 1 instructor at this location. He is a nice enough guy, and generally easy going and pleasant to be around. However, by the end of the class, I personally had heard enough about how he had told off one previous employer or another, and about how he knew better than the next guy. I was more interested in understanding the relation between backstay tension and sail performance than how to cut a clanging halyard in the middle of the night if the boat next to you is keeping you awake in the marina.
101/103 is often a 4 or 5 day course. I took it as a 3 day course. Maybe that is too fast to get anything except the basics. I am not unhappy I took the class as I want to complete 104 and charter. But I've sailed for years, as had others. Knowing that, I think the instructor could have stepped up the instruction and helped us all improve our sailing rather than simply passing minimal standards.
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Submitted by: Unusual Sailor
45 year-old   ::   Male Reviewer   ::   Michigan