Women's Sailing Conference a success
by Scott Croft 5 Jun 2018 03:56 PDT
More than 100 women sailors, from amateur day sailors to experienced offshore cruisers came to the Corinthian Yacht Club in Marblehead, Massachusetts, on Saturday June 2 to share their expertise and learn new skills at the National Women's Sailing Association (NWSA) Women's Sailing Conference. Participants, who came from 12 states, chose from 20 different classroom and on-water workshops.
The conference, now in its 17th year, was designed to meet the needs of women sailors who want to learn more, said event co-organizer Joan Thayer. "Women are taking a much more active role in running the whole boat, which includes transportation from your anchored boat to shore when you are cruising. One of our first workshops to completely fill up was Dinghy Captain."
The day's keynote speaker was offshore sailor, racer and first female commodore of the Cruising Club of America, Capt. Sheila McCurdy. On-water instruction took place aboard Colgate 26 and Sonar sailboats that were provided by Black Rock Sailing School and the Corinthian Yacht Club. Major supporters of the event included Boat Owners Association of The United States (BoatUS) and Black Rock Sailing School of Boston, Massachusetts.
All proceeds from the event's silent auction and the sale of raffle tickets went to support the Women's Sailing Foundation's AdventureSail program and NWSA's educational workshops for adult women sailors. AdventureSail introduces underserved girls aged 9-14 to sailing and lifelong skills.
The National Women's Sailing Association is a program of the Women's Sailing Foundation, a 501(c)(3) educational organization, whose mission is to enhance the lives of women and girls through education and access to the sport of sailing. For more information go to www.WomenSailing.org.