Boating is a fun hobby and sport, as it allows you to spend time on the water with friends and family while fishing, water skiing, or just sailing. Learning to navigate and get around on the water is a lot like learning to drive a car. You’re excited to have the joy of travel, but you’re a little worried about taking the controls.
But as with any new experience, someone who isn’t an experienced boater may have a bit of tension about letting go of the lines for the first time. Here are some tips to ensure that your first sailing trip is a fun, safe, and rewarding experience.
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Practice Makes Perfect
Practice sailing with short trips that don’t take you too far. Most beginners will feel better if they prepare for larger trips by starting with smaller, shorter trips to help them gain confidence. This way, you will discover how to respond to different situations and boat handling.
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Plan Ahead
Plan the activities before and after the trip. Prep time will be needed to stow gear, prepare the boat for launching and go through the pre-departure checklist. Keep this in mind when deciding when to start the trip and when to finish it so you don’t end up being rushed.
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Slow Down For Waves
Although it may not seem like it, keeping this tip in mind will make a big difference on your trip. After jumping a few small waves, most new riders leave the throttle open for bigger and bigger waves until they hit one so big it hurts. If you’re steering the boat and feel a bump, others on board may have felt a slam or slam, as well as causing some damage to the boat if it’s prolonged.
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Be In Control Of The Rudder
When you get your boat underway, play a little with the trim to find the “sweet spot” of the boat. Many inexperienced boaters forget about trim because the boat seems to be running fine. And it may work fine. Trim will change how the hull meets the waves, affect speed and maneuverability, and make the ride much more comfortable.
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Know Your Navigation Devices
Your boat, after all, is a mechanical device that needs gadgets. Even the smallest, simplest boat is going to rely to some extent on gadgets to run smoothly. Therefore, it is imperative to know about navigational, safety, and fishing gadgets, such as automatic identification systems, trip data recorders, GPS receivers, navigation lights, daytime signaling lamps, pilot cards, bow bells, and boat flags, a few.
Get Excellent Boat Rentals in Cedar Creek Lake
Start experiencing the sailing adventure with Lone Star Marina! We have a variety of boat rentals for you to choose from and have fun with friends and family. Besides the amazing options for sailing, Cedar Creek Lake is the perfect place to navigate. Contact us to get a quote.