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This training is a requirement for many offshore races including the ARC Race, RORC Fastnet, RORC Round Britain and Ireland, RORC Trans Atlantic Race, Sydney Hobart RORC Round Ireland Race. ​This training covers the training required by World Sailing Offshore Special Regulations (OSR) 6.01 and the topics listed in OSR 6.02 for category 0, 1 & 2 races (and category 3 if racing double handed).

Please bring with you: A passport size photograph Pre paid RYA form for your assessment Code from the course completion certificate from your online course

Please bring with you: A passport size photograph Pre paid RYA form for your assessment Code from the course completion certificate from your online course

A small group of parents and staff from Canary Wharf College came together to find ways that we could enhance the school and raise money for outdoor activities. I was lucky enough to be part of this group. One person said “how about building a boat, to use to clean our docks”. This was the birth of the idea. We used a safety vessel, kindly lent to us by the DSWC, and took out our own children to trail the idea.  We set off on a cold, wet February weekend in the search for plastic rubbish and treasure! As the horizontal rain lashed down, we adults wondered “why are we doing this?” but the children loved it, young Harry said “this is not fishing, this is so much more than fishing”. They had a BALL, thrived on it, it was from this moment we knew we had a winner. The “Original Plastic Fishing Team at the Docklands Sailing and Watersports Centre, Feb 2017. “This is not Fishing, this is so much more than fishing”! We looked at other vessels claiming to be of recycled plastic but on inspection were only using a fraction of recycled material. We wanted the hull of our vessel to be as near to 100% recycled material, as possible.  At this point we began working with the Hubbub Foundation, who helped us to get the project started by sponsoring our first few test runs with children from the school (Canary Wharf College). Hubbub were also working on a clean up project in the Thames and had close links with the recycling industry and the recycling plastic industry. Photo Lynn Bew Images In the mean time, my knowledge was getting more in depth. We could not roto mould as the plastic is not pure enough, any impurity in the recycled plastic mix would make the plastic tear.  All objects made from recycled plastic (outdoor bins, chairs and playground equipment) are from large clumpy materials.  We were going to have to build from this material and this lead to other problems: It is VERY heavy It bends a lot Nothing will glue to it very well, the surfaces are too shiney It has no tensile strength I spoke to a few boat builders and hit a brick wall. Towards the end, all enquires led to Mark Edwards MBE of Richmond Boat Builders.  Gavin from Hubbub and myself went to see Mark in his workshop, to me it was a cross between the best toy shop, sweet shop and Diagon Alley all rolled into one. I was not hopeful, as Mark is a traditional boat builder making amazing project including the Queens Gloriana, here we were asking him to use plastic. His eyes lit up, “yes I have used this for other projects it is great and yes I would love to build you a boat made out of recycled plastic, I look forward to the challenge” Samples of the plastic were sent to him and he looked at methods to glue and join the plastic together, the suppliers plas wood could make extruded planks as well as sheets of plastic.  Mark suggested using traditional copper clasps, which are used in traditional clinker boat building, and this turned out to be an extremely effective method as it was tight and gave a degree of movement. For the design we needed to have a vessel that would take twelve people, have the space to work, to be ok with all the people on one side and had to clear the lowest bridge in the Millwall Docks which is 1.5m above the water.  It became clear that we needed a punt shaped vessel. Mark came up with a sketch, I wanted to have an idea of sizes and scale  so I transferred this to old fashioned graph paper below, the finished vessel was pretty much the same as the drawing. My drawing of Poly-Mer The Build As the plastic is floppy, a mould of the underside of the vessel had to be built and the vessel built on top until she was strong enough to have her own strength. I was lucky to be there for the laying of the first piece of plastic. To get buoyancy to float and to give strength, the floor and sides were glued between light foam. This foam does not take up water, we submerged a sample for weeks and it remained dry. Then this was enclosed and the floor was laid on top. Next she was taken out the shed and tested on the water.  She was them subjected to a “swamp test”, she was loaded with weights to simulate people, and the electric outboard and then loaded with water and swished from side to side. She passed this with flying colours. The Launch The launch was an amazing day, with so many different people coming together. Jack and I turned up at the DSWC at 0700 to the sun rising over the dock to make sure she was in pristine condition. After speeches Poly-Mer was named and took her first trips on the dock with our special guests. Since them Poly-Mer and her sister ships have taken hundreds of people on the water and tons of waste and recycled material out of the London Docks and other waterways in the UK. I am are proud to be  involved with Poly-Mer and look forward to her giving joy  and slowly changing our attitude to plastic. Since I wrote this there have been five other recycled plastic vessels built and many people who have enjoyed being on the water truly making a difference to our world. Paul Bew City Sailing

I often get asked by people, “how do I get into sailing”? There are many ways for getting out on the water, here are a few below. Learn to dinghy Sail If you are learning the best place to start is a RYA Level 1 Dinghy Sailing Course,  Details are HERE, this is only a weekend and you will learn the principles of sailing, wind awareness and by the end of the weekend you will be sailing your dinghy in triangular courses without an instructor.  These skill is invaluable and is directly transferable to yacht sailing as your yacht is a glorified dinghy where you can make a cup of tea. Our local Sailing Centre is near Canary Wharf  on the safe Millwall Dock.   Docklands Sailing and Watersports Centre. Attend a RYA Theory Course Especially in the winter it is a good thing to get the theory done so  you can spend your time sailing and not learning at the chart table. We would recommend to start with: RYA Day Skipper Theory  This is a beginners class that will teach you all you need to know before to go on a yacht. RYA Sea Survival Course  This is a course that will prepare you if it all goes wrong, it involves a practical session in the pool as well as a seeing a lifejacket inflate. There are other theory courses which will further help you with your sailing, many of them are entry level and will broaden your knowledge base. City Sailing Club Meet Up  This is an on line sailing club where members can organise sailing trips, socials and where special deals are posted, it is a great way to meet people who are interested in sailing and also a most cost effective way to get on the water. It is growing all the time and has over 700 members, please join us. Join a race crew with the RORC register (Royal Ocean Racing Club). Surprisingly as long as you can commit to a whole season or race program then people will take you on as a race crew even if you have little experience.  You are not expected to pay a fee and your only expense maybe a share of the food.  It is a great way to meet a team and to get lots of miles of fun, but you HAVE to be committed to the season and put in work hard. Yacht Deliveries  I started with deliveries and did a couple of Ocean Crossings with Nick Irvine at Reliance , this took me to the USA, St Martin, Bermuda and from Corsica to the BVI.  It gave me over 10,000 miles and memories I will never forget, if you have a chunk of time it is well worth doing and will only cost you a small joining fee and your expenses. Sailing Clubs  There are many cracking sailing clubs in the UK, I belong to the Holy Loch Sailing Club. The club is a great way to socialise and keep your sailing skills, if you have children they will love the sailing club. The Phoenix Yacht Club is a great way to get on the water for both social sailing and racing. Phoenix Yacht Club is a non-profit making private members’ club, run by the members, for the members. With members and their families drawn from all walks of life, the Phoenix Yacht Club depends entirely on its members for ensuring that the yachts are maintained to a high standard. Every time a yacht is used, the skipper and the crew are expected to leave the yacht in a better condition than they found it. Charter in the UK  Chartering is a great way to sail, you do not have to invest a lump sum, you do not have all the headache and bills of your own boat and you can change your venue at will..  Chartering has come a long way, the boats are more user friendly, you can also get great deals in the winter. Charter Abroad  With the Euro getting cheaper and guaranteed sun then the med is getting very popular especially  Croatia and Greece.  If you book outside the school holidays you get a lot more for your Euro.   SeaMaster  offer a cracking service where they give you a great vessel, location choice and even integrate their searches to get you the best flights including Easy Jet and Ryan Air. Have a look at the link, if you charter through the link you will get a £50 discount off your charter Paul Bew Paul is a RYA Yachtmaster Instructor and Examiner and has owned sailing schools for 15 years, he also has been a Sail Training Skipper and has worked on Square riggers. His is the principal of City Sailing London.

Ten pointers on how to pass your Yachtmaster Exam by RYA Examiner Paul Bew I am often asked how to pass the RYA Yachtmaster Exam and feel that it would help to let you know how this is done. Below are a few pointers that help you pass the exam. Here are my tips! 1 Get your paperwork together. Have a copy of the RYA Application AND the RYA Practical Report Form , PRE FILL IT IN all the paperwork. It is on the RYA web site. Also have your G15 Log book filled in with your 2500 milage and 5 passages of over 60 miles with 2 as skipper.  ALL this paperwork, a PHOTO,  First Aid Certificate and VHF licence should ALL be in one folder to hand to your examiner when he/she arrives. 2 Learn How to Sail  This is the biggest failure in my experience, if you can not sail you will not pass! There are a lot of people who have sailed around the world and fail to sail on their exam. This problem is never there with a dinghy sailor, if you do not dinghy sail then two weekends on a level 1 and level 2 RYA Dinghy Course is well worth the time, this is only two weekends ands a lot of fun. In London the http://www.dswc.org offer this for only £170 per weekend. 3  Read the Examiner notes  The examiner will be working strictly to the notes they have from the RYA.  This gives the examiners parameters and exactly what they are looking for, I can not stress how much you should read this. 4 Know your theory  It would be a shame to pass everything and not know your theory. If you have not done this go to a school for a RYA Coastal Yachtmaster Theory Course. Also the RYA Book of Navigation Exercises is a good source of revision.  If you go to a good school they will give you a backlist of the IRPC Exam Papers, make sure you can do these to 100% without looking at the book. If you show a deep knowledge of the Theory the Examiner will not probe. In my experience people do not know the sounds and shapes on the IRPCS.  Also have an up to date forecast and a printed weather map for the duration of the assessment. 5 Do the task asked  If they ask you to go to Cowes then go to Cowes!  Sail as you would normally sail, use all the nav aids, put a waypoint in the plotter or GPS, use navionics and use the engine when required.  If the examiner wants to see you do this without they will ask.  When you do a MOB, USE THE ENGINE, think and plan how you would get the person out of the water. 6 Put yourself in the position of the examiner  There is nothing nicer than a candidate who is well prepared, can sail, is safe and can show with confidence he/she are able to skipper a vessel with novices aboard. The examiner loves sailing (that is why they do the job!) and enjoys to see people do well and enjoy their sailing. A happy boat with everyone passing well is what the examiner would like. 7 Plan the domestics NEVER let the kettle get cold, always have good food not plastic sandwiches, find out what the examiner likes- are they vegetarian. Plan time to eat, there is nothing worse than not eating and drinking as an examiner. 8 Find out before about passage plans and pre exam work Some examiners want you to plan a passage beforehand which will involve a drying secondary port, find out before hand and prep this, some will ask you to do this on the day. The examiner will be pleased if you call them up and ask them! 9 Sail the area before hand  The examiner on the day has a limited area due to time constraints, if you have time sail into every harbour day and night and make your passage plans beforehand so no passage will be a surprise to you. 10 Be ready to go There is nothing worse that getting to an exam and the people not ready to go.  As an examiner you are paid per person, so if you have to wait for the people to get ready and sort themselves out you will not be happy.  If the boat is ready, people welcome you with a cuppa, the engine is running and the lines are on slips it shows that the candidates are keen and ready to go. One final thing, ALWAYS KNOW where you are on the chart,  NEVER spend too much time below and always delegate jobs to your crew. Contact your school and ask to join an exam as a crew so you can see the standard and watch an exam, you will be able to ask the examiner questions you would not be able to ask in the exam. Enjoy your sailing. A sailing boat has not arrived until all the sails are set. Regards Paul Bew RYA Yacht Master Examiner Power Sail and Ocean.

bricks RYA Courses Online Courses Commercial Courses Course Dates OUR STORY City Sailing helps you enhance your sailing by organising group and individual theory courses in London and further afield. We are the London Sailing Experts here to help you with your sailing needs. We offer all the RYA Theory courses as well as MCA STCW First Aid, Sea Survival Courses, MCA BML Fire Awareness Courses, First Aid at Work, and Fire Mashal Courses in London or at your location. ​ ​ Read More > TESTIMONIAL Just a quick note to say thanks for the course last Saturday. Was a really enjoyable course (well as enjoyable as learning about resuscitation can be!), and filled in a lot of gaps since my last one a few years back. I’ll be sure to recommend to anyone else I know who is looking for shore-based training. James Poly-Mer the world’s first vessel built from recycled plastic How Can I get into Sailing? City Sailing Paul Bew How to pass your RYA Yacht Master Exam RYA Online Course Login Pay RYA VHF Exam HERE

Sail around Britain for Cancer Round Britain sailing trip for Macmillan Cancer Support ​ Following the overwhelming success of Premiers Sailing's previous six trips, which raised over £37,000 for Macmillan and was enjoyed by many shipmates, they will once again take to the seas around our coastline for the trip of a lifetime. * Your own cabin * Full Board * Top quality food (usually Waitrose) * State of the art wet weather gear * No hidden extra charges * Award winning skippers Most of us will come into contact with cancer at some time in our lives and Macmillan, as many of us know, are there to help and support both the patient and their family. It is their personal experience of the superb care and support provided by Macmillan that has lead them to run this trip. Their yachts will visit many marinas and most, including Royal Quays, Rhu, Bangor and Whitehills, will donate the mooring fees to Macmillan. Contact Colin at Premier Sailing Why this way? Colin and Jan from Premier Sailing have had the crushing blow of losing a child to cancer and most of us have lost close loved ones to this indiscriminate disease. ​ We at City Sailing are proud to promote their Round Britain Sail to raise money for Cancer support. Whats included? ​ * Your own cabin * Top quality catering on board * State of the art wet weather gear * No hidden extra charges * Award winning skippers ​ There are a number of spaces available for novices and budding Yachtmasters alike to join their award winning "Sail4Macmillan" sail around Britain.

Vessel Electronics and Navionics Plotters Navionics Free Web App Tutorial We explain how to set up your Navionics on the free web app version to use with passage planning alongside google maps and google earth. Electronics on a vessel We go through vessel electronics you may have on your vessel or on a charter vessel you may sail on. Waypoint Navigation This video is about Waypoint Navigation. This is essential for the RYA Day Skipper and RYA Essential Navigation Course. We explain how to choose waypoints, how to enter them, and the pitfalls of waypoints. How to make a cheap chart plotter We explain how to make a chaep chart plotter with an old Samsung Galaxy How to change the battery in your Samsung Galaxy. This video shows you how to change the battery in your Samsung Galaxy to make a new plotter with a GPS built-in.