DiscoverSailing promotes sailing as a sport and as a lifestyle
At most shows when you view a boat you take of your shoes, board the vessel, poke around for a bit, disembark, put the shoes back on and leave. The people at DiscoverSailing believe in promoting sailing as a sport and as a lifestyle, and what better way to demonstrate to people the perks of sailing than to sail. For each day of the show DiscoverSailing provided several sails around Newport Harbor on four different sized boats for free! So for an hour we were able to sail on a 54' Swan. We were the last two to arrive at the boat so the cockpit was full, so naturally we sat on the deck. The captain asked us if we knew how to sail, and if we knew what the high and low side of the boat were. We nodded and were off. With a stiff wind we were able to pick up speed, dangling our feet over the edge we basked in the warm sunlight and cool wind. Coming about and attempting to scramble across an unfamiliar boat is interesting; successfully the jib line only snagged me once. Taking a sail after lunch during a boat show is a very relaxing exercise that I wish were an option at all shows - I'm not sure if it would increase sales but its certainly worth a try.
Post by Martha Datlen, Watercooler boat show correspondent
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