News & Views for Southern Sailors - Southwinds Magazine

BOAT SHOW FREE SAILING SEMINARS
Over 65 free seminars will be presented
at the St. Pete Boat Show. The seminars,
which span the four-day show, are
taught by authors, technical experts
and well-seasoned sailors and cover a
wide range of topics. Sailors will find
topics that expand their knowledge
on general boating, cruising, living
aboard, circumnavigation, exploring
Florida’s coastline, learning how to
get started—the list goes on.
The seminars will be held indoors at the Mahaffey Theater at
the show site and run 11:45 a.m.-5:45 p.m. Thursday, 10:30 a.m.-
5:45 p.m. Friday and Saturday, and 10:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m. on
Sunday. All are included in the admission ticket.
The final schedule is not complete (see December SOUTHWINDS
issue for complete schedule, or go to www.showmanagement.
com/st_petersburg/event). Here are some highlighted seminars:
A Sailor’s Guide to Tampa Bay Weather. This is taught by St.
Pete’s own Dave Ellis. Dave examines the weather clues on
Tampa Bay. Learn about the weather patterns, the sea breeze
and when to head for home from the former sailing master and
regatta coordinator at the St. Petersburg Yacht Club.
Getting into Sailing on Tampa Bay. This is another seminar by
Dave Ellis. Want to start sailing but don’t know where Dave
reveals that sailing need not be expensive or complicated. He’ll
point you in the right direction to get out on the water without
spending a fortune.
Ten Storm Sailing Strategies. John Kretschmer, author of At the
Mercy of the Sea and Sailboats for a Serious Ocean, will present two
seminars. Ten Storm Sailing Strategies focuses on seamanship
and leadership, the two keys to handling storm conditions in
small boats. The seminar discusses techniques and realities of
heaving-to, running off and fore reaching in extreme conditions.
Sailboats for A Serious Ocean - 25 Great Sailboats for World
Voyaging. This is also by John Kretschmer, and it takes a candid
and honest look at great boats for world voyaging. It focuses
on new and used boats and what to look for when considering
a boat for crossing an ocean.
Cruising for Couples. This seminar is presented by Liza
Copeland, author of Cruising for Cowards, and emphasizes the
dynamics of couples, setting up a user-friendly boat and living
with your partner 24 hours a day—in sweet harmony.
Mediterranean Magic. Also by Liza Copeland, this seminar
explores the scope of the Mediterranean Sea, weather patterns
and forecasting, and routes to get there, in addition to specific
country information including piloting, officialdom and cruising
fees, harbors, moorage and anchorage, boating facilities
afloat and ashore, and sightseeing ashore.
Preparations for Offshore Cruising. Another presentation by
Liza Copeland, this examines outfitting your boat for a weekend,
coastal cruising or circumnavigating.
Cruising in the Caribbean. Liza Copeland again presents this
seminar, which brings the Caribbean to life with recent scenic
and personalized images of the region and includes general
Caribbean information including harbors and anchorages,
facilities, and cultural information and tips.
Basic Marine Weather Interpretation Skills. This is taught by
Lee Chesneau, a highly seasoned senior marine meteorologist
with a distinguished 36-year career in maritime weather forecasting.
Attendees will be introduced to surface weather maps
and examine the anticipated weather forecasts for several geographical
areas. This seminar is a reality check for basic weather
chart interpretation skills.
News & Views for Southern Sailors SOUTHWINDS November 2011 35