Coming Soon! Increase your comfort level and confidence with sailboat images identifying key areas of a sailboat.  When your instructor says "Check the wind direction by looking at the wind vane" or "Check the steaming light to be sure it works", you know exactly where to look.
Learn to Sail Classes

There are hundreds of sailing schools that would love to teach you to sail. There are even specialty classes like; sailing schools for women, couples sailing schools, bareboat sailing schools, Caribbean sailing schools located in the Virgin Islands, American sailing schools all along the coasts and and lake areas that provide excellent sailing education and sailing instruction. If your interest is bluewater or lake sailing, looking for cruising instruction and sailing certification or advanced celestial navigation there is a "how to" sail class for you. Many beginners start with the basic ASA or US Sailing Association classes, and move on to bareboat charter and coastal navigation courses. What ever your sailing or boating interest, there is a "Learn to Sail" class for you. We hope these online sailing lessons help you maximize your time on the boat. Good luck and enjoy your life  ... you only get one.


Resources
Learn the 100 most important words and terms you need for sailing
Created by Ashoreschool.com, these FREE interactive sailing lessons will take you from an absolute beginner to a confident sailing student who can communicate well with your instructor and classmates.  These lessons are structured in a vocabulary building format, advancing step by step over seven sections. As a result of your new vocabulary, your instructor lead course material will become much easier to understand. BONUS: We have included additional definitions within each description, so if you see a highlighted word just point to it with your mouse and the definition will appear.  Packed with nearly 600 illustrations!

Five ready to use Day Sail checklists that can be viewed for FREE on your iPhone or any other Web - Enabled - Device from Verizon, Sprint, or AT&T's G3 network. If you have a laptop on your Nav Station, you can also call up the checklist or print the PDF version. Checklists include Personal Gear, Safety and Legal, House Systems, Machinery, and Reading Sails and Lines.
Knot tying is part of the fun of sailing. We have searched the internet for the best videos and knot tieing web-sites and made them available. We start this section with an excellent video covering the 8 basic knots you will need to know, and continue with two specialty videos; the Bowline and Figure 8 knots. Watch this page for more in the future.
Go to Volvo
Master the rudder and sail controls to get your boat going as fast as possible no matter what direction you're sailing in, or which way the wind's is blowing. Fun interactive controls give you the opportunity to Jibe, Tack, even practice Figure 8's. Presented by National Geographic and the Volvo racing team, this Volvo Sailing Simulator has been used by thousands of new and experienced sailors to sharpen their skills.
We welcome your comments and ideas. Marilyn and I developed this site as a way to help the beginning sailor. If something needs to be clarified, or you think it's great, just drop us a note and tell us..
Drop us a note
Open PDF to Print Checklist
Go to Points of Sail Lesson
Available as a special stand alone tutorial, our Points of Sail lesson is clearly unique in its multi-view approach to understanding wind direction and the sailing terminology associated with it. This lesson clearly illustrates not only the Point of Sail and the Mainsail position, it also includes the tack, the wind angle, and the masthead wind vane direction. As a special bonus, it also includes the "clock method" of describing wind direction

Yes it works just like that!
Go to Sea It Say it
Go to Checklist Index
Go to Knot Videos
NEW
Lesson
New
Experience is a great teacher, and this is a great place to start. In our new "Teachable Moment" section we hope to bring you the experiences of thousands of miles of sailing, without leaving your seat. Beth Leonard, circumnavigator and author of The Voyager's Handbook, saw the benefit of our project and was the first to add a lesson. Cmdr. Suzanne Giesemann, the respected author and avid sailor has just added another great lesson from her book It's Your Boat Too. Cruiser Laurie Pane, who sailed around the world with his wife and son, share two great lessons from his is book Chasing Sunsets. Offshore sailor, Bill Biewenga's has just been added two more lessons. NEW  Jim & Wendy Ulik prove you can live your dreams in a sailboat under 30 feet! NEW Scott Welty, the fun teacher, shares one of his great MacGyver lessons with us.  Check back frequently as we add more.

Go to Checklist Index
When we first saw the Marine GeoGarage we knew it would be perfect for the sailor learning the basics of charting and navigation symbols. By laying 1018 NOAA charts over Google Maps, the Marine GeoGarage allows you to effortlessly visualize the details. Adding tools like the US Coast Guard Navigation Aids and NOAA Chart 1 Symbols to the screen, makes it the perfect tool for students exploring any coastline in America.
Go to Checklist Index
Three tools have been included within this lesson group. First the US Coast Guard's combined  International (COLREGS) and Inland Navigation Rules. Next is The Handbook of the Nautical Rules of the Road, written by Chris Llana and George Wisneskey, an excellent guide for gaining understanding. Finally we have included the US Coast Guard Auxiliary's Plain English flash card prep tool, available in the original print version and updated for on-line lessons.

Go to Nav Rules
Bookmark and Share
NEW
Go to Weather and Tide Resource Page
These resources were collected and contributed by Bill Biewenga.  Bill is one of America's most accomplished offshore sailors. He has accumulated approximately 400,000 sea miles including 37 transatlantic crossings, several TransPacs, numerous record attempts, deliveries and races, as well as participation in four round the world races.  Bill has several lessons in our Teachable Moment's Section

Go To The Interactive Sailing Lesson Index Page

Preview

Go To Points of Sail Training Lesson
Go to Sea and Say It
To to the NAV Rules Index
Learn Some Great Lessons by clicking this Button
Go to NOAA Charts over Google Charts
To Weather and Tide Links
Send Us Feedback

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Go To Knot Videos and Animations
In an effort to expand the resources we offer the new sailor, this month we added our "Newsstand" section. We are very fortunate to have a large number of editors who support your new interest and are happy to share their world with you for free.        

So far we have received approval for e-additions from most of the US Regional Marine publications, as well as the several great "Cruising" Magazines. We will continue add more as they become available.

These publication offer a great resource for your adventure planning, and some wonderful articles to help you get past the winter blahs.
If this is your first visit, welcome aboard. Our goal is simple: Create a great media rich resource for the new sailor. To do so, Ashoreschool.com has become both a content provider and an collector of the best sailing material on the web. We hope our efforts will assist you in successfully preparing for your instructor-lead sailing classes.
As a learning supplement, we have designed Ashoreschool.com to be
interactive and entertaining.
Sincerely,
Tom and Marilyn Edwards

My husband and I "head out" tomorrow for a weekend anniversary trip that includes our 101 class. I actually feel like I know what I am doing and will not be at a complete loss!

Thank you for making me feel like I have enough of a handle on it to take the plunge.

Wish us luck, we'll keep you posted.

- Robyn Lund

This is a great site.

I've been sailing since the early 1960's but have not done much in the last 30+ years, having to work can be a real drag.

It's exactly what I've been looking for as a refresher.

- Glen

Thank you so much for all of your great work!

I run a community sailing school with all volunteer instructors and am just thrilled to have all of these lovely teaching aids!

Please add me to both your mailing list and your fan club!

- Kate Bedard

I am trying to learn how to sail while in Afghanistan. This is by far the best video on "points of sail" I have found. The website linked with profile also has a fantastic "powerpoint" on introduction to sailing.

- C J Barnard

Posted on YouTube.com

I've had a look at your website and am very impressed. What a great resource for those just getting into sailing! I agree that most of the online resources out there assume some basic level of knowledge and vocabulary.

Your site is accessible and well laid out - congratulations!"

Beth A. Leonard
The Voyager's Handbook
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