Blog

SAILING FIT

By: Meka Taulbee

ACE Certified Personal Trainer

SAILFIT Inc

Exercise Your Wallet

Exercise your wallet! Bet you didn’t expect to read about that type of exercise. Well the topic is a bit off my norm, but I hope you’ll enjoy it just the same. It has  been coming to my attention that a lot of the youth sailors I expect to see at different regatta’s nationwide are not registered. Honestly since Kurt has been coaching and we have not been traveling as much I haven’t looked at the registration fees. So I started looking….wow prices have jumped. While I have my own opinions on the registration fees that are being charged, I’ll save that for another time and place. What concerns me is that there are some very talented sailors who are not out sailing because the fees are not affordable. 

Yes the economy is what it is and sailing is a hobby rather than a necessity(ok ok maybe it is a necessity but you get the idea). I can understand for the adults, but believe it or not there are some youth sailors who are paying their own way and some parents who may have lost their jobs due to the economy. Instead of seeing decreasing numbers at regatta’s or declining membership in the Laser class I would rather turn this into a positive.

Imagine this. Say a regatta is coming to your area and you are not going to sail it or you have an extra practice boat. Now say there is a youth who can’t afford to charter a boat. Do you see where I am going with this…. Now imagine how good you would feel if you made it possible for that talented young sailor to get on the water and sail the regatta. Here’s another scenario.. You are going to a regatta and there is a youth who has a boat but the registration fee is just out of their price range. How good would you feel if you were able to help out. Many don’t realize it but these exact scenarios play out all the time.

Here’s what I propose! Summer is coming and there are a ton of regattas and a ton of youth off of school just itching to get out on the water. If you aren’t going to sail or have an extra boat think about letting a youth sailor borrow it. Maybe in trade they can bring you coffee every morning or maybe just having them help you load and unload the boat is enough. Think about sponsoring a youth at a regatta and paying their registration fee or even just paying half. 

If your a youth sailor and someone is kind enough to do this for you remember to pay it forward somewhere down the road. THE fun is definitely in giving more than the receiving. Do what you can for that person to let them know you appreciate it and then go out there and rip it up on the race course!

Sounds simple enough doesn’t it. I understand it has it’s logistics but this is where I come in. If you are a sailor willing to give a little let me know. Tell me what event or what you think you can do. If you are a sailor that could use a little help then let me know. I’ll match everyone up and exchange contact info and help make it all go as smoothly as possible. If you are on either end and would feel more comfortable remaining anonymous that is fine to. Just tell me and I’ll be the middle man and not let on who is who.

I’ve always enjoyed being around laser sailors young and not as young. I like how everyone is willing to lend a hand and eager to learn more. Yes, some of you are competitive at a high level, but others who have the talent and skill may never get there because of silly reasons. In the end the sport should be enjoyable and a way to learn. What better way to achieve this than to lend a helping hand.

As always, if you want to hear about a certain topic or have any questions about this topic feel free to contact me. You can always find me at www.sailfit.com or email directly to meka@sailfit.com. I look forward to hearing from you