Joe Nicholson/The Olympian
Olympia residents interested in learning to sail can work as crew members during races on Puget Sound. The Toliva Shoal race in February is one of many in South Sound and draws more than 60 boats.

Joe Nicholson/The Olympian
In addition to beautiful scenery, South Sound sailors might encounter seals, fish and occasionally a whale.

Join the crew!

Learn to sail or just enjoy the ride by being a crew member

N.S. NOKKENTVED, THE OLYMPIAN

Originally published Tuesday, March 5, 2002

OLYMPIA -- With a few friends and a couple of bags of groceries on board, Mike Carlson unplugged the heavy yellow power cable from the dock, slipped his mooring lines and quietly motored out into Budd Inlet for a day of sailing.

Though he lives aboard Time Spinner, a 37-foot sloop moored at Swantown Marina, he enjoys sailing in the lower end of Puget Sound whenever he has a chance.

"I just like to get away from the dock for a while," said Carlson, 52, a teacher at Capital High School.

He is one of many South Sound residents who enjoys sailing as a form of recreation. But it's not necessary to own a sailboat to get involved in sailing. Indeed, buying a sailboat is an expensive way to find out whether you like sailing, said Steve Worcester, who owns three.

Get on somebody's boat -- crew with a skipper on a bigger boat, he suggests.

That's just what Brenda Alongi did.

"It's definitely a great way to learn about sailing," said Alongi, a 23-year-old state worker. She has worked as a crew member on sailboats during races last summer and once during the winter, she said.

"They're willing to teach, if you're willing to learn," she said. She learned about knots as in ropes, and knots as in speed. A lot of it is common sense, and it's not hard if you pay attention.

"I love going sailing," Alongi said. "You meet really cool people."

Destinations abound

And there are plenty of places to take a sailboat for a day or a weekend in South Sound. Many quiet bays and inlets of Case Inlet and Dana Passage -- including Jerrell Cove, McMicken Island and Hope Island and many other marine parks of southern Puget Sound -- are within reach of day trips or overnight excursions.

Worcester enjoys the scenery and just being out on the water where he often encounters seals, fish and the occasional whale, he said. And he encourages would-be sailors to join the South Sound Sailing Society -- even if they don't own a boat.

John Blomstrand, a business manager with the state, recently signed up with the South Sound Sailing Society as a crew member looking for a boat and skipper that offer an opportunity to learn in return for work as a crew member.

Blomstrand moved to South Sound earlier this year from Chicago, where he did a lot of small boat sailing on Lake Michigan. He is hoping to learn about sailing bigger boats and to explore some of those places.

"It's something that I greatly enjoy," Blomstrand said.

The more independent can take lessons and rent or charter a boat.

Boston Harbor Marina has three sailboats for rent -- 24-, 25- and 27-foot models -- but you have to know how to handle a boat, said marina owner Don McHugh.

"If you don't have a clue, you're really in over your head," he said. Boston Harbor also offers private lessons.

The Island Sailing Club in Swantown Marina offers boats, maintenance, fuel and cleaning for monthly membership fees at less that what it costs to moor a 30-footer in the Olympia area, said Brian R. Carter of the Island Sailing Club.

Memberships start at $99 a month -- with a minimum of one year. Typical moorage fees in South Sound for a 30-foot boat range from $150 to $175.

The club has eight boats -- day sailors to cruisers. Members have to be certified by the American Sailing Association "so we know that people have a basic understanding of how to dock the boat and how to sail it," Carter said.

Interested but don't know how to sail?

"There are places to learn to sail," said Dave Knowlton, commodore of the South Sound Sailing Society and owner of the 36-foot sloop "Koosah."

"It's best to start in a small boat that you can tip over," he said.

N.S. Nokkentved covers the outdoors for The Olympian. He can be reached at 360-754-5445 and at nnokkent@olympia. gannett.com.

- Olympia Parks and Recreation: Weeklong sailing camps cost $80 and run from 9 a.m. to noon or 1 to 4 p.m. starting June 24 through mid-August for children 10 to 15. 360-570-5854.

- Island Sailing School: Offers several levels from basic to advanced, starting at $325 that result in American Sailing Association certification. 800-303-2470 or www.island sailingschool.com

- Boston Harbor Marina: Private lessons $30 an hour. 360-357-5670 or www.bostonharbormarina.com.

- Corinthian Sailing Club: Lessons from beginning to advanced, and competitive racing, open to youths 8 to 18 and adults. Classes run June through September, cost $90 per week. Hours are 9 a.m. to noon or 1 to 4 p.m., with discounts for three or more weeks. 360-754-6506.

- Puget Sound Sailing Institute: 253-383-1774 or 800-487-2454 or www.pugetsoundsailing.com.

- Tacoma Women's Sailing Association: 253-851-8155 or www.twsa.org

Safety, seamanship classes

- Olympia Sail and Power Squadron: 360-456-4708.

- Coast Guard Auxiliary: 360-456-0360.

- American Red Cross: 360-352-8575.

Want to know more?

- South Sound Sailing Society: 352-9283 or www.ssssclub.com.

- Olympia Yacht Club: 357-6767 or www.olympiayc.org.

The Olympian Copyright 2002

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