Guppies: It is never too early to get out on the water! This program is designed for children ages 6 to 7 and will include a variety of on-shore activities as well as introducing the participants to sailing in a relaxed and fun environment.

Opti Beginner: This program is for children ages 7 and up who have 0 to 3 years of sailing experience. Master the basics of safety and sportsmanship on the water, rigging, boat handling and sailing, and most importantly to have fun while learning all of it.

Opti Intermediate: This program is for children ages 9 and up who have taken at least one year of Opti Beginners an are beginning to feel comfortable sailing alone. It will help students become more confident and apt sailors, and will also introduce them to racing.

420 Beginners: This program is for children ages 10 and up who have never sailed before. Similar to the Opti beginner course, it teaches students the basics of safety and sportsmanship on the water, rigging, boat handling, sailing and most importantly to have fun while learning all of it.

420 Intermediate: This program is for children ages 11 and up who have taken at least one year of 420 Beginners and are beginning to feel comfortable sailing without an instructor present on the boat. It will help students become more confident and apt sailors and will also introduce them to racing.

Club Racing: 420, Opti, Laser & Sunfish: This program is for the experienced sailor that has a desire to take sailing past the recreational level into racing. Students will learn about the mechanics and tactics of racing and practice how to race competitively. On Wednesdays, sailors will learn strategies and techniques from our very own club experienced racing members.

Bay Adventurers: Open to all students ages 8 and up. This is an opportunity to cruise around the beautiful Peconic Bay, visit the Donkey dunes and practice what you have learned during the week. This can also be the day to try out other boats. There is something for everyone!

Laser Sailing: Full rig and Radial rig are available allowing the lighter sailor to compete. The Laser is the Olympic class single handed boat and is for the intermediate to advanced sailor. This class will be run by our senior instructors who have countless hours logged in this boat not only on the race course but also for their own fun. Class highlights will be proper rigging and tuning for the day's conditions, roll tacking, roll gybing, planing, and maintenance. Sailors will be given the basics to start enjoying the Laser for years to come.

J-24 Class: Starting at 5pm on alternating Wednesday afternoons, OCYC Junior Sailors are now able to expand their racing skills from Lasers or 420’s onto our new fleet of J-24’s. The J-24 is the perfect big boat teaching platform capable of safely teaching our junior sailors the art of big boat racing.

This class meets every other week. The idea is to allow 10 students, rotating 5 each week on board. Every Wednesday this class will board the J-24 with a senior instructor(s), learn how to properly rig the boat, have a pre-race strategy session, and compete in the Wednesday Night Big Boat Series around Robins Island. All sailors will rotate in each of the main positions on board. Positions include: Skipper, Main Trimmer, Jib Trimmer, Mast or Pit Person, and Bowman. All sailors will contribute tactically during the race. When the race is over the boat will be properly de-rigged and put back on the mooring. A post race wrap up will be done before the sailors return to the club.

Sailors are expected to be off the water by approximately 7:30pm.

Note
All of the ages above are to be considered as guidelines. The instructors will access the skill levels of each sailor and with the Jr Sailing Committee will steer sailors towards the appropriate program.

Scholarships
Old Cove believes that no student should be prevented from participating in any of the Old Cove programs due to lack of ability to pay. Through the generous donations this past year to the Sky Bergen Memorial Fund, the Schowalter Family Scholarship Fund and the OCYSF Scholarship Fund, scholarship monies are available to qualified students who are in need of financial assistance.

DEFINITIONS
The OCYC sailing school program will use different types of boat and teach children in different age/ability levels.

THE BOATS
There will be 4 main types of boat used in the sailing program: Optimists (‘Optis’), Sunfish, Lasers and C420s.

1. Optimist: The Optimist is about 8 feet long and weighs only 77 pounds. Although the Optimist looks like a very simple boat, in fact, it has a remarkably sophisticated design - a small dinghy that is not only easily controlled by a small child but also provides superb one-design racing. It responds to and rewards the highest skills of even experienced sailors. The Optimist is sailed by over 300,000 young people ages 7 to 15 in more than 90 countries. Old Cove currently has 24 Optimists. Optimist dinghies are available from a number of manufacturers and cost from $3000 to $5000 depending on equipment and accessories. Pre-owned Optis in good condition will cost between $1600 and $3500 depending on age and equipment. Help with purchasing a pre-owned Opti, including a "Buying a Used Opti Checklist" is available by emailing Chris Kuehn at ck@oldcoveyc.com.

2. Sunfish: The Sunfish is reasonably well known by OCYC members. It is about 14 feet long and weighs around 140 pounds. The low sail plan requires just 2 lines to control and provides stability and a forgiving feel. Old Cove currently has one club Sunfish. A new Sunfish from Vanguard costs $3,070.

3. Laser: The Laser is a 14-foot, single-handed class that is sailed in the Olympics. The boat weighs 130 pounds and has a single un-stayed mast. It is fast and a challenge to sail. Old Cove currently has 6 Lasers that are equipped with both Full and Radial rigs (the latter have a smaller sail area). A new Laser costs $5,500. Used Lasers can cost from $2,000 to $4,500 depending on age and equipment.

4. C420: The Club 420 (C420) is a double-handed sloop- - i.e. has a crew of two. It is used in college, high school and junior training programs. C420s are 14 feet long and weigh 230 pounds. They have a mainsail, jib and spinnaker, and the crew uses a trapeze. The C420s are fast and exciting to sail, yet they are safe because they are self-rescuing in the event of a capsize. Old Cove currently has a fleet of 12 C420s.

Sailing Levels:
We define four sailing levels: Level 1 = ‘Beginner’, Level 2 = ‘Intermediate’, Level 3 = ‘Intermediate-Advanced’ and Level 4 = ‘Advanced’. We also use 3 age-related designations: ‘Guppies’ (ages 5, 6 and 7), ‘Midgets’ (up to 13) and ‘Juniors’ (14, 15 and 16 years old). These terms are used slightly differently at various clubs and you should know that Southold YC, for example, has a 15-year cut-off for ‘Juniors’; that is, a 16-year old who is a Junior at OCYC is considered a Senior at SYC.

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