‘Smiling faces, a lot of teamwork’: Edmonton sailing lessons wrapping up for the summer

The Edmonton Yacht Club is holding sailing school programs this summer for kids, adults and different levels of experienced sailors.

A group in Edmonton is aiming to teach anybody, young or old, the skills they need to be confident out in the water.

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Edmonton Yacht Club’s sailing school has been running since 2021. They’ve been building the program with inspiration from the Northern Alberta Sailing College.

Their goal, said program manager Curtis Cunningham, is to get “people to experience out on the boats” to build their durability and resiliency.

“Sailing builds a lot of confidence in your abilities, because you go from not having any control … to being able to harness the wind and be able to sail a boat,” Cunningham said. “Which to me is the coolest thing about it.”

He said their aim is to make the environment as safe as possible, especially for younger people.

“Obviously it’s a new thing, so kids generally are unsure of it just because it is new. But … there’s a lot of smiling faces, a lot of teamwork out here today,” he said.

Classes mainly revolve around dinghy sailboats, nothing larger than 15 feet. The teachers will match boats to a student’s need and skill.

“Our youngest one in lessons today is four years old, and we’ve taught up to 80 years old,” he said. “So a wide range, and lots of kids.”

One of the kids out on Saturday was Ayla Yegani, 11, who had never sailed before but wanted to try it out with her brother because her grandmother sails.

While her and her partner had the boat flip on them during their practice, she said she had learned what to do to fix the situation.

“It was really hard at one point, and I was thinking of just giving up and just leaving the boat there,” she said. “But then I got some help, and it was easier.”

Overall, she said it was “really fun,” and she’d be doing it again.

“Even when something goes wrong, it can always get better,” she said.

While there are only a few weekend lessons left for August, Cunningham said similar programs will run next year, with beginner youth lessons on Saturdays and beginner adult lessons on Sundays.

More information about the programs for youth and adults can be found on their website.