Skipper a yacht with a student group

First of all I would like to mention, as I have already mentioned, that here are written only my observations and are not always describing specific group. But in my opinion are most of the time true.

The youngest groups are teenagers but they do not go to sailing without their parents. However students do.  Student or people around 20-30 years go sailing probably because one of the participants is enthusiast and want to share his joy for yacht or sailboat with other friends. That person usually has all the knowledge to control the boat.

However there are times when students would like to go on sailing and do not have to sail. One of good example is party weeks that are organized for students. Company that is organizing that kind of trip is hiring skippers to take control over sailboat and look after participants.

You can get lucky and get a group of people that are not that wild. There were cases when people were parting on a sailboat during a day and have damaged so badly that helicopter was needed to transport them to hospital in time. Otherwise there are only some scratches and broken bones when people were drunk and were running on a unstable and not flat surface such is a sailboat.

Overall I think you should be careful and look over beside the sailboat or yacht also to your crew - students. In my opinion being a skipper to students is the most intense and exhausting part of being a skipper.

Skipper

I am a skipper and would like to explain what does skipper does. Being skipper is job where you control sailboat or yacht with a help of someone else or by yourself. Being skipper is a responsible task where you are responsible not just for a boat but also for all the people that are currently on the vessel.

Training for skipper is not easy. Depending on the country where skipper is located, skippered needs to pass basic skipper courses. Some countries have only theoretical exams where you become skipper for vessels as long as 25 meters without passing the theoretical exam. There are also countries where you need to pass separated courses for radio communications.

However one of the most recognized skipper courses in the world is UK RYA (Royal Yachting Association). There goal is simple and in my opinion pretty well thought of making standards for skipper license all over the world. The offer various courses for sailboat, powerboats, yachts, dinghies and so on and have already made a good name.

Skipper

However skipper is not just a "driver" of the boat. Skipper needs to take much more responsibility, sometimes you need to be also a guide, communicative person that can handle a different strange situations or person that can fix a boat when this is needed in bad weather.

Being skipper is not always easy. You need to get along with various people. From people that do not speak at all during the sailing or people who prefer to talk all the time and are sometimes more then annoying. And sometimes you are in a company of people that you do not like away from your friends and family for more then a month or two during the high season. However being a skipper is not always good.

But there are also times that weighted all bad moments with endless sunsets in an interesting company on the sailboat. Being skipper is more then a hobby, it is a life.