Youth learn, practice sailing skills

Summer brings all kinds of adventures for kids around the Flathead Valley, but one that a handful of youngsters take advantage of each year is the North Flathead Yacht Club's Junior Sailing Program.

A little more than a dozen kids ranging in age from 8 to 14 spend six weeks each summer learning the ropes, literally.

There is a beginner and an intermediate class, each of which meets two or three times each week for three hours.

Most of the kids in the program have parents who are members of the club and the others tend to be friends of those kids.

Scott Galbraith has been teaching the courses at the club for four summers.

"He is the reason a lot of the older kids that are in their fifth year in the program come back," said Melanie Dardis, whose daughters Emily and Maddie are enrolled in the classes. "The parents are always amazed that when the kids come back in that they have really learned a lot, even though it looks like they've just been out having fun and goofing around."

That mix of learning and playing is exactly what Galbraith uses to his advantage, and what makes him enjoy teaching at the club.

"I like teaching the kids' classes," Galbraith said. "It's a bit more of a challenge than the adults. You have to find a style and a language that works for them. With adults you can be pretty dry and they'll pick it up, but with the kids you have to be an educator and an entertainer too."

Sailing classes begin with a whiteboard session on one of the picnic tables adjacent to the Lake in Somers Bay.

While the kids finish their breakfasts and getting themselves situated for the day, Galbraith goes over the technical aspects of sailing. He spends about a half an hour quizzing the kids on the parts of the boat and sailing techniques, and in between the sketches of sailboats he draws them funny cartoons.

Once the wind has picked up, Galbraith's students begin setting up their boats.

The beginner class uses Optimist boats and the intermediate group uses FJ sailboats, which are larger and more complex.

The young sailors are generally able to do all of the preparation work on their boats by themselves with the exception of putting the boat in the water, which Galbraith helps out with after checking to make sure everything is set up correctly.

After the boats are in the water, there is about an hour-and-a-half of sailing time, though Galbraith admits it can be a struggle to keep the youngest sailors' attention for that long.

"I try to keep them out there and having fun," Galbraith said. "I just want to keep them coming back and work them into it."

The older group tends to value their time on the water more, though.

"It's a break from the norm. It's just different," said Noah Hill, a 14 year old who has been part of the Junior Sailing Club for five years. "Most people don't think about sailing when they think about water. They think about speed boats. It's just a different type of water sport that's fun."

While out on the water, the class members learn how to control their boat, what to do when it capsizes and how the parts on the boat function to help the boat move.

The kids are able to not only learn to sail the small boats in class, but also take what they have learned and apply it to their families' boats or a boat they may own when they are older.

For many of them, sailing is already something they value in their lives.

"I like sailing because you get to be in control of where you're going and I like having just the wind to power you," said Emily Dardis, a 12 year old in her fifth summer with the program.

Galbraith has taught sailing in Coeur d'Alene, Boston and Maui, and while he is happy to help this generation get a solid and early start on the sport he loves, he admits he is a little envious.

"I didn't get to do this. I taught myself and read a book out of the 70s," said Galbraith, who began sailing at age 13. "I think it is great. I'd like to see it get bigger here, though."

One of the ways Galbraith has already helped the program grow is by keeping students in the program for longer by making the course more enjoyable.

When he first started at the club, the intermediate group was centered around racing and competition.

He soon realized that that is not where the kids' interest was.

"You can tell that most of them just want to go out and have fun," Galbraith said. "They weren't real interested in racing."

When stopping by the classes, it is easy to see that the group is mostly there to have a good time and the only competition is to see who can have the most fun.

Tennis balls are thrown, boats are purposely capsized and kids are thrown in the water left and right.

In the end, though, the young sailors come away with a love for sailing that they will likely carry with them for the rest of their lives.

"It will probably make me stay with it my whole life," Hill said. "If I would've started when I was older, I may have just tried it once and never done it again."

The group will culminate its summer courses with a Junior Sailing Regatta at 8:30 a.m. Aug. 7. However, the competition has been changed in that event as well.

"The regatta doesn't have much racing anymore either," Galbraith said. "We just throw a bunch of toys out in the bay, play lots of games, eat lunch and have fun."