youth sailing
Learn by doing.
Access to the water, to boats, to our maritime culture.
Sailing at The Apprenticeshop is community sailing—that means it is for everyone! You don’t need to own a boat and you don’t need to be a member. Sailing is an ancient tradition of transportation that is part of our collective human heritage. Today, it is a portal to infinite possibilities—setting off from the dock you can sail around the world, make a career as a mariner, or you can simply do it for fun. For over 20 years, we have been putting the tiller in the hands of our youth, regardless of previous experience or ability to pay. We want all youth, whether they are just curious or already passionate, to have an opportunity to access boats and experience the challenges and rewards of sailing. Sailing builds decision-making skills and confidence; it encourages both autonomy and collective spirit; it cultivates joy through exploration, and excitement in competing to reach a goal.
More than half the earth is covered in water—let’s get out there!
We won’t leave any child on the dock. Financial assistance is available!
Youth Summer Sailing | $365/session
Our summer sailing program is a great way for youth ages 6-14 to learn the basics of sailing and get more comfortable out on the water. Each session is 5 days (Monday through Friday) and participants can choose to take one session or multiple throughout the summer! Sailors are grouped based on age and experience levels, our younger, newer sailors learn in Optimist prams. Older sailors and those with more experience work together as a skipper and crew to sail 420 dinghies.
One of the exciting moments of each week is “adventure day” (weather permitting) where campers get to experience sailing as a group on our unique traditional wooden vessels built by The Apprenticeshop. Many of our instructors are teens who have grown up through this program themselves; they are eager to pass on their skills and keep sailing alive!
Use the discount code YSAIL10 at checkout to receive 10% off tuition for registering 2 or more siblings/ participants from the same household.
We offer scholarships! To find out more, please give us a call at (207) 594-1800, or email us at info@apprenticeshop.org.
2024 CAMP SCHEDULE:
June 24th - 28th
July 8th - 12th
July 15th - 19th
July 22nd - 26th
July 29th - Aug 2nd
Aug 5th - 9th
Aug 12th - 16th
Aug 19th - 23rd
High School Sailing: Spring and Fall 2024
Our Program
High School sailors are invited to join us for our spring and fall sailing seasons! Our Spring session is geared towards sailors with some previous experience, and our Fall session is open to all skill levels.
In the spring we host the following teams: the Oceanside High School team, the Islesboro Central School team, and the Camden Hills Regional High School team.
Additionally, we welcome participants from all area high schools without teams (public and independent), home schooled students, and 7th and 8th grade students onto the Rockland Community team.
In the Fall, we come together as one larger Community team, though we sometimes compete as separate teams at regattas.
*** Please note: registration for the spring sailing season is done through your school. The Rockland Community team is for sailors who do not attend one of the schools listed above—those participants can register here on our website ***
Our Boats
Our fleet consists of Club 420s: A 2-person sloop-rigged fiberglass racing dinghy. 420s are the premier high school and college racing sailboat in the U.S. They are stable and simple enough for beginners, but can sail fast and are responsive enough to challenge the most experienced sailors.
Caring for equipment, maintenance and respect for the facility are an essential part of seamanship and are scheduled into the program.
2024 Practice Schedule
Our Spring Session runs from April 1st to June 30th, and our Fall Session runs from August 31st to October 9th. Practices are held on Monday and Thursdays, from 3:30- 6:30pm.
Our typical practice schedule is as follows:
3:20 Arrive Practice & Gear Up
3:30 Coach’s Chalk Talk. (Be geared up and ready!)
3:45 Rig Boats & On-Water Practice (weather permitting)
6:00 De-rig boats and debriefing
6:30 Sailors depart
Regattas
Most weekends, the teams will attend racing regattas either locally or in locations such as Portland, Castine, Bowdoin, Boothbay or Mount Desert Island depending on the schedule (usually Saturdays).
The Notice Of Race (NORs) for some of our regattas are available at nessa.hssailing.org. The NORs state the race schedules, rules and general event details. The Pen Bay Sailing League organizes the majority of our regattas. The schedule is shared via email sometime early in the season. The seasonal series consist of 4 events, one at each venue: MDI, Boothbay, Rockland, Maine Maritime Academy.
DATES
Spring Session:
April 1st - June 30th
Fall Session:
August 31st - Oct 9th
Mondays & Thursdays
3:30-6:30pm
REGISTRATION OPENS SOON!
Beginner 420 Racing Clinics | $340/session
For those who want to compete or get involved in their high school sailing team, improve your skills in a 3 day clinic that culminates in a regatta. During this clinic sailors learn all about racing using our 420 dinghies. Sailors will start with an introduction to the boat and rigging followed by simple drills on different race courses in Rockland Harbor. On the last day sailors will test their ability in either Camden Classic Youth Regatta or The Apprenticeshop’s Red Jacket Youth Regatta. No racing experience required!
Use the discount code YSAIL10 to receive 10% off tuition for registering 2 or more siblings/ participants from the same household.
We offer scholarships! To find out more, please give us a call at (207) 594-1800, or email us at info@apprenticeshop.org.
DATES:
July 22nd - 24th
August 5th - 7th