How to Sail on A Large Sailboat without Paying for It

When someone hears about sailing regularly without owning a sailboat it seems too good to be true. Frequently, the first thing that pops into the someone’s mind is that one can rent a sailboat, or stowaway, or pose as a friend of a friend.

However, the means to be able to sail on a large sailboat (over 30 feet) is to be a member of a crew on a racing sailboat.

Many, perhaps most crews on the sailboats seen racing in regattas or in long port to port races are composed of amateurs. They crew for no pay in return for the ability to ride the sailboats. They find plenty of owners who are willing to put their love of sailing to good use.

This is because contrary to popular belief sailing is not the sole domain of the Ted Turner’s of the world. Many sailboat owners are not wealthy. Sailboat owners can are bankers, butchers, accountants, firemen, businessmen, carpenters. Sometimes two or three or more individuals will buddy up to partner in the purchase of a sailboat. Typically, after the cost of owning and maintaining a boat are factored in, there is little or nothing left to pay a crew. Yet, it may take up to 7 or 8 or more to crew a sailboat depending on its size and the type of race.

Some sailboat owners will take aboard crew members who have little or no experience. Most prefer to take experienced crew members, the amount of experience required will depend on the owner/skipper, the competitiveness of the boat, and the competitiveness of racing in which it is involved.

If someone is interested in being a member of a sailboat crew there are four logical questions.

How does one gain experience?

How does one find a sailboat looking for crew?

What it is going to cost?

What's in it for me?

A very good first step in gaining experience is if you live near a large city on either coast or on large inland bodies of water such as the great lakes, there is a good chance there is a yacht club not far from you with a sailing fleet. Most of these clubs will offer sailing lessons. Also, many larger cities may offer sailing lessons through the park district. In addition, there are other organizations ranging from the sea scouts to private companies that offer sailing lessons.

Lessons range from basics for the novice to more advanced lessons that provide certification for skippering a sailboat. Costs of course will vary. Make sure you get as much time as possible on board a sail boat during the lessons. Class room time is good, but there is nothing better than the actual experience of doing.

Finding a sailboat to crew upon is usually relatively easy, especially after the novice crew person has taken lessons and is not a complete newbie. Most yacht clubs that have a sailboat fleet will post the boats in their club looking for crew and crew looking for a boat. Also, it is not usually mandatory that crew members join a yacht club in order to crew on a boat in the club. There are also web sites that provide listings.

However, before you make a commitment to crew on a boat it is wise to do some homework. While most sailboat skippers are friendly, helpful people, and are great to be with, some can turn into a Captain Bligh the moment the boat leaves its mooring. If you are looking for a competitive sailing experience that is fun, the captain Bligh Type of skipper may not be the best bet.

Another thing to think about is the experience of the skipper. Sailing in bad weather can be dangerous. Also, maneuvering 30 foot boats and larger at a starting line can be exciting and sometimes hair raising. Having a skipper who has experience and knows the rules is important.

Chemistry with not only the skipper, but other crew members is important. Remember, crewing on a big sail boat can mean days at sea in good weather and bad. Conditions will be cramped. If a storm blows up you may be called back on deck in the middle of the night even though you just got off your watch. All these things mean if you don’t have good chemistry with the other members of the crew on shore, you are likely to find things much worse once you are racing.

One other item to check before you commit to being part of a crew is to find out what commitment the owner of the boat expects from crew members. Obviously the owner will wish to know your availability. Boats may race only once a week, or as many times as three or four times a week. Frequent crew members may not be able to commit to every race, that is why a boat that requires a crew of seven may actually have a pool as large as 10 or 14 persons who are available at different times.

Committed crew members will generally try to race at least once a week. Of course if one is new to sailing and wants to gain experience racing more frequently will help you gain your goals.

Crewing is a wonderful deal for a person who enjoys sailing. it is customary for the owner of the boat to pay all maintenance and related charges, such as mooring fees, insurance, sails and equipment, fuel etc. In return for a ride on a boat crew members give their time to help rig and race the boat, and perhaps provide some sweat labor in maintaining the boat. Also the cost for beverages and snacks are usually split among the crew.

If you decide to take lessons the cost of lessons will vary according to what part of the country you live in and of course on what level(s) of lesson(s) you take. Like most things it is wise to query various sailing schools for cost and what you get for the cost.

Sometimes novices will have a friend or a friend of a friend who will take them on their boat. If you are fortunate enough to be one of those persons, it is still a good idea to take some basic lessons to learn the terminology and basics.

About the only equipment a crew member needs is a pair of gloves to prevent rope burns, and a pair of non skid/non marking deck shoes. Clothing is usually informal and should be appropriate for the weather conditions.

Sailboat racing is a team sport. It is about being competitive. However, being competitive may not be about being first in the race. Unless you are racing in a one design race, there is both an overall winner and class winners. And because of the handicap system used in multi-design races the overall winner may not be the first sailboat that crosses the finish line. Competitiveness can also be about a boat and its crew doing their personal best. 

Like most team sports the best parts of sailing  can be when members of the crew gather after an event or season and recall incidents  that they all shared. Those incidents might include being able to continue in face of a bad storm, or a beautiful sunset, or something humorous, or a moment that all is in sync and the boat is moving at optimum performance feeling like a living thing as she goes through the waves… or it may be when all things seem to go to hell and every crew member is scrambling. Those shared memories  are what can make crewing rich and rewarding. And as a crew member one can experience these at a far lower cost than the owner of a sailboat.

Warning. One wonders where sailboat owners come form. The answer is once you have experienced sailing as a member of a crew  you may find you are ready to take the plunge, buy a sailboat and put together a crew and go a racing on the blue water.