The FCOA sail training is designed for FCOA members and you must have passed the 200 meter swim test before you can start.  Ideally you are already an FCOA Freediver before you start this lesson. Not a member yet? Register on FCOA.online and start your online study. 

  Some benefits of being a freediver when sailing:

1. In case your boat capsizes you have some breath holding capabilities to get yourself and other crew members to safety. 
2. Doing an anchor check to see if it did dig in and in case your anchor gets stuck you can dive down to unhook it. 
3. If your boat has no engine and if there is no wind, a freediver can pull and maneuver a boat for docking purposes. This is an unusual practice but can be very practical. 
4. You can do the underwater maintenance of a boat without needing a lift out or scuba gear. In salt water boats require periodic haul cleaning, anodes need to get replaced and an occasional rope caught by the propellor will need to get cut out. 

FCOA SAIL PROGRAMS:

• FCOA Dive&Sail : an introduction to sailing where after a short demonstration you start sailing yourself under the supervision of a coach. Possible your coach allows you to sail solo for a few tags and jibes by the end of the session. 
• FCOA SOLO SAILOR: A training towards independence. One of the passing requirements being: to collect 10 solo sailing hours
• FCOA RADIO OPERATOR: Learn to use a marine radio
• FCOA SAILING INSTRUCTOR: The biggest passing requirement being: For coaches to collect 30 teaching hours.
  

Prerequisites

• FCOA SWIMMER 200 m certified
• Completion of the FCOA Sail&Dive quiz

Time plan for this introduction to sailing 

(Approximately 4 hours, this is simply a suggested time, feel free to agree on other timings)

• 1 hour briefing on boat preparation and boat handling
• Sailing with a coach for 30 minutes
• 100 meter paddle practice 
• 50 meter swim towing your boat
• Capsize recovery 
• Sailing solo for 30 minutes (if your ready for it)
• Sailing with a coach for 15 minutes
• Man Overboard Procedure
• Dropping and lifting an anchor
• Debriefing
• Logging your sailing experience in your logbook
• Posting something to #keep_our_waters_clean
• Making plans for your FCOA SOLO SAILOR certification training (2 or 3 days)

Different sail boats require different skills. An optimist can capsize so you have to learn how to recover from it. While bigger boats hardly ever capsize and many of them are designed to be self-rightening. Bigger boats often require sailors to learn mast climbing. Your coach will introduce you to the skills needed to operate your training vessel.

Most common training sailboats

• The Optimist 
• Mirror 
• Lazer
• Oz goose

This unique training will test your independence like no other course. Once completed you will have logged at  least 10 solo hours. A well maintained personal sail log tells a lot more about a sailors experience and record keeping skills then any certification will. Once you are FCOA SOLO SAILOR certified you hold a certificate that can get verified online. And those that will consider taking you on as a crew member can see the extensive training you went trough. An FCOA SOLO SAILOR is not only trained in sailing skills. He is also a freediver with mast climbing skills. 

Prerequisites:

1. FCOA FREEDIVER certified (or equivalent)
2. FCOA Dive&Sail certified
3. Completion of FCOA quiz 1 till 8
4. Completion of FCOA quiz Dive & SAIL
5. Completion of FCOA quiz SOLO SAILOR

Mandatory skills for solo sailors to masterSailing to a coordinateReporting position over phone or radioApplying a preventer (if possible)Man Overboard ProcedureAnchoringIndependently rigging the vesselAccending the mast (or up a tree), in case your rope comes out of the mast you'll be able to put it back. 

Mandatory skills to master:

1. Tacking
2. Jibing
3. Stopping
4. Man overboard procedure
5. Anchoring
6. Birthing
7. Navigation (Your coach will give you coordinates to sail to)

Optional additional skills to master (Vesel dependent, if the skill is possible it's mendatory)

1. 50 meter swim towing the dingy
2. 100 meter paddling the dingy
3. Capsize recovery
4. Skulling
5. Preventer use
6. Sailing in waves: When circumstances allow, this is a great confidence builder
7. Sleeping overnight on your dingy: This would be a good "Lost at Sea" training, and it will answer many questions like...How good can you sleep on a dingy.
8. Ascending the mast if the mast is suitable for it. 

PASSING REQUIREMENTS:

1. Passed the theory
2. Mastery of the skills required to operate the training vessel 
3. Ten logged solo sailing hours
4. FCOA improvised climber certified

FCOA SOLO SAILOR certification purpose and limitations

• Once your coach approves your FCOA SOLO SAILOR certificate he does so because he considers you ready to further sail by yourself in the same boat type and waterbody type without needing any supervision. 
• You will have been trained to take care of that boat, and it will have been noticed that you sail it with caution and foresight.
• You are not trained to sail just any boat or any water type.
• For any other boat or other water type you will need additional training. 
• You're not trained to be a crew member for racing competitions. If you would join a race there would be a lot of extra skills and knowledge to acquire.   
  

  This block discusses the regulations surrounding the use of marine radios and the importance of understanding local laws. It encourages sailors to practice using radios and provides resources for improving radio communication skills, especially for emergencies.  

Local Regulations

Every country has their own laws about who can and cannot use a radio, make sure to investigate those rules. 

There is one International Marine rule that states "we should do everything in our power to avoid collisions and injuries". If this includes using a marine radio without the proper license, then authorities should not judge too harshly. But don't take anything for granted. There are places where they will use any excuse to fine you, confine you or confiscate your belongings.

 Noonsite.com - The Ultimate Cruisers Planning Tool is used by sailors around the world to plan their international voyages. 

Many sailors never use radios, others use them every trip. A good way to become a proficient radio user is to buy an economic one and start listening to different channels, try to understand the messages and get used to the jargon. 

This Quiz should prepare you for daily radio calls and emergencies. If you want to know more then have a look at those manuals: IMO radio procedures / Indian Radio use

  This section outlines the pathway to becoming an FCOA Sailing Instructor, including the necessary certifications and experience required. It emphasizes the importance of supervised teaching and additional training in lifeguarding and radio operation, ensuring instructors are well-prepared to teach sailing skills effectively.  

Once an FCOA COACH has completed their FCOA SOLO SAIL training they can start participating in teaching under supervision. In that way they can continue learning from someone more experienced and they can start collecting their supervised teaching hours. On top of that there is some extra training required. FCOA SAILING INSTRUCTORS must also be certified FCOA LIFE GUARDS and radio operators. And they must be able to teach improvised climbing. 

Starting Prerequisites 

1. FCOA COACH certified
2. FCOA LEADCOACH in training
3. FCOA SOLO SAILOR certified

Passing requirements:

1. FCOA LEAD COACH certified
2. FCOA LIFEGUARD certified
3. FCOA Radio Operator certified
4. FCOA Improvised climber certified and able to teach it.
5. 30 logged teaching hours under supervision.
6. Completion of the FCOA SAILING INSTRUCTOR quiz.
7. Able to teach all sailing topics at instructor level