For thousands of years, boats were at the forefront of human travel, facilitating trade and exploration across continents. Many boat designs have come and gone throughout the millennia, but one invention has stayed with boats longer than any other: sails With the invention, the ancient art of sailing has also stayed alive. However, with modern technology, the humble sail has been taken from the limelight, yet sailing lives on. After beginning sailing at summer camp and finding a love for it, sophomore David Heer is bringing sailing to Edgewood.
“I’ve always been interested in water so I want to be out on the water at all times, so sailing really appealed to me,” said Heer.
Sailing is a fun hobby that some believe to be a classic skill to have. Heer believes it is a fun way to learn the aerodynamics of how things work, and he thinks it’s all around a talent with ropes. He wanted to start this club to bring fun and knowledge to students here.
‘I kind of mastered sailing, with only a little bit more to learn. So I feel like I’m comfortable enough to start spreading my knowledge with others, while teaching people the importance of sailing,” said Heer.
Of course you can’t learn sailing without a sailboat, which is where the Melbourne Yacht Club comes in. The Yacht Club had already been looking for a way to get more kids in sailing, so when Heer volunteered for them over the summer, the owner asked him if he would start up a club at Edgewood. Heer had already thought about this, so he agreed. With that and the sponsorship of Ms. Sinatra, the sailing club was set for their first meeting on August 21.
When the day arrived, Heer was ready to inspire those who showed up to have an interest in sailing. After the meeting, Heer said that there were a lot more attendees than he was expecting.
“[The meeting] was great…the people were nice, and the conversations about what boats we we’re going to sail and the basics of sailing was quite interesting,” said Tommy Thering, 10.
Overall Heer hopes that in his next meeting, he will be able to give a more well-prepared presentation and more physical items to show those who attend. He thinks this would be helpful in getting more participants involved. However, there is an extra barrier that may hamper the further spread of the club, and that would be the registration fee to actually sail the boats. Each club member will have to pay this registration fee which, at the current time of writing, hasn’t been agreed upon by Heer and the club. Yet attendees seem to be open to a registration fee.
“I think it’s reasonable as for most things you need a fee, I just hope that it’s a reasonable price, like $30 every three months,” said Thering.
So even with a fee in the way, the future looks bright for the sailing club here at Edgewood. There have been a lot of students who have shown an interest, and it seems this club will be a major success.
