ASA 101 — Keelboat Sailing

ASA 101 Keelboat Sailing 1 is American Sailing's (ASA's) first certification for new sailors. It takes complete beginners to the point where they can skipper a small keelboat, around 20 to 27 feet, by day in light to moderate winds of up to about 15 knots. It's the first step on ASA's cruising ladder, and it's taught worldwide, including at some Australian schools.

A keelboat is a sailing boat with a weighted keel under the hull that keeps it upright and stops it sliding sideways. That makes it more stable and forgiving to learn on than a dinghy.

Who it suits

• Complete beginners who want to sail a small yacht rather than a dinghy
• People planning to follow the ASA pathway to charter a yacht, perhaps in the Caribbean or the United States
• Anyone who likes a structured course with a textbook and a written test

What you'll actually do

ASA says most courses run over two full days, mixing classroom time with practice on the water, usually with about four students per instructor. You'll learn the parts of the boat and the sails, rig the boat, and head out to practise steering, trimming the sails and changing direction. You'll take turns on the helm and the sheets, practise tacking and gybing, leave and return to the dock or mooring, and recover a crew-overboard dummy.

Certification isn't automatic. You need to show the required skills on the water and pass a written exam. The textbook is Sailing Made Easy, and reading it before the course makes a big difference.

Key ideas explained

• Points of sail — the boat's angle to the wind. You can't sail straight into the wind; close-hauled is as close as the boat will go, then a beam reach is across the wind and a run is with the wind behind you.
• Sail trim — adjusting the sheets so the sails are at the right angle to the wind. A classic guide: ease the sail out until it starts to flap at the front edge (luff), then pull it in just until the flapping stops.
• Tacking and gybing — changing direction by turning the bow through the wind (tacking) or the stern through the wind (gybing, which ASA spells jibing). Gybes need more care because the boom swings across quickly.
• Helm commands — the short, standard calls ("ready about", "helm's a-lee") that keep the crew safe and coordinated during manoeuvres.
• Knots — ASA 101 includes the figure eight, reef knot, clove hitch, round turn and two half hitches, cleat hitch and bowline.

Where it fits

• Before: nothing required.
• This course: skipper a 20 to 27 foot keelboat by day in winds up to about 15 knots.
• Next: ASA 103 Coastal Cruising, then ASA 104 Bareboat Cruising.
• Broadly comparable: Australian Sailing's Keelboat Start Helming and the RYA Start Yachting cover similar early ground, though they aren't formally equivalent.

Getting ready

• Read Sailing Made Easy before day one and practise the knots at home.
• Bring soft, non-marking shoes, a hat, sunglasses, sunscreen and a light waterproof layer.
• Ask the school about the boat, how much time you'll spend at the helm, and when the written test happens.

Good to know in Australia

ASA material follows United States conventions: US Coast Guard rules and handbooks, federal equipment requirements, and IALA region B buoyage, where the red and green channel marks are the other way round from Australia's (region A). The seamanship carries straight over, but learn your local buoyage and safety-equipment rules through your state's maritime authority, which also issues any recreational boat licence.