Our Mission: To promote sailing and sailing education for people of all abilities within the greater Arizona State University community and to develop personal leadership skills and team building skills through the sport of sailing for everyone regardless of ability. Our vision is to see people empowered through sportsmanship to become leaders with strong character development in their communities. Conquer Personal Challenges, Serve Others and Lead with a Positive Influence.
Sailing for Everyone: Sailing is a sport and recreation for everyone. The ASU Sailing Club provides a venue for able-bodied and people with disabilities to be a part of a team and an empowered community. We utilize bio-technology to remove boundaries for anyone participating in the sport. The club includes anyone to sail for fun and/or competitively. The sport of sailing and an integrated community allows anyone to conquer challenges and reach their maximum potential.
The ASU Sailing Club offers sailing classes that are taught by instructors certified by the US SAILING and can certify students in Small Boat Sailing. The sport is an activity and skill set that can be used on the water competitively or recreational. Local training and sailing events will be held at Tempe Town Lake and Lake Pleasant. We sail Club FJs and a Martin 16. The ASU Sailing Club will be involved in community based regattas, as well as; intercollegiate competitions in the Pacific Coast Collegiate Sailing Conference (PCCSC). However, please remember that no sailing experience is required.
A Level Playing
Field: Sailing as a sport is an ideal catalyst
for bringing together members of a community. Those with
disabilities can often be forgotten in our community.
Sailing fosters connections that include minorities, high
risk youth and those with disabilities. The key here is
that no one wants to be sidelined into "special" or "only"
programs. Consequently, our boats use technology that level
the playing field for everyone, so a person of any ability
can sail with or next to a friend or family member
equally!
Accessible Boats:
The program utilizes small boats that are sailed by 1 to 4
people on Tempe Town Lake. Larger team boats are used at
Lake Pleasant for racing and cruising. The program has
boats that are accessible to accommodate almost any need.
Some are specifically designed so that a person sits low
inside the boat instead of leaning over the side. This
allows even people with special needs to sail them alone
with training.
Several aspects of the design include:
- Ballasted centerboard or keel ensuring that the boat will not capsize.
- Hull design, designated to promote stability and responsiveness.
- Adaptive technology that can be controlled by any moving body part. This allows people with profound needs to sail their own boats.
Leadership: The principles
of sailing parallel personal leadership principles. The
boat becomes a "hands-on" lab. Learning decision making in
the boat relates to principles of navigating the winds of
change in the marketplace of life. The helmsman must read
the direction of wind, chart a course, and trim the sails
to use the force of the wind to efficiently get to one's
desired destination. Likewise teamwork is another essential
element in today's world. Whether one agrees with the
helmsman or not, communication and cooperation are critical
to the success of the team.
People and
Places: Volunteers, friends, and family members
are actively involved with
- sail training,
- making adaptive modifications to the boats,
- program management,
- assisting participants with disabilities.
