All our courses are engaging, interactive and fun! Whether formal training or simply looking to brush up, we take online learning to the next level.
Sailing EssentialsFreeA free course great for anyone who spends time on the water.
Essential Navigation & SeamanshipRYA course for beginners. Learn charts, tides, pilotage, and core seamanship with simple practice tasks.
Day Skipper TheoryMost PopularRYA course for inshore skippers. Plan day passages using chartwork, tides, weather, and COLREGs.
Coastal Skipper / Yachtmaster® TheoryComing SoonRYA course for advanced navigation and passage planning, secondary ports, tidal streams, and offshore weather.
SRC (VHF) Marine Radio CourseRYA Short Range Certificate radio course. Study online, then take the practical exam with an RYA assessor.Are you looking for something nautical related? Our directory is an extensive list of courses and places associated with the marine industry. Hop over and search now.
We believe every day’s a school day on a boat! That’s why we built Nautical Know-How, dedicated to answering your questions. Even better, if it can’t answer your question immediately, you can request it, and we’ll add it to our knowledge base.
Nautical Terms & TerminologyUnderstanding the language of the marine world is like trying to learn a pirate’s secret code while juggling fish. Let us explain why a sheet isn’t for your bed, why “heave ho” doesn’t mean throw up (most of the time), and why “dead reckoning” is surprisingly less ominous than it sounds.
Why do we have tides?Have you ever wondered what causes the tides? Check out this video, which introduces the forces that create the tides we experience on Earth.
What causes our weather?A video introducing the drivers behind our weather, part of our RYA Day Skipper & RYA Coastal Skipper / Yachtmaster® Offshore theory courses.
Buoyage FlashcardsFlashcards designed to help remember the buoys in the IALA system. If you want to learn them in detail, our module ‘Getting in and out of harbour‘, covers the IALA system and different buoys used.
Interactive Rule Book (COLREGs / IRPCS)Whether you’re a novice sailor or a seasoned skipper, we can help you navigate the IRPCS confidently and clearly. Our easy-to-use, easy-to-understand, plain English rule book with helpful interpretations of what each rule means.
The Salty Sea BlogFrom salty old sea dogs to fresh-faced deckhands, this blog is for anyone who finds peace, adventure, and a bit of mischief on the water. So hoist the main, set your course, and let’s sail into the stories, lessons, and musings that make life on the sea so irresistible.A movable car, ring or fitting that changes the position from which a sheet or control applies its load. A mainsheet traveller commonly runs across a track to alter the boom’s lateral position while retaining chosen sheet tension. Travellers are also used on headsail tracks, horse arrangements and other rigging systems, with adjustment by tackles,…
The adjustment or resulting condition of a vessel’s fore-and-aft attitude, weight distribution or sail settings. Vessel trim describes the difference between forward and aft draught and can be changed by loading, ballast or fuel distribution. Sail trim describes adjustment of sheets and controls to shape and orient sails for the desired drive, heel and balance….
The wind velocity relative to the Earth’s surface rather than relative to a moving vessel. Apparent wind is the vector combination of true wind and the vessel’s velocity through the chosen reference frame. Marine instruments calculate true wind using measured apparent wind plus speed and heading or course data, and their result depends on whether…
A tackle, strut or powered control that restrains or adjusts a boom’s vertical movement. Known as a kicking strap in British usage, it normally leads between the lower mast region and the boom. Tension controls leech shape and twist, particularly when the mainsheet no longer pulls strongly downward, while a rigid vang can also support…
The component of a vessel’s velocity in a specified target direction. In sailing, VMG often means progress directly upwind or downwind and combines boat speed with the angle to the true-wind axis. Navigation instruments may instead label speed towards a waypoint as VMG, so the reference direction must be identified. Optimising VMG does not always…
A preparatory command telling the crew to get ready for an intended gybe. The warning allows crew to prepare sheets, preventers and other controls, check that the working area is clear and move away from the path of the boom and mainsheet. Crew should acknowledge when their stations are ready. It precedes the command or…
The relatively fixed stays, shrouds and associated fittings that support masts and other spars. Standing rigging commonly uses wire rope, rod or high-modulus fibre connected through terminals, turnbuckles and chainplates. It resists compression and bending loads in the mast and is distinguished from running rigging, which is routinely moved to hoist or control sails and…
The tack on which the wind is coming from the vessel’s starboard side. On a conventional fore-and-aft rig the mainsail and boom are normally to port, but sail position is evidence rather than the definition and backed or unusual sails can mislead. Tack is determined by the side from which the wind is received. Under…
A small strongly constructed headsail intended to help a sailing vessel retain controlled drive in severe weather. A storm jib uses heavy cloth, strong reinforcement and secure attachment and is normally set with a high clew to reduce wave impact. Its area and construction may be governed by a class rule, safety standard or vessel…
To change tack by turning a sailing vessel’s bow through the wind. During the manoeuvre the sails luff and then fill on the opposite side as the vessel passes through the no-go zone. Sufficient momentum, coordinated steering and controlled release and trimming of sheets are needed, with exact timing depending on vessel, rig and conditions….
If you belive the Earth is flat, you're about to fall of the end...
If you belive the Earth is flat, you're about to fall of the end...
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