They Want to Put Wind in Women’s Sails

It’s called a man-overboard drill, but all the participants are women. After all, this is the Women’s Sailing Convention, and you won’t find a male sailor among them.

Even so, the man-overboard workshop is one of the most popular of the 18 programs being offered, according to convention organizer Gail Hine of Tustin. Hine, who expects to attract nearly 200 women to the annual event at the Cabrillo Beach Yacht Club in San Pedro, says other big draws are seminars on engine maintenance and repair--all from a woman’s point of view.

The man-overboard demonstration will be presented by Kathie Ohmer, a licensed yacht captain, as part of her sea safety segment at the daylong event Saturday. Using a flotation device and a bridle attached to a halyard, Ohmer will demonstrate how even a 100-pound woman can accomplish the back-breaking task of plucking a 200-pound man from a churning sea.

“It’s a technique women can learn because we know how to use leverage,” says Ohmer, who admits that no one--male or female--is actually going to be tossed into the water to prove her point.

The convention is sponsored by the Southern California Yachting Assn., an organization made up of 87 yacht and sailing clubs. Hine, a director of the association, says the purpose is to bring more women into sailing.

To do that, Hine says she is offering workshops women can’t find anywhere else, and she has signed up a roster of top-flight instructors and guest speakers. Among them are Dawn Riley, the only female crew member on an America’s Cup racing yacht, and Linda Newland, a single-handed sailor who holds the women’s record for making the fastest solo Pacific crossing.

In addition to appearing as guest speakers, both Riley and Newland will conduct workshops. Riley’s topic is “Engine Macho Mysteries Dispelled.” Newland’s “Suddenly Single-Handed” workshop is designed for the woman sailing with a partner who may unexpectedly become disabled.

Other workshop topics include navigating, chartering, cruising, racing and even knot-tying.

Women who have signed up for the program range from 20 to 60 years old, Hine says, and most are from Southern California. “But this year we even have one from Vancouver and one from San Jose,” she says. Most participants have had some sailing experience, according to Hine. Hine says she believes that the level of sophistication among female boaters has risen since the first convention three years ago.

“It is interesting that the popularity of items such as man-overboard and engine maintenance are of real high interest. It shows women’s sophistication. They want more from this sailing experience than how to sail well. They want to be well-informed, full participants in the sailing and boat-handling experience. They are not just along for the ride.”

Like Hine herself, many women today own their own boats. “The recession aside, I think as women become more financially independent and more assertive with their lives, they can and will buy their own boats and enjoy the sport as it has been enjoyed by men for years.” Hine began sailing with her then-husband in 1969.

Since then Hine has become a racing sailor, and she now holds a number of records. In 1984 she became the first female skipper to win the Marina del Rey to San Diego race, and last year she became the first recipient of the Peggy Slater Memorial Award, named in honor of the well-known local sailor who died in 1990.

“Back then, when I started sailing, lots of women who were wives and girlfriends handed out sandwiches, but I have seen (women’s sailing) grow. There are more opportunities for women now,” says Hine, who publishes a newsletter called Whitecaps and Waves that lists women’s sailing opportunities in Southern California.

Today women, who once were denied membership in some yacht clubs, can even become commodores, Hine says. As proof, she points to Joanie Walker, one of the guest speakers at the convention. Next year, Walker will become the first female commodore of the Cabrillo Beach Yacht Club. Walker, who has been sailing since she was a child, will offer a workshop called “Don’t Crash Into the Dock.”

The workshop will be held on Walker’s new Pearson 36, named Synergy.

“For most women, docking is one of the biggest problems,” Walker says. “Even women who feel comfortable sailing do not feel comfortable under power. Every woman in the workshop will have time on the helm. We’ll take the boat out into the harbor and practice maneuvering it, coming up to a mooring, rounding a mooring, that kind of thing. Then we’ll practice docking.”

All this on her new boat? Walker laughs and says, “I can guarantee you they will not hit the dock.”

Skillfully operating a boat under power is also an important part of Kathie Ohmer’s sea safety segment. “It is important that every woman know how to recover a fallen sailor,” says Ohmer, who has sailed more than 18,000 miles and who teaches women’s ocean sailing at Orange Coast College. And part of that recovery process involves maneuvering the boat back to the fallen person.

“For that you should have the engine on,” she says, “but once you’re in position, you’ve got to shift into neutral so there is no danger of the person being near the spinning prop.”

The rescue procedure is tricky, Ohmer says, but not that difficult. She recommends using a Life Sling, a U-shaped device that fits around the waist and attaches to a halyard.

Learning the procedure will help women become more confident, says Ohmer, who says she built up her confidence during 20 years of sailing all over the world. During that time, she says, women’s sailing has grown by leaps and bounds. As an example, she points to the Orange County-based Women’s Ocean Racing Sailing Assn., which in just a few years went from 20 to 140 members.

Hine, also a member of the association, believes that membership in such women’s organizations will continue to increase. “For one thing, sailing is something you don’t outgrow,” Hine says. “It is not age-dependent. You can start at 6 in a Sabot and you can still be sailing at 70-plus.”

Cost for the one-day convention is $35, including workshop admission and dinner. Check-in begins at 10:30 a.m. Saturday at the Cabrillo Beach Yacht Club, 211 W. 22nd St., San Pedro. For information, call Hine at (714) 730-1797.

Boat Show. Boats ranging from fishing skiffs to 55-foot luxury yachts will be on exhibit at the 36th annual Southern California Boat Show Friday through Feb. 9 at the Los Angeles Convention Center.

Show hours are weekdays, 2 to 10 p.m.; Saturdays, 11 a.m. to 10 p.m., and Sundays, 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Admission is $6 for adults; children 12 and younger admitted free.

The show is sponsored by the Southern California Marine Assn., 1006 E. Chapman Ave., Orange. For information, call (714) 633-7581.

Whales Under Sail. Whale watching cruises are being offered every Sunday aboard the 70-foot gaff-rigged schooner Spike Africa now through March by Hornblower Dining Yachts in Newport Beach.

Cruises depart from Mariners Mile Marine Center, 2431 W. Coast Highway, Newport Beach. Boarding begins at 8:30 a.m.; the cruise is from 9 a.m. till noon. Cost is $20. For information, call (714) 646-0155.

Basic Boating. The Coast Guard Auxiliary and the Power Squadron will offer three basic boating courses at the Dana Point Harbor Youth and Group Facility this winter.

The first class, already under way, continues through April 17. A second class begins Monday and continues through March 23; a third class runs from March 18 through April 22. For information, call (714) 661-7122.