The Team:  Our most precious resource

We are Canada’s largest learn-to-cruise school.  We believe that our team is what makes the difference.  You will sail with enthusiastic, passionate, knowledgeable, skilled instructors and skippers and be supported in every way by the professionalism and dedication of the members of our team.  We are committed to your learning while having fun on the water!

Our instructors are experienced professionals who are trained and certified by Sail Canada and other recognized Worldwide boat training organizations.  Being Sail Canada Certified means you can be sure that he or she is a professional who has been accredited to teach sailing that complies with Sail Canada’s nationally and internationally accepted standards. Their hard-earned Sail Canada instructor certification assures you of their ability to teach sailing better, safer and more enjoyably.

Our instructors are fully committed to providing you with the skills and understanding to enjoy this wonderful sport while also ensuring that your learning experience is both fun and memorable.

Ron Schute

Founder, Basic Cruising, Intermediate Cruising, IYT & Racing

Doris Parolin

Sailing School Director, Basic Cruising, Racing & VHF-ROC(M)

Nicholas Schute

Basic Cruising, Intermediate Cruising & Racing

Jean Charles, Lucas-Baker

Charles (Jean Charles) Lucas-Baker

CANSail, Basic Cruising, VHF-ROC(M), Sail-Share & Maintenance

kelly barr, basic cruising

Kelly Barr

Basic Cruising & VHF-ROC(M)

Marc Billard

Basic Cruising

Stan Blakey

Basic & Intermediate Cruising, Coastal Navigation

Ken Bourne, Advantage Boating

Ken Bourne

Basic & Intermediate Cruising

Rob Cochran

Basic Cruising

Robin Cloutier

Basic Cruising

Nicolas Cloutier

Basic Cruising

Ryan Davis

CANSail, Basic Cruising, Racing & Sail Canada LF

Curtis Dickinson

Basic Cruising & Racing

Raymond Gouin

Basic Cruising

Mike Green, Celestial Navigation

Mike Green

Celestial Navigation

Emma Heller

CANSail, Basic Cruising & Racing

Ron Haag, Basic Cruising

Ron Haag

Basic Cruising

Peter Lok, basic cruising

Peter Lok

Basic Cruising

John Lowerey, Advantage Boating

John Lowerey

Basic Cruising

Sarah Parolin

Basic Cruising & Racing

Gregory Pilsworth

Basic Cruising

Diane Reid

Basic, Intermediate & Advanced Cruising, Coastal Navigation, Sail Canada IE

Mike Roper

Basic & Intermediate Cruising

Radek Skabas

Basic Cruising

Louie Skretas

Basic, Intermediate & Advanced Cruising, Coastal Navigation, Sail Canada IE

Michael Thompson

Basic Cruising & Racing

Michel Veilleux

Basic Cruising

Jon Wright

Basic Cruising & Powerboat

Ron Schute

Founder, Basic & Intermediate Cruising & Racing

Ron Schute is the very proud owner of Ottawa based Advantage Boating. Ron formed Advantage Boating in 1992. The company has since grown into Canada’s top adult sailing school, boasting thousands of graduates and a fleet of 20 vessels, with programs offered across Canada, in the Caribbean and Worldwide.

Ron’s sailing career began at the age of 7 in a styrofoam sailboat called a Sunfish. At 9 years old, he graduated to a Jr. Club boat called a Cadet. They were shaped like a shoe box and plowed rather than plied the waters. Neither pretty nor quick, Ron quickly yearned for something bigger and faster. Bigger and faster he got!

At 13, Ron joined the team of Robin Hood, a beautiful 36 foot, laminated cedar racing machine. It was during a 50 miler race aboard this boat that Ron really received his sailing baptism. With strong winds at their back and moving like a freight train a diagonal gust of wind hit the boat and pushed the leeward rails deep into the water. At this point, Ron found himself hanging on to the safety rails, buried up to his armpits in foaming water and struggling to keep his hair dry!

It’s been over 40 years since that memorable race and Ron continues to love everything associated with sailing and being on the water, apart from getting his hair wet. If sailing sounds interesting and you’d maybe like to get your feet wet, just a little, then get in touch with Ron. He can be reached directly at ron@advantageboating.com.

We can also lend you a Sou’wester if wet hair is a concern for you too, although we’re pretty sure, that’s just Ron!

Doris Parolin

Sailing School Director, Basic Cruising & Racing, VHF-ROC(M)

While Ron Schute is the owner of the company, instructors and clients alike will affectionately tell you that it’s Doris who really runs the show. On a daily basis, Doris works very hard to ensure that expectations are exceeded for both the clients and her instructor team. She is very boot’s to the ground, or in our case, top siders to the deck. Doris learned how to sail in a Laser II dinghy in the 80’s with her family and some very supportive and keen sailors at Ottawa’s Lac Deschenes Sailing Club.  This is where her love of racing sailboats began.  It wasn’t long afterwards that she discovered racing and continued developing her passion of sailing while cruising and racing their family Tanzer 26 at Nepean Sailing Club.  Since those early days Doris has raced on any boat she could step foot upon and at competitions at the Local, National and International levels.

Doris had been involved with teaching sailing now for over 30 years. It was at Nepean Sailing Club that Doris first started teaching adults and youth sailing as part of “Sail Nepean” (NSC’s dinghy program) in late 80’s and then with Advantage Boating in 1992.

Doris has also shared the love of sailing with her own family. Her three kids are all active sailors, instructors and racers! When not flying the flag on behalf of Advantage boating, she can likely be found somewhere on the Ottawa River racing her J22 or cruising in exotic locations around the world. On the cruising side Doris tells people that one of the best ways to explore the world is by sailboat.  To learn more about Doris’ passion for sailing, contact her directly at doris@advantageboating.com.

Nicholas Schute

Intermediate Cruising & Racing

Give Nicholas a boat and he will sail it. From laser dinghies to high performance sport boats, to comfortable cruising boats to America’s cup boats, Nicholas loves sailing them all!

Nicholas is Sail Canada’s youngest Intermediate Cruising instructor. To say that sailing is in Nicholas’ blood would be an understatement for he has been sailing since before he could walk. It may well be argued that Nicholas has more sailing miles under his belt than many seasoned salty dogs. His love of sailing has taken him from sailing in Ottawa, to the Thousand Islands and Kingston to as far away as Auckland New Zealand where he worked as crew on one of the famous America’s Cup boats.

Nicholas learned how to sail from his Dad on their family Shark, Optimist, Open Bic and CS30 sailboats. As part of Nepean Sailing Club’s junior club and high performance race team he further fine tuned his sailing & racing skills. While at Queen’s University Nicholas won Varsity Athlete of the week for his outstanding performance and victory in the Canadian Intercollegiate Sailing Association Fleet Racing National Championship.

Nick’s students will all testify that after taking a course with him, you will not only learn how to sail, but you will also fall in love with the sport! Nicholas teaches our Basic Cruising, Mileage Builder, Intermediate Cruising & Racing courses.

Charles (Jean Charles) Lucas-Baker

CANSail, Basic Cruising, VHF-ROC(M), Sail-Share & Maintenance

Kelly Barr

Basic Cruising & VHF-ROC(M)

Once upon a time Kelly was a full-time air traffic controller and a part-time pilot. In 2016, interested in finding a new hobby that would allow him to incorporate some of his aviation skills, he tried his hand at dinghy sailing. Kelly quickly fell in love with the sport and became eager to grow his skills, particularly in regards to managing a bigger boat. Advantage Boating was his first choice- he took Basic & Intermediate Cruising as well as Basic & Intermediate Coastal Navigation. 

Kelly now owns a C&C 30 which he sails out of Nepean Sailing Club with family and friends. It was during a trip out on his boat that Kelly’s daughter ‘demanded’ he teach her about sailing- she decided that grandpa, and only grandpa, could be her teacher! Motivated by her ‘demands’ and inspired by an Advantage Boating presentation, Kelly finally decided to become a sailing instructor. He now looks forward to helping new sailors to become as excited about the sport as he and his granddaughter are!

Marc Billard

Basic Cruising

Stan Blakey

Basic and Intermediate Cruising & Coastal Navigation

Stan got the sailing bug as a teenager sailing Hobie 16’s on the Swan river in Perth Western Australia. At the time, his only instructions were “the ferries won’t stop for you”.

Arriving in Canada, Stan learned more about sailing through Sail Canada’s dinghy & keelboat Learn-to-Sail programs with Advantage Boating. Stan has been a member at the Nepean Sailing club for 25 years now, first owning a Tanzer 22 and currently owning a Mirage 25.

When the Ottawa river freezes over Stan finds ways to sail where the temperatures are warmer. Most recently he sailed in the British Virgin Islands with Advantage Boating’s 2019 flotilla. Stan has sailed at various points along the west coast from San Diego to Vancouver Island including Santa Cruz, San Francisco Bay, and Puget Sound. Other memorable sailing experiences include riding out a tropical storm in the Bahamas.

While finding words to say why sailing is so satisfying seems impossible, Stan will tell you that any time he travels (on shore) and sees a boat sailing by, he yearns to be on that boat. Take a course with Stan and you will see why!

Stan knew teaching sailing and becoming a Sail Canada Instructor was his next calling in life after being a skipper during Advantage Boating 2019 BVI flotilla. It was there he realized just how much fun it is to help other people develop their love of sailing.

Ken Bourne 

Basic & Intermediate Cruising

Ken was born and raised in Atlantic Canada, and grew up with a passion for the ocean. When he eventually moved to Ottawa, he took up sailing, and amassed quite a bit of experience on Albacores, Lasers, Sharks, and Hobie Cats. However, it was during his first charter to the BVI’s that he fell in love with larger cruising sailboats- he could feel the salt water calling him back! Since then, Ken has spent many winter vacations down south, chartering sailboats and as part of our flotillas. Additionally, in 2019, he purchased his first cruising boat and sailed it down the Eastern Seaboard, from Lake Ontario to the Bahamas. If you need him during the winter months, you can be sure to find him there! 

Throughout his years on the water, Ken has accumulated thousands of hours sailing on the Great Lakes, and has logged over 3500 nautical miles of coastal cruising. Once he retired, he decided that he wanted to share that knowledge, experience and passion for sailing with others, and decided to become a Sail Canada instructor.

Rob Cochran

Basic Cruising

UPDATE HERE

Robin Cloutier

Basic Cruising

Nicolas Cloutier

Basic Cruising

Nicolas has recently joined Advantage boating as an instructor. Sailing is a true passion for Nicolas and he has decided to dedicate his free time teaching it because he truly believes this multi-faceted activity can transform lives and bring back some magic.

Nicolas has started sailing when he was a boy but life steered him on a different heading until he lived in the Caribbean and connected back. Quickly he started completing courses, then accompanied passages from island to island and organizing his own island-hopping trips with friends and family.

Back in Canada in 2018 Nicolas discovered sailing life in the National Capital Region through racing, and through the sail share program. Nicolas now owns a sailboat and teaches his wife and son to perhaps prepare them to a greater passage? Who knows where the magic of sailing will steer them to.

Ryan Davis 

CANSail, Basic Cruising, Racing & Sail Canada LF

Ryan began sailing at the Royal Nova Scotia Yacht Squadron, and it was here that his passion for teaching developed at a young age. After his time racing in the Laser Radial fleet, he began coaching junior sailing programs in Nova Scotia, sharing his passion for the sport with the next generation of sailors. Most recently, Ryan led the Bedford Basin Yacht Club’s Learn To Sail Program as its head coach! 

Ryan now joins us here in Ottawa, bringing with him his nearly decade of teaching experience in Halifax and the surrounding waters. Outside of his work as an instructor, he is also an active keelboat racer, and continues to race a J105 with his father in Chester, NS whenever he finds himself at home. As he begins his first sailing season in Ottawa, he is also excited to get involved in keelboat racing here at Nepean Sailing Club.   

As a sailing instructor, Ryan exudes calm and patience, understanding that learning for novice sailors requires a slow and comfortable approach. He keeps his lessons fun and engaging by incorporating a hands-on teaching style and ensures that everyone gets a chance to participate. Keep an eye out- Ryan is sure to be on the water often this summer!

Curtis Dickinson

Basic Cruising & Racing

Curtis Dickinson, like the majority of our instructors, began sailing at a very young age. He may, however, have started the youngest of anyone. Curtis’ parents say that their son’s feet first touched the deck of their wooden Lightning at the age of one.

Even at a young age, Curtis seemed to enjoy the sport and his parents continued to nurture this interest as he grew. When Curtis was 4 and his brother was 6 their father fixed up a small sailing dinghy called a Signet for the boys. His parents enjoyed chasing the boys around on the water while sailing their Lightning.

Decades later, Curtis’ love of sailing continues to flourish. He has raced countless types of boats, including Fireballs at a national level and he has raced around Vancouver Island. He has sailed on both coasts of Canada and earned his Yacht-Master Offshore ticket while sailing in New Zealand. His personal love of sailing has also extended into his professional life as when you sail with Curtis, you are also sailing with a Naval Architect.

Curtis is an absolutely exceptional sailor but with one little quirk. No matter how big or how small the boat, Curtis likes to sail barefoot. He tells us it’s like having a third hand and when you see him grab a sheet with his toes for the first time, you’ll understand why!

If you would like to talk to Curtis more about his personally developed, advanced sailing techniques, then he can be reached at info@advantageboating.ca

Raymond Gouin

Basic Cruising

Raymond ‘Marin’ Gouin’s first pleasure craft was not a rubber ducky, but sailing at the beach on an air mattress at the age of 5 months old. He summered often in the New-Brunswick Acadian peninsula, where he inherited the love of the sea from his Acadian family.

Raymond was introduced to sailing when he joined the Canadian Navy in 1973 as a Naval Officer. He later reclassified as a Sea King Helicopter Air Navigator. His last tour of duty was as an Air Navigation Instructor in 1993. During his 21 years in the Canadian Forces Raymond accumulated 10 years of Sea time and 10 years of Air time.

Upon retiring from his military career, Raymond decided to combine his passion for the sea & his love of teaching. Raymond recently started transferring his professional knowledge and experience, to the sailing world by becoming a Basic Cruising Instructor.

Raymond looks forward to sharing his passion of the open water and starry skies. As he puts it, “I am the one who wakes up in the morning to share experiences over, on, in and under-water.” As you learn the ropes sailing with Raymond, your course will be well seasoned with salty tales of dark and stormy nights in the North-Atlantic.

Mike Green

Celestial Navigation

Mike began sailing back in the summer of 1996 when his dad, who had always been interested in sailing but had no practical experience, bought a keelboat to sail on Lake Winnipeg. To learn the ropes, Mike (along with the rest of his family) completed the Basic Cruising course on Lake of the Woods.

After finishing his education, Mike moved from Winnipeg to Ottawa. In the spring of 1998, he joined Advantage Boating’s Sail Share program and, over the next several years, spent many hours cruising and racing on the Ottawa River, as well as participating in regattas both in Ottawa and on Lake Ontario. He then decided to complete his Intermediate Cruising course on Lake Ontario, and participated in Advantage Boating’s inaugural flotilla to the BVIs in the winter of 2000! Since then, he has sailed as crew and skipper on several of Advantage Boating’s flotillas in the BVI, St. Maarten, Greece and Thailand.

Mike has always been interested in the technical aspects of navigation, particularly celestial navigation because of its ties to astronomy. In 2007, this passion and fascination drove Mike to become a celestial navigation instructor, and he has been teaching winter classroom and home-study courses ever since.

Emma Heller

CANSail, Basic Cruising & Racing

Growing up in a sailing family, Emma learned how to sail before she could walk. She first learned how to sail on an Optimist and from then on, she was hooked! Emma continued to develop her passion and skill for sailing while onboard numerous boats, including 420s, 29ers, C&Cs and J24s.

Emma quickly discovered a competitive side to her and found a new love of racing. She races dinghies and keelboats at a local, provincial and national level.

Her latest sailing adventure brought her to the British Virgin Islands where she chartered a sailboat. Not wanting to return home from this trip, Emma started to plan her future sailing adventures, which she hopes will take her around the world.

After being party to so many amazing sailing instructors, Emma decided to make the move to instructor with hopes of being able to instil her passion for sailing in others. Not being able to get enough of sailing, she works as Head Instructor at Nepean Sailing Club during the weekdays and her evenings and weekends are spent teaching with Advantage Boating. Emma will be teaching CanSail 1 and 2 as well as Basic Cruising this summer.

In her spare time, she can be found out on the Ottawa River racing her J24, Warrior.

Ron Haag

Basic Cruising

Ron developed his passion for boating at a young age as he grew up sailing a wide array of small dinghies over the summer months. Many years later, he decided to buy a keelboat of his own and has been sailing out of the Rockcliffe Yacht Club ever since. 

Sailing for Ron is a family activity. His fathers love for sailing led him to develop his own passion for the sport, and he decided to name his first keelboat after his father in honour of him. Last summer, Ron also went on a 5 week adventure, sailing around Lake Ontario, and loved the time he got to spend with his wife and son when they were able to join in. He did however also get his fair share of solo experience as he completed 3 of those weeks by himself! 

The passion and the community that he’s developed through the sport has given him a desire to give back and allow others to have the same joys and experiences. Teaching was the perfect choice for him! 

Peter Lok

Basic Cruising

Peter’s love for the water began at an early age as he learned to sail as a child in the Gulf of Thailand. Life’s twists and turns kept him away from the sport for many years but he finally returned to sailing in 2012, completing his Basic Cruising certification in Georgian Bay. Since then, he’s been hooked! 

Shortly after his course, Peter began racing keelboats out of Nepean Sailing Club and purchased a 420 dinghy. Later, in 2016, he upgraded to a Catalina 30 and fell in love with the cruising lifestyle. Since then, he has logged miles on the Ottawa River, the West Coast, the Great Lakes, and the Caribbean, with plans to explore beyond! After skippering a boat in the 2023 Advantage Boating Grenadines flotilla, Peter now has plans to depart for Croatia in the fall to explore the Dalmation coast.  

Peter is always looking to enhance his knowledge of all things sailing so that he can better educate and inspire new sailors. He feels extremely lucky that he gets to combine two of his life’s passions: sailing and teaching!

John Lowerey

Basic Cruising

John’s journey with sailing began on an odd vessel- a sail rigged canoe- during a visit to the family cottage. It was that experience that ignited John’s passion for the sport and at just 8 years old, his parents purchased a ‘Sea Snark’ styrofoam dinghy for just $25. The following summer, a thrilling ride on a Laser sparked John’s fascination with high-performance sailing, and so he decided that the CYA’s White Sail program was the next step. Even as adulthood beckoned, John’s love affair with sailing endured. 

Now, John’s enthusiasm has been passed on to his three sons, all of whom he has guided through the CanSail program at Nepean Sailing Club, as well as the Race Team and Dinghy Instructor Program. Additionally, retirement heralded a new chapter for John as he moved his boat down to Kingston and decided to share his expertise and passion for sailing as a Sail Canada instructor. Armed with a lifetime of experience and a love for the water, he now imparts the joys of sailing to eager learners! 

Sarah Parolin

Basic Cruising & Racing

Sarah’s first sail took place at just a few weeks old and she was helming boats before she could even walk.

Summer’s were spent on the water ‘messing about in boats’ at NSC’s junior club with other kids her age or on her family’s keelboat.  At 13 she joined the NSC and then BYC high performance race teams fine tuning her race tactics and competing on her Laser “Diable”. She has since raced at the club, university, provincial, national and international levels.  Sarah also spent two years leading Dalhousie’s sailing team and university keelboat training program.

To say that Sarah loves adventure is an understatement and Sarah loves water in all its forms.  If it involves H2O Sarah will somehow be involved. When not on a sailboat you’ll be sure to find Sarah either paddling through the white water rapids of the upper Ottawa River or, in the winter, on the ski slopes.

As one of Sail Canada’s youngest Basic Cruising instructors, Sarah’s enthusiastic energy is contagious.  Whether it’s coaching ski racing in the winter or sailing in the summer, Sarah loves sharing her passions with anyone wanting to learn.

After sailing with Sarah you’ll find that can’t help but be hooked.  We can guarantee you’ll leave your course not only knowing how to sail, but with a smile on your face that matches hers.

Gregory Pilsworth

Basic Cruising

Instructor Gregory Pilsworth is a third generation sailor. His Dad learned how to sail at the Royal Canadian Yacht Club in Toronto.

At the age of 12, Greg was enrolled in sailing lessons at the Britannia Yacht Club. This is where he first met his friend, Ron Schute. Divergent career paths kept them apart for many years but in 2014, Ron asked Greg to join the instructor team at Advantage Boating.

Teaching with Advantage Boating, however, was not Greg’s first foray into being an instructor. In order to help pay for university, he taught sailing at the Britannia Junior Club. In the process Greg acquired his Green, Blue and Red certifications with the Canadian Yachting Association and accumulated over 1000 hours of teaching experience.

Even when not teaching it was hard to shake the teaching role. On their first date, Greg found out that his future wife had taken sailing lessons. In order to evaluate her training, he asked her, partly seriously and partly with tongue-in-cheek, “Which way you faced when tacking a boat”. The answer came back, phrased with a healthy dose of sailor’s salt, that you, “Faced forward and would there be any more stupid sailing questions?!” Greg wisely concluded the evaluation.

Greg and his wife now sail their C&C 29, Magic, out of the Britannia Yacht Club. When not out with the family, he loves to teach others how to sail. He’s a very patient instructor who reminds his students that there is really only one stupid sailing question and he’s already asked it, so don’t be shy!

Diane Reid

Basic, Intermediate & Advanced Cruising, Coastal Navigation, Sail Canada IE

Diane is a professional skipper, racer, and instructor. In addition to being one of our most experienced Sail Canada instructors, Dian also holds her Royal Yachting Association (commercially endorsed) and Ocean Yachtmaster certification, and is a World Sailing Offshore Personal Survival Instructor. 

Diane’s career has spanned over 100,000 nautical miles throughout Lake Ontario, the Atlantic and Southern Ocean, the Irish Sea, the Bay of Biscay, the Caribbean Islands, and the east coast of the United States. Whether she is in a Sonar, a Mini 650, a Clipper 70, or a Volvo 60, Diane feels right at home! When Diane is not on the water, she can often be found volunteering with various committees on Lake Ontario and with Sail Canada endeavouring to drive the sport of sailing to great new levels. A course with Diane will certainly help you take your sailing to the next level!

Mike Roper

Basic & Intermediate Cruising

Mike started sailing as a teenager in England, exploring the estuaries and creeks that run into the North Sea. It was fun but the water sure was cold! After moving to Canada, he was delighted to start sailing again in the water waters and bluer skies of the Ottawa River. 

Mike has been sailing and racing on the river for the past 34 years. He began by sailing Lasers and Albacores out of Kanata Sailing Club, where he stood as Commodore for a couple of years. He then joined the Fireball fleet at Nepean Sailing Club, and later migrated to racing keelboats- he has been the proud skipper of the C&C 27 “Xel-Ha” for the past 13 years! 

Alongside his experience on the Ottawa River, Mike is also a certified ICC and IYT bareboat skipper and recently chartered a boat in the Adriatic, exploring the Croatian coast. He brings with him a wealth of experience and a great enthusiasm for sailing, both of which he enjoys passing on to new sailors.

Radek Skabas

Basic Cruising

Louie Skretas

Basic, Intermediate & Advanced Cruising, Coastal Navigation, Sail Canada IE

Louie has been a Sail Canada instructor since 1992 and, over the past 32 years, has taught numerous Basic, Intermediate, and Advanced Cruising live-aboard courses. These courses have taken place in some incredible locations, including on the Great Lakes, Georgian Bay, the Mediterranean, and the Caribbean. Additionally, he has also worked as an active boat delivery skipper and charter captain, delivering boats as large as 112 feet from the Caribbean to Florida and the northeastern US! 

Recently retired, Louie enjoys spending time with his partner Sophia, cruising between the Great Lakes, the St.Lawrence River, Halifax, and Bermuda, as well as adventure bike touring in Europe. Whatever the case, you can always be sure to find him on the go!

Michael Thompson

Basic Cruising

Mike learned to sail on the Ottawa River more than 20 years ago. It started as a weekend hobby but his passion and love for sailing has continued to grow since the first time he stepped foot on a boat. His love for the sport has no bounds- he’ll be the first to tell you that he is willing to sail almost anything that floats and has a sail! 

Mike regularly sails a wide variety of boats, from single-handed dinghies to sport boats and cruisers. He also keeps his sailing skills sharp through his active involvement in the local racing scene, both as a sailor and as a race/regatta organizer. He races twice a week in the Britannia Yacht Club/Nepean Sailing Club inter-club race series, and is a past co-chair of Nepean One Design, the largest sailing regatta in the National Capital Region. Teaching new sailors and sharing his passion for sailing with others was just a natural next step in Mike’s life.

Michel Veilleux

Basic Cruising

Despite his current wealth of knowledge, Michel’s first sailing experience started out as many others do- figuring out where and how everything fit and worked together on their small family sailing dinghy! The hook really set in however when a friend of Michel’s invited him out on Lake Champlain for a few sailing lessons, and during a winter holiday sailing down in the US Virgin Islands. The following winter, their vacation was spent sitting on the beach at a resort, and his longing for the boat solidified his realization that he’d much rather be out on the water.

Michel went on to obtain his American Sailing Association Keelboat and Coastal Navigation certification which allowed him to charter a boat for the first time, a trip that offered some very valuable lessons and experience as they battled and survived Hurricane Dean! His enthusiasm however wasn’t dampened and he went on to buy a 46 foot Beneteau, which he has since enjoyed sailing along the US east coast, in the Caribbean, in the Mediterranean, and beyond as a full time liveaboard skipper. Since then, Michel has accumulated over 30,000 nautical miles crossing the Atlantic, Mediterranean, Pacific, and Indian Oceans.     

Throughout the years, Michel has introduced and initiated many friends into the sailing lifestyle and, since his return to Ottawa, has felt the urge to pass on his experience and knowledge to others. In his own words, “there’s nothing quite like it!”

Jon Wright

Basic Cruising & Powerboat

All it took was one weekend. One weekend in an aluminum boat with, “Alcan” stamped on the transom. One weekend with the Sea Cadets, far removed from the sea, on the Mississippi River near Carleton Place.

That’s when instructor Jon Wright knew he was hooked on sailing. Next he navigated his way to Dow’s Lake in Ottawa where he started sailing Albacores and he was hooked again… literally! In a gusty moment the boom of another student’s boat hooked on Jon’s life-jacket and lifted him out of his boat only to be released by being unceremoniously dunked in Dow’s Lake.

This dunking in questionable waters may have dampened the enthusiasm of other students, but not Jon’s. He continued to improve his skills to the point where he became a Head Youth Instructor with the Canadian Yachting Association. That was over 25 years ago and he’s been teaching youth and adults ever since.

Jon is an exceptional teacher with a healthy dose of humility. He remembers one day, early in his teaching career, when an animated discussion diverted his attention and both teacher and students suddenly found themselves aground. The day’s immediate lesson plan was hastily thrown overboard in favour of a new lesson on how to remove yourself from a slightly embarrassing, but never forgotten, grounding.

If you’ve ever been curious about sailing, then we’re confident, all we’ll need is one weekend with Jon and you’ll be hooked forever. Not by the lifejacket though!

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