Thousands of people across the UK took to the water over the past nine days and gave sailing and windsurfing a go with RYA Push the Boat Out.
The national event which ran from 13-21 May saw over 380 sailing venues open their gates to welcome people of all ages and abilities to ‘Push the Boat Out’ with taster sessions for all.
Rio 2016 Gold Medallist Saskia Clark kicked off the event at her home county of Essex. She said: “Push the Boat Out is all about people turning up, jumping in a boat and trying out a new awesome sport.
“It’s fantastic to see so many people, many who have never tried sailing before, getting a taste of life at their local club and having a really good experience on the water”.
Push the Boat Out now in its fifth year, saw more venues taking part than ever before. Scaling Damn SC in the North Yorkshire Moors welcomed over 200 visitors to their club resulting in 15 new memberships and 21 courses booked on the day. Jon Pearson, the club Hon Secretary said: “It was tremendous seeing the club such a hive of activity and to have such a wide range of club members volunteering their time to make the day such a success”.
One visitor who went out on the water at Earlswood Lakes SC in the Midlands said: “Sailing was amazing! My advice to anybody would be to do it if you get the chance. It’s not as expensive as I thought it was and I’ve just signed up to do a course. I can’t wait to get back on the water.”
More news and information about Push the Boat Out can be found at http://www.rya.org.uk/go/PTBO
If you missed PTBO but want to start your sailing adventure visit www.rya.org.uk/startboating