I just got excellent news. Our local #AbleSail Victoria program is opening up earlier this year! Our North Saanich Sidney location opens up for registrations in April. Our Oak Bay/Cadboro Bay location will open for registrations in mid-June. I'm so excited to get back on the ocean again & work on improving my #AdaptiveSailing skills.
I'd love to get my solo #sailing skills up to levels where I can enter to compete in future Mobility Cup regattas.

I'm still struggling with PTSD triggers & am grateful for day off work today. I'm going sailing. I have 2 more long work days before taking a full week off work for Vancouver Island Adaptive Snowsports training next week - something I've been waiting on getting back into for 4 years.

Kicking off 2025 on a positive note with my first time #sailing in the annual Not a Whaler fundraiser fun regatta, co-hosted by #CanadianForcesSailingAssociation & #AbleSailVictoria. I'll be on the Big Foot sailboat, with CFSA skipper, Ryan Kaye. Registration is at noon. Race fun starts at 1:30pm. It will be a great time on the waters. We are sailing out of CFSA Baker Dock, at CFB Naden base in #Esquimalt in #VictoriaBC on #VancouverIsland in #BritishColumbia. I'll be at CFSA HQ until around 4pm.

*I'm awaiting to hear back on which crew I'll be placed with for upcoming Not a Whaler #sailing event.*

The annual Canadian Forces Sailing Association’s #CFSA Not A Whaler Race is taking place on January 1, 2025 at the Canadian Forces Base #Naden, #Esquimalt Harbour. #Sailors will gather at the Sail Training dock.  Boats pay $20.00 and each crew member wanting post race food and drink (chili including vegetarian and alcoholic and non-alcoholic Moose Milk (a Navy tradition) will pay $10.00. We invite our ASV members to join in the post race celebrations or perhaps on a boat as we do have skippers happy to take folks out, however, you will need to be able to negotiate getting in and out of boats without a lift and up and down companion ways of boats. If you are interested in being a crew member on a boat for $10.00 you will need to provide your name and contact beforehand so we can place you on a suitable vessel. You will need to arrive at the docks at 1200. The race itself commences at 1:30 pm for about 1-1.5 hours with boats returning to the docks for the apres sail festivities. You can join in the apres sailing festivities and enjoy chili and libations for $10.00 but please RSVP to fleetcaptain@cfsaesq.ca for either crewing or eating.

CFSA has a long history of supporting accessible sailing in Victoria as it was the program provider since #DisabledSailing came into being in the early 1990’s. CFSA supported the association with space, moorage and assistance with equipment, volunteers and training staff. 

Currently CFSA has had to change the location of their marina resulting in the dock not being accessible until the marina development is completed. Despite not being able to host the sails for the former Disabled Sailing Association (now #AbleSailVictoria (ASV), CFSA has continued to support the programs by #fundraising with the Not A Whaler Race and providing storage space for the program’s equipment during the off season.

https://www.ablesailvictoria.com/calendar/not-a-whaler-race

If you or your family or friends would to make a donation to Able Sail Victoria you can do so directly: https://www.canadahelps.org/en/dn/103503

This will help us to continue our successful programs for which we charge $20.00 while the cost to provide the program is $130.00 per sail. We thank you for being members of ASV and for providing support for this worthwhile program.

Took my Mohawk sister-friend, Ojistoh, out for her first sail. Gorgeous weather today & we had some nice breezes on the ocean ️

My #slideshow video of sailing adventure today.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?si=5iiCcLvzsR2DH9e7&v=8sffdfaw2Bk&feature=youtu.be

Party waves. Not really. So many boats were out today. These weren't as big as some other wake waves from powerboats. I couldn't film anything when those larger wakes hit us because I was busy angling sailboat to counter them.

Astrid(on the left) gave me some good news when I returned from my sail today. The Able Sail Victoria program will be extended into September. I'm stoked! I can get in more sailing practice ️

I had a fantastic sail adventure today. Took my friend, Nadene, out for her first Martin 16 sailing experience. She loved it & took a ton of photos. We had fab winds on the waters today & I got to do a lot of keeling Fun time, on the ocean, on a gorgeous day!

Our rescue rangers came fast & pulled sailboat, far away from the rocks.

My first sailing accident. Got caught on rocks. I was able to dislodge sailboat but waves kept pushing us back towards rocks.

#MountBaker ahead of us.

#PeopleWithDisabilities #ParaSailing #AdaptiveSailing #ParaSports #AdaptiveSports #DisabledSailing #VictoriaBC #YYJ #Watersports #Sailors #VancouverIsland #PacificNorthwest #Coastal #nautical #Sailboat #Martin16 #VanIsle #LekwungenTerritory #SalishSea #PNW #PacificOcean
#boats #OakBay #RoyalVictoriaYachtClub

Photo from Mom's phone, from sailing on Sunday. I'm back on the sailboat tomorrow afternoon ️

Slideshow with photos from yesterday, stitched with 2 vid shorts.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=OLJhsGC8gj8

Visibility was almost nil on waters for most of my session. I found some pockets of wind & took advantage of those, as often as I could.

It was really foggy out on the ocean today!
Almost no winds until we reached mouth of the bay. I was happy to take Mom out for her very first sailing experience She found it to be very relaxing. We saw some seals, mergansers, few American coots & a couple of buffleheads.
Back at RVYC on August 22.

I had a great first solo #sailing session this afternoon. Winds were tricky today. Winds changed directions 5 times in 2 hours. Lots of adjustments on my sails today.

I got yacht club approval to take my Mom out as my passenger, for her very first sailing adventure, tomorrow morning! I'm pretty stoked about that. Mom has never been in any sailboat before! I'm not taking her very far because she gets scared of open ocean (while I love open ocean!). It will be very nice to take my Mom out for her first sailing experience ️

#RVYC #AbleSailVictoria crew in #ZodiacBoat - heading out to set an upwind marker near mouth of the bay for me to practice sailing a set course & do some figure 8s maneuvering around. Good practice to build up adaptive #sailing navigation & steering skills on my solo practice sails.

Saving some time by getting towed out to sailing practice course markers, by one of the #RVYC safety/coach #ZodiacBoats.

I'll upload brief clip of sailing back to marina after practicing some demo race course navigation, soon. Had some nice winds during my first solo adaptive #sailing session today ️