The Kittery Point Yacht Club Sailing School provides instruction in small boats to junior and adult sailors. The school has been been teaching Seacoast students the art and science of sailing for over 30 years and many of its graduates have gone on to race in their local high school teams supported by Piscataqua Youth Sailing Association, or crew on 24 to 50 foot sailboats in local Piscataqua Sailing Association fleets for summer weekday evening racing and KPYC’s Commodore Cup weekend racing.
There are 4 session levels – Beginner (8-13), Intermediate (12-17), Advanced (12-17) and Adult (18-85). Classes are taught in 8 foot Opti dinghies (Beginners) and 14 foot Vanguard 420s (Intermediate and Adults). The boats are very responsive and you will learn quickly!!! Also note that while the intermediate class is faster paced and assumes prior knowledge, it spans various levels of expertise between students. It is a fine class for older beginner students to learn to sail and have the drive to catch up to their classmates. Our experience is that older kids learn faster as well!
The goal is for beginner students to become proficient in 1.) Rigging, knot tying and boat maintenance, 2.) Recovery from capsizing, 3.) Skippering (driving) and crewing through the basic points of sailing including, 4.) Tacking/sailing against the wind (upwind), 5.) Reaching/sailing 90 degrees to the wind 5.) Jibing/sailing with the wind (downwind). Intermediate students will gain confidence to skipper and crew the larger Vanguard 420 boats in a range of wind conditions with the goal of becoming 100% self sufficient. Adults classes will cover a flexible curriculum based on level of experience…so Adults can take multiple classes to continue to hone their skills (Instructors can personalize it to a higher level pretty easily). Experienced adults will then have the opportunity to participate as crew in the Tuesday/Thursday Night and Weekend Big Boat Racing sponsored by Piscataqua Sailing Association and KPYC.
Once Beginner and Intermediate students are 100% self sufficient they will graduate to Advanced focusing on learning how to fly a spinnaker, tactics to optimize boat speed, develop racing strategies/tactics and test your team’s capabilities by competing in weekly regattas. Trophies will be awarded at the end of each session.
ADDED FOR 2026 – ALL ADVANCED SESSION PARTICIPANTS WILL BE ABLE TO COMPETE IN EVERY FRIDAY REGATTA ALL SUMMER LONG!!! Example Session 1 participants could participate in Session 2,3+4 Friday Regattas and likewise Session 4 participants could participate in Session 1,2+3 Friday Regattas.
Below is the 2026 Registration Link, Program Overview and the KPYC Sailing School Handbook, which you will receive a complimentary copy of at your first session.
KPYC Sailing School Detailed Overview – Click Here
KPYC Sailing School Handbook – Click Here
Let’s go sailing!!!
Best,
Kevin McCoole
Director, KPYC Sailing School
Visit KPYC Sailing School on Instagram! https://www.instagram.com/kpyc_sailingschool/?hl=en
More Info: Contact KPYC Sailing School
KPYC Sailing School Federal ID # 02-6006021