The RYA Day Skipper Theory course is your comprehensive guide to mastering chartwork, navigation, weather forecasting, and the basics of seamanship. It’s a must-do for anyone starting out who wants to make smart decisions on-board. Plus, it’s an important step if you’re thinking about taking the Day Skipper practical course.
We offer the course in our Southampton and London locations, and availability and pricing can be seen on this link if you wish to book.
Once completed you will have the background knowledge to skipper a small yacht in familiar waters by day.
Course overview
Some sailing experience is good, but if you don’t have any you can still take the course. It is held over eight evenings, plus one weekend. Alternatively, it can be taken over two and a half weekends, or five solid and consecutive days.
You will learn about: Seamanship, coastal navigation and pilotage, chartwork, electronic charts, position fixing, plotting a course to steer, weather forecasting and meteorology, tides, collision regulations, seamanship, coastal navigation and pilotage, chartwork, electronic charts, position fixing, plotting a course to steer, weather forecasting and meteorology, tides, collision regulations.
The Day Skipper Theory course syllabus
Day Skipper Theory aims to equip prospective skippers and crew with the foundational knowledge they will need for safe and effective skippering of small vessels in familiar waters in daylight house.
- Nautical terms
- Parts of a boat and hull
- General nautical terminology
- Ropework
- Knowledge of the properties of synthetic ropes in common use
- Anchor work
- Characteristics of different types of anchor
- Considerations to be considered when anchoring
- Safety
- Knowledge of the safety equipment to be carried, its stowage and use (see RYA Boat Safety Handbook, C8)
- Fire precautions and fire fighting
- Use of personal safety equipment, harnesses and lifejackets.
- Ability to send a distress signal by VHF radiotelephone.
- Basic knowledge of rescue procedures including helicopter rescue
- International Regulations for Preventing Collisions at Sea
- Steering and sailing rules (5,7,8,9,10 and 12-19)
- General rules (all other rules)
- Definition of position, course and speed
- Latitude and longitude
- Knowledge of standard navigational terms
- True bearings and courses
- The knot
- Navigational charts and publications
- Information shown on charts, chart symbols and representation of direction and distance
- Navigational publications in common use
- Chart correction
- Navigational drawing instruments
- Use of parallel rulers, dividers and proprietary plotting instruments
- Compass
- Application of variation
- Awareness of deviation and its causes
- Use of hand-bearing compass
- Chartwork
- Dead reckoning and estimated position including an awareness of leeway
- Techniques of visual fixing
- Satellite-derived positions
- Use of waypoints to fix position
- Course to steer
- Tides and tidal streams
- Tidal definitions, levels and datum
- Tide tables
- Use of Admiralty method of determining tidal height at standard port and awareness of corrections for secondary ports
- Use of tidal diamonds and tidal stream atlases for chartwork
- Visual aids to navigation
- Lighthouses and beacons, light characteristics
- Meteorology
- Sources of broadcast meteorological information
- Knowledge of terms used in shipping forecasts, including the Beaufort scale, and their significance to small craft
- Basic knowledge of highs, lows and fronts
- Passage planning
- Preparation of navigational plan for short coastal passages. Meteorological considerations in planning short coastal passages
- Use of waypoints on passaged. Importance of confirmation of position by an independent source
- Keeping a navigational
- Navigation in restricted visibility
- Precautions to be taken in, and limitations imposed by fog
- Pilotage
- Use of transits, leading lines and clearing lines
- IALA system of buoyage for Region A
- Use of sailing directions
- Pilotage plans and harbour entry
- Marine environment
- Responsibility for avoiding pollution and protecting the marine environment
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