J World Sailing

A few months ago I got a sailing dinghy. After a couple of outings, it was clear that even in mercifully light winds, I was making mistakes and I could use a boost up the learning curve, so I emailed J World about a private lesson, and Wayne answered and set me up for a four-​hour lesson with Jasper.
In the marina parking lot, Jasper and I first worked through some rigging issues I had not been able to figure out from the manual. Then we spent a couple of hours tacking and jibing in the Alameda Estuary while he showed me the tunings that the rig offers, played with weight distribution, and even tried out the trapeze.
On the last couple of downwind legs, we got the gennaker up and gybed and snaked to build downwind speed. That was a stretch goal for the afternoon as far as I was concerned.
I love the way Jasper is fearless about the possibility of an unplanned swim, and not too anxious about a newbie skipper making mistakes while he crews, all the way up to and including dumping the boat (which I almost did). He just makes corrections and suggestions matter-​of-​factly while all the time positioning his weight and tuning the sails with high expertise.
Update: Jasper and I went out again for some good times in higher winds. This time we actually did dump the boat near the bridge pier just SW of Treasure Island. Jasper was as-​usual cool about the whole thing. Turns out someone on land called us in while we were righting the boat, and we even got a friendly check-​in from the Coast Guard as we were sailing away. My bad that wriggling into the boat over the transom shut my radio off. I’m sure they hailed us before coming out and I could have saved them a trip.

Did a weeklong beginning sailing course with Jasper and was highly impressed by the boat, the instruction and the overall experience. The «classroom» is definitely lacking (could use some better lighting and be much less cluttered) but luckily we only spend a short time «in class» and the large majority of the time was on the water.
I highly recommend J-​World sailing out of Jack London Square.

I attended a week-​long advanced racing clinic at J-​World this summer and the experience was phenomenal. I’ve been crewing competitively in Southern California for over 20 years. I’ve begun driving races recently and signed up with J-​World to improve my boat handling skills, along with my skills with strategy and tactics.
I don’t think any experience can compare with the intensity of being on the water full time for five days straight. Wish it had been 10! My instructor, Josh, was quick to ascertain my skill level and challenged me to improve. He also extended our instruction time to include racing on two different nights in local club events. This was over and above what the course promised, and was a fantastic way to practice what we had learned.
While the clinic was challenging, it was also respectful. I would highly recommend J-​World and their staff as a venue for anyone who takes this sport seriously to up their game.
If you are thinking about attending any J-​World class, go for it!

Just returned from the San Diego to Puerto Vallarta race aboard J-World’s Hula Girl. I can say it was one of the best experiences of my life. I learned a lot and laughed a lot. The coaches were amazing. This has greatly deepened my knowledge and love for offshore racing.

I’ve taken courses (and certifications) from several other schools and nothing compares to the J/​World teachers. This isn’t really the place for the brand new sailor although they do a fine job at that level. Their true expertise is for those that want to step up their game a notch whether you are a cruiser or a racer. The classes are well structured and the instructors are the most knowledgable I’ve seen. They have the ability to guide you through complex issues a step at a time so that in the end, you walk away a better sailor. I just had a coaching session and will return in the near future.

I’ve taken classes at OCSC and Club Nautique — both are very good. But when it came to taking a private spinnaker lesson on my Olson 30 I chose J World for their performance sailing reputation. I was not disappointed. I dealt with Wayne while the school was in Mexico (winter) and we set up a class for when the school was back in Alameda (spring). I wanted a custom class that was mostly sailing with no classroom instruction if possible. I got what I asked for. No big deal. On the water the instructor (forgot his name — sorry) was very enthusiastic and extremely patient especially with some of the crew that had zero experience flying the kite. Once everyone was comfortable with basics we spent the whole day hoisting, dousing (leeward and weather), gybing endlessly in the south bay with 13 to 18 kts. We rotated positions and induced a few round-​ups, but no death rolls ;) just to see how it felt. My crew has varying levels of experience and everyone’s questions were answered no matter how basic or advanced. Overall, it was a great day on the water with a huge jump up on the learning curve for all involved.

Whether you want to begin sailing or hone your skills I can highly recommend J-​World! The instructors walked us through an agenda, spent sufficient time on theory and then we applied that theory by hands-on…sailing. The instructors were professional yet personable and made the work, and this IS work, less burdensome. I have been sailing since a my youth, but learned more in 4 days than 30 years! I now have a greater appreciation for sailing. I know I can better handle it if I were to face a life-​threatening situation, or rough weather… but most of all, I know that I will enjoy sailing that much more thanks to Wayne and the guys at J-​World.