It's amazing how many of those people who can find the £4,000 £10,000 to buy a jet-ski or small powerboat will baulk at spending a couple of hundred pounds on basic training.
A few hours in the hands of an instructor can boost a beginner's confidence and give a solid start to what can often turn out to be a rewarding, lifelong sport. Instead, a regular route for newcomers to watersports is to bash around learning by trial and error. That's all very well in a lot of sports but, at over 50 mph, your first mistake could be your last.
Despite what its name might suggest, the Irish Sailing Association (ISA) offers a wide range of power-boat courses at 30 centres around the country. A weekend level-one, -two or -three course for beginners costs £60 £70 and is practically all you need to go to sea in reasonable conditions.
More details and course venues are available from the ISA at 3 Park Road, Dun Laoghaire, Co Dublin. Tel: 01-2800239; fax: 01-2807558; e-mail: isa@iol.ie Web Site: www.sailing.org/isa/
