Raymarine Yachtmaster Instructor Scheme Conference a huge success!
The RYA Yachtmaster™ Instructor Scheme Conference in Swindon, sponsored by Raymarine, was attended by record numbers for the third year running.
RYA Cruising Instructors, Yachtmaster™ Instructors and Training Centre Principals from around the UK and overseas attended the packed networking event at Alexandra House in the Wiltshire countryside over the weekend.
Delegates spent the weekend listening to talks, attending workshops and taking part in practical sessions as they learned more about the latest industry advancements.
RYA chief instructors for Sail Cruising and Shorebased Vaughan Marsh and Motor Cruising and Power Rachel Andrews opened up the conference with a welcome, followed by an update on the schemes, advice on the latest safety campaigns and best teaching practices.
Then Raymarine’s Sales Manager Harry Heasman took to the floor to explain more about their latest intuitive technology, ‘the Lighthouse 3’, while outlining how their work behind the scenes has allowed them to turn the needs of their users into best-selling products.
He also reminded instructors that RYA Training Schools are eligible for a fantastic 45% discount on top quality electronics for training vessels.
Range of workshops
Hot topics this year included Rough Water Handling by the RNLI, Technology in Weather by RYA author Chris Tibbs and Practical RADAR by Alan Watson from Raymarine. Other workshops included Julie Proudfoot’s popular practical session on How to Create your own Teaching Resources and freelance instructor Andy Wright and Dave Peart’s Teaching Passage Making in the Classroom.
Your views
Dave Dewolfe of Discovery Sailing in Canada has been coming to the conference every other year for many years said he always enjoys networking and described the workshops as, “interesting, informative and professionally run”.
Christian Meyer was attending for the first time. He said, ‘There were lots of interesting topics and being totally new to the instructor world, I found everything relevant, especially as I am about to set up my own Regional Training Centre.’
Catherine Dobson of Horizon Sailing said: ‘The presentations were very good – all informative and interesting with highly knowledgeable and enthusiastic presenters. It was also useful and helpful to spend time discussing issues with colleagues as well.’
Find out more about the RYA Yachtmaster Scheme
Find out more about becoming a Yachtmaster™ Cruising Instructor
