West Wilts Youth Sailing Association is an award winning RYA Recognised Training Centre. The centre is recognised by The Sailability Foundation for the tuition of sailing to persons with special needs and is a Charitable Trust situated on a small lake off Station Road in Westbury, Wiltshire.

             

The Objectives Of The Association Are:

To introduce young people aged 8 - 18 years to the sport of sailing.

Provide sail training to the RYA recognised standards.

To enhance the physical, mental and educational well being of young people.

To meet the requirements of children with special needs.

To provide these facilities at a cost young people can afford.

All the training is carried out by volunteer RYA qualified insructors, many of whome have been with us for 15 - 20 years.





Sailing is one of Special Olympics' newer sports, having been included in the World Games for the first time in 1995.


Although sailing as a means of transportation predates history, sport sailing—or yachting—seems to have originated in the 17th cent. in Holland. From there it was introduced into England (c.1660) by Charles II, and eventually spread to the American colonies.


The world's first yacht club was founded (1720) at Cork, Ireland.


Here is a collection of knots commonly used in sailing.


The RYA was founded in November 1875 as the Yacht Racing Association (YRA). Its primary purpose was to standardise the rules governing the measurement of racing yachts, so that boats of different classes could compete against each other.