If you are an active and enthusiastic sailor, you will love racing!

It’s addictive. It’s social. It’s thrilling. And it will be one of the best things you do to get you out of your house every week. Have fun sailing and hanging out with a great group of people.

Manhattan Yacht Club has very active racing programs.  In the J/24 class, member races are held every Tuesday and Wednesday evening throughout the season. The Corporate Sailing League is held every Thursday.

To best way to learn more about racing is to sign up for this course – Learn to Race Level 1. This will give you hands on experience of sailing on a race boat and learning what it is like to compete on the way and speed around a course.

We also encourage you to enroll in the primer course called Racing Fundamentals.  This is classroom work which teaches you the concepts and theory behind sailboat races.

If you have this theoretical knowledge before doing “Learn to Race – Level 1,” you will advanced much further.

While Racing Fundamentals is a theory course taught in a classroom, Learn to Race Level 1 is taught on the water during an actual race. You will go out, compete in races with an instructor and learn a little bit more each week.

If you already now a little about racing, you can also just jump into Learn to Race – Level 2, without doing Racing Fundamentals and Level 1 first.

These are some of the many things you will practice in Learn to Race – Level 1:

• Rigging and getting to the starting line on time
• Starts and how to be close to the line
• Safety and staying away from other boats
• Trimming and how to make your boat go fast upwind
• Rounding marks and the rules and safety
• Application of the racing rules of sailing
• Windshifts and how they put you ahead or behind.

Please note: Learn to Race – Level 1 is a non-spinnaker course. There are already so many things to learn in the first level course, such as making your boat go fast, tacking efficiently, starts, tactics, windshifts, etc. The spinnaker is introduces in Learn to Race – Level 2 after you have the fundamentals mastered.

Evening Schedule

Learn to Race is taught on Thursday evenings for 4 weeks in a row. Students should arrive at the docks no later than 6:05 pm.  However, it is much better to arrive by 5:50 pm so you can be part of the process of rigging the boat. All of this is learning. The race sequence usually begins by 6:35 pm.

Racing normally take about 1.5 to 2 hours. After racing, teams sail back to dock where they unrig. Then the fun and active social part of race culture kicks in. Many teams bring BBQs for dinner after racing.  Teams can bring their own beverages which are stored on ice in the communal cooler. Then after racing, everyone hangs out, shares stories, meets other sailors and generally has a good time. For the teams that hang out the longest, the club closes at 10 pm each evening.

Weather & Make Ups

Sailing is an outdoor sport subject to mother nature. In a 4 week program, it is common that one or may days will not be ideal (i.e. too much wind, not enough wind or storms). On evenings when races are not completed because of light winds, students will still be learning on the boats. On evenings when there is no sailing, such as high winds or storms, students will gather with their instructors to discuss racing theory and/or watch educational racing videos.

After the races each evening, there is an awards ceremony, Maybe you will get on the podium!  It is such a thrill. When you win your first glass, you will treasure it!

So get ready, strap on your lifejacket, put on your sailing gloves, get your stopwatch ready, you are about to embark on an exciting and thrilling ride into the world of sailboat racing!

2025 Schedule

This a 4-week program on every Thursday evening. Please arrive at the dock at 5:50 pm but no later than 6:05 pm.

#LTR1-01 – May 15, 22, 29 & June 5, 2025
#LTR1-02 – June 12, 19, 26 & July 3, 2025
#LTR1-03 – July 10, 17, 24 & 31, 2025
#LTR1-04 – August 7, 14,21 & 28, 2025

CLICK HERE to see Current Enrollment

Class Size & Tuition

Each Learn to Race boat is limited to 4 students plus the instructor.  Each course must be full with 4 students for the class to move forward. The tuition is $690 per person. If you need to change or cancel your reservation more than 2 weeks ahead of time, there is a $75 charge. Because space is limited and only full boats can participate, no cancellations are permitted within the final 2 weeks unless your spot can be filled by a student on the waiting list.

REGISTER HERE