Sailing Through Life: 7 lessons from 7 seas
A heartfelt keynote to Sea Scouts in Texas becomes a reflection on seven life lessons from sailing: resilience, judgment, fear, storms, crew, purpose, and the unexpected results of the journey.
Entries by Grant Headifen
Apparent Wind True Wind Quiz
Have fun with this quick apparent wind versus true wind test for sailors, but be prepared for the abuse if you don’t confidently get 100%. If you get anything less than 100% then you surely should take our FREE Basic Sail Trim course online.
Navigation Rules Test
Have fun with this quick who gives way test for sailors, but be prepared for the abuse if you don’t confidently get 100%. If you get anything less than 100% then you surely should take our FREE Navigation Rules course online.
How does Wind Gradient affect Apparent Angle
With wind gradient, the wind speed increases with height above the water because surface friction slows the air closer to the water. If the direction of the true wind stays the same, but the speed increases aloft, then due to the movement of the boat the apparent wind angle aloft shifts slightly aft.
NauticEd and Scouting America’s Sea Scouts Press Release
NauticEd and Scouting America’s Sea Scouts announce a national alliance to deliver modern, standards-aligned boating education and leadership development for the next generation of mariners.
How to Trim the Headsail – Using the Fairlead?
Master headsail trim by learning how fairlead position affects sail twist, power, and boat heel. This step-by-step visual explains when to move the fairlead forward or aft for better upwind performance and control.
AIS Safety vs Internet AIS: The Critical Difference Sailors Miss
AIS is one of today’s best safety tools—and one of the most misunderstood. AIS targets on your chartplotter aren’t the same as the ones in phone apps, and that difference matters. In this article, I break down how AIS really works, why some targets vanish, how vessels end up online, and the key distinction between AIS as an onboard safety system vs. an internet tracking tool.
Mast Head pull heeling versus wind heeling
Takeaways: Standing rigging isn’t the place to economize—it’s a load-management system. Use stretchy docklines for masthead pulls, avoid shock loads, and apply smooth, steady pressure. Snatch loads break rigs.
What is an American National Standards EDU-4 Instructor
EDU-4 is the American National Standard that describes what high-quality on-water instruction must look like: clear objectives, structured lessons, appropriate safety and student ratios, objective assessment, and continuous improvement. NauticEd requires its instructors to follow these principles in every training session.
Fin Keel versus a Full Keel Efficiency
Basic Newtonian physics says keel force scales with water density, area, and velocity squared. So if a fin keel and full keel had the same area, shouldn’t they perform the same? And since full keels often have more area, it seems like they should do better—not worse.
NauticEd is a fully recognized education and certification platform for sailing students combining online and on-the-water real instruction (and now VR). NauticEd offers +24 online courses, a free sailor's toolkit that includes 2 free courses, and six ranks of certification – all integrated into NauticEd’s proprietary platform. The USCG and NASBLA recognize NauticEd as having met the established American National Standards. Learn more at www.nauticed.org.
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