Grant Headifen

About Grant Headifen

My vision for NauticEd is to ensure that families and friends get out on the water not only safely but with true COMPETENCE, confidently savoring every moment of their valuable time.

Achieving this means being the pinnacle of sailing and boating education—offering comprehensive multi-media theoretical instruction coupled with hands-on, on-the-water training through our global network of American National Standards Instructors. We steadfastly avoid becoming a mere certification mill; our focus is on delivering genuine competence, ensuring our students are well-prepared for enjoyable, real-world boating experiences.

Entries by Grant Headifen

The Nautical Chart

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Safely maneuvering a vessel while using positions derived from various coastal and near coastal sources is called coastal navigation.

Sailboat Solar Power

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Solar panels produce DC power and are used to charge the batteries. A relatively small solar panel such as 1 square foot (0.1 m2) can produce about 1½ amps at…

Sailing and Wind Forces

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A sailboat moves in upwind and downwind directions. Downwind is intuitive; it just gets blown downwind. But just how does a sailboat move into the wind?

Using Spring Lines for Docking

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A spring line is just a dockline that is placed strategically from the boat to the dock to help maneuver and turn the boat in place – get it safely into the dock or safely away.

Anchoring

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Anchoring is not simply throwing a “hook” and letting out a line. However, after watching some sailors, this seems to be their theory. Successful anchoring requires a plan considering all the factors.

Electric Windlass

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An electric windlass is a powerful electric winch that greatly helps in the lowering and raising the anchor.

Standing Rigging

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To keep the mast from toppling over, an array of rods, cables, ropes (lines), and wires are attached at various spots on the mast and run down to the bow, stern, and sides of the vessel.

Sailboat Mooring Procedures

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The procedure for tying to a mooring is theoretically very easy. You simply motor up and using a boat hook, grab the float and attach to it to your boat. It sounds simple but you will see many dismal failures when watching others try it.