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

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.

Towing

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The following diagram shows how you can tow another vessel. Form a “bridle” from the rear cleats…

Rigging

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At boat shows, we see folks huddled down in the vessel’s salon oohing and aahing at the leather cushions to sit on, and at the electronic gadgets for navigation and entertainment.

Bilge Pumps

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An emergency bilge pump(s) is a very significant electrical device on any vessel. This pump is used to pump out water that may collect, for whatever reason, in the bilge.

Sailboat Wind Power Generators

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Wind-power generators are typically installed only on ocean-crossing vessels, where the vessel is away from the marina for extended periods of time and where there is a need for conserving onboard fuel.