I purchased this book with the intention of using it as a study guide for SailNY course in Basic Keelboat. The book told me all of the basic information I needed to be ready to intelligently discuss and put into practice basic knowledge about the parts of a boat, the parts of a sail, points of sail, rigging, water safety and rules of the "road."

I recommend this book for any beginning sailor. I was learning on old olympic racing boats with a jib and a mainsail, which were very responsive, so if I could learn what I needed, this book should be appropriate for smaller, slower craft without a doubt.

This is a compact book with lots of diagrams. Makes for a nice complement to a beginner's keelboat sailing course. More detailed information can be found in the Colgates' "Fast Track to Cruising."

The illustrations in this book really are outstanding; especially compared to the ASA Sailing Fundamentals book. However, the Sailing Fundamentals book is more complete when it comes to regulations and safety. I recommend using both books.

New sailors will be out to sea in no time with this handy guide to sailing. Some sailing classes use this textbook in class.

Geared toward adult new sailors. Not a bad book at all...

This book is the US Sailing textbook for the introductory course--Basic Keelboat. Instead of getting bogged down with too much material, this textbook gives you what you need to know when you first start sailing, and nothing else. I've taught sailing for 16 years at five different sailing schools. I have used this book for teaching and strongly reccomend this book for those who are just beginning to sail. As you advance in skills, more advanced textbooks are available to take you from beginner to advanced in meticulously planned stages. Even if you already of strong sailing skills, you can find and fill in the holes of your knowledge with this series of books. The fastest way to learn is to learn from the pro's.