By Ashley Griffin
Outdoor Recreation Reporter
Have you seen water before?
Then you have all the prerequisites to try sailing according to Oregon’s Sailing Club
coordinator, George Yioulos.
While Yioulos said sailors have to be physically fit and need to understand constantly changing race courses, conditions and competitors, but these abilities come naturally in a short period of time.
“The basics are not hard; in fact, they are almost intuitive,” Yioulos said. “I could teach someone to sail in a few hours.”
Sailing has been around for centuries and has grown in popularity at schools across the nation. Student sailors from state colleges and universities have developed a tight-knit sailing community in the Northwest.
“Sailors are also a band of brothers, if you will,” Yioulos said. “We all know the UW, PSU, WWU, UBC, and WSU kids really well. We aren’t enemies off the race course. We’re sailors first, a unique breed of broke, dedicated sailors that can be any one person at the University.”
These students and other members of the nation’s sailing community come from all walks of life. Junior Tyler McNamara, who will take over as the Sailing Club’s coordinator when Yioulos graduates, said fellow sailors’ personalities were a big draw for him.
Yioulos said university teams are diverse enough to break the traditional sailor
stereotypes.
“Sailing has the image of rich white guys sailing in bazillion dollar boats,” he said. “That’s just not true in college sailing. We’re a co-ed team, as is all of college sailing.”
Big reasons for growing student interest in sailing are its accessibility and relatively low cost. McNamara said the club does enough fund raising to pay for travel and to keep the dues low.
Sailing also provides great travel opportunities for students. The club participates in nearby regattas in Bellingham, Wash., as well as in cities farther away like Boston, Mass. These regattas showcase both the talents and diversity of the sailing community.
“College events are hanging out with 100 people you know and sailing against them as hard as you can. You leave it all out on the race course, and everyone is friends
afterward,” Yioulos said. “We spend a full two days of a weekend competing, and you leave tired, dirty, hungry and sometimes hurting, but … what a time we have on
the water.”
Locally, students can get involved in a variety of ways. Yioulos recommends calling a local yacht club or city recreation department about possible lessons. This summer, City of Eugene Parks and Recreation will offer both group and private sailing lessons at Shelter Cove on Odell Lake.

The Club Sports team is currently recruiting experienced sailors; inexperienced sailors shouldn’t hesitate to turn out either. McNamara said it doesn’t take long to adjust to sailing in a team environment where everyone is helping each other learn the necessary skills.
The team regularly holds practices at Fern Ridge Reservoir, but it is closed for a period of time to drain. For now, Oregon has a number of sailing opportunities outside Eugene at locations such as Yaquina Bay in Newport or the Cascade Locks on the Columbia River.
If Yioulos has his way, there will soon be sailing opportunities for the average Joe in Portland. Yioulos plans to combine his business degree and love for sailing to buy a boat dealership in the city.
“Part of it is going to be trying to bring the price of sailing down to new people by close to 90 percent and really start a sailing school type thing that makes sailing accessible to everyone,” he said.
Whether it’s for competition or relaxation, every sailor enjoys the sport for his or her own reasons. For McNamara, the sport provides stress relief from his days at the University.
“It’s quiet out there on the water. It’s all naturally powered by the wind and the water and just really relaxing when you’re out pleasure-sailing,” he said.
For interested students, Yioulos has a last bit of advice.
“The best recipe to learn: Get your butt on the water and sail till you can’t sail anymore and repeat it,” he said.

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