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York Region > Recreation > Sports >

Sports: Sailing

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[ Background | Equipment | Where ]

Background of the Sport

Moored sailboats at marina

Sailing uses the wind to power the boat's motion. It's not as much by pushing the sail (as is the case when sailing downwind) but by creating forward-pulling lift using airfoil-shaped sails (when sailing across or into the wind). The joy of sailing combines the joy of being on the water, the power you feel in harnessing natural forces, and with the thrill of going fast without significant energy on your part.

Sailing dates back to the ancient Phoenician traders, though the technology of sailboats has improved dramatically over the years. Innovations in the past 50 years include fibreglass hulls, metal masts and booms, synthetic sails, computer controlled laser cut and sewn sails, and computer aided design for boat hulls have made sail boats faster, safer, cheaper, and easier to maintain.

Small sailboats under 20 feet in length come in two main configurations: either single hull or multi-hull (like a catamaran). They typically have one mast, one mainsail (the big one), and a jib (the small triangular at the front, to direct the wind around the mainsail), and sometimes a spinnaker (the large round-shaped one for going downwind). Small boats are designed for a limited number of people to crew, with them either sitting in or around the cockpit (which may be a tightly stretched tarp between the catamaran hulls), or supported from a trapeze rig over the edge of the boat (in high winds). Smaller boats with centreboards include modles like Albacores and Lasers.

In coastal waters and in larger lakes, boats can get larger (with fixed keels), more sophisticated (and much more expensive), and can handle larger numbers of people. Some such boats even have multiple masts, and complex sail configurations. Such larger yachts are suitable for a sailing on open water for significant distances, and provide sleeping, kitchen, communications equipment, even entertainment facilities.

Equipment
Yachts with gear at a marina

To go sailing, you'll need a boat, and lifejackets.



Where

There are several clubs in Etobicoke, Toronto, Scarborough, and the York Region:

Etobicoke

    Humber Bay Park Lighthouse
  • Etobicoke Yacht Club (300 Humber Bay Park Road West, Etobicoke M8V 3X7) 416-259-1159
  • Mimico Cruising Club (200 Humber Bay Park Road West Etobicoke) 416-252-7737 (pump-out)
  • Lakeshore Yacht Club (76 Colonel Samuel Smith Park Drive, Etobicoke M8V 4B7) 416-255-3701
  • The Boulevard Club (1491 Lakeshore Blvd. W., Toronto M6K 3C2) 416-532-3341
  • Toronto Sailing and Canoe Club (1391 Lakeshore Blvd West, Toronto M6K 3C1) 416-531.0403
  • Toronto Humber Yacht Club (Humber Valley PO Box 100 Stn U, Etobicoke M8Z 5M4) 416-231-4650


Toronto

    Harbourfront Marina With Downtown Buildings
  • The Boulevard Club (1491 Lakeshore Blvd. W., Toronto M6K 3C2) 416-532-3341
  • Ashbridge's Bay Yacht Club (30 Ashbridge's Bay Park Rd, Toronto) 416-698-4498 (fuel, pump-out)
  • Toronto Sailing Club (20 Ashbridge's Bay Park Rd, Toronto) 416-694-6918 (pump-out)
  • Toronto Island Marina (45 Harbour Square, Toronto) 416-203-1055 Fax: 416-203-1062 (fuel)
  • National Yacht Club (1 Stadium Road, Toronto M5V 3H4) 416-260-8686
  • Alexandra Yacht Club (2 Stadium Road, Toronto M5V 2R9) 416-260-8690 (pump-out)
  • Island Yacht Club (2 Muggs Island Park, Toronto M5J 1B5) 416-203-0492
  • Royal Canadian Yacht Club (141 St George, Toronto M5R 2L8) 416-967-7245
  • Queen City Yacht Club (Algonquin Island, Toronto M5W 1C2) 416-203-0929 (pump-out)
  • Toronto Hydroplane & Sailing Club (20 Ashbridge's Bay Park Road, Toronto, M4L 3W6) 416-694-6918 905-770-3125 (fuel, pump-out)

Scarborough

    Toronto Island-Canadian Yacht ClubM arina
  • Bluffers Park Marina (7 Brimley Rd, Scarborough) 416-266-4556 (fuel, pump-out)
  • Bluffers Park Yacht Club (2369 Kingston Rd, Scarborough) 416-261-6993 (pump-out)
  • Cathedral Bluffs Yacht Club (Foot of Brimley Rd, Scarborough) 416-261-0537 (pump-out)
  • Highland Yacht Club (Brimley Rd, Scarborough) 416-267-0224 (pump-out)
  • Scarborough Bluffs Sailing Club (Bluffers Park Brimley S, Scarborough) 416-264-2692

York Region