Camps help teens develop sea skills
Published: August 28, 2010
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ST. CROIX — As a rainstorm loomed over Frederiksted, a group of young boys ran and jumped into the water and swam out to three small sailing vessels that had been tied up about 15 feet off shore.
As they heaved their bodies into the crafts, each quickly unhooked their vessel, shoved in the centerboard and tightened the sail, moving them south to the pier — simple and smooth and without hesitation, as if they had grown up on the sea.
And almost all of them did grow up near the sea — but few of them spent much time sailing on the sea or even had access to a boat.
Many of them had been at it only two weeks, and through the efforts of a youth program offered by Frederiksted Community Boating, they were able to experience the roll of the waves and the whip of the wind as they moved up and down the western coast of St. Croix.
Two camps were held this summer, with the second group of youngsters from the West End graduating Friday, said Frederiksted Community Boating president Nick Castruccio.
With a $10,000 grant from the V.I. Law Enforcement Planning Commission and private donations, the boating organization has been able to put youngsters on the water, and they hope to continue to do so, Castruccio said.
As the clouds rolled in and the kids were about to head back south around the Frederiksted Pier on Thursday, 12-year-old Shahid Cobb hopped into the safety boat, manned by instructor Junie Allick.
“I don’t want to go all the way out there,” Cobb said. “I’m scared of the deep water.”
But put Cobb in closer to the shore, and he knows exactly what to do, Castruccio said.
“It’s fun,” said Cobb, who lives in Mt. Pleasant and had never been in a boat before. “I like sailing up and down the coast.”
The other students present, 12-year-old Kevin Soto and 17-year-old Christian Cortez, got into the 8-foot Prams they had been learning on and pointed the bow to the tip of the pier with little hesitation.
— Contact Daniel Shea at
774-8772 ext. 457 or e-mail dshea@dailynews.vi
