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Tom Martin |
The book offers numerous instructive illustrations, a detailed section on hazards and risks and a step-by-step progression that can be used in a class setting or for individual instruction. Martin has also included an easy-to-understand section on the physics of sailing, exercise and review questions, and a listing of Internet resources.
Martin began sailing after he came to Wittenberg in 1980. It was in learning to sail that he discovered the need for a book that focused on single-sail boats. His extensive review of how-to sailing books found none that focused solely on learning to sail a small single-sail boat. So he decided to write one, using information from an Ohio Division of Watercraft (ODW) manual that he had used when he started teaching sailing. Every year he compiled new material as he received feedback from students and from ODW officers.
According to Martin, small single-sail boats like the Laser and Sunfish – the most popular sailboats within each of their classes – offer the best opportunity to really learn the fundamentals of sailing. "If you can sail a small single-sail boat, then you know how to sail," he says, "because if you make a mistake in a small boat, you're tipped over. You get immediate feedback."
Once someone has mastered sailing a single-sail boat then he or she can carry those skills over to any sailboat, including larger more sophisticated boats. Martin hopes the book's clear and detailed format will help others discover sailing as a rewarding and exciting sport.
In addition to publishing this book, Martin has written more than 35 articles in professional journals and a fitness evaluation manual, and has edited a book of readings on the biomechanics of sport. He has also produced recreational use maps for rivers in southwest Ohio. Martin is an avid mountain climber, having climbed 49.8 of the 50 state highpoints, and has published the "Martin Classification of Difficulty for U.S. State Highpoints." This is his first published book.
Written By: Gabrielle Antoniadis
Photos By: Robbie Gantt
084-07
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