• Coastal Skipper / Yachtmaster Offshore
• "Just got back from 2 weeks sitting on a beach in Greece looking at all the boats sailing along without me. As beaches aren't my cup of tea I pre-empted the situation and printed out every page on the CD "WOW" then I arranged extra carriage with the airline and a bigger car to get to the beach [comprehensive notes]." SD of Hertfordshire
• "I have been using the [tidal] stream proforma which I found very useful ... I find this stuff really fascinating and would like to get this course done before my charter in the Med in 4 weeks time so that I can consolidate the theory with some practical application." AD of Berkshire
• "I didn't expect such a speedy response, thank you. In particular I've noted your comments about a wreck being or not being a hazard to surface navigation." and "Thank you for all the help you've given me as I've slowly plodded through the course. As you may have gathered work, keeps me pretty busy and I'd never have made it had I to attend a regular night class. This method has been perfect for me and you've been an excellent tutor at the other end of the line." AM of Berkshire
• "I know myself that I have improved my navigation skills, which is why I did the course. Many thanks for all your help, you have been fair throughout." KC of Somerset
• "Thanks for your pragmatic approach to the coursework, I can see that it fits in with the whole ethos of knowing the principles behind the theory, which is absolutely the right approach to take ... Thanks again for your help and the layout of the course - I really feel I've learnt a tremendous amount." RP of Berkshire
• "As far as the course is concerned, it's exactly what I was looking for, comprehensive but interesting, and thank God, readable." and "Thanks for the reminder, I'm still plodding along and am pleasantly surprised that this particular course is more in depth than the previous course I studied two years ago." DM of Berkshire
• "Thats great! It took me a while but I have learned a lot & really understand things much better since doing my day skipper. Plan to book a weeks sailing training in May with local RYA here & do practical course. I enjoyed the course & found all your training info very easy to learn by. Many thanks." SH of Argyll
• "Many thanks for the course. You have been most attentive and informative. Hopefully I will be back sometime to do the Ocean course." SA in Egypt
• "The course was fantastic, just the right level of detail and I will definitely recommend it to others in our sailing club. I have already booked the practical for the end of the month in Gibraltar." CG of Berkshire (no-support course)
• "I am very happy with the way the course material was presented and enjoyed both courses very much." BL of Manchester
• "The course has been more work than I envisaged at the start but has been really worthwhile as it has got me back up to speed with a lot I had forgotten and I have learnt a lot of new stuff as well. I can and will recommend your course to others." CF of Oxfordshire (no-support course)
• "Thanks for the excellent service, as well as the patience you have shown." TY of Berkshire
• "I do like my paper chartwork but the more I use the electronic chart plotter the more I think to put it into practice .... this is a favourite hobby. Thank you for the massive study material in PDF files. Throughout the course are many illustrations that helped the learning process. I am very keen to put my meteorology knowledge to practice. Next week I am off for a sailing trip with friends in Croatia ... Thank you for everything and lots of fun on Penta!" LL in Germany
• "This summer I was lucky enough to be the first to take Centaur Sailing’s new and completely revised RYA Coastal Skipper/Yachtmaster Offshore Theory correspondence course. The following are, I hope, objective and useful comments if you are considering this or another school’s courses. I was looking for a correspondence course for the flexibility I needed to fit in with work and a young family and I’ll admit that the first thing that attracted me to Rod Emmer’s course was the value for money in comparison to other schools. However it became clear very quickly that the real difference was how comprehensive the course materials were, pretty nearly an order of magnitude greater than other courses I had looked at. At nearly 2000 pages the course covers all you need to know for the exam and more importantly all you should know for you, your crew’s and your vessel’s safety. The materials are well crafted, straightforward, without superfluous gimmickry or commerciality, and embody Rod’s ethos of building a foundation of understanding, emphasising ways of double checking your results and keeping you safe rather than simply satisfying the requirements of an exam. If you are embarking on this course, do allow yourself time to complete all the examples and questions… and if you do so I’m confident that you’ll gain the knowledge, skills and confidence you need to be a better, safer sailor." JP of Hampshire
• "I realise things will become more difficult but very impressed with the clear and thoughtfully worked information. Have completed CS01 so here are my answers for marking." and "As I’m sure is evidenced [by marking of exercises throughout the course] have found your material very instructive and work really well for me." MK of Surrey
• "I have just successfully completed the Yachtmaster Offshore (no-support) correspondence course with Centaur Sailing . I had originally thought of going back to college but due to pressure on my time decided to try something different. I wasn’t disappointed, I have thoroughly enjoyed this course and cannot thank Rod Emmer enough for all the help I received at the end of the course before the final examination. The course has helped me to improve my navigation skills and will definitely make me a safer and more competent skipper. I would unreservedly recommend studying with Centaur Sailing and thank them for a very enjoyable learning experience." JM of Kent
• "I would just like to say that I have thoroughly enjoyed completing the course. I thought the standard of the course material was very high both in quality and quantity. The way you progressed from revision material to more advanced material made it easy to follow, along with the numerous self marked & instructor marked questions really helping to push it home. The many performae you had devised were also a great help." CC of East Sussex
• "I must say you have run an exemplary correspondence course. Your material, availability and speed of marking have been first rate so please be assured that I will recommend Centaur Sailing to my friends." RB of Cambridgeshire
• "The past few weeks have been fairly hectic, not least because I have undertaken (and successfully completed!) my Coastal Skipper practical. I found it [the practical course] both physically and mentally draining but very rewarding. It was great to get out sailing again after all the theory, but I have to say that the Centaur course left me feeling very well prepared and able to relax and get on with the sailing. I learnt a huge amount and my confidence as a skipper is continuing to grow. We are fortunate enough to be off to the Caribbean in the summer and I’m looking forward to exercising my new skills there. Thanks again Rod for your good wishes and for a very comprehensive, logically ordered and well laid out course. I enjoyed the challenge and of course the satisfaction of a successful completion. I would be very happy to recommend your course to others." BM of Essex
• "The course was very well organised and the materials as ever, excellent- -well prepared, comprehensive and concepts clearly explained, with lots of opportunity to practice. Having subsequently sailed with people who have done Coastal/Yachtmaster theory either in a 5 day course or in night school, I found that, in general, I had a much deeper grounding and knowledge, and seemed to have covered topics that they hadn’t (or maybe they’d covered them so quickly that they’d forgotten?). I guess that’s not surprising, given the time taken over this course - at least twice that taken by those doing theory over 5 days, with far more practice. The quality of service was, as ever, excellent with very fast turnround of materials, friendly and helpful advice – well worth the extra money for the support offered." CD of Devon
• "Tutor`s help, guidance, motivation and assistance with the course contents and objectives were excellent. My thanks to Rod for his patience and support and for looking at my papers so quickly. Will think of you as we are drinking the champagne! I will be in touch re Yachtmaster Ocean soon." EI of Hampshire
• "I've nearly worked through all the modules so will be in touch shortly about a mock exam [no-support course student]. The quality of the materials is outstanding and I've learnt more than I expected. I have booked my practical for 16th Dec so have to be finished by then." LA of Berkshire
• "I have been sailing for many years and instruct in a number of disciplines and this has been by far the most challenging RYA course [no-support] I have participated in. Having passed the course, finally, I am better prepared to deal with the challenges of skippering a yacht safely. The course has clarified a number of issues and consolidated most of the theory I have learned at other times. I recommend this course to anyone who cannot find the time to attend a full time RYA course." AP in Germany
• "I have thoroughly enjoyed studying these courses and have recommended them to a number of people along the way. A little like studying pre-hospital medicine, it is a little humbling, to discover that the more you study, the less you realise that you know." and "Many thanks once again for providing an easy to follow and comprehensive course of study. I look forward to the next one in due course." JB of Norfolk
• "I've been really pleased with the course. The flexibility provided has been great but having a fixed end point gave a good forcing mechanism without which I would have kept putting things off! Thanks again and if I decide to go for the Yachtmaster Ocean then I'll certainly be using Centaur Sailing and in the meantime will not hesitate to recommend you." GH of Renfrewshire
• "Just to say how delighted I was at receiving my Coastal Skipper theory certificate at the weekend. It means a lot to me and many thanks for your patience and help during the last year." PF of Nottinghamshire
• "I chose Centaur Sailing as I enjoyed the Day Skipper course that I previously attended at Basingstoke College of Technology. Of particular appeal was Rod's enthusiasm for the subject, a genuine interest in making sure every individual understood the subject. The correspondence course followed much the same lines with support where needed and a remarkably quick turnaround with instructor marked questions and final assessments. I have also attended a VHF and radar course with Rod and I would not hesitate in recommending Centaur Sailing." NH of Hampshire
• "A big thanks once again for your help and prompt responses ... Enjoyed every minute of it, Thanks Rod. ... Will catch up again for the Yachtmaster Ocean theory (I wasn't planning on going that far but I'm intrigued by the sextant and star sights already). " CS of East Yorkshire
• "I used my Portland plotter and the new Centaur Sailing plotter for the exercises, and I really find the Centaur Sailing plotter easier and more accurate." EW of Buckinghamshire
• "This was a top quality course. It was also a tough course with a substantial amount of work and attention to detail required to achieve the standard set by Centaur Sailing within each module. The quality of notes in terms of ease of understanding and logical development of subjects was quite exceptional – only a person who knows his subject inside out, and with a great deal of practical experience could deliver such clarity of explanation and make potentially complex subjects seem so simple. If anyone truly wants to learn, and most importantly absorb, the information and techniques required to support the practical business of Yachtmaster sailing, then this is the course for them. It certainly was for me. Many, many thanks." KF of Hampshire

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