Cruising Fundamentals [Paperback]

Harry Munns (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 1, 1991

Cruising Fundamentals provides the tools necessary to make the transition from basic sailing to competent coastal cruising. Sailors interested in learning how to sail and live aboard a 30 foot to 50 foot auxiliary-powered sailboat will find a wealth of practical skills in this book, from simple instruction on plumbing, electrical, and mechanical systems to navigation, weather prediction, and anchoring techniques.

Cruising Fundamentals is the official American Sailing Association guide to intermediate coastal cruising and bareboat chartering. Sailing schools, yacht clubs, and other educational institutions throughout North America use this book as a text and indispensable resource in their teaching. Unlike other books on similar subjects, Cruising Fundamentals presents material in a chronology that has proven effective with thousands of developing sailors. Readers progress from "Getting Acquainted" to "Getting Familiar," "The Voyage," "Arrival and Living Aboard," and finally "Emergencies and Trouble Shooting." Each of the first four sections has review questions to help sailors evaluate their comprehension. Cruising Fundamentals is more than a book; it is a complete course that can benefit any sailor who desires to enter the exciting world of sailboat cruising.

Editorial Reviews

Review

``It picks up where the beginner's book leave off. . .Everything needed to make the first weeklong liveaboard cruise in safety and comfort is here.'' (Sail )

From the Author

After nearly a decade of teaching and training instructors for the American Sailing Association, I was given the opportunity to write a book. I began considering the manuscript by injecting a few of my opinions into the mix. First and foremost, I sincerely believe sailing is easy. Many of the other books I'd seen seemed to try to make it more difficult by including lots of technical information. Cruising Fundamentals would do the opposite. It would take the moderately complicated elements of intermediate sailing and break them down into simple, descriptive terms.

I also wanted the material in the book to follow the logical path of a sailing course. Most intermediate sailing courses begin with simple material such as familiarizing students with the boat. They then progress toward the end of the course hitting some predictable milestones along the way. I believe Cruising Fundamentals has been organized in this manner.

My other primary objective was to keep it fun. In my opinion, it's a tragedy for people with a healthy curiosity about sailing to become overwhelmed by concerns it may be too complicated and technical. A sailing course shouldn't be presented like physics or engineering (no offense meant to physicists or engineers, but most people seeking recreation don't gravitate toward such subjects). You do it for fun so learning it should be equally fun.

Finally, I had the benefit of hundreds of students' and instructors' questions and difficulties with the material in the book. Reflecting on which topics caused the most problems and solutions I had found, allowed me to present the subject matter in what I believe is a clear, concise and effective manner.

I sincerely hope you like the book and that its lessons provide you with a lifetime of challenge, fun and excitement.

Harry Munns Marina del Rey, CA March, 1999

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 136 pages
• Publisher: International Marine/Ragged Mountain Press; 1 edition (March 1, 1991)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0070015198
• ISBN-13: 978-0070015197
• Product Dimensions: 10.8 x 8.4 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #284,127 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Harry Munns grew up in Worcester, Massachusetts and moved to southern California, in part, to enjoy the longer boating and sailing season. He was one of the founders of the American Sailing Association and worked in the sailing industry for more than 20 years. During that time, he served on the board of the industry association, Sail America, for two consecutive terms. He also represented the ASA to the U. S. Coast Guard, the National Association of State Boating Law Administrators, the National Boating Federation and other organizations. He has held a U. S. Coast Guard Master's license for more than 25 years.

He's currently a sought-after boating safety expert working as a lecturer, author, writer and consultant. His work has appeared in numerous newsstand magazines and all over the Web. He writes about a variety of topics including technology and politics.

Harry still resides in southern California. He's the single parent of a 9 year old boy, spends as much time as possible on the water and writes a weekly column for a community newspaper as well as patch.com.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

34 of 34 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Outstanding Followup to Sailing Fundamentals book., August 4, 2000

By 

Conrad B. Senior (Easton, CT United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Cruising Fundamentals (Paperback)

This is American Sailing Association textbook for more advanced sailing topics and the the second of a series. The major plus of this book is that it teaches you how to sail with all the information you need to learn in the proper order you should learn it.

There is an advantage in learning the material in a time tested manner. Every time an instructor like the author, Harry Munns, teaches a course it gets better. This book gets the benefit of his tried and true, tested methods of sailing instruction. It works well.

This book follows "Sailing Fundamentals : The Official Learn-To-Sail Manual of the American Sailing Association and the United States Coast Guard Auxiliary"

Get them both.

Each book follows the ASA Basic Keelboat, Basic Cruising, and Bareboat charter courses.

Reading the books and then taking the courses will give you a jump start on your sailing skills.

Most sailors have knowledge like swiss cheeze--with lots of holes. The books will give you knowledge like American Cheeze--no holes.

Buy both books--you won't regret it. Read them and then take the courses for maximum effectiveness.

This is the path to skill, safety, and confidence on the water.

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A sailing instructor's view, September 12, 2003

By 

ed carter (Melbourne, Florida (USA)) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Cruising Fundamentals (Paperback)

It is a big step for an intermediate sailor to go to the Caribbean and bareboat charter a 40' vessel. We use this book to take the intermediate sailor to this level. Cruising Fundamentals contains a vast amount of detailed information and yet it is organized in logical steps to bring students to the desired level of competance without overwhelming them. This book contains many excellent photographs and sketches. The basic navigation information is excellent without going too deep and the review questions are good for self evaluation (am I really getting it?)
I particularly like the way systems are presented and compared. For example, the House DC system vs the shore power AC system, diesel engines vs gasoline engines featuring the differences and types of cooking fuels discussing the advantages and disadvantages of each.
This is an all round excellent book that can be read straight through or used as a reference. I understand the second edition is in the works and I look forward to getting it.

15 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Very Beginning Level- Not all that great, June 27, 2003

By 

Consumer "PR" (FL) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Cruising Fundamentals (Paperback)

I have never been cruising and really did not find this book to be very enlightening. It was VERY basic. You can expect things like "This is the hull, this is the sail" kind of stuff. I was really looking for more advanced topics like weather, emergency situations, planning a long distance cruise, etc.
This book is really for those of you thinking about buying a sailboat for cruising and have absolutely no boating experience. It touches on basic troubleshooting (and I mean basic) but does not really go in depth. I also purchased SAILING FUNDAMENTALS by Gary Jobson (Author), and found this book to be worth every penny. I would only recommend Cruising Fundamentals to those of you dreaming of cruising in the future, not very useful for anyone actually doing it.
I would rate this book at a high-school reading level.