1. The Crew's the Thing
Find a great sailing crew. Whether you hire crew members or you convince your friends how much fun they will have, the success of a long sailing voyage begins and ends with the crew. Although it's great to find people with lots of sailing experience, it's more important to find people who work well on a team. You're all going to be together in cramped quarters for a long period of time. Everybody has to get along, or you'll all be miserable. And along the lines of the crew, there needs to be one captain of the sailboat and only one captain. The captain makes the final decisions, and everyone needs to know that.
2. You Don't Need that Extra Shirt
Packing light for a sailing voyage is essential. Pack your gear, and then subtract some. There's not much storage space on a boat. Chances are you will be sailing in a warm climate, so you don't need a lot of cold weather gear. Everything should fit in one duffel bag. Shorts, t-shirts, swimsuits and a sweatshirt are just about all the wardrobe you'll need. Don't forget a hat, sunglasses and lots of sunscreen. You'll also want some rainy weather gear, a day pack for land excursions and tennis shoes. Include your camera, a writing notebook and a couple of good books. Throw in an extra duffel for souvenirs.
3. What's for Dinner?
If you're supplying the food, you may find yourself perplexed about what to pack. You want to feed your sailing crew well, but you have to find a place to store it all. You'll need plenty of packaged, canned and dried food. Buy fresh vegetables and fruits when you go on shore visits. Take water in five-gallon plastic jugs.
4. Mayday, Mayday
Plan emergency procedures. No one wants to think something awful will happen, but good soldiers know the more you sweat in peace the less you bleed in war. Practice drills with your crew in case of someone falling overboard or in the event of extremely rough seas. Decide hand signals you can use in case the weather is too noisy, and teach those hand signals to your crew. Crew members and guests need to know that in the rare case of a real emergency, it is absolutely critical to follow the captain orders without question.
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