Best Sailing School

Summer's a month away and the beautiful blue bay beckons. You've always wanted to hop aboard one of those sleek boats packed with all those happy-looking people and scud off to Angel Island for a picnic. Two problems: You have no friggin' idea how to sail, and you don't have a lot of jack to spend learning. One solution: Tradewinds Sailing Club. Yes, there are sailing schools that are closer. But most are more expensive, and Point Richmond is only an hour's drive from S.F. Tradewinds offers a solid beginner's class that teaches you how to get the boat moving, keep it moving, and return it to the dock without drowning, all for $445. After that, you pay a $300 annual membership fee, which makes you eligible to rent Tradewinds' boats by the day. (A 25-foot Catalina, for example, goes for $75 on weekdays and $100 on Saturdays and Sundays.) It's the cheapest way we know to participate in a fun rich man's sport.