Sailing

The sailing basin of the Charles River is one of the most active dinghy sailing venues in the country. Between the Longfellow and Harvard Bridges, the Lower Sailing Basin is home to Community Boating (oldest and largest public sailing program in the country), the MIT Sailing Pavilion (birthplace of collegiate sailing), and the Harvard Sailing Center. Community Boating is also the host venue for the Massachusetts Bay League, one of the oldest and largest high school sailing organizations in the country. In addition to this, the Boston University Sailing Pavilion is just downstream of the BU Bridge in the Upper Sailing Basin. There is college racing nearly every weekend in the spring and fall, high school racing nearly every weekday afternoon in the spring, and lots of other racing all season long. Between racing and practicing every day, and the multitudes learning to sail at Community Boating, the Rivah Chuck can be a very busy place. All four sailing facilities run youth-oriented sailing programs each summer.

The Charles has a well-earned reputation as a great place to sail. According the the National Climatic Data Center, Boston is one of the windiest cities in the United States, even windier on average than Chicago. In addition to being the oldest weather observatory in the United States, nearby Blue Hill has one of the highest average winds in the country. That means we have lots of days with good wind for sailing, a few when it is too calm, and a few when it really blows. For the most part, the river offers flat water sailing with wind in the 5-15 mph range and little current. With all the buildings and bridges nearby, the wind can be funnelled and redirected and the direction is not as stable as an ocean venue. Sailors that race here often have learned to master the shifts. Fran Charles, the Sailing Master at MIT, and Mike O'Connor, the Head Coach at Harvard, offer advice on the conditions.

The surface wind speed and direction can be monitored via four weather stations: at MIT Sailing, at Community Boating, and, via SailFlow, on the Harvard Bridge, and on the Longfellow Bridge. The upper level wind can also be monitored from atop the Green Building, the tallest building on the MIT campus.

Useful Information