San Diego Sailing Academy

My husband and I recently signed up the week-​long power boating course based on the Unilocal reviews and a conversation with SDPA. We just bought our first boat and are completely new to boating, and we thought that an intensive course with SDPA would be a great start. Unfortunately, that didn’t turn out to be the case.
While the boat and marina were nice and the instructor, Captain Mike, clearly knew a tremendous amount about boating, our experience was disappointing. Unlike a previous reviewer, we did not think the lessons built on one another, and they were organized oddly. For example, Mike spent the early part of the mornings, when the winds were calmer and preferable for a beginner to learn docking and close quarter maneuvering, talking about systems and such. He didn’t begin the actual hands on boating instruction until late morning when the winds had picked up significantly. (All the while telling us how important it was for powerboaters to begin their boating day early for just that reason!) In addition, although the course was advertised as going from 9:30 to 3:30, every day, except for the one on which we objected, Mike ended each day at 1. It seemed like he had lots of other things to do and other jobs, and he was anxious to get to them.
More important, Mike was clearly irritated that we were total newbies and made no effort to conceal his irritation. His «educational» approach was to criticize and berate rather than to instruct and encourage. This made the whole experience unpleasant and unnerving. In fact, we couldn’t wait to leave and cut the misadventure short and left after five days. (To Mike’s credit, he refunded us the cost of the two days we didn’t use.)
Perhaps if one had a smaller boat and was looking to move up or was rusty from not having boated in a long time, Mike would have a better, more professional attitude and the experience would be worthwhile. But if you are a beginner, our strong advice is to find another place to learn!

My wife and I just completed the 7 day liveaboard ASA 101, 103 and 104 classes with SDSA and Captain Mike.
It was a phenomenal experience — exactly what we wanted and needed and we are eager to take our new knowledge and experience and take out a Bareboat Charter in the Caribbean next year.
There were many highlights of our week long experience but here are a few.
We lived on Karina Del Mar — a 30 foot, 1987 Catalina America’s Cup edition that Mike has owned (I believe) since he purchased it new. It is well cared for and in great shape — a great learning boat for my wife and I and our first time living aboard a boat.
The boat is kept at Kona Kai Marina. There are bathroom and shower facilities at the Marina and we had use of the hotel Pool and Hot tub which we used every day.
Mike is a master sailor in every sense of the word. His stories were excellent and proved to be perfectly related to each days lessons. He seems to have ‘done it all’ in sailing — sailed large and small boats as captain and crew. He has raced to Hawaii. He took us on a tour of Southwest Yacht Club and the San Diego Yacht Club. After we became familiar with Karina, he showed us his Hunter, his 42′ Catalina, and his powerboat. On each boat he pointed out important similarities and differences. He showed us around the boat he races on. He pointed out local weather (dew on the deck means good sailing) as well as local boating information (navy ships, container ships, local surfing breaks, local anchorages, local geography that creates wind, etc.) He also helped us plan our future Caribbean bareboat charter because he has done it before.
Another testament to his deep knowledge of sailing was that he knew when enough is enough — on the first few days we were surprised when class ended early — he gave us some time to go over the books and prepare for the multiple choice tests. As the course moved on we realized we NEEDED that time to digest the days information. He packs a LOT in!
Despite his not (currently) having children, he gave us GREAT advice on how to introduce our your boys to sailing — he truly knows how to introduce this great skill to anyone.
One caveat — if you are looking for an anal, crotchety, salty, by the book, sailing instructor — Mike is not your guy. If you like a teacher who holds your face to the coals making sure you know every word, every knot, every test answer — you would be better served looking somewhere else. Mike is a happy, mellow, surfer with a great sense of humor who can deliver as much or as little as you like. He’s great with questions — never cared about dumb questions — and he has terrific patience.
Mike gave us exactly what we needed and we emerged from the end of the week confident to continue our sailing resume. We have a great understanding of the San Diego Bay area as well. He gets our highest recommendation and we will be back to take a lesson the the 42′ Catalina — Swellbound — soon!

My wife and I were recently students at San Diego Sailing Academy and wanted to comment on our great experience. Not having sailed in years we were concerned that our time away might be a problem That was not the case. Our instructor Capt. Mike Monastra made us feel welcomed and at ease from the beginning. During our week of training our focus was the successful completion of ASA basic coastal cruising and ASA bareboat cruising courses. We checked in Sunday afternoon with Mike and got settled into our Catalina 30. We would be liveaboards for the week on the boat we would train on. The boat was immaculate and fully equipped with everything needed for a comfortable and productive week.
While the boat and equipment were first rate, the most important element of our experience was our instructor. Mike Monastra’s boating and sailing knowledge are the product of a lifetime on the water. I’m convinced there is little about sailing he hasn’t experienced firsthand. He led us through all the activities and sailing maneuvers required by our ASA courses in a way that was both instructional and enjoyable. Each day built on the previous days experience and as the week progressed so did our confidence and ability. We came away from our week with SDSA and Mike knowing we had found our «home» for sailing in San Diego. We are planning our first charter for early next year and look forward to maintaining and expanding our relationship with SDSA. As you can tell, we heartily recommend this company to anyone looking for competent, knowledgeable and supportive sailing instruction and charter services.
Mike G. /​Phoenix

I have never written an on line review in my life. But my experience with San Diego Sailing Academy made me seek out this Unilocal page so I could post my positive review.
My wife and I completed a 3 day power boat instruction course through San Diego Sailing Academy and Capt. Mike Monastra. We were allowed to complete the course on our new boat, which we have owned for only a few months.
The training course was very good. It is organized and the course printed material was well laid out, understandable and informative.
What really made the course special was the good instruction from Capt. Mike Monastra. He was a wealth of information and a good communicator. His training was specific for our boat and our situation. He taught us a method of docking so just my wife and I can handle just about any docking situation we may incur in the future. He also was able teach us about the systems on our boat; maintenance requirements and recommended local pros to help us repair and maintain our boat. He was a great instructor.
We still have much to learn, but the basic knowledge gained in this 3 day course has given us the confidence to operate and enjoy our boat.
I can highly recommend this course and this business.