Detroit kids learn joys of sailing, self transformation at Belle Isle Boat House
Mandi Wright, Detroit Free Press
Updated ·2 min read
Clark Goeman, 35, of Hamtramck, left, a 420 CM sailboat sailing coach, helps Lilly Bhogle, 14, of Canton, onto his boat as Lyla Garcia, 12, waits for another sailor to trade places as they train in their Challenge the Wind program on Thursday, July 20, 2023, from the banks of the Belle Isle Boathouse. Challenge the Wind was started by the Detroit Community Sailing Center, which teaches youths ages 10-17 how to sail. The emphasis is on water safety and STEM to help increase access to Detroit's waterways for youths who would otherwise not get the opportunity.
If there was ever a collective metaphor for life, learning how to sail incorporates pretty much every aspect.
Harry Jones, president of the nonprofit Detroit Community Sailing Center, runs the Challenge the Wind youth sailing program at the Belle Isle Boat House, and he sees his students transform in all of life’s lessons.
Once the kids get on a boat, Jones said, "I have seen them go from deathly afraid, to confident and working as a team, and really enjoying it and appreciating the environment."
Detroit Community Sailing Center members are teaching young students how to sail as part of their Challenge the Wind program on Thursday, July 20, 2023, from the banks of the Belle Isle Boat House. Challenge the Wind was started by the Detroit Community Sailing Center, which teaches youths ages 10-17 how to sail. The emphasis is on water safety and STEM to help increase access to Detroit's waterways for youths who would otherwise not get the opportunity.
Nicholas Young, 11, of Detroit, cools off in the Detroit River after a hot day of sailing with the Challenge the Wind program on Thursday, July 20, 2023, from the banks of the Belle Isle Boat House.
Lilly Bhogle, 14, of Canton, works to right the 420 sailboat she and her crewmate capsized while practicing on the Detroit River as they participate in the Challenge the Wind program on Thursday, July 20, 2023, from the banks of the Belle Isle Boat House.
That was the transformation that got Jones hooked in 2011, helping to educate youths ages 10 to 17 about how to sail on the Detroit River using the U.S. Sailing curriculum, water safety, and connect them to a related STEM course where students learn the physics of sailing and even take water samples to study the ecosystem of the river. There are three two-week sessions. Enrollment is open to the public, and each student pays $100 to participate. Jones and his team are determined to keep the program affordable to help deconstruct any barriers to youths who otherwise would not have the opportunity to participate.
Kyla Foreman, 10, of Detroit, left, holds a rope at left and as Detroit Community Sailing Center president Harry Jones makes some adjustments for her and her crewmate Eleazar Smith, 10, of Detroit, on the Optimist (opti) boat that they will set sail in on the Detroit River as part of their participation in the Challenge the Wind program on Monday, July 24, 2023, from the banks of the Belle Isle Boat House.
Dean Cole, 9, of Warren, left, works together with Challenge the Wind crewmate Austin De'Andre Shepard, 10, of Detroit, to flip over their Optimist (opti) sailboat to get it assembled for sailing on the Detroit River on Monday, July 24, 2023, from the banks of the Belle Isle Boat House. Challenge the Wind was started by the Detroit Community Sailing Center, which teaches youths ages 10-17 how to sail. The emphasis is on water safety and STEM to help increase access to Detroit's waterways for youths who would otherwise not get the opportunity.
Grace Pytell, 29, of Grosse Pointe Farms, director of the Detroit Community Sailing Center, instructs new students who are participating in the Challenge the Wind program on Monday, July 24, 2023, from the banks of the Belle Isle Boat House. Challenge the Wind was started by the Detroit Community Sailing Center, which teaches youths ages 10-17 how to sail. The emphasis is on water safety and STEM to help increase access to Detroit's waterways for youths who would otherwise not get the opportunity.
Ari Boyce, 13, of Farmington Hills, right, sails on the Detroit River as he participates in the Challenge the Wind program on Thursday, July 20, 2023, from the banks of the Belle Isle Boat House.
Not only do students learn how to tack and jibe — sailing actions that help to navigate winds on the water — but at times to negotiate conflict resolution and team-building dynamics. For 17-year-old Bloomfield resident Celine Washington, a former student in the program who is now a junior coach, "The best way to learn is to teach." She added, "Sailing improved my confidence level to go into a field that’s masculine-dominated, just like sailing,” said Washington, a senior at Bloomfield Hills High School who wants to major in biomechanical engineering when she settles on a college next year.
After a recent hot day on the water, students got to jump into the coolness of the Detroit River.
As enthusiastic first-year participant Nicholas Young, 11, of Detroit, emerged between jumps off the dock of the Belle Isle Boat House, he couldn’t decide what he loved most. “I love it … I love all of it.”
Erik Groeneveld, 11, of Bloomfield Hills, left, takes a dip as one of his triplet brothers, Arie Groeneveld, 11, floats in the Detroit River after a hot day of sailing with the Challenge the Wind program on Thursday, July 20, 2023, from the banks of the Belle Isle Boat House.
A rainbow windsock indicates wind direction as Detroit Community Sailing Center members teach young students from 10-17 years old how to sail as part of their Challenge the Wind program on Monday, July 24, 2023, from the banks of the Belle Isle Boat House. Challenge the Wind was started by the Detroit Community Sailing Center, which teaches youths ages 10-17 how to sail. The emphasis is on water safety and STEM to help increase access to Detroit's waterways for youths who would otherwise not get the opportunity.
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