Join our leadership program for female members! As part of our commitment to equity, HRCS offers FairLead, a program for women in the membership. The program promotes women’s engagement, learning, and advancement through formal mentoring relationships, technical workshops, and networking events by women for women.
Why Join FairLead?
FairLead provides a safe space for women at HRCS to gain practical knowledge, build confidence, learn new skills, take on leadership roles, and connect with each other.
Program Goals:
- Increase engagement and retention
- Support and highlight skill development
- Provide visible role models and increase networking opportunities
- Enhance leadership opportunities and develop leadership capacity
How FairLead Works
- Join as a member. FairLead is open to all members who identify as female or non-binary
- Reach out to Volunteer and Member Training Manager Denise Meagher (dmeagher@hudsonsailing.org) to get involved
- Crew level members can apply to be paired with skippers to work on skills and pursue goals
- All FairLead participants have access to dedicated skill-building workshops and social events
What Does FairLead Mean?
A fairlead on a boat is designed to guide a line and allow it to run freely without impediment; the goal of this mentorship program is to provide the support and guidance women need to overcome the friction and impediments that often deter their smooth progress in the sport of sailing.
“I was paired with a mentor and that 1:1 relationship was invaluable. I was pushed to study and given goals that were greater than what I had originally set for myself.”
-- FairLead Crew Member
“Being able to sail and interact with strong women skippers, women who are confident and talk about issues freely and share their experience. All this was key for me to check out as a skipper this year.”
-- FairLead Skipper Member
Ready to Join FairLead?
If you are an HRCS Member interested in joining FairLead, please contact Volunteer and Member Training Manager Denise Meagher at dmeagher@hudsonsailing.org.
For more information on HRCS Membership, please attend a free online orientation. Want to learn to sail with women, but not ready for membership? Check out our Women’s Basic Keelboat Course.