Man Who Learned to Sail From YouTube Surprised by How Wet Actual Sailing Is

Self-taught sailor Brian Jib expressed shock and dismay during his first open-water sailing experience Saturday when he discovered that actual sailing involves significantly more water contact than the YouTube tutorial series that constituted his entire maritime education had suggested. 'In the videos, the boats are always upright and the people are always dry,' Jib said, wringing salt water from his shirt on the dock after a two-hour sail that he described as 'an aquatic assault.' 'Nobody mentioned that when the boat leans over, the ocean comes in. Nobody mentioned that the ocean is cold.' Jib spent six months watching sailing tutorials before chartering a 25-foot sloop from a local sailing school, whose staff were unaware that his 'extensive sailing background' consisted entirely of 147 YouTube videos and a sailing simulator app. 'He said he was experienced,' said charter manager Diana Vang. 'I asked what boats he'd sailed. He named three boats from the videos. I didn't realize they were YouTubers' boats, not his boats.' Jib's maiden sail began promisingly in light winds, during which the boat remained mostly level and dry. Conditions deteriorated when the wind increased to 15 knots and the boat heeled to approximately 20 degrees, causing water to flow over the leeward rail. 'I was sitting on the low side,' Jib reported. 'Nobody told me not to sit on the low side. The low side is where the water is. I sat in the water. For an hour.' The experience also introduced Jib to concepts not covered in his tutorial series, including 'spray,' 'chop,' and 'the fact that waves exist in three dimensions and can come from any direction, including straight up.' 'The videos made sailing look like a lifestyle,' Jib said. 'Clean clothes, cocktails, dolphins. My experience was cold water in my shoes, a face full of salt, and the overwhelming suspicion that I am not a sailor.' He has enrolled in an actual sailing course and describes his YouTube education as 'necessary but drastically insufficient.'