It is said in some quarters that wise men came from the east, thus it can be assumed they were travelling west. Among the latest among those making such a trek is Rajae Woods, one-time top youth sailor turned instructor, who has departed the exalted climes of the Royal Bermuda Yacht Club for the more humble confines of West End Sailboat Club.

Indeed RBYC’s loss is a terrific gain for the West End club, as they achieved a veritable coup in snagging Bermuda’s only certified, badge-toting Senior Sailing Instructor, to take over their Youth Sailing Programme, with his initial composition a youth sailing camp running this summer.

Why the West End? Why now? According to Woods it was a matter of growth, he felt stunted as just another “cog in the wheel” to quote former Premier Paula Cox.

“It was time for me to go, I had a lot of ideas that I needed to explore,” Woods said. “It’s a big step I’m taking which involves risk, but I had to take it now or risk getting stuck and wondering ‘What if?’ And I didn’t want that.

“I’ve done things with WESC before, so I’m familiar with the club, having dealt with Gladwin [Lambert] and other older members.”

For Woods, Lambert and the boat club that risk now appears to be bearing fruit, with potential for a great harvest, one that the club could sure use after enduring several recent hardships and publicity in the wrong areas.

“We’ve always had a youth programme but this is the first time that we’ve had someone who is qualified to teach,” said Lambert, the club’s rear commodore, champion sailor and coach in his own right, having been a fixture among Comet Class for many years. “I don’t feel we could have got a better person to spearhead the programme and bring credibility and know-how as to giving instruction. We had Rajae here before for a year and were impressed then and now here we are, implementing a new programme with him.

Seven youngsters on any given day could be seen under the tutelage of Woods, who now has the expanse of the Great Sound just as the America’s Cup made the venue its oyster for the recent event.

“You can’t get much better a spot for sailing, it’s world-class, but we have to make serious upgrades to our physical plant in building a new dock and fortifying the [boat] slip,” Woods said. “We could also use a classroom for meetings and whiteboard work.”

Funding has been an issue regarding maintenance of infrastructure. Global Arts Entertainment and Animal Productions have stepped in, sponsoring a fundraising concert at Snorkel Park in Dockyard, the brainchild of local company owner and producer Andrew Phillips.

“This club has struggled a lot over the years to provide a safe haven and being from this community I believe it the responsibility of companies such as mine to help out and use what resources we have to assist,” Phillips said.

Likewise Woods has established a company as parent, going by the name Visionary Sailing Academy, offering instruction to youth and adults, singularly or in groups. with a goal of spreading the gospel of seafaring to the masses.