Philosophy
Our MCO sailing philosophy
Let MCO-Sailing lure you to the vastness of the ocean. We will bring you to the places of your dreams. Let yourself be carried away into another world. We will help you to become active yourself. Let us teach you, learn how to deal with the boat, the crew, the weather and yourself in every conceivable situation. You won’t regret it. Your horizon will broaden – literally and in your thinking.
Barbara and Clemens are behind MCO. They and their team live a dream!
Both are from Austria and are trained biologists. While Barbara used to spend a lot of time in laboratories as a doctoral scientist, Clemens has always spent as much time as possible outdoors in the unspoilt nature. Clemens handed on his passion for biology to hundreds of students as an instructor at teacher trainer colleges and universities.
Both share their absolute love of the sea, they are well-trained divers and it is important to both of them to share their fascination. This is what they do within the scope of their OceanLife sailing trips, which will be undertaken in a very comfortable expedition yacht – the POLARIS, a “GARCIA EXPLORATION 52” - from 2020 onwards.
As a professional trainer with 25 years of professional experience, Clemens has become familiar with didactics, teaching and learning methods early on. This expertise is used for the practical Yachtmaster training as well as for theory courses. All trainings at MCO are implemented on the highest level with regards to didactics.
Appreciation, empathy and respect for people and nature are guiding principles.
All team members of MCO are equally committed to these premises and pursue this philosophy as a trainer and as a person on the ship. Many thanks to them for that.
Our philosophy – our way of sailing
MCO-SailingAcademy’s understanding of sailing and seamanship goes far beyond pure “boating” and “vacation sailing”.
For us, sailing means:
In our eyes, sailing is the image of a process which, starting with the nautical decisions by the skipper, the subsequent consequences for the team leads past different obstacles, detours and shortcuts and may or may not lead you to your goal.
The journey can be arduous or relaxing along the way. A lot of things have to have been done correctly for you to be able to arrive in a safe harbour! If you haven’t, you need to question why. Was the headwind too strong, was the wrong route chosen, did the team not work well together or were some of the skippers decisions simply wrong?? What must be changed to get to the goal?
Off to new shores, cast off …
Would you like to leave old shores behind, experience something new, broaden your horizon? Yes?
Then sailing is perfect for you. With us you learn to bravely leave known shores and to reach new territories. But it is not about fleeing from the known, but about the zest for the new and the challenge. Sometimes you have to accept higher seas for that, but then the experience will be even more rewarding…
On high seas you have to continuously make decisions: Reefing the sails or not? Sailing higher or lower to the wind? Use of safety lines or not yet?
After completing a training at the MCO-SailingAcademy you are able to correctly assess even difficult situations and to make the right decisions. Again and again, your own decisions will challenge you physically and mentally. You then will have to bear the consequences of your choice.
The marine biologist and granddaughter of the famous Jacques Cousteau puts it this way:
“Everyone who leaves their comfort zone is an explorer!” – Let us discover together: foreign, distant worlds and the world in our hearts.
We are all in the same boat!
Hardly an image is as good a symbol for the required cooperation in life as the crew sitting in the same boat. All have their task, all have to make their contribution to the success. All are part of a whole; Only with a team do you have the chance to cross the ocean (of course apart from real solo sailors...)
The harbour!
The great circumnavigator Bobby Schenk once said in an interview that for probably most sailors it was about the sublime feeling of entering a safe harbour after an arduous or adventurous day of sailing, being satisfied with oneself and knowing that the boat and the crew are safe. It is precisely this feeling that will overcome you again and again in moments like this. And that will make you strong and your personality will mature.
