Why are we running against the tide?

I was mortified to read in YM (Jun 17) that the RYA will not differentiate tidal and nontidal Day Skipper qualifications from 2017. In my Tidal Day Skipper, four days ashore provided a theoretical understanding but the real lesson was five days on the Solent. A 2.5-knot tidal stream looks nothing on paper but seeing it on a course to steer really cemented my respect for tide and its effect, especially through Hurst Narrows on a night sail!

To dilute this distinction between tidal and non-tidal training makes a mockery of the training system. We all may as well forget the RYA training all together, read about tides in a book and sail in UK waters and see what carnage ensues.

Just because I have read and understood a book on quantum physics, it doesn’t mean I can now attempt nuclear fusion.