Melvyn has the perfect qualities of a fantastic teacher. His international experience coupled with RYA qualifications makes him a must try for everyone of any skill. He’s also a genuine and really nice man who cares about the future of our sailing club and its members.

It is amazing how in just 2 days one can go from being intimidated by the tides in Chichester Harbour, to feeling comfortable launching and returning ashore, as well as sailing against an ebbing spring tide! That is a big achievement, but a huge credit to your instruction.

Melvyn has finally given me the confidence not only to sail on my own but to have the self-assurance that I can enjoy sailing with the family.

Melvyn has proved an inspiration to our two boys. With relatively little sailing experience and with some degree of trepidation, they have developed confidence, ability and a real enjoyment of being on the water. Melvyn is an inspiring Instructor and coach with an obvious passion for sailing. He has the ability to adjust his approach, pace and style to the needs of his students.

Our two children were a little nervous about sailing. In three days they learnt how to rig the RS Feva, launch themselves and sail with confidence. Their biggest achievement was to sail together in a force 3 without Melvyn in the boat. It’s very difficult to put into words their real progress and achievements!

I just wanted to say a big thank you for all you have done with my sons Rupert and Henry in the RS Tera training! I can see their sailing has developed so quickly under your coaching. I have to say that I am an incredibly proud Mummy indeed!

In two days Melvyn had established significant confidence in each member of the family and had them working together as a team.  I will never forget these two days as they provided us with a pragmatic and wonderful basis from which to continue our learning.

Your patience with the kids was superb and they all want to come sailing again, which is the result I was looking for. The kids are still ‘discussing’ as to which bit of the boat the wind blows from on a broad reach and run!

Melvyn managed to take us all through a gentle journey over quite a short period of time. He patiently identified our individual needs and developed our sailing skills. This time last year we would not have expected our children to be taking part and enjoying Youth Training Week.

Melvyn brings years of experience of sailing a variety of small boats and he not only gave me a whole range of sailing tips and advice on the sailing and rigging of my boat but also, importantly, he gave me the confidence to put this advice into practice. I now approach my 20ft Bayraider Dayboat with more enthusiasm!

Thank you Melvyn! It really was a great day and I learnt a huge amount.  I now feel that I can go out on the boat and be confident in my ability to crew!

It was a fantastic couple of days and I was really pleased to get our Devon Dayboat ‘Pegasus’ sailing properly for the first time.  I felt it was extremely worthwhile and has certainly given me more confidence to take the boat to new sailing venues.

You’ll be pleased to know that my son Ronnie has taken your race training advice on board and racing today took a 1st and 2nd place as well as second overall in the August series.

Jack and Poppy loved their day with you. You took them from two accomplished single handed sailors to an effective pair racing together in the RS Feva, as their results the following weekend proved!

Melvyn taught me how to tack properly on both sides of the boat! I’m hopeful I can reel in the top Finns!

The race training from RYA race coach Melvyn Cooper is the best thing to come out of joining Bosham Sailing Club for me. I’m new to single handed racing and it has given me more confidence and a feeling of group support and a bit of fun.

I have found Melvyn to be fantastic and his enthusiasm is infectious and he is a marvelous coach. I hope we will manage to get him next year. As the season progressed it’s made a huge improvement to my sailing.

RYA race coach Melvyn Cooper whose fan club at Bosham Sailing Club is growing. He found some asymmetry in my tacking techniques which I had never noticed in all these years in the Finn. The man has something to offer everyone.

Melvyn has a superb technique for instructing and is highly skilled first class coach. He instills confidence in the pupil and has a carefully planned system that produces rapid results and the admiration of all our other Instructors and rescue boat teams.

Melvyn has a perfect personality for teaching, encouraging and funny too!  As well as dishing out loads of confidence he pin pointed various teaching points to each child individually, which helped refine their technique and performance.

Luke had a really amazing week.  It did so much for his confidence and he’s talked endlessly about how much he has learnt from you. He’s very keen now to get stuck into youth racing.

Melvyn brings his mature approach and a wealth of experience to make any course both fun and informative for all children involved, pushing them to explore their own abilities but maintaining their enthusiasm.

The time spent with Melvyn was the springboard I needed to start my sailing season.  I learnt lots of new skills including knowledge of Chichester Harbour which is crucial. Most importantly I gained loads of confidence to get out on the water with friends and family.

A day session with Melvyn helped me to regain confidence in sailing, and iron out bad habits. The advice and assistance in fine tuning the boat helped the performance. He is extremely patient, understanding and tolerant.

Daisy changed from being a nervous novice sailor to a confident and keen sailor. Her confidence and enthusiasm was due to the thorough instruction she received. You were great, so a big thank you for setting Daisy off on her sailing journey.