FUN Event

Sailing

No experience is necessary to sail in these sailboats! If you want to actually learn to sail, a skilled sailor will (literally) show you the ropes. If you’d rather just enjoy the ride, that’s fine too. This event is appropriate for people of all skill levels and ages. Please sign the waiver linked below to speed up the check-in process on the day of the event. 

Education

The education portion will be divided into age-appropriate groups. Younger participants will engage in wind-related STEM activities exploring the power of wind, and older participants will learn about groundwater’s critical role in addressing global water, energy, and climate change issues from Associate Professor Peter K. Kang.

Adult Education Overview

About 99% of global unfrozen freshwater is stored in groundwater systems—water present beneath the Earth’s surface. In this talk, Peter will tell us how understanding groundwater systems is necessary to address global water, energy, and climate change issues. He will also share how his research group is attempting to address critical challenges in groundwater science.

Peter K. Kang’s Bio

Peter is a geoscientist whose research focuses on the physics of flow and reactive transport in porous and fractured media. He and his group combine a range of methods (lab and field experiments, numerical simulations, and machine learning) to investigate reactive transport in porous media with applications in geologic carbon sequestration, enhanced geothermal systems, and groundwater management and remediation (https://pkkang.com).

An Associate Professor and the Gibson Chair of Hydrogeology in the Department of Earth and Environmental Science at the University of Minnesota, he was a researcher at Korea Institute of Science and Technology (KIST) from 2015-2018, and was a postdoctoral associate in the Earth Resources Laboratory (ERL) at MIT before joining KIST. He received his MSc (2010) and PhD (2014) in Civil & Environmental Engineering at MIT, and obtained BSc of Civil, Urban & Geosystem engineering at Seoul National University in South Korea with summa cum laude in 2008.

Awards

• • • McKnight Presidential Fellow Award, University of Minnesota, 2023
    • Chin-Fu Tsang Coupled Processes Award, CouFrac 2022
    • National Science Foundation (NSF) Early CAREER Award, 2021
    • ACS PRF Doctoral New Investigator Award, 2021
    • The 3M Company, Non-Tenured Faculty Award, 2019

12:20 pm—Arrive ten minutes early.

12:30 pm—After a short introduction, we’ll divide into groups. Half of the group will go sailing, and the other half will engage in education. The kids will do STEM wind activities, and the adults will learn about carbon capture.

2:00-3:30 pm—Switch groups. The education group will have their turn at sailing, and the sailing group will engage in the education activities.

Here are a few details to help you prepare to visit the Minneapolis Sailing Center and ensure you have a fun day!

• For field trips, our events will be sailed on our Ensign Keelboats. These 23-ft. long sailboats have a weighted keel in the bottom of the boat that prevents the boat from tipping over and keeps the passengers safe. That being said, we require sailors to wear lifejackets while on the dock and on the boat for safety. We have life jackets available for use free of charge. Sailors may get a little water splashed on them, but they will not need to swim or get in the water.

• Students can expect to have a short introductory lecture on shore where they will learn the basics of sailing and review safety instructions. From there, the sailors will split into groups of 5-7 on each boat along with an instructor and sail for 1-2 hours.

• Please bring your own snack and water bottle. If you need food assistance, please indicate that on the sign-up form.

• Lessons meet at our Boathouse (3010 E Bde Maka Ska Parkway, Minneapolis, MN 55408). Please arrive 10 minutes before the scheduled start time to get settled in.

• Check weather conditions before leaving home and dress appropriately. We recommend quick-drying clothing with UV protective properties. Long-sleeve swim shirts, sunglasses, and wide-brimmed hats all help to prevent sunburn and long-term skin and eye damage. Feet and footwear will likely get wet. Shoes that can get wet or sandals with a back strap (Teva, Chaco, Keen) are all acceptable. Flip-flops are not allowed. Shoes must be worn at all times.

• Sailors can bring a small bag or backpack with them that can be stored in our boathouse during the sail. We encourage sailors to bring a full water bottle on the boat to stay hydrated.

• We require all participants to complete our Medical and Liability Waiver and bring them to the event or email ahead of time.

• Get ready to have fun! If you want to come back to learn more, just ask our staff how to stay involved!