NWSA to Participate in the 2026 Annapolis Sailboat Show
The National Women’s Sailing Association (NWSA), a program of the Women’s Sailing Foundation (WSF), will participate in the 2026 Annapolis Sailboat Show, taking place October 15–18 at City Dock in Annapolis, Maryland. The show brings together sailors, educators, exhibitors and friends for four days of boats, equipment, education, demonstrations and opportunities to build lasting connections on and off the water. NWSA ticket discount code 26NWSA provides $5 off tickets.
NWSA Social Hour Sponsored by Aqua Map—with Door Prize
After a full day of exploring the show, NWSA friends and fellow women sailors will gather for the NWSA Social Hour sponsored by Aqua Map on Friday, October 16, from 5–6:30 p.m. at the Seminar Tent. This informal gathering offers an opportunity for longtime NWSA members, first-time attendees and anyone interested in connecting with women sailors to reconnect, meet new sailors and continue conversations sparked by the day’s activities, the organization notes. A Mustang Survival Life Jacket will be the door prize.
Kris Self Joins Women’s Panel at Cruisers University and Show Panel
On Friday, October 16, 12:30 – 2 p.m., Kris Self will join “Women’s Panel: Ask Expert Sailors Your Most Pressing Boating Questions” at Cruisers University at the Historic Inns of Annapolis. Led by Capt. Hilary Howes, this Beginning 101 session offers a welcoming, judgment-free setting for practical questions and discussion with experienced women sailors, the organization notes. The discussion will explore the realities of cruising and life on the water, including maintaining friendships, health and fitness, social connections and the questions that arise as women build confidence and experience aboard.
Self, an WSF board member, has been sailing since the early 1980s and currently owns a 41-foot Gulfstar. She is a passionate advocate for helping more women get on the water, the organization notes, particularly aspiring boat owners and women who sail with their spouses. She also founded the Women Who Sail Tampa Bay community. Self will also participate on the boat show “Ask Me Anything About Sailing” panel Saturday, October 17, 9 a.m. in the Seminar Tent, hosted by American Sailing.
Meet Capt. Debbie Huntsman at the Aqua Map Booth
Attendees can meet Capt. Debbie Huntsman at the Aqua Map area, Tent City 40, with the schedule to be announced. Huntsman brings extensive experience as a sailing educator, boating-safety advocate and leader in women’s sailing, the organization notes. She has been certified to instruct for US Sailing, the U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary, the National Safe Boating Council and several state boating programs. Her leadership has included serving as a Coast Guard Auxiliary flotilla commander and public-affairs officer. Through her work with the Lake Pontchartrain Women’s Sailing Association, Huntsman, helped bring the NWSA AdventureSail® and L.A.S.T. programs to the Gulf Coast.
She will share details about the upcoming US Sailing International Offshore Safety at Sea hosted by NWSA for women by women, on June 10, 2027, in Boston. Huntsman will co-moderate with the esteemed Capt. Sheila McCurdy, the organization notes, with Lili Colby of Mustang Survival also presenting to instruct sailors on an array of seamanship, prevention, and safety skills during the one-day hands-on course. As a certified US Sailing instructor, Safety at Sea moderator, and NASBLA course reviewer, Huntsman has spent over three decades teaching seamanship, prevention and safety across the U.S.
