Welcome, Connie!
Thanks for this post - it should be obvious to you by now that we're interested in hearing from women and crews, so thanks for obliging us ;->
I'm a newcomer to the sport too, I just began this summer, and most of my posts have been questions so far. I'm pretty sure that I'm not getting all the terminology right, but I just go ahead and post my questions anyway. So far, the experts have been very gracious and respectful - and helpful.
So welcome to the forum, and please keep posting!
Jonathan