So, I bought my 1973 Widgeon on Thursday morning, hauled it home, worked a few hours and then rigged it in the driveway that evening. Was a little confused about the some of the rigging on the boom and the back end of the boat, but called it good. Friday afternoon I headed to the reservoir and my disaster of a first "sail" began.
Took what seemed like forever to rig it up again in the parking lot. One of the stays didn't want to reach to connect. I think the boat was sitting a little crooked. Not sure what else would have caused it as I didn't have any problem with that the night before. Rigged up something that I thought might work on the boom and around the transom and headed for the ramp.
I hadn't practiced backing the trailer (something I'd never done before), so I spent an eternity on the boat ramp even with a more helpful than she should have been park ranger. Got the boat in the water finally and beached it beside the dock to go park the truck and trailer. Came back to a boat with some water in it, but wasn't overly concerned. Hopped in and the wind was working against me just pushing me right into the beach and a dock that separated the boat ramp from the swimming area. Couldn't get it out of there to save my life since I don't have any kind of motor on the boat. Did have a paddle, but it wasn't enough to get the job done. The boom didn't want to stay up and in position either.
Finally decided I wasn't ready for this. Beached the boat again (which now had more water in it than I was comfortable with), and headed for the truck. Backing the small, empty trailer was even more difficult that backing the boat. A new ranger was working the ramp this time and he had to pick up and reposition my trailer three times as I made my way down the ramp. Got the boat to the trailer and I wasn't in the water far enough, so was struggling to get the boat back on. Another guy on the ramp came over to help, held the boat while I backed the trailer more and then made sure I had it hooked on before going back to his own boat.
I dragged it back to the parking lot to start de-rigging. Realized then that I had left out one of two plugs on the boat, which explained the water. A guy strapping down his kayak came over to say that he bet my little sailboat would be a lot of fun. I admitted that it wasn't much fun that day, but he was very encouraging and even mentioned he'd love to tag along sometime if he ever got the chance.
I was busy all day Saturday, so I went back out this morning, hooked up the boat and trailer and headed for a big empty parking lot where I could practice backing between two plastic containers of gear that's usually in the back of the truck. Felt like I got a handle on backing (at least with the boat on the trailer), so went to drop it back in my paid storage spot only to find that someone had parked their truck and empty trailer there since the regular lot was full. The staff guided me to an empty spot and I left the boat there for the time being. Went back out tonight after most people had gone home for the day and moved the boat back to its rightful spot.
I had almost two hours before I had to be out of the park, so I decide to rig it up again. Had found a few more pictures and diagrams (thanks to this forum) that provided a clear look at my trouble spots. Surprisingly, it all just came together. And in no time I had what appeared to me anyway to be a correctly rigged boat. The sun was setting in the background and a gentle breeze was blowing, so I climbed in and just sat there and imagined that my boat was in the water instead of a dirt parking lot.
I must have looked insane to the few people who were still exiting the park at that point. But I took 10 minutes or so to just sit there in the boat and enjoy a small success. I still haven't really sailed her yet, but I think I took a big step forward today.
Took what seemed like forever to rig it up again in the parking lot. One of the stays didn't want to reach to connect. I think the boat was sitting a little crooked. Not sure what else would have caused it as I didn't have any problem with that the night before. Rigged up something that I thought might work on the boom and around the transom and headed for the ramp.
I hadn't practiced backing the trailer (something I'd never done before), so I spent an eternity on the boat ramp even with a more helpful than she should have been park ranger. Got the boat in the water finally and beached it beside the dock to go park the truck and trailer. Came back to a boat with some water in it, but wasn't overly concerned. Hopped in and the wind was working against me just pushing me right into the beach and a dock that separated the boat ramp from the swimming area. Couldn't get it out of there to save my life since I don't have any kind of motor on the boat. Did have a paddle, but it wasn't enough to get the job done. The boom didn't want to stay up and in position either.
Finally decided I wasn't ready for this. Beached the boat again (which now had more water in it than I was comfortable with), and headed for the truck. Backing the small, empty trailer was even more difficult that backing the boat. A new ranger was working the ramp this time and he had to pick up and reposition my trailer three times as I made my way down the ramp. Got the boat to the trailer and I wasn't in the water far enough, so was struggling to get the boat back on. Another guy on the ramp came over to help, held the boat while I backed the trailer more and then made sure I had it hooked on before going back to his own boat.
I dragged it back to the parking lot to start de-rigging. Realized then that I had left out one of two plugs on the boat, which explained the water. A guy strapping down his kayak came over to say that he bet my little sailboat would be a lot of fun. I admitted that it wasn't much fun that day, but he was very encouraging and even mentioned he'd love to tag along sometime if he ever got the chance.
I was busy all day Saturday, so I went back out this morning, hooked up the boat and trailer and headed for a big empty parking lot where I could practice backing between two plastic containers of gear that's usually in the back of the truck. Felt like I got a handle on backing (at least with the boat on the trailer), so went to drop it back in my paid storage spot only to find that someone had parked their truck and empty trailer there since the regular lot was full. The staff guided me to an empty spot and I left the boat there for the time being. Went back out tonight after most people had gone home for the day and moved the boat back to its rightful spot.
I had almost two hours before I had to be out of the park, so I decide to rig it up again. Had found a few more pictures and diagrams (thanks to this forum) that provided a clear look at my trouble spots. Surprisingly, it all just came together. And in no time I had what appeared to me anyway to be a correctly rigged boat. The sun was setting in the background and a gentle breeze was blowing, so I climbed in and just sat there and imagined that my boat was in the water instead of a dirt parking lot.
I must have looked insane to the few people who were still exiting the park at that point. But I took 10 minutes or so to just sit there in the boat and enjoy a small success. I still haven't really sailed her yet, but I think I took a big step forward today.
Attachments
-
358.9 KB Views: 345