who trailer sails?

Apr 26, 2010
434
catalina 22 lake tillery NC
I was thinking of just trailer sailing when my slip lease is up as opposed to a new lease. Mostly because it's been so busy that I don't get much time to use my boat. In the past 3 months I went sailing for 2 hours. So who else trailer sails? Thank you for any input. Alan
 
Jul 13, 2015
893
Catalina 22 #2552 2252 Kennewick, WA
100% trailer sailing and bought the boat for that very purpose. I have water in town but want and will travel to some fantastic lakes and even the Puget Sound and San Juan islands.

Huuuuge benefit is that she's stored dry-- I repeat DRY. A boat in the slip is slowly degrading -- so much less maintenance on the trailer.
 
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Sep 15, 2016
790
Catalina 22 Minnesota
Same here I love being a trailer sailor. Just get a slip for the weekend when I want or anchor out if it's an overnighter. The setup time is a lot longer but for me a day with the boat is usually a dedicated day anyway so it's not such a big deal. Also maintenance is a huge benefit as you can work on the boat in the drive way when you have time and not have to loose a day on the water.
 

T_Cat

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Aug 8, 2014
333
Catalina 22 1987 New Design. 14133 "LadyHawke" Modesto CA
100% trailer sailing and bought the boat for that very purpose. I have water in town but want and will travel to some fantastic lakes and even the Puget Sound and San Juan islands.

Huuuuge benefit is that she's stored dry-- I repeat DRY. A boat in the slip is slowly degrading -- so much less maintenance on the trailer.
See above. I'm 45 min from the lake. I only sail when I can overnight. Any maintenance gets taken care of between trips in the driveway...
 
Sep 30, 2013
3,538
1988 Catalina 22 North Florida
We live inland, so there's really no choice. But we absolutely love it. From where we we live, the entire gulf coast of Florida from Pensacola to the 10,000 Islands is within six hours drive. The St. Johns River is also only an hour away.

I wouldn't trade all that for a free slip in Clearwater.:)
 
May 24, 2004
7,129
CC 30 South Florida
There are two types of trailer sailing; one where you travel to different sailing venues and one where you just store the boat in a trailer to sail the same waters. The first is what the trailerable boats were built for and the 2nd it is just a misuse of the capabilities. If you think you don't get out much now you will find yourself making excuses not to have to launch the boat and rig the vessel. It gets old quick and the boat gets used less and less.
 
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Nov 8, 2010
11,386
Beneteau First 36.7 & 260 Minneapolis MN & Bayfield WI
There are two types of trailer sailing; one where you travel to different sailing venues and one where you just store the boat in a trailer to sail the same waters. The first is what the trailerable boats were built for and the 2nd it is just a misuse of the capabilities. If you think you don't get out much now you will find yourself making excuses not to have to launch the boat and rig the vessel. It gets old quick and the boat gets used less and less.
Benny kinda nailed here.

Switching from a slip to trailer sailing because you don't sail much is the start of a self-fulfilling prophesy . If you think you don't sail much now in the slip; wait until you have to drive your boat to the lake and rig it each time.
 
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JRacer

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Aug 9, 2011
1,331
Beneteau 310 Cheney KS (Wichita)
Benny kinda nailed here.

Switching from a slip to trailer sailing because you don't sail much is the start of a self-fulfilling prophesy . If you think you don't sail much now in the slip; wait until you have to drive your boat to the lake and rig it each time.
Very true!
 

walt

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Jun 1, 2007
3,511
Macgregor 26S Hobie TI Ridgway Colorado
My use of a trailerable sailboat has changed over the nearly ten years I have owned it and has easily adapted to going from working and family outings from a day to a week to now retired and a mix of slip rental and trailer trips. Each winter Im in a slip for four months and by the end of that four months, my use of the boat drops off. Still of course fun but by that time Im looking for something a little different to do. Trailerable boat goes to my side yard and I switch over to a different sailing craft (Hobie TI) and also take two or three trailer sailing trips to way different and often new places. By the time the next four month slip season comes around, I cant wait to get the trailerable sailboat back in the slip. It can be about keeping the experience fresh and it can also be about keeping the experience very economical. If you have some place free to stash the boat when its not being used such as a side yard at your house, no stress.. no cost just to let the boat sit while you recharge your interests by doing something else for while. And.. there is also something to be said about just having the boat in your side/ backyard for a while.

Trailerable sailboat is also a really fun retired person thing...
 
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jwing

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Jun 5, 2014
503
ODay Mariner Guntersville
I keep my boat stored on a trailer, at the ramp, with the mast up. I have kept her in a wet slip in the past. I've found that the time between arriving at the marina in my car and leaving the marina in my boat is about the same either way. Maintenance is easier with dry storage, and there is less maintenance to do. I don't have to worry what storms have done to my boat. People in with boats wet slips drive down to the lake after big storms to check on their boats. The money I save by using dry storage pays for boat improvements like a boom tent (reduces maintenance even more), new sails, etc. If I'll be sailing two consecutive days, I simply tie off to the transient dock overnight.

On the other hand, if I had to set-up and take down the rig every time I wanted to sail, I would never use the boat. I am in awe of those who do that.
 
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Sep 25, 2016
88
Oday 22 Lake Arthur
if I had to set-up and take down the rig every time I wanted to sail, I would never use the boat. I am in awe of those who do that.
How YOU doin?

I trailer my O'Day 22. Setup and take-down, solo and without rushing, is about an hour each from road to sailing and back again.

Here she is on trailer, ready to drop mast:

149513469655784.jpg
 
Sep 30, 2013
3,538
1988 Catalina 22 North Florida
There are two types of trailer sailing; one where you travel to different sailing venues and one where you just store the boat in a trailer to sail the same waters. The first is what the trailerable boats were built for and the 2nd it is just a misuse of the capabilities. If you think you don't get out much now you will find yourself making excuses not to have to launch the boat and rig the vessel. It gets old quick and the boat gets used less and less.
Very true. For the first year we owned a C22, we would load up and go day sailing every single day if we got the opportunity. People said this would wear off, and it did. Two hours round trip to the nearest launch(es), an combined hour and a half setup/takedown/launch/retrieve, plus packing/unpacking the boat at home ... all for just four or five hours sailing? It got old after a while.

Nowadays, we almost never day sail unless we're desperate, or the conditions are just spectacular. It needs to be at least an over nighter to make all the logistics worthwhile.
 
May 24, 2004
7,129
CC 30 South Florida
One last thought on slips vs dry storage. I guess both options allow fairly well for keeping a boat at one location but lets not forget about the overall boating experience. We have probably all taken a drive to the marina just to sit on the boat, crack a beer open and talk to a neighbor. It is just not the same than sitting in a boat on its trailer in the middle of a storage parking lot. Maybe one had no intentions to go out but on the spur of the moment one may get the urge to go for an evening sail. I'll admit this might be dependent on what kind of marina the boat is in. Hard to get excited about a slip in a marina that has no amenities nor social life. I once had a boat that I paid 3 times its purchase price in slip fees over a number of years in order to enjoy the complete boating experience.
 
Jul 25, 2016
197
Catalina 22 Sacramento
I trailer sail. The set up is the downer part, of course. Saving some money doesn't suck though.... I am still working on my boat (it may never end) so it is convenient to have it in the driveway for now. However, next year I plan to dry stow it at the local lake I seem to spend most of my time at during the week. The lake is only about 20-30 minutes away so I can easily pick up the boat to go somewhere new or different on the weekends. However, having the mast up and just slipping her in the water for an evening sail sounds wonderful. Even better would be a wet slip, but there is a three year wait for those slips.
 
Dec 5, 2011
550
Catalina Catalina 22 13632 Phenix City
I trailer sail exclusively and usually alone. Reading several years worth of forum posts, hanging out on YouTube and joining the Catalina 22 association have given me lots of tips and tricks to make rigging, launching and retrieving as easy as possible. If you have some help that knows what they're doing with you, it goes even faster. With the way I work and my schedule, having her in a slip wouldn't help me go anymore than I already do. Sadly, I have to schedule my days on the water to coincide with my days off from work and just go, regardless of conditions. I do manage to get her away for a couple of days every year to my favorite lake for some camping and those are some of the days I live for.
 
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Ward H

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Nov 7, 2011
3,645
Catalina 30 Mk II Barnegat, NJ
I trailer sailed the first 4 months of my first year of sailing. 17' Newport so not that hard to set up but I hated it. I hated towing the boat and I hated the time spent setting up and stowing away. My free time was to valuable to spend 3 hours doing something I hated for 3 to 4 hours of enjoyment. If I hadn't gotten a slip I would have quit sailing.
I sailed more that year in the 2 months I had it in a slip than I had all four previous months. Was out sailing 10 minutes after arriving at the slip. And we enjoy the marina life.
But, the reason we bought that boat was to see if we liked sailing and would it be a good retirement activity. It was and it will be in 6 more days.
 
Feb 26, 2004
22,760
Catalina 34 224 Maple Bay, BC, Canada
and just go, regardless of conditions.
Actually that's one of the better ways to learn how to sail. A friend and I sailed together for six years EVERY FRIDAY, come hell or high water, and sometimes it was! :yikes:

When we lived in SF, we had our C22 (1983-87) we did both each year: six summer months in the water at a lake; six winter months dry sailed mast up,launch ramp a block away, would leave the boat in the water overnight for two days of sailing if we didn't anchor out. One summer we trailered to The California Delta and sailed for a week.

Being in the water at the lake was superior although the four hour trailer trip up and back was never fun.

We bought a fixed keel C25, kept her for 13 years, then our C34 for the past 19 years. Sailed the C34 up here to Canada summer of 2016. We'd leave the C25 at a Delta marina for the summer (paid two slips there and at home but it was worth it).

I enjoyed sailing our bigger boats up to and back from The California Delta much more than trailering.

Just my experiences. YMMV. :)
 
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