How Did Your Passion For Sailing Begin?

Dec 25, 2000
5,704
Hunter Passage 42 Shelter Bay, WA
Chapter One:

I grew up here; http://mapcarta.com/23977808/Map

Mine began around five. Grandma's farm was on the bend in the Willapa River, just below tide water. Every winter I would hope for a big rain that would cause the Willapa to overflow its banks and fill a small depression in her hay field.

We made a raft out of four sections of a utilty pole, maybe six feet long. This raft would carry my brother, sister and cousins and I to distant places in our imagination, even though the small pond when full was maybe twenty feet wide, one hundred feet long, by three feet deep. Hours would pass each day floating around on this little vestige of ideas until the water would slowly disappear, perhaps returning another soggy day.

As I grew older, maybe twelve I came upon an abandoned skiff on the river bank, which I turned it into a sail boat. My grandma let me have an old canvas sail attached to a wooden spar and boom up in the rafters of her wood shed that was left over from my uncle's small boating days. This I attached to the skiff and sailed the Willapa. That little skiff took my buddy and I all the way down river to Raymond and back with much help from the tide currents.

It seemed my thirteen year old mind was always looking for some new adventure and never one to pass up an opportunity, when my uncle Bob came into possession of a working drag saw engine. http://www.oldengine.org/members/levans/dragsaws/drag saw-29ab.jpg I asked him if I could use it to make a paddle wheel boat. He said okay as long as I returned it.

We floated the small log raft down river to my buddy's place also on the Willapa where he had a small dock. There we installed this old drag saw engine on the raft, hooked it up to an empty cable spool with paddles and motored up and down the river.

For the life of me, to this day, I fail to recall whatever happened to the raft, sail boat and paddle wheeler. But we did have fun in our adventures.
 
Jul 26, 2016
94
American Sail 18 MDR
At 6 I built a sailing dink from Pop Mech plans and took it across the street, to the beach, to try it out.
 
Dec 28, 2010
462
Catalina 380 san pedro
I was introduced to sailing in the boy scouts at summer camp. They had a bunch of Alcort Sailfish we could attempt to sail. Not one of the instructors had any sailing experience but later on I took some sailing lessons as a teenager ( at my own expense) and now I be da sailin cap'n yah
 
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May 1, 2011
4,191
Pearson 37 Lusby MD
I was introduced to sailing at the Naval Academy. Part of the indoctrination included (at the time) a couple of familiarization sails on the Luders' Yawls. That's what got me really interested in the big boats. Prior to retiring from the Navy, I spent about five weeks on Nicholson 55' cutters in UK over a couple of tours on exchange with the Royal Navy. Finally bought my own boat after spending ten years without setting foot on any boat - don't know how I survived!
 
Sep 30, 2013
3,538
1988 Catalina 22 North Florida
At the age of one, I became skipper of my own Alacrity 19. That's me, the handsome bald one on the right. :)



The crazy truth is ... my parents, my sister (on the left) and I all cruised the Bahamas on that boat for over a year. A family of four, living on 18.5' LOA. There were no electronics in those days (just an RDF), and the boat had no motor.
 
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Dec 1, 1999
2,391
Hunter 28.5 Chesapeake Bay
In 1970, I was just back from 3 yrs in Vietnam. I saw an ad in the local paper offering to teach me how to sail for $200 and thought I'd give it a try. Three weeks and 4 lessons later, I bought a used Snipe one-design. Love at first sight. Learned how to sail and race at the same time. Many years and many boats later, it's still a love affair.
 
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Oct 22, 2014
20,995
CAL 35 Cruiser #21 moored EVERETT WA
At about the age of 7, my grandmothers friend took me out for an afternoon in San Diego harbor aboard his Thunderbird. He had built the boat and was proud to introduce me to the idea of sailing. I took to it like a duck to water. We spent about 6 weeks that summer with my Grandmother. Though her friend lived across town, Coronado, I found that if I offered to do odd jobs for him and his wife he would take me sailing each week. I cleaned up a lot of yard debris, swept his driveway etc. I was addicted.
We moved from California and it was 8 years before I was back near water and boats. Once I learned there was a sailing club on the base where we were stationed it was no time before I was involved in learning, working and training others to sail. I sailed, raced, and worked on the dinghys to 2 of the Naval Academy surplus Luders' Yawls in Coronado. Then we moved to the east coast and my summer job was helping at Special Services boat basin. What fun. Sailing the Chesapeake, teaching sailing, eating crabs or flounder for lunch (the CPO in charge was an unbelievable cook - all I had to do was catch lunch) and I got a few bucks. Then life intervened and my time for sailing activities went on the back burner.
Finally I get out west and we get a 15ft Montgomery. 10 years of playful fun. But a bigger boat was always in my mind. Last year I made it a fact.
I never would have imagined that an afternoon of sailing would have so influenced my life.
 
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Dec 25, 2000
5,704
Hunter Passage 42 Shelter Bay, WA
Wow! Such great experiences. Amazing how hard the sailing bug bites...for life.
 
Dec 25, 2000
5,704
Hunter Passage 42 Shelter Bay, WA
Though her friend lived across town, Coronado,
Hmm. My last year of four in the navy (1964-65), based out of Miramar, I was assigned to a crew doing J79 engine modifications (Phantom F4H) at the Coronado naval facility. Bought a 1960 Buick LaSabre and commuted to work every day, then on a ferry.
 
Jul 13, 2010
1,097
Precision 23 Perry Hall,Baltimore County
In 2009, my mid fifties, the admiral decided her wayward grandson (18) needed to come live with us when her daughter washed her hands of him. He put us through about 18 months of turmoil trying to straighten him out, about 12 months in,I realized I needed a distraction to get my mind off of him a little, made noises something like " I' m gonna get either a motorcycle or a boat"! She said " I 'm not going to ride with you". Hmmm... Sailing lessons had been on our bucket list for years, signed us up for lessons at local community college. 2 back to back weekends on knee buster dingies, got hooked.
 
Feb 14, 2014
7,400
Hunter 430 Waveland, MS
At 14, my parents and I went to Parents week, for my brother's plebe year at the US Naval Academy.
He, dressed in his blue rimmed "Gob Hat", took us all sailing on the Severn River, on training boat. I was proud and envious. These are like the boats that I first sailed on.
1280px-Usnavalacademybridge.JPG

An actual picture of the Severn River sailing. It was a perfect day for sailing into my life.
Jim....
 
Oct 22, 2014
20,995
CAL 35 Cruiser #21 moored EVERETT WA
Know the Ferry of which you speak. Bitter sweet day when they built the bridge.
 
Oct 1, 2015
63
Clark San Juan 30 Blaine WA
I was first brought to sailing when my best friends dad took me out when I was about 12 in the very first TUNDERBIRD sail boat. Actually hull number was 1 it is now in a museum in Tacoma we sail all over with his dad teaching us how to sail.i must have spent every summer at there home. Until I left school and got my college education then I sailed with friend who all had boats I never had the time to. But one day I saw a San Juan 30 fell in love with it and Bought it. That was some time ago and I have loved it ever since. Sailing is a great relaxing sport that I will never give up. I just keep wanting bigger ones but then find myself So happy when I sail mine I just keep on Sailing.
 
Sep 2, 2011
1,041
Hunter 27 Cherubini Alum Creek State Park
My then wife's girlfriend took us out on her husband' Catalina 25 back in the early 80's. At one point he said, "Here, take the tiller" and I instinctively got her into the slot on a reach and kept it there all the way across the small Indiana lake. At that moment, I was hooked.

It took me 30 more years to become financially able to buy my first boat. I'm on my 4th and umm...last one now.
 
Mar 26, 2011
3,402
Corsair F-24 MK I Deale, MD
Hobie 16 Nationals sailed off the Beach at Cape May New Jersey ~ 1985. I'd been interested before that, but that triggered A purchase within weeks.
 

RussC

.
Sep 11, 2015
1,578
Merit 22- Oregon lakes
I see many have been introduced to sailing by parents. I was actually introduced by my son. I used to visit my kids in Melbourne Fla for a week or so during the Christmas holidays, back in the mid 80s. they lived with their mom right across the highway from the Indian river. We'd grab a couple of their Snark sailboats and hustle across the street with them to go sailing, and fishing off the nearby islands. The desire was planted back then, but life and other intrusions kept me from an actual purchase of my own for another 25 years, until I happened on a Craigslist ad for a Snark just a few miles from my house (in Oregon). Like many others, the 11' Snark was replaced several times with ever increasing size craft, leading to the current two boats, and a lasting relationship. My wife also enjoys sailing, and has learned along with me. Often it's her suggestion to go sailing when a good day comes along. This past summer we spent 28 days on the water, with many multi day adventures, and already have plans for extended trips again next season.
 

tjar

.
Aug 8, 2011
166
Hunter Legend 35.5 Tacoma, WA
While I was in the Navy in the 80's, I rented a house on Whidbey Island that overlooked Puget Sound. It was common for sailboats to drop anchor off Pollnel Pt. for the weekend. I could see them from my house, hear their music, and watch as they went clamming on the spit. That's when I decided that I wanted to learn to sail.
When I was transferred to San Diego, I lived on Coronado Island and spent almost every Saturday for three years taking lessons from the Navy Sailing Club. We started in old Lido boats and worked up to the Catalina 27. I continued to sail their boats for three more years, never realizing that the outboard engines on the stern even worked. We did everything under sail in those boats, launching, docking, and anchoring.
After moving back to Washington, I was only able to sail occasionally on OPB's, but we always went to the Boats Afloat Show to dream about buying our own boat. We eventually bought a MacGregor 26D because it could sit in the driveway with zero moorage fees. Last year, we upgraded to the Hunter 35.5 Legend and sailed past Pollnel Pt. looking for my old house.
 
Dec 25, 2000
5,704
Hunter Passage 42 Shelter Bay, WA
Chapter Two.

Graduating from Willapa Valley High School in 1961, I was ready for a change. Dad was in the Navy, my older brother in the Marines. My two buddies decided to enlist in the Navy so I joined them. After boot camp in San Diego went to Aviation Training School in Millington, Tennessee, then was assigned to the training squadron VF-121 in San Diego working on the brand new Phantom F4H. After a short stint in training I received a permanent assignment to VF-114, the Aardvarks Phantom Squadron.

The 82,000 ton Kitty Hawk had just been commissioned and assigned to the Pacific Fleet for duty. Did two cruises on the carrier, the first six month cruise as a Plan Captain on the flight deck, the second nine month cruise as a jet mechanic. It was supposed to be a six month cruise but was extended three months in 1963 due to the escalating Vietnam conflict. Interesting experience observing night time artillery from 26 miles off the coast of Vietnam, a few planes not returning and some returning with flack damage. Our main purpose was to eliminate SAM missile launchers and also to provide ground support.

At 82,000 tons and a flight deck 90 feet of the water, she was certainly far from being a small sailboat on the ocean, but I did get an appreciation for how a sea state can become dreadfully powerful. Each cruise included exposure to typhoons. Even as large and as strong as she was, waves large enough to break over the flight deck, would toss her around like a cork, mangle her aft super structure and cause her to shudder from their sheer force. Amazing! I could only imagine what it was like on our cruiser and destroyer escorts nearby, let alone some small sailboat caught in the middle.
 
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Dec 25, 2000
5,704
Hunter Passage 42 Shelter Bay, WA
It was common for sailboats to drop anchor off Pollnel Pt. for the weekend.
Been by Pollnel Point many times, but never anchored in there. Tempted, but usually we were on our way to Coupeville.