Bought my boat 2 weeks ago for a song IMHO. Bought a motor and battery. Stepped the mast and launched it last friday. Saturday, I put the main sail on it and rigged it up. Couldn't get the swing keel to deploy. :cry: Today, I swam under it and manually deployed the keel. (my '85 23 has a swing keel with lines attached to it, you pull on one then cleat it). This, with the help of my wife allowed me to gain enough tension on the keel line to maintain it in the down position. Was so easy (I was thinking i'd have to haul it out and put in on a stand to figure out what was wrong) the wife and I had 40 mins to go sailing so we did. Aside from sailing class and 1 time on a friends boat I have zero experience. Except, I might add, for long hours reading books and posts on this and other sites.
It went so smooth and was soo much fun that it truly was hard to believe. Ok, it was a lake sail and the winds were 10-15. And, yes, we only went around the first bouy out of the marina, but it was my first time evar!
Just wanted to share my excitement and thank everyone for their many questions and others who where thoughtful enough to share their experiences and expertise! Sail on.
It went so smooth and was soo much fun that it truly was hard to believe. Ok, it was a lake sail and the winds were 10-15. And, yes, we only went around the first bouy out of the marina, but it was my first time evar!
Just wanted to share my excitement and thank everyone for their many questions and others who where thoughtful enough to share their experiences and expertise! Sail on.
