Keeping a 170 in a slip?

[Shorefun]

So I am rapidly approaching the end of summer. I have made it out a total of 3 times this year trailer sailing. I have been a bit weather cautious due to my inexperience. My limits are over 10 knots of wind predicted. Throw in other things happening and time flew by. One of my issues is how long it takes to get the boat out of the garage to the bay and in the water. Over 1:45 or so.

So I plan on researching putting my 170 in the water next summer. My neighbor tells me the dock he is out has an O'Day Daysailer in a slip. I think it is the one I keep seeing out on the water. So I am making the assumption a regular slip with the right tie off and the 170 will be fine for the summer. I have a cover the fits when the mast is up and the sail cover.

Any thoughts on this plan? Any problems I should consider?

 

[Jshock33]

I don't have any experience with that particular boat but if you plan on sailing in the same area a slip makes a lot of sense. I tried trail sailing with my first boat, found I rarely got out especially when I was first starting out and looking for similar weather as you are. It's an extra cost but it will be well worth it when you find yourself using the boat more often. The only problem is going from a garage boat to one that sits in the elements all season will be spending more time washing and waxing.

 

[jssailem]

Shore Fun... Trailer sailing take discipline to sail a lot, especially if your going out to the same place all of the time for a day sail and have limited time to sail period. Putting your boat in a slip means you will have an investment in your activity (like renting a storage space for an RV.) and since you are paying monthly you’ll want to get good use. Because it is in the water and nearly ready to go when you arrive each time YOu are likely to use the boat more often. Plus the Marina experience is a social one. You are more likely to get itno beer can races and day cruises with other “boat People”. The experience can be a wholesome one.

As JShock33 stated this comes at the expense of greater maintenance costs. Exposed to the elements all of the time means you will have days when you’ll skip sailing to do cleaning. Even that can be a good thing.

If on the other hand you are a guy that wants to put road miles on his boat and sail it in every bay and lake on the Eastern seaboard, then a slip would be an anchor to such a plan.

The beauty is it is your boat and you get the freedom to decide. If sailing more often was attached to a slip, I’d get the slip.

 

[KeukaSailer]

Having on the trailer is great when you want to put into new places a lot...that being said It take me awhile to set up too .My 146 sits at the dock all summer at my place in the fingerlakes and I will say I use it ALOT more. Nice just to go sailing whenever I want to without all the rigging....also nice just to tie up at the end of the day, and walk away. Also you shouldn't have any issues, leaving it. Do leave your outboard down though.

 

[Ward H]

Our first boat was a Newport 17. I quickly learned that I hated trailering and launching a sailboat. (See my post in the Embarrassing Moment thread)
In early August of that first year we put it in a slip on the Barnegat Bay. With a main sail cover and jib bag so we didn't have to remove the sails, we could be out of the slip within 10 minutes after arriving at the marina. After not sailing for 6 weeks I started sailing once or twice a week, sometimes more.
We drove 60 miles to get to the bay. If the winds weren't conducive to sailing we didn't have to drag the boat around behind us while finding other things to do.

Luckily, I didn't have to trailer it again. We sold it while it was still in the slip at the end of the season and moved up to bigger boat.

 

[Shorefun]

Think I am going to join a local yacht club and keep the boat on the dry with a lift to put in the water. My application is in and waiting for the board of directors. Join now and we get the rest of the year and next year for this years cost.

So looking at costs for a slip and costs for the Yacht club which has a youth program and access to people who know how to sail. Well I think there is value in the yacht club where they have a program to teach the kids 3 days a week. I will be able to keep my boat on the dry with the mast up ready to go and likely to get someone to go out with me so I can learn. It is a low key club that is more about sailing then dressing right. They have a nice back bay area for sailing so the kids do not have to go far and you can watch them from the deck of the clubhouse.

 

[Ward H]

Think I am going to join a local yacht club and keep the boat on the dry with a lift to put in the water. My application is in and waiting for the board of directors. Join now and we get the rest of the year and next year for this years cost.

That sounds like a good plan.

 

[shemandr]

I kept my Bandit 15 in a slip 2 hours from where I lived for a few years. That boat has "Bailers" or as we know them "Holes in the bottom of the boat." They leaked no matter what I did. So, it would sink now and then. Or if there was a lot of rain. I got pretty good at re-floating it and bailing it. I was in my 20's and didn't mind the work. Finally I glassed them closed. I had a lot of fun with that boat despite the challenges.

 

[BobbyFunn]

I kept my Bandit 15 in a slip 2 hours from where I lived for a few years. That boat has "Bailers" or as we know them "Holes in the bottom of the boat." They leaked no matter what I did. So, it would sink now and then. Or if there was a lot of rain. I got pretty good at re-floating it and bailing it. I was in my 20's and didn't mind the work. Finally I glassed them closed. I had a lot of fun with that boat despite the challenges.

Despite my complaints of the 170, the entire deck is above water and the transom is completely open. Ive had 6 inches of water from a huge following wake run up to the cuddy cabin, then flush right back out.

@Shorefun, you wont regret it unless you hardly get out.

If left in water, your main problem will be water seeping into the centerboard. With a freeze cycle this could be bad when you haul out. Water seeps in at the centerboard retaining screw and then permeates the foam and FRP lamination.

 

[Captain Larry-DH]

@Shorefun you will need to use the halyards as guy lines to the dock on each side, IMHO. I had a Hunter 170 that I tried keeping on a mooring and it blew over 3 times in thunderstorms before I gave up on it.

 

[KeukaSailer]

@Shorefun you will need to use the halyards as guy lines to the dock on each side, IMHO. I had a Hunter 170 that I tried keeping on a mooring and it blew over 3 times in thunderstorms before I gave up on it.

Were you tying up to a mooring ball? I could definitely see that could happen, if your only attached to the bow eye. Frankly the way I tie my 146 to the dock is only two point bow/stern. The difference is I shorten the bow line and lengthen the stern. This kicks the stern away from the dock and holds the boat to only 1 point of contact with the dock( the beamiest part, mid ship). Only have to use one large fender that way, protects most of the boat from the dock. Never had a problem even with some pretty serious blows.