permission to come aboard

kenn · Oct 25, 2009

Permission granted. Especially if you brought wine or beer.

Best advice I can give to someone new to the sport is to take sailing lessons, join a sailing club etc so that you can start gaining experience, meeting other sailors, and, most important, get an idea of what sort of sailing you want to do. This will guide your choice of boat.

(Maybe you already know this, but you haven't told us...)

The good news is that there's lots of choice, and some great prices, especially if you are willing to start with a used boat.

Good luck!

Stu Jackson · Oct 25, 2009

The smaller the boat to start, the quicker the three-foot-itis.

16 feet? Learn on other boats.

The Catalina 22 or MacGregor 22 are great first boats.

Learn to sail first on different boats, then decide what to buy as your first boat.

Joe11688 · Oct 26, 2009

Jimmy B said:
Hello folks,
I am looking to start sailing. I have always dreamed of entering into the sport and now have the time and the means to start. I have absolutely no experience but have all the desire to learn and begin to join the ranks.

My immediate desire is to purchase a boat for med. to larger lakes and bay sailing. It seems a logical place to start. I dont see myself sailing far offshore anytime in the future. My hopes are to just enjoy getting out on a trailerable boat and growing into the sport.

I am interested in the compac 16. Would a boat like this be a good place to start. I hate to buy a boat I will grow out of quickly. ANY advise on getting started would be great. I am from the east coast a couple to three hours away from some beautiful lakes and shoreline.

Thanks Jim

Jim,
I think that the Compact 16 is a nice little boat. It's more stable and forgiving for a novice than a centerboard daysailer, and has a little cuddy to duck into. Larger boats require more work, and a larger towing vehicle. As we get older, we have a tendency to down size just to get away from the work. I love my O'Day 222. It's a small boat and was very trailerable for me, when I was 20 years younger. Today, I don't have the energy to trailer this boat and it stays in the water all summer.
Joining a small boat club is a great idea. You may be able to leave your boat on the trailer with the mast up at the club as we can do, and you can't beat the fun and camaraderie of a club.
Taking sailing lessons is a good idea, although I learned learned by going to the library and drawing out books on sailing. I practiced with just the Mainsail and gradually learned to use the Jib with the Mainsail later. A safe boating course put on by the U.S. Power Squadron, or Coast Guard is a must for any boater, I think.

Ed Schenck · Oct 26, 2009

Great advice so far. Especially spending time on different boats. My own first sailboat is the one I still own, a 37-foot cutter. But I had sailed for many years before that, cats and centerboarders and 100+ foot schooners. My choice was dictated by two factors. One is that I knew I wanted to travel and ocean sail. The other was that my wife would need to feel comfortable and safe. On Lake Erie crossings that requires a solid platform. Should I have started smaller? Maybe.

Stu Jackson · Oct 26, 2009

Trinkka said:
Larger boats require more work, and a larger towing vehicle. As we get older, we have a tendency to down size just to get away from the work. I love my O'Day 222. It's a small boat and was very trailerable for me, when I was 20 years younger. Today, I don't have the energy to trailer this boat and it stays in the water all summer.

Trailering can, for some, get real old, real quick, like lugging water jugs instead of investing in a water maker if you're cruising. But it doesn't have to be because you're getting older. We got tired of it after a few years many, many years ago.

But it's not a bad idea to try it for a while to see if you like it. Many folks never move up to bigger boats because they like the variety offered by trailering to different places on a regular basis.

We split it: trailer sailed SF Bay during the winters, then left the boat in the water at the lake during the summer. We found the towing tiresome and we had SF Bay as our backyard. Others have more limiting waters near home and love to travel.

Point being: Your boat, YOUR choice. All we can do is share our own experiences.

The one thing, however, that does seem to be pretty much of a constant, is that there is a certain minimum SIZE boat that keeps resurfacing: that's 22 feet. That's why so many companies made so many different 22 foot boats. There was a reason for that. 16 feet will turn out to be very limiting both in terms of comfort and of safety when, not if, the winds do kick up.

Our boat of choice was the Catalina 22. We took lessons on three other boats, plus our own.

Some people can learn the safety stuff in a class, others can just read Chapman's - the "bible" of boating safety.

kloudie1 · Oct 26, 2009

Congrats on attaining the ability to participate! and welcome to the community! I will echo what others have noted about the 22/23/25 foot boats being a pretty good starting place. They are good in a lake and have enough room to camp in comfortably.. From there, ya can move up if that bug bites you. Like Ed says, if ya know exactly what you’ll be doing with it, choose a boat that does those things well.. I started with a 23 foot boat, kept in a slip.(two trailering trips with others convinced me that a slip is where my boat would be), I liked the experience. Two and three day trips were positively plush compared to the kayak camping that happened during college days, before the sailboat.. WELCOME and ENJOY !!

DRhoads · Oct 26, 2009

Again lots of good advice. I knew nothing about sailing 6 years ago other than I liked going out on those evening cruses. Took basic sailing classes and well...caught the fever. Six months later bought my first (Hunter 27 shoal draft) and spent the next 5 years all over the Potomac River. With the 3.5 ft draft I could go just about anywhere and not worry. The boat was stable, comfortable, easy to handle and for its size roomy enough to do a weekend or two. Learned my limits, the boats, maintenance, pride and peace of sailing. As I "advanced" more lessons and certifications (ASA) and on to a larger Hunter and the Chesapeake Bay.
Take the plunge you will not regret it!!

Barnacle Bill · Oct 26, 2009

Here's my 2 cents. The Com Pac would be a good starter boat in that if you don't like it, you can sell it fairly easy because of their popularity. Also, if you want to take your boat to various bodies of water and trailer sail, it is easy to launch and retrieve and step the mast without a lot of outside help. One downside of a Com Pac is that it is a shoal keel and unless you need a shoal keel because of skinny waters you will be sailing in, I recommend something with a centerboard that drops down from a keel, which will give you much better windward performance which you will learn to like sooner than later. Sailing closer to the wind direction is a good thing. The Com Pac, I have found, is a little tight in the cockpit. Might be good for one person, but it can be clumsy sailing it the way it is laid out. But, it is a popular boat and you shouldn't trouble selling it when you want to move up or get out (God forbid!). I would also look at the Precision Boat Works line of trailerable boats. They are built right across the river from Hutchins Corp (Com-Pac) in Palmetto, Fl. Both companies were started up by two buddies. One took one line and the other took the other. Anyway, for new, there aren't a lot of good trailerable boats out there anymore, but Com Pac (traditional looking) and Precision (more contemporary) are two to consider. Both have been in business a long, long time so there are plenty of used ones out there to find as well.

dserrell · Oct 27, 2009

dooley1 · Oct 27, 2009

Start with a weekend class

Jim - I started sailing about ten years ago, similar to your situation, later in life. I took an inexpensive weekend sailing course at the Annapolis School of Sailing (yes, I am an ASS grad). Spring and fall are great on the Chesapeake - - don't go in July/Aug. I bought a 32' Pearson a few months later. I ended up buying a 14' trailerable boat later and recently sold it. While I loved the excitement of sailing the small boat, I hated the hassle of trailering and rigging, etc. Instead of trailering, whenever I travel I do some research on where I can charter a boat. I've had a 19' in Cape Cod to a 38' catamaran in the BVI and 42' sloop in the Windward Islands. I love the cruising aspect of sailing and exploring new places. You just missed the annual boat show in Annapolis - - around Columbus day each year. Take a class somewhere. Find a club and try different boats to see what you like. Take some adult ed courses with USCG or Power Squadron over the winter. Enjoy!!

BobM · Oct 27, 2009

Re: Start with a weekend class

If you like the Compac, I suggest you consider one of their later models, the Eclipse. The hinged mast will likely take a lot of the headache out of mast raising and the 21 foot length is a good one for a first boat. However, it would be a $20K first boat, and that may be beyond your means.

You might also want to consider the older boats in the Seaward line. They range from 17-25 feet, if I recall correctly. You might really like their Seaward Fox line at 17 and 20 feet. I am not saying Compacs are bad, far from it, just trying to point out alternatives.

From a length perspective, in my opinion you really need to buy a boat for 80% of what you plan to do. If 80% of the time you will be launching the boat off the trailer onto a medium sized lake solo sailing then I recommend that you stay with something that has a mast you can handle yourself. If you plan to spend 80% of the time on the ocean, I'd recommend you stay to the large size of your range.

Also, if you plan to daysail, don't get hung up on having "big boat" characteristics in a small boat. If you will mostly daysail you can get great deals on very seaworthy boats with less of a cabin, such as a Peason Ensign, Chrysler 20,...the list is endless.

My heartiest recommendation is to get your feet wet already! I used to sail with friends in my early twenties and I loved it. I waited until my mid thirties to get back into it and I rue all those wasted years I could have been sailing. There are plenty of free rides to be had. Join the board, post where you are from and get involved. Join a local yacht club and get out there and paint some docks during volunteer weekend. You'll have so many opportunities to sail you likely won't NEED to buy a boat. Start by calling around your local clubs to see when they have open house.

Also...buy a cheap boat...any boat...a sunfish...a hobie cat...an O'day Daysailer. Looking at magazines and surfing the web is fun...but it ain't sailing!

If you are nigh Boston I will be happy to drag you out sailing as often as you can stand it, as long as you are willing to sail weeknights.

Quoddy · Oct 27, 2009

3 steps- safety,boat,fun

Be knowledgeable about water safety (seamanship), buy a boat and put it in the water. The fun begins and no one knows were it will lead.
The advice on not too big and not too small seems reasonable. If I had to launch a boat like the H260 (a fairly large trailerable boat) every time I used it, it would be a pain but some have got it down and do just that.

philwsailz · Oct 28, 2009

Jimmyb-

I actually had my first successful sail years ago in the U.S. Virgin Islands on a little roto-molded sailboat. It was available as part of the all-inclusive resort package where I was staying. The folks running the sailboats and jet-skis at the time were real patient and were willing to give lessons. You might check with your hotel, they may have boats already, ro might be able to guide you to someone who can help you.

BobM · Oct 28, 2009

If you are going to the islands, pick a resort that has water sports. Most will have a 12 foot hobie cat. Some can be nearly worless as they fly a flag the minute the wind picks up and refuse to let anyone sail.

The one I went to in Antigua last week only had one boat, but no restrictions. Those 12 footers look like toys...but I planned it out and had a hull flying a couple of times

If you can make it this weekend I can introduce you to the joys of fall sailiing (I paid to have someone rake my copious quanitites of leaves this year), as well as decomissioning (got to pump out the holding tank

)

Stu Jackson · Oct 28, 2009

jimmyb said:
It is always easier to learn from others than to make the same mistakes.

Don't worry, you'll still make plenty of your own.

permission to come aboard

Jimmy B

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