Population of US Sailors

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Jun 22, 2006
57
Hunter H33 Topeka, KS
Does anyone have any idea what the population of US based sailors is? Perhaps measured by number of sailboats in the US?
 

capta

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Jun 4, 2009
4,905
Pearson 530 Admiralty Bay, Bequia SVG
I would bet that BoatUS has some numbers, though probably not very accurate ones. If you are really interested you could do a state by state search of the number of registered sailboats and get back to us.
 
Jan 19, 2010
12,553
Hobie 16 & Rhodes 22 Skeeter Charleston
Tough one... I guess first we would have to agree on the definition of a sailor.
 

Gunni

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Mar 16, 2010
5,937
Beneteau 411 Oceanis Annapolis
Absolutely! A boat isn't the measure of a sailor. Sailors are the people who are drawn to master the skills necessary to harness the wind and ride the waves. I have a dozen crew who rightfully call themselves sailors, yet don't own a sailboat. I'm their wind-pimp.
 
May 11, 2005
3,431
Seidelman S37 Slidell, La.
And there are some

Who have boats and have had for years, who do not have enough confidence to do an overnight offshore hop without someone else they trust aboard.
 
May 18, 2010
543
Oday 27 Gulfport, MS
I jokingly told my son that our boat was going to sink itself in protest if we don't get out there and start sailing more.

So with a bit of shame, let's raise the count now to 8 1/2 sailors in the United States.

:-(
 
Jun 12, 2010
936
Oday 22 Orleans Marina, NOLA
Then let's get a count of 'Active' sailors. I see many nice boats sitting idle. I'm sure the owner once wanted to be a sailor, or else its just a status symbol, but if you don't sail you can at best be called a former sailor.

I would be interesting to know the number of sailboats vs the number of active sailors. I bet it's at least 3:1.
 

Ross

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Jun 15, 2004
14,693
Islander/Wayfairer 30 sail number 25 Perryville,Md.
Does occasional sailor count? I sail as often as I can get my sweet wife to go which is not nearly often enough for me.
 
Jun 12, 2010
936
Oday 22 Orleans Marina, NOLA
Does occasional sailor count? I sail as often as I can get my sweet wife to go which is not nearly often enough for me.
I would think sailing when you have the opportunity certainly counts. We can't all go sailing all the time, then it would be too crowed out there for me. I'm sure there are a lot of folks that know how to sail, having done it as a kid or young adult, but no longer do. Gee, I'm starting to think the best way to nail it down is if you went to the effort and expense to buy a sailboat and you at least learned enough to go out as the skipper then you are a 'sailor'.

What about looking at asa101 graduates?
 
Aug 22, 2011
1,113
MacGregor Venture V224 Cheeseland
..... Gee, I'm starting to think the best way to nail it down is if you went to the effort and expense to buy a sailboat and you at least learned enough to go out as the skipper then you are a 'sailor'.....




hmmmmmmmmmm
 
May 27, 2004
2,041
Hunter 30_74-83 Ponce Inlet FL
Another Category

And then there are those of us who used to blue water sail regularly and then suffered a major debilitating injury (Not boating related). I'm working on rehabing to the point that I can at least poke Intuition's nose out of the inlet!
 
Jan 1, 2006
7,469
Slickcraft 26 Sailfish
500 thousand. I'm not going to judge who is a real sailor according to varying definitions. I think there are a half million people in the US who either own a sailboat, crew on one, used to own one, or are looking to buy one. That's one in 600 people in the US. It's just my guess.
 
May 18, 2010
543
Oday 27 Gulfport, MS
Getting back to the OP's question:

The NMMA notes that there are an estimated 17 million boats in use in the United States.

And

Of the 231.5 million adults living in the United States in 2010, 32.4 percent - or 75 million - participated in recreational boating, according to findings from the National Marine Manufacturers Association's annual Recreational Boating Statistical Abstract.

That does not differentiate between power boats and sailboats, but it does start giving us numbers to consider.

Source:

http://www.tradeonlytoday.com/home/511279-nmma-report-more-boaters-fewer-sales-in-2010
 

Ross

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Jun 15, 2004
14,693
Islander/Wayfairer 30 sail number 25 Perryville,Md.
A sailor can be placed aboard a sailboat and know what to do to make it go where she/he wants to go. They do not have to be presently in possession of a boat or actively engaged in the sport.
 
Oct 17, 2011
2,809
Ericson 29 Southport..
Who have boats and have had for years, who do not have enough confidence to do an overnight offshore hop without someone else they trust aboard.
This is good. I have made a lot of money out of this type of sailor.
Sometimes they have continued "on", other times.........I have brought them back...
Irregardless, at least we sailed.

BTW, I do not disparage this group one iota. For a lot of people, I mean a LOT, sailing offshore can be a very intimidating experience. Sometimes it just takes that cool-headed skipper to let them get their feet wet, and realize that the "sea-monster" is not gonna get 'em..
 
Apr 16, 2012
22
Hunter 25.5 Chelsea NY
Who have boats and have had for years, who do not have enough confidence to do an overnight offshore hop without someone else they trust aboard.

Is there something wrong with that? Seems smart to know your limits.
 
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