Swallowing the anchor
- Thread starter Peter Brennan
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Don't even worry about it....put it off as long as you reasonably can. You don't have to find "when to swallow the anchor". That time will find you. Fretting about it just messes up the time that you have remaining. And for each one of us, that will be different. I'm 72, have a Catalina 320, single hand it, and don't plan to give it up anytime soon. What you did or should have done in the past is gone. You have only now and the future....if there is something you want to do or keeping doing, go for it...the opportunity will never be greater than now. You will have to give some consideration to the realities of getting older, but usually these are just treaking the plan a bit. Like some of the others, I get the boat yard to do bottom, diver to occasionally clean bottom. I've had four sailboats, Venture 24, Catalina 22, Kells 28, and Catalina 320. The 320 is the easiest of all to sail, has lots of room, is steady moving about the wide decks. Since I hire the heavy maintenance, cleaning the boat is the hardest thing. I don't take long trips nor do I try to sail in high winds. I love the boat and often just walk down to the dock and admire it or sit on it or take it out....whatever suits my fancy. I wear a pouch type inflatable life jacket, and have recently began to use a harness and tether.
As for taking up new things, my wife and I just bought a beach cottage at the ocean. I plan to do more fishing with my 19' motor boat and spend time on the beach. The cottage was owned by a 84 year old who went swimming everyday. (Not giving up the sailboat either).
When I sold the Venture, it was to a man 68 years old who was just taking up sailing. I saw him on the water for probably another 5 yrs. and then lost track.
At a previous marina, there were two brothers who sailed a Northwind 29. They were probably in their mid 80's before I lost track of them.
So don't fret, make some adjustments, and "keep on keeping on".
As for taking up new things, my wife and I just bought a beach cottage at the ocean. I plan to do more fishing with my 19' motor boat and spend time on the beach. The cottage was owned by a 84 year old who went swimming everyday. (Not giving up the sailboat either).
When I sold the Venture, it was to a man 68 years old who was just taking up sailing. I saw him on the water for probably another 5 yrs. and then lost track.
At a previous marina, there were two brothers who sailed a Northwind 29. They were probably in their mid 80's before I lost track of them.
So don't fret, make some adjustments, and "keep on keeping on".
Still have lots of interest
Ill be 75 this summer. Ive been suffering with back trouble for over 3 years. Just had back surgery early in Jan and im doing good. I having my old pearson 26W completely reconditioned over the winter. My only consession to making things easier was roller furl when
I started having back trouble 3 years ago. Im a minimalist my boat has no head, unless you want to call a Galvanized bucket a head. I have no electronics and still navigate by dead reconing I do all my own maintenence. Around here, Marblehead MA the season starts in
May. Ill be ready. I sail mostly with my wife. She is still enthusiastic. I have no plans on quitting.
Ill be 75 this summer. Ive been suffering with back trouble for over 3 years. Just had back surgery early in Jan and im doing good. I having my old pearson 26W completely reconditioned over the winter. My only consession to making things easier was roller furl when
I started having back trouble 3 years ago. Im a minimalist my boat has no head, unless you want to call a Galvanized bucket a head. I have no electronics and still navigate by dead reconing I do all my own maintenence. Around here, Marblehead MA the season starts in
May. Ill be ready. I sail mostly with my wife. She is still enthusiastic. I have no plans on quitting.
We are considering upchucking the anchor in our 70's. Lived aboard till 1998, landed in Punta Gorda so the Admiral could have a second career as a Church Musician. Now that she has re- retired we plan a 10-12 month trip north. Depending on a huge number of varaiables, mostly centered on health and home prices in the area, we could sell out and become live aboards again in 2013.
We tried swallowing the anchor but it just got stuck in our throat, along with the splitting maul for the firewood so we just down-sized to an O'Day 25 and a six pound maul. Now we are doing fine, thank you, so we'll wait until next year when we'll be 85 and then, when if we can't find any more "work-arounds",reconsider. LOL
Incidentally, our first down-size was to a 22-foot Star. What a mistake!! We were racing in a one design fleet where the spacing was pretty tight and things happened awfully fast. We found that by the time we got off of our knees, it was way too late for the maneuver we had planned. Hence the switch to the O'Day which is named,and is, Gudenuph.
So when the time comes we'll let it find us, we're not going looking for it. Besides, just walking the dock is fun too.
Cheers and Good Luck, Geohan
Incidentally, our first down-size was to a 22-foot Star. What a mistake!! We were racing in a one design fleet where the spacing was pretty tight and things happened awfully fast. We found that by the time we got off of our knees, it was way too late for the maneuver we had planned. Hence the switch to the O'Day which is named,and is, Gudenuph.
So when the time comes we'll let it find us, we're not going looking for it. Besides, just walking the dock is fun too.
Cheers and Good Luck, Geohan
Knowing when to quit sailing for good is sort of like the definition of porn: you know it when you see it. While we all know that day will come, if you still enjoy sailing, that day ain't here yet.
Hokey smoke! That must have hit a nerve or something. Twenty comments in two days?
Thanks, everybody, for your very thoughtful observations. But the reefing analogy seems to work best since there is not one factor but many that pushes one to consider moving on to other things. In our case, I am in very good health (knock! knock!) but I am also pushing 81 and grinding those Lewmar 46 winches can be a chore. On the other hand, sailing has been so much a part of our life for nearly thirty years (actually, just picking up where I left off at 30) it's hard to know what to do with a season without boats. Our social life revolves around the boat and the marina, where we have been spending much more time just hanging out than sailing. On top of that, it wasn't a great year. We lost our grandson, chief deck ape, in May. And that has forced reevaluations of other factors, not least money, and moving to where our families are, which is Europe.
So the boat is for sale. It is said all boats are for sale all the time at the right price. So far, nobody like our price and if we have to keep her for another season there will be no tears shed here. But then it will be time to go. Can't sail a 37 foot sloop on the Seine.
Thanks, everybody, for your very thoughtful observations. But the reefing analogy seems to work best since there is not one factor but many that pushes one to consider moving on to other things. In our case, I am in very good health (knock! knock!) but I am also pushing 81 and grinding those Lewmar 46 winches can be a chore. On the other hand, sailing has been so much a part of our life for nearly thirty years (actually, just picking up where I left off at 30) it's hard to know what to do with a season without boats. Our social life revolves around the boat and the marina, where we have been spending much more time just hanging out than sailing. On top of that, it wasn't a great year. We lost our grandson, chief deck ape, in May. And that has forced reevaluations of other factors, not least money, and moving to where our families are, which is Europe.
So the boat is for sale. It is said all boats are for sale all the time at the right price. So far, nobody like our price and if we have to keep her for another season there will be no tears shed here. But then it will be time to go. Can't sail a 37 foot sloop on the Seine.
Warren, that's THE answer: not interested in porn anymore, time to give up the boat!
I started sailing in 1965 in the Royal Navy, did my OYM in 1977 and again in 1988. Then I swallowed the anchor thinking that that was it. I came back to it about three years ago after a break of tweny odd years, with a renewed vigour. and in 2010 I retook my OYM, VHF(DSC) my photo is a bit different from when I first did it in 1978, did my first aid and am now studying for my Ocean (I have to as my wife has just bought me a Freiberger Drum Sextant).
So if you feel like it take a break and if you feel well enough, perhaps you to will come back to sailing, I suspect it is in your blood.
EVERY DAY ABOVE GROUND IS A GOOD ONE!!!!
I think Les has my same setup, only I've got the gas fireplace. It's a place to get away, quiet, nap, make coffee, read with new Kindle, sometimes nap while under sail if it's slow and no one's around, which is frequent in cold weather. Sometimes I'll motor out and shut it off and just let the wind carry the boat across the lake, no sails, can take a few hours. Seems alot of the people winterize their boats and won't use them till spring, but our weather can be 20 deg one day and 65 three days later, so I use it year round.
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