What happens to all the wannabees?

[Mr B]

Originally Posted by Therapy

Heh.
Another plus I did not know of in detail.
Thank you.



You were going to do this ages ago.
How long did it take to refit? That thread is old old.
What up?

I got a moron to repair my boat, 5 years Later I could still put my hand thru the holes in the hulls,
I sued him and got the contract lifted, now I am just finishing off putting everything back in it,
Its basically being rebuilt, The Hulls were only finished this year by another repairer,

[sailorboy1]

Originally Posted by Jim Cate

You have amply demonstrated that this is true... for YOU. For others, the sailing is an important part of the cruising life.

I could kinda paraphrase: travelling on a sailboat isn't about.... rib eye steaks and beer... for ME.

Jim

You like to take everything to an exceed don't you. In the past 3 months I've hardy motored all for the distance I've traveled. Sadly for me it hasn't involved as many ribeye steaks as I would have hoped either.

In talking with other sailing cruisers they rarely sail as much as hoped for or desired.

[sailorboy1]

Originally Posted by philaw

What I'm talking about is the kind of thing mentioned in 'Get Real, Get Gone' by Rick Page. It basically amounts to getting training, buying a boat, day sailing and camping out at anchor nearby to build experience and allow time for work on the boat, moving onto the boat, and only going further when you feel ready. To me it looks like there is a way to plan a safe and steady progression from zero up to almost any level.

Nothing wrong with that. Everyone pretty much learns this way even if they call it something different. I brought my first sailboat (39') after taking some training and then joining a club and sailing a 33' boat on the weekends for 3 months.

[Kropdad]

Starting out can be pretty confronting, little wonder many walk away from sailing. The cost is high and sailing can be scary, not like some YouTube peeps make it seem. My biggest frustration is lack of qualified support from the maintenance companies in Sydney and further north. Seems being a yacht owner that isnt on a million dollar boat is ignored so if you have little mechanical and electrical skills you are stuffed. Very frustrating to continually be told they can do the job in two weeks, then three...then you get a quote that is designed to make you go away. There, that's my bitch, and i do feel better!

[DumnMad]

Hi Kropdad. You've got it. Finding the boat that fits your circumstances is tricky.
Once I had my boat and moved on board I got a lot of free advice from other boaties and a little help. But most had their handsful sorting their own issues and meeting budgets that were generally higher than they had planned for.
The big reward however was the warm welcome and friends made.
The world is short of crazies who disregard rational decision-making and another one joining the fold is always given a warm welcome.

[Kropdad]

Hi DM, yet to meet other sailors but I'm sure we will. I do find in Sydney there are two types of sailors, live aboard chilled dudes who wave as they go by or stuck up wankers who hang on moorings and sail about 3 knots to another mooring then stay overnight then motor home. I know who the mechanics look after ;-)

[Chuckie]

As long as you have the capacity to dream, a look forward I guess. Mine has been 6 long years. Learning to sail on a 20 footer with the kids, moving up to a 26 footer and now with the kids gone I'm retiring from the army looking for a bigger beast ( in Europe, cheaper) and off at the end of the year. Realising a dream is only part of the journey. I and my family have gained much joy from the "getting there" and I suppose it would never really have mattered if realised or not. Onward.

[SV THIRD DAY]

If Sailing/Cruising was hard 90% of the people out doing it wouldn't be.
That's the myth that some cruisers like to portray to give a heightened level of self importance to their adventure. But folks...from Bumfuzzle to lots of YouTubers that bought a boat with Zero experience and turned into "cruisers" it just isn't that hard.

Stop Worrying....Go Cruising.

[laika]

Not a harder life, but certainly not a softer one. An honest one. Higher highs and lower lows than other walks. Diverse problems to solve, decisions to make, and resourcefulness to call on if you are off the beaten path at all. In some ways the last true bastion of freedom in the world.

But it's different for everyone. You take your own measure. That's the beauty.

[Arthurwg]

Originally Posted by dustman

Speaking as a wannabe myself, I was put off by the preponderance of arrogant, condescending, unhelpful responses. I did really appreciate those few who were supportive and gave solid advice and shared their experience and gave constructive criticism. Many of those wannabe newbies who post here may have actually gone ahead with their vision never having come back here because of the nature of the responses. Others may have given up their dream because they were put off. My advice to those on this forum is to be mindful of how they respond, being realistic but encouraging and helpful, and always respectful. I am pursuing my dream, and have altered my plan according to the advice I was given. Fortunately, I was able to look past the negativity and ego-padding. Thanks to those of you who give your time to helping us newbies achieve our dreams.

If you really want to be disrespected, post on the SAILING ANARCHY forum. Some real "individuals" there.

[benvanstaveren]

Originally Posted by Arthurwg

If you really want to be disrespected, post on the SAILING ANARCHY forum. Some real "individuals" there.

They're not that bad, just crusty old curmudgeons wishing for the days of old. Other than that they're quite the pleasant bunch.

[Painted Skies]

Originally Posted by SV THIRD DAY

If Sailing/Cruising was hard 90% of the people out doing it wouldn't be.
That's the myth that some cruisers like to portray to give a heightened level of self importance to their adventure. But folks...from Bumfuzzle to lots of YouTubers that bought a boat with Zero experience and turned into "cruisers" it just isn't that hard.

Stop Worrying....Go Cruising.

At the risk of being ridiculed by others on CF, I just want to say that this is one of the best posts on the subject I've seen here. Bravo, Rich.

Truly - it just isn't that hard to go cruising. When folks ask us about how we could cross oceans in a small boat, I always reply - 'If we'd known it would be this easy, we would have done it a decade earlier.' IMO, the only thing that stops you from having this amazing life is YOU.

Cheers, Katherine

[ReneJK]

Originally Posted by SV THIRD DAY

Bumfuzzle

whom inspired me to go out cruising

[Dan Mosby]

People, myself included, generally have no idea about the cost and maintenance required to keep a boat up and running unless they grew up in the community. The typical car today requires very little attention, as do almost all of our household goods and electronics, and this "maintenance free" mindset is what most enter into the boat world with......which pretty much contradicts the actual experience of boating.

We live in a mass production/quasi-slave labour society in the west where corporatists will scour the globe to find the absolute cheapest 3rd world labour to mass produce most of our kit. This is NOT the reality of the boat world, however, as even production boats still require a ton of labour, driving costs up. This is a shocking discovery to many would be cruisers. Everything is expensive as hell because it's "marine grade", and if it's not "marine grade", then it's liable to wear out within a year or two if used on cruise due to the hostile sea environment.

The idea of constantly having to haul out your boat annually, bi-annually, and having to deal with lamination issues, engine issue, electirc issues, blah, blah, blah, soon turn a lot of people off, or bankrupts them in the process. Then you have the states/countries trying to exploit cruisers to the maximum profits that they can, and a lot of people end up just quitting out of frustration or necessity.

Meanwhile most of the boat makers try to lure in new clients with expensive hand crafted wood interiors and kit more appropriate for an urban apartment rather than anything meant for travel on the water and seas.

We need a new folk boat that people can buy and sail brand new for about 50K.

[CatNewBee]

Originally Posted by Dan Mosby

People, myself included, generally have no idea about the cost and maintenance required to keep a boat up and running unless they grew up in the community. The typical car today requires very little attention, as do almost all of our household goods and electronics, and this "maintenance free" mindset is what most enter into the boat world with......which pretty much contradicts the actual experience of boating.

We live in a mass production/quasi-slave labour society in the west where corporatists will scour the globe to find the absolute cheapest 3rd world labour to mass produce most of our kit. This is NOT the reality of the boat world, however, as even production boats still require a ton of labour, driving costs up. This is a shocking discovery to many would be cruisers. Everything is expensive as hell because it's "marine grade", and if it's not "marine grade", then it's liable to wear out within a year or two if used on cruise due to the hostile sea environment.

The idea of constantly having to haul out your boat annually, bi-annually, and having to deal with lamination issues, engine issue, electirc issues, blah, blah, blah, soon turn a lot of people off, or bankrupts them in the process. Then you have the states/countries trying to exploit cruisers to the maximum profits that they can, and a lot of people end up just quitting out of frustration or necessity.

Meanwhile most of the boat makers try to lure in new clients with expensive hand crafted wood interiors and kit more appropriate for an urban apartment rather than anything meant for travel on the water and seas.

We need a new folk boat that people can buy and sail brand new for about 50K.

I am rarely in a marina, but when, then I see a lot of boats there, many not moving for months or even years. Can't be that bad given the marina fees and costs for buying and maintaining...

Where would all this 50k folk boats stay all the time around neglected when 500k boats get already neglected despite the price?