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Old 12-02-2013, 00:39   #1
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How old is too old to sail long distance on a multihull?

How old and in what kind of shape are you multihull cruisers in, when sailing offshore?
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Old 12-02-2013, 10:51   #2
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Re: How old is too old to sail long distance on a multihull?

I find that thinking I'm hot and buff really helps. My offshore time has all been in the North Pacific to date so I haven't had to strip down to a thong to prove it!

After taking the young and injured sailing as well as the old I've found that a multihull is really a good platform for those wanting to extend their sailing enjoyment in all age directions. Plus people seem to throw up less.
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Old 12-02-2013, 11:03   #3
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Re: How old is too old to sail long distance on a multihull?

i know sailors in their 60s and 70s sailing multis..same as monos....is all in your mentatiion and how you actually live your life.

btw--sailing is sailing and it doesnt matter if ye do sailing on one 2 , 3 or 12 hulls...is still sailing.
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Old 12-02-2013, 12:23   #4
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Re: How old is too old to sail long distance on a multihull?

Well said. As far as age goes your health and condition are important. When the young dream they don't have the cares of the young at heart, but there are many 20 somethings that shouldn't go near a dock let alone a boat.

For me the Hiscocks were an inspiration as was Dick Newick sailing over from Hawai in his 80s on one of his designs. He was with the Owner who was in the 60-70 range. By the time you get to Grand Admiral status having crew seems sensible.
Way back when 92 year old Granny Cole sailed with her Family on a 40 foot Piver tri from South Africa to New Zealand against the trades and spent most of the time on deck knitting fair weather and foul so what is in the attic is perhaps most important Not having reached old seadog status my comments come from observation but I sure plan on making them experience....
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Old 12-02-2013, 13:59   #5
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Re: How old is too old to sail long distance on a multihull?

Unfortunately people pass on at all ages many with no prior symptoms. My feeling is that if your want to do something, do it, because tomorrow may never come. Life is risk, without risk there is no life, only exsistance.
EXAMPLE: This happened to me in October 2012. All my life I've tended to do things alone mostly because I like to push the envelope and venture away from sports bars and casinos into the remote back country or waters. My daughter told me when she was maybe 10 that someday I would disappear never to be found again unless someone happened to stumble upon my big boots sitting in the woods. I laughed at the time but as i grew older i began to see the possibility of truth to her innocent comment. Anyway, back to the incident.
I have a farm in Oregon and i had been working on a rental property in Ca. when I realized I needed to get back to Oregon for a few to ready the blueberries for winter. When i arrived I discovered I had forgotten the men's one vitamins I had started taking out of desperation over my doctors inability to find what was causing these spells of arythmia and light headedness i had been experiencing. I had went through every test in the book and all the doc could tell me was that I appeared to be fine except too darn fat. I began to wonder if it wasn't dietary so i bought some vitamins, Men's One, and the problem disappeared so i religiously took one every day since. Well since i had forgotten them I thought no problem I will get by for a week without them and took care of the blueberries then decided to spend a few days by the bar at Coos Bay Oregon fishing for salmon rockfish and crabbing. I went out on this day as usual feeling fine and alone as I commonly do even though the currents were strong as were the tides and wind. I hand dropped my pots then fished for a bit without luck returning to pick up my pots finding the first one with only three keepers so dropped it back and hooked the next pot. As i was standing up pulling the pot i felt light headed and my chest began to hurt then my engine stopped. I figured i was having a heart attack so sat down on the transom to see if that would help and while relaxing considered my options. Oh boy I thought, this is just what i need. No motor, wind waves current taking me in the direction of some great sushi places a few thousand miles away??..hummm...well if this is my time this aint a bad way to go I guess. I could hear the noise of the bar and occasional waves would splash the windshield all of which did not upset me, for some reason i found the sounds of the sea,somehow i found them relaxing. I wondered if this was it, was i going down for the count to be swept off into the vast Pacific full filling my daughters prophecy? The good thing is I seem to be stable but very very weak and shaky. Feeling very weak but relaxed I pondered my fate. I looked at the clear sky and tasted the salt air wondering if i was nearing that last breath? If so, was this so bad a way to call it a day, the fresh sea air in the warm sun and the sound of the seas to rock me into the long sleep?.....
I found as long as i sat i was sorta ok so decided to crawl to the helm and try to start the engine, no success. The water is getting rougher, the bar closer as the current and wind conspire pulling me out to sea. At this point i contemplated calling the coast guard for assistance but decided to see if icouldn't find the engine problem. I found the prop was tangled beyond clearing in the first pot's rode so my main engine was not an option. I had a knife and was able to cut the pot loose and get it aboard so as not to act as a sea anchor. Ok, now will the kicker do any good in this head sea with the currents even if she does start? She started and i could make about 2-3knts, with the bow plowing into the waves some of which splash over the fore deck and windshield. Since my heart seemed stable i decided to motor for the marina a couple of miles away. Hey, I had steam, was making headway and with the Coast guard my ace in the hole, i was on my way. As my confidence returned and the bar began to recede i decided to retrieve my pots as i had to pass them anyway on the trip back. After getting my pots I swung the bow to starboard to cross the shipping channel which must be done carefully to avoid the port beam sea from sinking me. I got the proper heading set without taking on much water and figured it was going to take me a good thirty minutes to cross the shipping lane. Oh well, if that's what it takes ....what's that ?..Hey, here comes a container ship loaded heading for sea. She is moving pretty fast bearing down upon my little vessel abscured by the waves and she cant stop?/ Ah oh, do I turn back head downstream with the tide and current to gain speed and get out of her way what do I do. At this point I was about half way so decided to just go for it. Fifteen minutes later I was across and turned a bit to port to head the vessel upstream towards the coast guard station and marina. As i slowly gained on the marina I noticed the container ship that had frightened me seemed to have stopped. Stopped? those babies don't stop for nothing, that's when i noticed she was tied up to a dock and had been so the whole time. Whoa, I can't tell if a ship is moored or not and I am piloting a boat? This is gonna be fun when i have to drive back to the farm. I wonder if i can stand, or even walk.
Well to make a long story short, I was able to stand and i did walk even if a bit shaky. I stopped at the first drug store bought more vitamins and beer<smile>....The next morning i was feeling much better but went to the hospital and was informed there was nothing wrong with me.
I really had thought that the above day was to be my last one but it wasn't. I am still alive and have been offshore many times since then alone and other places. No my friends, don't let age ever be a reason to not do something you wish t do.

God bless all

Britt

PS: In a couple of months God willing i will be 66.....
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Old 12-02-2013, 14:08   #6
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pirate Re: How old is too old to sail long distance on a multihull?

If your booked in for the Morgue on Friday night...
don't do a trip that takes you till Sunday... you won't make it...
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Old 12-02-2013, 18:23   #7
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Re: How old is too old to sail long distance on a multihull?

Well, dammit, 65 better not be too old. I finally (after several years more than I thought, thanks to the geniuses in DC and the dreadful economy they contrived) sold my business and intend to embark on a multiyear water adventure in 18 months, 10 days. But who's counting. As long as I feel fit, have some Maker's Mark for those final at anchor nights (did you hear they are diluting MM to 84 proof!!!) and my titanium knee holds out, I am thinking you are never too old. I will, however, acquiesce and confess it will probably be on a catamaran, for stability underfoot and comfort at anchor. So to you I say, it is never too old to go. However, bring some kids (50 years old) along just in case.
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Old 12-02-2013, 18:48   #8
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Re: How old is too old to sail long distance on a multihull?

I love the comments on Biker Forums, Do you ride in the rain,

I do,
coming through a mountain range in the dead of night, I can see half a white line ahead, Its pouring heavy rain, The fog is dense, the clouds are thick, The thought goes through my mind,
If I run off the road here, I will never be found, Its dense bush, the edge of the road drops hundreds of feet, The undergrowth will bury both me and the bike, Impossible to be seen from the road. No one knows where I was riding, I cover hundreds of miles on a ride, I dont ride a slow old Harley, I am very quick,

Its the same on my boat, I am out there and only me if any thing goes wrong,

I am 64, Hanging out for 70 so I can go snow skiing for free,

I am fit healthy capable and willing, Your too old when you tell your self you are old,
Only old people get old,

I know people in their 70 and 80's that ride big fast motor cycles, sail and drive boats, snow ski, Play squash.

Age is not a barrier to any thing, Age, its all in the mind, you will be dead tomorrow, so do what you want too, today, Even if it kills you, Hahahahaha
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Old 12-02-2013, 19:02   #9
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Re: How old is too old to sail long distance on a multihull?

Read Reese Palley's Call of the Ancient Mariner. All his books are excellent, this one will provide you with what you need to know.

Call of the Ancient Mariner : Reese Palley's Guide to a Long Sailing Life: Reese Palley: 9780071388818: Amazon.com: Books
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Old 12-02-2013, 19:41   #10
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Re: How old is too old to sail long distance on a multihull?

I think if you are over 90 you should probably have at least one other competent sailor aboard. Or whatever your health demands, earlier.

I find it a lot easier with two people to handle anchoring and weighing anchor, or even picking up a mooring, and certainly getting the dink and motor in and out of the water, and I have felt that way since our first extended cruise (18 mos) when I was 34.

We switched from a monohull to a catamaran partly for space, partly for engine redundancy (and yes, that came in handy a few times in the last two years), and partly for the stability increase. She can ride well if she gets the waves on her port/stb bow or quarter, much smoother than a monohull of the same size. However, getting waked is still a bear -- not because you get tossed around like in a monohull, but because the danged wall o' water rides right up the foredeck and through any hatches you left open for air on your calm-water ICW trip. Yeah, those kinds of wakes. The "looka my engines!" crowd. As we were coming along SW FL ICW fall 2011, we encountered one of these guys... big boat, huge engines, late for a lunch reservation. Fortunately we got the forward hatch dogged in time, but the wake still soaked the helmsman (we were motoring ourselves, it being such a warm and calm day out). Another sailor wasn't so lucky: she had to be med-evac'd from her monohull because a mammoth motoryacht wake knocked her boat so hard that she fractured her back; we were listening to it called in on the radio as the coincidental mammoth wake came towards us several miles north of her position.

So the answer, as you have already read, is that it's not a matter of age but of capability, and anyone of any age may suffer an accident (I think we may safely classify an idiot with big engines and no sense of simple courtesy as a form of natural disaster, don't you? They are hard to predict in specifics, but easy to anticipate in general in any given season).

The cruising couples we have known have tended to retire from active cruising in their late 70s to mid 80s, but that's only a dozen data points. Partly it's accessibility of medical care, once medical conditions start needing more regular monitoring and treatment. In one case it was dizziness coupled with some osteoporosis. If it's still fun, do it. When it stops being fun, sell up and find something else you like to do; if you only want to sail or cruise one week a year, it's a lot cheaper to bareboat in the BVI :-)
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Old 12-02-2013, 19:44   #11
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Re: How old is too old to sail long distance on a multihull?

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I think if you are over 90 you should probably have at least one other competent sailor aboard. Or whatever your health demands, earlier. I find it a lot easier with two people to handle anchoring and weighing anchor, or even picking up a mooring, and certainly getting the dink and motor in and out of the water, and I have felt that way since our first extended cruise (18 mos) when I was 34. We switched from a monohull to a catamaran partly for space, partly for engine redundancy (and yes, that came in handy a few times in the last two years), and partly for the stability increase. She can ride well if she gets the waves on her bow quarter, much smoother than a monohull of the same size. However, getting waked is still a bear -- not because you get tossed around like in a monohull, but because the danged wall o water rides right up the foredeck and through any hatches you left open for air on your calm-water ICW trip. Yeah, those kinds of wakes. The "looka my engines!" crowd. As we were coming along SW FL ICW, we encountered one of these guys... big boat, huge engines, late for a lunch reservation. Fortunately we got the forward hatch dogged in time, but the wake still soaked the helmsman (we were motoring ourselves, it being such a warm and calm day out). Another sailor wasn't so lucky: she had to be med-evac'd from her monohull because a mammoth motoryacht wake knocked her boat so hard that she fractured her back; we were listening to it called in on the radio as the coincidental mammoth wake came towards us several miles north of her position. So the answer, as you have already read, is that it's not a matter of age but of capability, and anyone of any age may suffer an accident (I think we may safely classify an idiot with big engines and no sense of simple courtesy as a form of natural disaster, don't you? They are hard to predict in specifics, but easy to anticipate in general in any given season). The cruising couples we have known have tended to retire from active cruising in their late 70s to mid 80s, but that's only a dozen data points. Partly it's accessibility of medical care, once medical conditions start needing more regular monitoring and treatment. In one case it was dizziness coupled with some osteoporosis. If it's still fun, do it. When it stops being fun, sell up and find something else you like to do; if you only want to sail or cruise one week a year, it's a lot cheaper to bareboat in the BVI :-)
wrong wrong wrong. At 90 you need at least two or more ninteen year old female starving college students and with that it really dosen't matter if you ever return to port you will be in heaven.
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Old 12-02-2013, 19:49   #12
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Re: How old is too old to sail long distance on a multihull?

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i know sailors in their 60s and 70s sailing multis..same as monos....is all in your mentatiion and how you actually live your life.

btw--sailing is sailing and it doesnt matter if ye do sailing on one 2 , 3 or 12 hulls...is still sailing.
right on, multihull.....no hull any hull is great. The alternative is the couch and tv..........
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Old 12-02-2013, 20:09   #13
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Re: How old is too old to sail long distance on a multihull?

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wrong wrong wrong. At 90 you need at least two or more ninteen year old female starving college students and with that it really dosen't matter if you ever return to port you will be in heaven.
Now, wait, they have to be Able Female College Students! Hand, Reef, Steer, and look good in a swimsuit, at the very least. Possibly must know CPR, too, if they look too good.
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Old 12-02-2013, 20:22   #14
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Re: How old is too old to sail long distance on a multihull?

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Now, wait, they have to be Able Female College Students! Hand, Reef, Steer, and look good in a swimsuit, at the very least. Possibly must know CPR, too, if they look too good.
Don't worry Aquaticat, I will make sure they will be properly trained by the end of the cruise....Oh and if they are not Able when we leave port they soon will be. Swimsuits???
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Old 12-02-2013, 23:41   #15
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Give me a break! I'm 66 and haven't given age a thought. It's nothing to do with age. Attitude and good health is what counts.

Anyway I favour the Eskimo way of dealing with old age. When you are too old you just get in the canoe and don't come back. Beats lying in hospital with tubes coming out of every orifice.

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