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Old 26-11-2015, 07:41   #16
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Re: Tell me about Solo Sailing

I have done a lot of single handing and I am setting up a 45 ft ketch to be able to single hand it if needed. I plan to often have crew, but want to be able to go if I don't. One of the biggest problems is sleep if you are on a longer passage, On a coast you can often find a sheltered inlet every night or worst case couple days where you can drop anchor and safely catch up on lost sleep. To single hand a larger boat it takes a lot of thought on setting it up, so things can be done and handled by oneself. In my opinion a wind self steering gear is number one, it lets you get away from the wheel and do what is needed. Autopilots also can do the job but, mechanical is much more reliable then electric on a boat. Smaller boats, the suggested 30-38 ft are much easier, if you go larger, then it almost must be a ketch or yawl to keep sail size manageable for one.

At sea you can relatively safely grab an hours sleep if the weather is clear, there are many books about older single hand circumnavigators that sailed 26 ft boats, read some of those to get an idea what it's like. I think it is a lot more busy on the oceans these days then when they sailed and the larger boats don't keep a safe watch for smaller craft with the new electronics they have. If the electronics don't see you they probably don't. They would be liable but you might be dead right.

I learned to sail in Kansas. If you would like to borrow some books, I've got hundreds, check out my website.
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Old 26-11-2015, 07:44   #17
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Re: Tell me about Solo Sailing

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d wouldn't mind a companion, but I'm not counting on it and don't expect it. Is it realistic to go into this with the idea of solo sailing from the start? Should I plan on having a crew,

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Old 26-11-2015, 07:50   #18
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Re: Tell me about Solo Sailing

auto pilot a must; a radar warning system nice; offshore wear a bike helmet(kid you not);sleep whenever there is opportunity.Do not drink booze.
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Old 26-11-2015, 07:59   #19
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Re: Tell me about Solo Sailing

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I've done four Ironman Triathlons. I got the physical part!!
I do a lot of cycling and running also but being in sailing shape is different. (Btw, I'm a singlehander and exracer)

With sailing you sometimes go without your good sleep for a while. You can also get stuck at a bad anchorages at night and have to put up with nasty weather and waves pounding your boat. Sometimes near a lee shore. You don't sleep a lot on those nights either

It's an adjustment like anything else. You'll be using different muscles. If you are prone to seasickness then that's a whole new ball game. I got over it with time on the boat (and Dramamine in Spring. First sails etc if necessary)

Some folks say the best size boat for a singlehander is 26' - 32'. That size boat is really good when you are learning and going for day sails which means coming and going from your slip a lot.
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Old 26-11-2015, 07:59   #20
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Re: Tell me about Solo Sailing

I drink booze, don't have a bike helmet, have a 39ft beneteau and would prefer one about 50 to 55 feet.

So don't take what ever one writes as right.
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Old 26-11-2015, 08:05   #21
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Re: Tell me about Solo Sailing

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I drink booze, don't have a bike helmet, have a 39ft beneteau and would prefer one about 50 to 55 feet.

So don't take what ever one writes as right.
MarkJ's been sailing forever. Don't think you would want to go with a 50+ foot boat right out of the chute

Bike helmet isn't a bad idea though and as you may know, Trek will replace one for free if you break one. I've broken two ................but not from sailing

A few beers at sunset can be very enjoyable when on your boat though I must say............
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Old 26-11-2015, 08:05   #22
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Re: Tell me about Solo Sailing

I singlehanded my boat (a 38') for the first time last weekend, just about an hour to an anchorage. Let me tell you there are many far more experienced singlehanders on here, but what struck me was:

Singlehanding is very different from normal sailing most people are used to. It's a feeling of true liberation, of really being free to go wherever you want and solely in charge of your safety and destiny.

It's lonely at times.

It's scarier. Not many sailors will admit sailing is scary, but at times it is. Singlehanding is more so, because you have no one onboard to help if things go wrong or you get tired. If you fall overboard, no one's going to rescue you.

It's more tiring. You're doing everything that previously you'd have two people doing. Even just putting out docking lines and fenders is a lot of work.

It's easier to organize. No need to plan a departure time or adhere to people's schedules, just go whenever you want!
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Old 26-11-2015, 08:14   #23
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Re: Tell me about Solo Sailing

The key is don't drink a lot of booze and sail... single handed or with crew... I always have it on board but mainly use it to gargle to kill off a sore throat. I have even brushed my teeth with it. I also make ginger ale, it may have about 2% alcohol, but the main reason is to keep yeast alive to restart my sour dough starter if it goes bad. I make my own bread and yeast is the most expensive ingredient if you buy it. I'm one of those people that hates to spend a extra quarter if I don't have too. I live on about $100 a month, enjoy life and have tons of toys, I ride a bike if I can, often 25 miles on a Saturday, but have a small motorcycle if needed. Love to canoe, row or windsurf. Enjoy life, that's what it is all about.
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Old 26-11-2015, 08:18   #24
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Re: Tell me about Solo Sailing

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Hi there. Total newbie. Thinking of retiring in 7-10 years and the idea of solo sailing is appealing for many reasons. I enjoy solitude and would love to explore the world or park at my own pace and discretion. I am not misanthropic and wouldn't mind a companion, but I'm not counting on it and don't expect it. Is it realistic to go into this with the idea of solo sailing from the start? Should I plan on having a crew, etc.? I plan on learning to sail over the next few years, chartering, etc. I'm just wondering if this is nothing but a pipe dream.

Cheers,

Veto
As others have said, quite do-able, and there are plenty of solo sailors out there, myself included.

However, I consider solo sailing the apex of the sport. To sail alone safely takes much planning, a well rigged vessel, and more than a little skill. Start off learning to sail with a crew. As you get better, figure out how to eliminate that crew. I often practiced sailing solo with other people aboard, just in case, before I started doing trips alone. Anchoring alone on a stormy night for the first time brought its own challenges.

Autohelm is your best friend while sailing. A really big anchor on a bow roller is your best friend the rest of the time.
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Old 26-11-2015, 08:31   #25
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Re: Tell me about Solo Sailing

Not a pipe dream at all. Especially with a boat that wont over power you. The biggest thing for solo sailing is remembering to think a couple steps ahead, have a plan B if something goes awry. Of course that's true for sailing with crew too, but even more so when you are alone.
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Old 26-11-2015, 08:40   #26
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Re: Tell me about Solo Sailing

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----- I live on about $100 a month, enjoy life and have tons of toys,-----
I find that interesting. How do you get from Kansas to Florida and back?
Not to mention paying for the haulout expenses on a 45' ketch?
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Old 26-11-2015, 08:55   #27
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Re: Tell me about Solo Sailing

As a single hander on a 33' boat I would urge you to start small and learn by doing and reading. Start with an inexpensive day sailor in the 22-26' range, read some of the many books available and experiment on days when the wind is mild. Take the power squadron courses on boating, they will help a lot.
Ignore the 'you need to be in good shape' crap. If you are not disabled and reasonably smart you can do whatever needs doing by planning ahead
and using the right tools. For example there are no rules against anchoring to hoist or drop your sails. When you are ready to graduate to a cruiser/live aboard in the 30's you will need some expensive support items like an autopilot. That will enable you to sail solo without scampering about like a thirty year old.
Best wishes and happy sailing.
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Old 26-11-2015, 08:57   #28
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Re: Tell me about Solo Sailing

It's a pipedream, alright, but one well worth turning into reality.

In contradistinction to many newbies who ask that same question on this board (the ones who want to set out for Otahiti the very day tomorrow) you posit a time-horizon that makes it perfectly possible to turn your dream to reality without hazarding either financial substance or personal safety.

All sailing is, at least potentially, single-handed sailing, and what that means you cannot fully appreciate until you have many miles under your keel. It has to do with there being two distinct aspects to seafaring. One is boat-handling and the other is seamanship. Boat-handling is rather mechanistic and easily learned. Seamanship is learned only through experience of the vagaries of the wind and wave and building from contemplation of that experience a mindset that with an old-fashioned term is called "forehandedness", i.e the ability not only to predict with accuracy what wind and wave will present you with in the hours and days ahead, but also to take measures, in response, that will keep you and your ship safe.

By my lights, developing seamanship means "starting small". Learn the basics in a dinghy. When you've that under your belt, move up to a small daysailer, something in the 20 - 22 foot range. A Cal 20 or similar you can pick up for a thousand bucks and consider the expenditure "sunk cost". Then move on to something in the 27 foot range, and then to something in the 30 to 36 foot range.

Remember that differences in boat "behaviour" (and therefore in boat handling) are not functions of differences in boat LENGTH but of differences in DISPLACEMENT (i.e. of weight). A 27-footer will typically displace 5,500 lbs, a 30-footer, 9,500lbs and a 36 footer 20,000 lbs.

Remember that just like displacement increases by the 3rd power of the increase in length, so does cost of maintenance and repairs.

For my money 30 foot is the "sweet spot" where you get the most cruising pleasure for the buck. The boat is big enough to cruise in comfortably, yet small enough that upkeep doesn't bust the retirement budget. A 36 footer will cost you TWICE as much money to keep as a 30-footer will!

Other considerations are that in the 7 - 10 years you posit, you'll be able to acquire all the knowledge about rigging repairs, sailmaking, electrical repairs, hull repairs, engine repairs, etc., etc., etc. that every skipper must have in his kit of skills, either so that he can do such repairs competently himself, or so that he can supervise "professionals" effectively and avoid the waste of money that invariably befalls those whose supervisory skill are lacking.

Happy cruising :-)

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Old 26-11-2015, 09:25   #29
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Re: Tell me about Solo Sailing

So many kind replies. Thank you all! I am going to, based on what seems sensible from all your suggestions, take the sailing 101 and 103 course here in Colorado. Perhaps join a sailing club. Then I'll charter somewhere for a bit, maybe get my own little day sailed and take it from there. What a helpful forum this is! The triathlon forums can get a bit catty.



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Old 26-11-2015, 09:30   #30
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Re: Tell me about Solo Sailing

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So many kind replies. Thank you all! I am going to, based on what seems sensible from all your suggestions, take the sailing 101 and 103 course here in Colorado. Perhaps join a sailing club. Then I'll charter somewhere for a bit, maybe get my own little day sailed and take it from there. What a helpful forum this is! The triathlon forums can get a bit catty.



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