Newly Joined

[Eric and Jean]

We are new to the sailing world and are about to purchase our first sailboat. We are hoping this forum will be helpful as we work on getting our boat ready to cruise.

[GordMay]

Greetings and welcome aboard the CF, Eric and Jean.

[boatman61]

Hi Eric... Hello Jean...
Greetings and Welcome to CF.. you should find all you need and more on here...

[GrowleyMonster]

This is a pretty good place to get opinions on stuff. Since we like to argue, you will always get more than one opinion on pretty much anything at all.

What boat are you buying, and what do you want to do with it? What kind of cruising? Got any specific questions? Been sailing before?

Anyway good luck with your new boat, and welcome to the forum!

[Teknav]

Welcome aboard Eric and Jean! Do not rush in buying a boat; take a 6 month to a year before making a decision. Visit several boat shows, sharpen your seamanship knowledge by taking sailing classes and practicing actual sailing in diverse weather conditions. Bare-boat charter a few times on boats that might be of interest to you. Make a list of "must have" vs a list "nice to have". Set a realistic budget, for a used boat; under 10 years old, mono-hull, under 5 ft keel, size 32-40 ft suitable for cruising. Whatever budget you come up with, you must have an additional 50%, for miscellaneous, in the bank. This forum will serve you as a good starting point in answering any questions that you might have. Take advantage of great many "Old Salts", on here, who will share their experiences with you. Good luck! Mauritz

[sailorboy1]

Welcome and enjoy the process.

Get the boat you like and the heck with "experts"!

[Waterway Guide]

Welcome aboard!

[Bluewaters2812]

Welcome aboard. Tons of very valuable info, advice and tips here. Just search through the older posts and you are bound to find a question answered.

[SkiprJohn]

Aloha and welcome aboard!
Teknav said it right but most of us end up falling in love with a certain boat and no matter how many warnings we get about it we buy it anyway. Then, we find out all the things that are wrong with it.
In any event, happy boat hunting. It is a great sport.
kind regards,

[Amapola]

Welcome from SW Florida. There is a wealth of information here.