Our Only Sailing Experience is Watching 'Captain Ron'

[zeehag]

cpt ron did drive a formosa 51 in a unique and fun to watch manner. isnt recommended for yacht club parties lol...i loved the movie--was a gas....and the boat in the movie is overpriced in kemah. or was, anyway, last i heard......
\
the comments made about certain marques of sailboat can be jaded as hey are made on the basis of sailing only one of that marque and little else. if a marque has a bad rap--check it out anyway--could foster the passion needed for the refit. i chose formosa not because they are all the same--but because they are all different. each one needs different things, as they were constructed in such varied manners....take all that is written and spoken with a grain of salt--and surveys are merely a tool to see what has been made a problem oin boat. many problems are unseen, even by a decent surveyor--i found many problems unseen by any surveyor of this particular boat. i bought her anyway because 10k for a boat whose last replacement value was estimated at 168k isnt a bad deal. even with the repairs i still win.
look first, and sail other folks's boats with them, and learn all you can , then think about purchasing---we are in a severely buyers market...will get more so --be patient...if you like heavy displacement cruisers, i know of a tayana in louisiana needing new owner as old one died. he was in process of total refit. very inexpensive boat. all parts are brand new. everything. price is very inexpensive. just needs to be put back together.
tayana is a wonderfully good cruiser for a heavy displacement full keel attached rudder boat. is cutter rigged. might want to sail one first to see how they act under sail.
boat purchase is a big deal. want to find one you reallly like.

[F.N Firefly]

We love Capt Ron....he's taught us everything we know

[zeehag]

lol he surely could drive a funky formosa!!!!! i have never seen one drive that fast!!! or park like that..LOL

[F.N Firefly]

No luck finding the yahoo or facebook page. Right now we are stuck in the middle of the US with little/no ability to get to the coast. The internet is our friend

~Sherry

[F.N Firefly]

Good luck on the sea trials! Thank you for the info.

~Sherry

[zeehag]

Originally Posted by F.N Firefly

No luck finding the yahoo or facebook page. Right now we are stuck in the middle of the US with little/no ability to get to the coast. The internet is our friend"
~Sherry

leaky teaky yacht club: LeakyTeakyYachtClub@yahoogroups.com
write an email to them introducing self and what you seek and you will have many many answers.....goood folks. might even have the correct address for the facebook page..


funny i couldnt find leaky teaky tavern on facebook either--mebbe we lost interest in ourselves there for a minuet or i lost the page...i will find it a gain--was started by david m dangler, a firefighter in michigan, i believe.....

[sailingaway221]

I think some good advice would be to spend as much time working ina and on boats....helping any friends with their boat and spending lots of time sailing with them too. It will give you a much better appreciation of what you actually want to do.

[SkiprJohn]

Aloha and welcome aboard!
Thanks for serving and there are lots of military retirees on this forum. Retired Navy here.
Getting your experienced sailor to teach you the art and sport is a great way to learn. Reading "Start Sailing Right" and asking him questions is good too.
Here's my favorite shopping site. Sailboat Listings - sailboats for sale
And eBay, and Craigslist but don't buy without the advice of a good marine surveyor which will cost you some bucks but is well worth it.
Check out the links after my signature and I don't recommend anything over 36 feet for a couple.
kind regards,

[Pblais]

If you really want to learn sailing you need to watch Capt. Ron at least 8 times. It's better to space them out. At least most of one time should be without consumption of intoxicating beverages before or during the movie. You don't need to take notes because they don't do it in the movie and notice how it ends.

Just looking at your budget numbers you have a tight budget. If you want to invest your sweat in a boat it helps to learn more about them. Other experience is good but you need to learn the ways of doing things on a boat. It's not the same and actually the details are not at all similar. Boats can be tricky at first because wanting to work hard is a requirement on boats costing twice as much. It's possible to get in too deep and never get away from the dock and end up broke. Planning and preparation really is required to have something that might end up fun.

Being in the USAF isn't supposed to be fun but owning your own boat is! This is the idea to keep in focus. It really is all supposed to be fun. Even Capt Ron knows that. If you can't have fun doing the planning and preparations then I doubt you can have fun later.Number One Priority - Make learning about boats as fun as actually taking off on one and you can get past all the planning yet enjoy the time doing it plus learn more.

Classes cost money but it's an investment in the most important part of the boat - the crew (that's you)! You'll meet more boat people and perhaps add new friends along the way. I like to suggest starting out sailing is best done on an OPB "Other Peoples Boat". It by far the best brand of boat and you won't get too attached when they throw you off at the end of the day. Find ways to get out on the water any way that works for your current lifestyle! You'll need to find out what you don't know for about 5 years before you'll really know what you don't know. It's why the whole thing needs to be fun from the start because there should always be more to learn if you do this properly.

[MarkJ]

Our Only Sailing Experience is Watching 'Captain Ron'

Thats all you need!!



We had a lesson here in How to Anchor by some lovely French skipper.


After he snagged the little old cat he did not realise it was moored fore and aft and did a complete 360 degree circle neatly entwining both the fore and the aft anchor. I would have just rafted up to the old cat - the fenders were out - and sorted the mess out. But both boats in 25 knots just dragged. Pitty we were not exactly downwind or I could have an even learned more!

He finally Bouyed the end of his anchor chain and let the lot go over the bow and went and paid for a moring.
What was wrong with that? Nothing. The French just do it better: The fender was tied to the chain, not to a light line, so it sunk to the bottom with the chain instead of bobbing on the surface. So he was able to spread money to underprivalaged SCUBA divers this morning when the wind had dropped.

See? So Cap'n Ron ain't too far off the mark!


Mark

[zeehag]

i still wanna learn how to parallel park a formosa like in the movie--

[sneuman]

I second Zeehag as regards sailing OPBs (other people's boats). Everyone gets so focused on getting their own boat that they tend to skip this step. While I had some experience on OPBs when I bought my first boat, I should have had more.

Hang out at any marina and you will invariably find folks looking for crew; some have boats they thought (or hoped) they could single-hand, but discovered they couldn't. Others are older sailors - many of whom have considerable experience and insight - that just find the whole single-handing thing a little too much strain. Yet others just wouldn't mind some company. In any case, opportunities abound.

In addition, hang out at the local sailors' "table of knowledge" - opinions are like you-know-what and none of the gossip acquired thusly should be taken without a healthy dash of salt. You'll find some blowhards, for sure, but you might also pick up some tidbits - i.e., this particular boat has build-quality problems, this one is a pig in light air, etc. etc. Use it as a tip sheet to check out for yourself instead of any sort of gospel.

One more simple thing you can pick up from sitting under the marina veranda: You can learn a lot about boats just by looking at how they respond to the wake kicked up when some *$$%#@! powerboat rattles through exceeding the six-knot rule. Boats that gallop at their lines are not likely to be too comfortable in a seaway.

[F.N Firefly]

Sherry and I are honestly overwhelmed by the amount of information out there, though we've run across quite a few completely opposite pieces of advice regarding Water boats">blue water boats.

There's obviously different schools of thought when it comes to cruisers, and I can understand that, just as there are car aficionados who believe horsepower and torque are the bottom line, while other camps just as fervently believe in a perfectly balanced suspension as the foundation of performance.

The problem, for example, is that we've come across one group that says your boat should be as light as possible, structurally, so it "glides" across the water and doesn't experience as harsh of a slam coming off the back of a wave. While another group says heavier is the way to sailing bliss, in that you won't get tossed around like a paper hat in heavy winds...

I grew up around Lake Erie, and have been on many lake boats. I know that it's nowhere near the same as the experience you get on a boat designed for off-shore ocean travel. The extent of my experience there stops at a chartered powerboat I rode around the Gulf of Aden in 2006.

That being said, the only boat I've been seasick on was a dinky 18' motorboat that was being used during fairly rough weather on Lake Erie. Everything else I've been on, excepting canoes and rowboats, has been bigger. So, I'm inclined to believe that a heavier boat is more suited to the liveaboard cruising lifestyle.

So, which school is correct for off-shore cruising? Lighter, or heavier?

(I type a lot, but when I answer questions, you can be rest assured that I'll explain my answer to the point that there are no misunderstandings.)

[maytrix]

Originally Posted by F.N Firefly

We have three cats who will be coming with us

Seriously?

While my wife and I had two cats and were sadden by their deaths (one naturally, one we suspect by a Coyote), we were not at all sad to see the litter box go.

I'd love to see what others say, but I imagine cats would not be all that happy on a boat. I also wonder how happy you will be with a litter box on a boat too...

Originally Posted by F.N Firefly

So, which school is correct for off-shore cruising? Lighter, or heavier?

My brother-in-law states it very simply (he's an auto mechanic). There's an ass for every seat. I think it applies to boats as well.

So you've gotten different answers. The reason is simple - I think it just comes down to preference. So your best bet is to get out there and see for yourself. If you don't have friends with boats, chartering can be a great way to experience differnent boats

[Hudson Force]

Originally Posted by F.N Firefly

................So, which school is correct for off-shore cruising? Lighter, or heavier?................

You've probably noticed by now that there is not a correct answer to this question! Compromises will continue to plague every choice you make down to which will be the best can opener to keep in the galley. Your goal will be to determine which things you want to take and which to give up. You will hopefully end up with a vessel that you enjoy and serves you well, but you will always be faced with the rationalizing of your lack of some features. My wife and I are in our 39th year of liveaboard cruising. We're not on our ideal boat but it serves us very well for the timing and manner of our cruising. I'm on a 41' aft cabin Morgan that allowed for our two children to have thir individual space. We are at 26,000 lbs,- a cruising heavy truck with more comfort. but not good light wind performance. We have a 4'3" draft which allows great access to the shallows in the Bahamas and Keys, but we lose some windward performance and sea comfort in higher waves. We have a split rig (ketch) which also is not best for upwind performance or a dead run, but we have more sail configuration options and we can clear 55' fixed bridges. Get it?...it's Yeah-boo, yeah-boo for every choice! We have a solid built older boat, but still a production market built boat. I could buy it with my limited income, but I'm not comfortable for any offshore storm weather; therefore, I cruise in three day optimum known protected weather windows. With this I take short hops and pleasant lattitude cruises seasonally from Maine to the Bahamas and keys, but I'm not comfortable with transoceanic passages without protection from any heavy weather. I have great access to keep my chainplates maintained and inspected because they are strapped to the outside of my hull, but this places my shrouds further outboard,- strong rig, but I can't sheet my sails as close. I like the double enders for breaking inlets with a following sea, but they're not suited for dinghy davits. My full keel that is contiuous with my rudder means if I hit an object or at grounding my strike will be at an oblique gentle angle and I never catch crab or lobster trap lines, but the fin keels or winged keels increase performance, manuevering and the ability to back the vessel in control under power. ....enough! With all these choices it's very beneficial to know how you plan to use your boat. Also, my take on developing your best sailing skills,- learn on a little 8' to 12' boat. It will give you immediate feedback to all your actions and be an unforgiving instructor. Ther big boats may require different skills moving in and out from the dock, but they will not require any skills that won't transfer from the little boat. Take care and joy, Aythya crew