General Info: Help Introduce Us to Lagoons!

[TheMastaDon]

Background info:

My name is Don, I have a wife and 4 kids and we love change. So one day we packed up everything, sold our house in New Hampshire and drove down to Texas to close on a house we hadn't seen in person and to purchase a business we knew very little about. Needless to say, everything went swell! Last December I decided I wanted to be a sailor, so I signed up for a "Learn to Sail Vacation" on an Island Spirit 37 Catamaran where I got my ASA-101, 103, 104, and 114 certs and contracted the sailing bug. I convinced my wife (in theory) that we should sell everything again, but this time buy a Lagoon and be a liveaboard family! Now's where I need help.


Wife's Concerns:

Will she get sick?
Can she adapt to the close quarters?
Will quality of live improve, or become frustrating?
Is it realistic to live in a marina with 4 kids?


Next Steps:
Charter a Lagoon 380, 39, 400, 440, or 450 (or 52 if I win the lottery) so she can experience it. However, flying the entire family to BVI then chartering a boat, significantly cuts into our down payment for our own!

Ideally, we'd love to connect with someone near us (we actually live in Central Texas...so "near us" means somewhere on the Texas coast) who owns a Lagoon, is intending to take it out into the gulf of Mexico and wouldn't mind two stowaways! Our kids will be gone from late July to early August visiting relatives, leaving my wife and me to make every effort possible to get onto a Lagoon and learn about the liveaboard lifestyle.

Extra Info:
I'm not entirely clear on this, but I believe you cannot charge us for a trip on your boat if you don't have a captains license (please correct me if I'm wrong on that) but that doesn't mean I can't bring all the provisions, any preferred drinks, pay for the fuel, etc. I'd even help with any maintenance. I've never scraped a hull or changed a Yanmar engine's oil, but I follow directions well!

Thanks for taking the time to read this far. At the very least, I'm hoping to hear some opinions and/or idea for how we should proceed. Hope everyone has a great day and for everyone who's out sailing right now...I envy you!

-Don

[Scottster]

Hi Don and family,
The best lesson I learnt was no boat is perfect, take your time and do the research work.
That being said here are my 2 cents, stay with a production boat and remember the bigger the boat the bigger the bills.
You will need to sell it one day.
If your in the Pacific Northwest you are welcome to try a 400s2
Scott



Sent from my iPad using Cruisers Sailing Forum

[Scottster]

Try to read up on the boat " Three little Birds"


Sent from my iPad using Cruisers Sailing Forum

[Scottster]

Google
Three little birds lagoon 500.


Sent from my iPad using Cruisers Sailing Forum

[TheMastaDon]

Originally Posted by Scottster

Google
Three little birds lagoon 500.


Sent from my iPad using Cruisers Sailing Forum

Thanks Scottster!

Things I have going for me:
1) I work remotely in software, I'm all set as long as I have wifi.
2) Our kids were homeschooled (we tried public school this year, but planned to pull them out and homeschool again)
3) We should have the capital when our business sells (completely separate from the software job)

The Leonard Family story is very inspiring!

I wish I were closer to you, the 400s2 is on our short list.

[Scottster]

With the number of kids I would think a 4 cabin L450 would be where I would start looking.. I could see you in one just like this one.
Your wife might like this photo.



Sent from my iPad using Cruisers Sailing Forum

[TheMastaDon]

We were able to tour a 450 at the Southwest International Boat Show in Kemah. After spending way to much time checking every little nook and cranny, we were sure we wanted one. Just need a sea trial to make sure the wife can handle the waves

I'm thinking just for budget purposes we'd go with a 440. If our business sold tomorrow, I'd be contacting Stacy to take ownership of hers: http://www.cruisersforum.com/forums/...rd-145680.html

Hey, we bought this house before stepping foot it in. Why not buy a boat before my wife finds out if she likes sailing!?

All my kids loved the crew quarters!

[sailingforfun]

Contact Pat (281-334-0356) at The Yacht Sales Company in Kemah. The 450 you were on they keep at their dock. If you are serious I'm sure they would love to take you out for a sea trial.

After all, they are Brokers and want to sell Lagoons.

[LTDsailing]

I know you already have your ASA certifications - but you can join us down in the Grenadines for a ride along - It would be a great opportunity to see how you like sailing in the Caribbean and how your do living aboard for a week! We are also brokers with The Multihull Company - so we can show you some boats while you are down here! Grenada is a great place to live aboard!

[alansmith]

I understand your excitement. You have the fever. Please do not misunderstand me. I am not trying to poop the aft deck of your dreams. Reality is this....the big Lagoon is like a luxury resort. A Belagio Hotel on Las Vegas Blvd, so to speak. As you walk through her and see all of the creature comforts...your nipples become hard. I get it. We all get it. It would not be human not to experience the thrill of the varnished Brazilian cherry wood...


The boat has a very complex electrical systems with multiple engines, genset, refridgerators inside and outside, watermakers, electronics, water heaters, pumps, air conditioning, heaters, toilets, washer and dryer, on and on. Then you have rigging, steering, sailing shezzle, and that is the short list. That boat...and nothing about a Lagoon, a St Francis, or an Atlantic Cat...but a large complex boat is a very expensive proposition to maintain.


You are doing the right things in getting experience with certifications. Before you sell off everything and hope your wife will love it as you do....would it not be "due diligence" to take her on charter for a couple of weeks to see how she "takes to it?"


The last thing you would want is mutiny. One of my local friends lost his first mate to any further sailing because he pushed her too hard and got her violently seasick. She refuses to even Bay sail now. Take things slowly with her as advice from and older salt.


The second part is this...you have that need of wanderlust...it is deep in my bones also. I don't know your finances or your level of being able to "fix" things. Do you understand....really understand how much work a boat of this size entails? It is no joke how much work a boat of this complexity and beauty takes to keep in shape. A wonderful blog is "Zero to Cruising." But you can get an idea how much work from reading it is entailed. Although this couple are charter crew for a skippered charter boat of a large Catamaran, isn't your family essentially a charter group 24/7? This couple have an extraordinary story. Their stories are real and I "get it" how much work they put into their work everyday to keep the boat going.


They already had paid "their dues" on smaller platforms before moving up to more complex platforms. I do not think you have. I do not mean that to sting you or discourage you in any way. Knowledge comes by layers and experience.


So, the bottom line is contemplate your actions about what is fair to your wife....give her a chance to sample what you are drunk on. Then you have to really sit down and try and get your head around the truth....am I really ready to take on a boat of this complexity? Read blogs of people who do it for a living as charter captains like ZTC (see above), many live aboard blogs to be found, and numerous books and seminars to be found. But for Heaven's sake....get her on a Carib. bareboat or charter for a week or two....that should be your very first thing to solve. Remember the old saying..."if you back a dog into a corner, don't be surprised if you get bit? Women, generally speaking, especially raising children have different feelings than wanderlust. Many families sail and do it successfully. I know you want to be part of that group. Best of luck to you and give her the chance to see if she "can come on board" with your ideas. She will understand that you "respected" her as your companion.

[Scottster]

Great advice.


Sent from my iPad using Cruisers Sailing Forum

[atraitees]

Take a look at the website take two sailing .com

[TheMastaDon]

Originally Posted by sailingforfun

Contact Pat (281-334-0356) at The Yacht Sales Company in Kemah. The 450 you were on they keep at their dock. If you are serious I'm sure they would love to take you out for a sea trial.

After all, they are Brokers and want to sell Lagoons.

I have been in contact with Pat, thanks for the advice!

[TheMastaDon]

Wow, Alansmith, thanks a ton for such a well thought out reply! I know I'm not an expert on all the electrical and mechanical functions of such a large and complex boat, but I do tend to pick things up quick. I'll definitely read through the blog you recommended. I have one area where I'd love to hear your thoughts though...

Originally Posted by alansmith

They already had paid "their dues" on smaller platforms before moving up to more complex platforms. I do not think you have. I do not mean that to sting you or discourage you in any way. Knowledge comes by layers and experience.

I would love to get my children sailing and seeing parts of the world that I never got the opportunity to, so I'd rather not wait till their all in college before I live aboard. If I waited till then, I would have no problem going with a smaller boat to pay my dues. So the big question is: Do I buy a big boat, work my butt off learning everything I can about it and becoming an expert fast so that my wife and four kids can have more room to be comfortable? Or do I get a small boat at the risk of making all 6 of us feel cramped while I learn at a more responsible pace?

I think I'm going to take your advice and get her onto a charter in the Caribbean for a week or two. Thanks again, and I'll let you know if I have any questions after I do my reading homework!

[BambooSailor]

Just out of curiosity and slightly off topic: you listed entire line of Lagoon cats up to 52, except Lagoon 421. Any specific reason why you would not consider L421?