wing netting on Trimarans

[Cadence]

Originally Posted by toolbar

Why? 4 year old girl and 1 year old boy on a Trimaran here, on happy faces to see.

Paul

Consider the interior space. The hull on a folding tri will have less. Kids won't be on deck all the time. The more creature comfort you have, for them, below the nicer for them.

[Maulvi420]

Thanks for all the replies, folks.

I am now widening my search and probably will look at the recommended bigger boats. I really appreciate all the honest feedback.

Thanks

[thinwater]

Originally Posted by Cadence

Consider the interior space. The hull on a folding tri will have less. Kids won't be on deck all the time. The more creature comfort you have, for them, below the nicer for them.

This has not been my experience. My daughter started out on a Stiletto 27 as a newborn, overnight at a few years, father-daughter by 5, and she still brags about seeing 22 knots when she was 8. We went on trips up to 2 weeks starting when she was 10. I had a little tiny harness for her, starting when she learned to crawl.

The thing to remember is that kids like small spaces and that cabins seem much bigger to them. Creature comforts matter more as we age.

With her Grandmother when she was quite small.


Delmarva circumnavigation. 10 I believe


Another Delmarva trip. 12 I believe.


She has her masters now. Good sailor, good crew.

[ThomD]

Kids want to do stuff, watching you sail the boat, is not that interesting. We all had a few nice sails on my tri, but nothing like enough to justify the effort. Mostly they just wanted to be ferried a mile to this island, and then back. When I was a kid, we just rowed. We have a cottage on a large lake, and our cottage is arguably the best property on the lake, and the most easily reached interesting feature is the "island", so though it seemed like a good idea to have a sailboat, there really wasn't anywhere they wanted to go. Other than back to the city to see their friends, for some of them. If we were in the Keys, or some similarly interesting place, or traveling and seeing new places, it might have been different.

On boats, trailering is serious business, and I would emphasize that none of the large tris, really meet my definition of being trailer sailers. There is a huge advantage to being able to hitch a boat to the car and move it around, but depending on the places you go, it can be a pretty stressful business trying to do more than seasonal shifts. I had a relatively new trailer pass me on the highway, when a pin broke, a potential new cat land speed record. That was a terrifying experience with huge liability associated with it. We got off with nothing but some repairs when we got it all off the road. Since one tends to carry everything but the kitchen sink, we were able to make the repairs and carry on. It was late night so only a few saw it, and we didn't get any unwanted attention. Boat ownership is really quite a hassle.

[SailFastTri]

Originally Posted by ThomD

Kids want to do stuff, watching you sail the boat, is not that interesting.
snip

That is the voice of experience. The success of the whole family experience hinges on your ability to get your wife and kids involved, and make sailing the boat a team effort. Each person has to have a job they find interesting and they need to have the basic underlying knowledge to be successful at it. Erveryone should take a power-squadrons basic navigation course or an accredited basic sailing course, taught by someone other than Dad. (Dad might also benefit). No yelling or flogging the crew! Positive encouragement and calm orders followed by explanations work better.

Other advice -- the vacation is where you are. Don't become so obsessed with destinations and schedules that you make risky weather decisions which lets stress take over. There should always be a Plan B. If it's too hot humid cold windy calm or raining, think about doing something different ashore rather than cooping up an unhappy crew.

[toolbar]

Originally Posted by Cadence

Consider the interior space. The hull on a folding tri will have less. Kids won't be on deck all the time. The more creature comfort you have, for them, below the nicer for them.

I don't buy that. Kid's are small. They don't need a lot of space. Cosy spaces are great for them. The forepeak of a smaller Corsair/Farrier trimaran: just add some net, so that small kids don't fall out, and you have a perfect playpen for the kids where they can even see you in the cockpit.

What is your goal? Even a big, not-trailerable boat will not have space comparable to your normal flat or house.

Originally Posted by ThomD

Kids want to do stuff, watching you sail the boat, is not that interesting. We all had a few nice sails on my tri, but nothing like enough to justify the effort. .... there really wasn't anywhere they wanted to go. Other than back to the city to see their friends, for some of them. .... Boat ownership is really quite a hassle.

That seems to be an argument against kids on boats in general. :-) I second the comments from SailFastTri. I simply accept, that sailing with the family is different from sailing solo.

Paul

[paxfish]

With regard to tramp durability - I just replaced my forward tramp after roughly 12 years. The new material is PVC coated mesh and I expect a longer life. HINT: Drop the extra $$$ for PTFE thread. It is worth it, trust me!

UV kills tramps first. I have a friend who has his original tramp from 1993. Every few years he rolls on a coat of elastomeric (roofing) paint to protect it.