Visit our Popular Forums

FollowingCs · 07-05-2014, 14:53

Quote:

Originally Posted by ShaktiGurl

Our reasons were unique to us and so will yours be. I wish you well in finding your path.

Thanks so much for the wonderful post. We've discussed a move to the coast to help assist in this endeavor. I could possibly work from the boat (software developer at heart, manager by force), although probably not manage my team.

My wife is a Realtor, and closing a house in Ohio takes way too much time for way too little commission. She also runs our property remotely, and we are in the process of trying to buy more for her to manage, so she'd really be a property manager on the boat more than anything.

This is a path we've discussed, but it does remain the 3 year plan, as the final Sophomore loves her school and friends.

As for medical, my family is a mixed bag. We've had folks go early and folks make it into their 80s and 90s. No way to know.

All the best, FollowingCs

**weavis** · 07-05-2014, 14:54

Quote:

Originally Posted by FollowingCs

LOL,

She's the one who's been reading up on it more and more, and told me I better be prepared to buy her plane tickets to meet up later. I'm just trying to accommodate whatever she wants in order to get her to try it, cause I think she'll enjoy it even more than I will.

All the best, FollowingCs

But......... you dont know.

I have one final suggestion for you. In the next year, take 6 weeks off and away from everything and go rent a boat in Florida, the B.V.I. or the Bahamas. For what it costs, it wont make a dent in your long term project at all.
Do proper sailing. Do proper out of touch for a week if you can.... do a bit of poor weather boating.
Be sure.

Jammer Six · 07-05-2014, 15:06

My "love is enough" days are over.

I'd wait and do it right, I'd do it right now, regardless of the costs, or I wouldn't do it.

Compromises are for children.

Even the Pardeys built their own boats, because anything else wasn't good enough.

**a64pilot** · 07-05-2014, 15:08

Quote:

Originally Posted by weavis

But......... you dont know.

I have one final suggestion for you. In the next year, take 6 weeks off and away from everything and go rent a boat in Florida, the B.V.I. or the Bahamas. For what it costs, it wont make a dent in your long term project at all.
Do proper sailing. Do proper out of touch for a week if you can.... do a bit of poor weather boating.
Be sure.

I looked into this as it's probably the most logical thing to do, but when faced with the costs of doing so, just bought a boat instead.
For me, it was a substantial cost.

ShaktiGurl · 07-05-2014, 15:12

"This is a path we've discussed, but it does remain the 3 year plan, as the final Sophomore loves her school and friends. "

I totally agree with this as someone who attended 3 different high schools for no other reasons other than my parents did not have any idea what they wanted to do. It is extremely difficult to move at this time if the person is not ready. I think you both have a very good idea of what you want and the best "time" will rear it's head in due time!

FollowingCs · 07-05-2014, 15:13

Quote:

Originally Posted by sv.Lonestar

By year 3 if the boat fund isn't X,, then we buy what we can afforded and go.

By the way lots and lots of lady's would enjoy going on that Hans Christian!!

This is an interesting idea. It needs a little adjusting because we don't save money, we invest it. We have many investments in various stages. But the same concept applies, kinda. If some investments do well, we can by boat X, if not so well, or are taking longer than planned, then we buy what we can. I like it.

As for the last quote, my brother is 44 and single (i.e. never married). He works a tough, low paying job as a Juvenile probation officer, and he's 15 years away from pension. Absolutely nothing tying him down. He doesn't know it yet, but I am taking him and the wife to look at some mono-hulls for sale over vacation in the Carolina's. Maybe he'll get the bug, get a boat, and find a girl.... or partner, not that there's anything wrong with that.

All the best, FollowingCs

tomfl · 07-05-2014, 15:53

Another possible option would be to buy a starter boat along the lines of a C31. I seriously considered this and for someone who wants to get their feet wet (both literally and figuratively) you might consider this. On the plus side Fboats tend to hold their value very well. They are easy and fun to sail. They are easy to tow with a good size pickup and can be stored on land much more cheaply than boats that require a slip. While some folks say the Corsair ads claiming you can launch and be sailing in half an hour are somewhat hype you can be off the dock in less than an hour.

Not sure just where you are located but if there is a lake or river anywhere close this is a boat you can learn a lot sailing close to your home. The C31 is big enough for you and your wife and kid to sail/cruise for a weekend or even a little longer. If you have the time you can tow the boat to Florida and cruise the Keys or Bahamas for a couple of weeks, or longer if time allows.

Lots of folks, including me, say sailing is the easy part. Dealing with logistics of provisioning a boat, keeping it in shape, learning how to deal with a head (or as I think getting a composting head) and a hundred other little things associated with owning a boat are all skills you will only learn by owning a boat.

Here is a link to a youtube video that shows a part of boat ownership often overlooked. Keep in mind that there are a lot of youtube videos on topics like servicing winches or tying knots, all things that you will need to learn if you get any type of cruising boat.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lqRaVhLenkY

FollowingCs · 07-05-2014, 17:48

Quote:

Originally Posted by tomfl

Another possible option would be to buy a starter boat along the lines of a C31.

Thanks for these ideas, I appreciate the efforts. I'm just not going to be owning a boat until I can live on it full time. I've owned a junker boat and nice fishing boat (150 hp) when I used to live on a small lake. Those boats were outside my back door, and still too much work when working a full time job (50+ hours a week). I don't know how many times I went down to the dock and just fished off of it for 20 minutes as my boat sat there tied up right next to where I was fishing.

I own Sea Doos now (I have since 2000), and I'm in the process of selling those. I do the maintenance on those to a large extent, and again, not real happy when I have to spend all Saturday morning swapping a battery in that tiny space. (3 hours of work for 2 hours of riding = not good value.)

Now, if I didn't have 50+ hours of work and if I didn't have to go back to work the following Monday, these things are not that big a deal (i.e. 4th of July week. 2 or 3 hours of maintenance for 4 days of fun = good value).

I'm happy doing what I'm doing now, which is making a boat-load of money through my investments, playing golf 5 times a week, meeting with my investors. And my job still fairly exciting, challenging and rewarding.

There is just no way I'm spending anything on a boat right now, in the middle of Ohio, when I can use my time and money to invest and in 5 years have a nice boat. In 3 years, my investments won't quite be fully baked, so that is really when the question of timing is coming in. 'Now' is not an option for me.

Again, these are great ideas, and may really help somebody else out, so I appreciate the effort put forth.

All the best, FollowingCs

SaltyMonkey · 07-05-2014, 17:56

FC:

Since you won't get a POC boat...

- Chartering
- Education (ASA, diesel maint, navigation, celestial, welding etc)
- Volunteerism (I worked in a wooden boat shop for example)

can fill the void while you wait

FollowingCs · 07-05-2014, 18:06

Quote:

Originally Posted by weavis

But......... you dont know.

I have one final suggestion for you. In the next year, take 6 weeks off and away from everything and go rent a boat in Florida, the B.V.I. or the Bahamas. For what it costs, it wont make a dent in your long term project at all.
Do proper sailing. Do proper out of touch for a week if you can.... do a bit of poor weather boating.
Be sure.

We might be doing something similar to this, but with a smaller time frame.

But you are right, I don't know. And that's okay. I wasn't sure I'd like being an Air Force pilot, I kind of slipped into it by luck. I LOVED acrobatic and formation flying and I was good at it. I loved the academics and did great at that. I didn't like the long distance flying. As luck would have it, after Gulf War (91) they offered outs, and I took it. But I tried it, and I'm so glad I got that experience. (Wasted about $1.2 million of US tax dollars - sorry - but it was alot of fun!).

So all we have to go on is what we do like. Hiking, camping, swimming, snorkeling, diving (me), quiet time to read, time with friends, short visits with family, etc. etc. It all sounds pretty good to me.

My only concern with the 6 week stint is that it still won't be 'home' or permanent. There is something to that, and we all know it. Has anybody had trouble focusing on a Friday before a long weekend?? When do most of us get our taxes done, April 14th. Hell, I had to extend this year mine still aren't done, and once we filed the extension we gave up working on them for a while. Its like ham and eggs breakfast. The chicken is 'involved' but the pig is 'committed'.

I think this is a decent idea though, we may have a slightly different take on this. In the 5 year plan, we will be live-aboards probably working out of the boat, and we'd be able to take 6 week stints if we want to. We'd be learning the ins and outs of sailing and the boat maintenance work, but we'd be committed to the boat. We may find we hate in, and in that case, we'll sell the boat and move on.

The point is to try. As I tell my kids, 51% of success is just willing to give it a try and see what happens. The other 49%, you better have your sh... , er, research together.

All the best, FollowingCs

VirtualVagabond · 07-05-2014, 18:56

Quote:

Originally Posted by DSDman

You are in the same boat as I. Simply put you have competing priorities. As do I. I was able to justify... In my mind anyway... The practicality of buying the dream boat that the wife and kids loved. It was older and needed lots o work but affordable. So that happened. I learned a bunch from that experience over a two year period of time and then an opportunity presented itself for me to bail out of the adventure and reassess. So I did. I'm seven years from the last kid finishing college and 11 years from retirement. So the next time I'm going to be living near the coast I will be buying another boat.... At least 50 ft. I like em big!

Sent from my XT1030 using Cruisers Sailing Forum mobile app

Hi Scott,
We're on the move again and will be in the Aus Great Barrier Reef area in the next fortnight.
Hang on to that dream buddy.

Vic

**Hudson Force** · 07-05-2014, 22:27

Quote:

Originally Posted by FollowingCs

........................... In the 5 year plan, we will be live-aboards probably working out of the boat, and we'd be able to take 6 week stints if we want to. We'd be learning the ins and outs of sailing and the boat maintenance work, but we'd be committed to the boat. We may find we hate in, and in that case, we'll sell the boat and move on. .......................

This sounds wise. I think those that jump from the sale of the house to immediately underway full time have a higher risk of disappointment. Though there are different strategies. I've always been one to dip my toe in the water and plan a staged entry before diving in head first!

FollowingCs · 08-05-2014, 13:36

Quote:

Originally Posted by SaltyMonkey

FC:

Since you won't get a POC boat...

- Chartering
- Education (ASA, diesel maint, navigation, celestial, welding etc)
- Volunteerism (I worked in a wooden boat shop for example)

can fill the void while you wait

Thanks SaltMonkey. I may end up with a POC boat, in 3 years, if investments don't pan out and my house value doesn't recover a little bit. I can't do anything before than anyways with a Sophomore in high school. But the more I talk to folks here and elsewhere, I'm trying to be 'ready' to go in 3 years as far as house sold, possessions sold, etc. Will still somewhat depend on the college situation of the last kid. In a worst case, we downsize and safe more heavily for a year. So need to get that all prepped.

The Education thing is what I'm hitting big. I may be able to do some ASA in Lake Erie. Diesel is on my list. Welding not so much.

I may be able to crew a little bit for some friends, it may work out schedule-wise.

All the best, FollowingCs.

Oceandeep · 10-10-2014, 08:52

I had a 35 Yorktown S?V for many years and did lots of coastal cruising. I wanted to do some blue water cruising when I retired so 3 years ago we upgraded to a Hudson Force 50. These heavy displacement Bill Garden designs are a great platform for cruising but the maintenance and upkeep are significant. The current plan is to work on the boat for 3 more years and build up the cruising kitty. I'll be 65 at that point and I don't want t press my luck. I've already had some heath issues that slowed me down. Mexico or Bust in 2017!