Most Wife Friendly Weekend Sailboat?

[justwannadoit]

Hello:
I am trying to make my wife agreeable to living/cruising and besides introducing her to daysailing this summer, I would like to buy a trailerable weekender that I could plop into a very large inland lake or sail for a long weekend at the coast (I am in New England) during the summer months. Any experience and suggestions as to which boats are the most comfortable/roomiest below decks as well as transportable would be greatly appreciated.
Regards,
Kent

[Teknav]

You will want a rugged boat that can easily be sailed by one person and has some comfort below deck. Do a sailing schools fleet search, for the sailboats used in courses taught over 2-5 days period. Make it a joint effort search, since she will be sailing it too. To give you a head-start, Annapolis Sailing School uses the Hunter 36. After you have decided on a (used) sailboat, charter one "for comfort/size". You may also visit a sailboat show and examine/try what's available. There are plenty of "Old Salts", on here, that will steer you in the right direction. Just do your homework, and do not rush into buying anything. Have fun! Mauritz

[GrowleyMonster]

Trailerable? Inexpensive? single-hand capable? Space below? Lakes and inshore mostly? Consider the humble McGregor 26. The models without an inboard engine have quite a bit of room down below for a trailer sailer. Not much of an offshore boat, and not as zippy to windward as some other trailer queens, but a pretty reasonable compromise if you understand its limitations.

[Tingum]

I second th Growley Monster. Even with a small outboard the ugly little things are FAST! No saling qualities to rave about, but lots of room, shallow draft, and when the wind quits they can motor. Nothing worse for a beginner than drifting around when the wind quits.

[boatman61]

Lake sailing... Macgregor 26

[shorebird]

Lots of McGregors around, there's a reason why Hunter cloned them. One owner is a member of our Yacht club, and he and his wife have been sailing the same McGregor for 17 years.

[Factor]

Corsair Trimaran - 24 or 28 foot (maybe 31 footer if you have the space for it)
Farrier Trimaran in similar size.

[The Garbone]

I was on the same track, thought I could get by with a smaller boat so took the wife shopping with me. The Port o let's on the smaller boats sealed the deal for me getting at least a 27 better birthing and with functioning head. Sometimes your wife can be your biggest ally in purchasing a boat, it is all about sales.

[shorebird]

...and refrigeration, and flushing toilets...

[David_Old_Jersey]

I think "roomiest" would be a relative term....

If the idea is to also simply get her comfortable with boats (and for her to associate boats with a pleasant experiance) then unless she is already used to living in small places (camping?) with a minimal of mod cons then I wouldn't start with keeping her onboard for the weekend on a small boat! Overnight accomadation ashore may well be the best investment you ever make! and then a charter on a 40' Beneteau in the Carribean!

Apart from that I would base the choice on the one with the "best" head (khazi!) - women can be a tad particular about that sort of thing! and probably choice then on ease of rigging from trailor - the less time spent fannying around from trailor to water the better in showing that boats can be fun (the PITA side of boats can be left until later!). IMO performance very much secondary to achieving a positive experiance.

Exact model? I would not be overly particular (doesn't sound like it will be a "forever" boat anyway - whichever way things go with the wife and boats!) - but get the wife involved with the choice at the getgo, or at least make her feel like it........

[islander20]

I'll throw another vote in for the Macregor 26, my dad owns one and they are great boats. The shallow draft gives you access to some very cool anchorages few other boats can get into. I think it was 5" of draft with the centerboard and rudder raised. Your wife would love the queen bed, quite rare to find one of those in a 26 foot boat.

We used to go on a cruise every summer for 3 months with 2 adults, 2 kids and a German Shepard. It was a bit tight but totally workable. They are quite fast on a reach or downwind, they do get pushed around a lot when pointing though. The water ballast makes them quite light on the trailer so that is another plus. Great boat, it won Sail magazines boat of the year a while back. Also quite cheap, they were around 25,000 brand new back in the 90's. I like the look of the old ones, the new motorsailor versions are an abomination though...just so hideous.

[wingNwing]

Rather than trying to "make" your wife do anything, (which sounds rather manipulative, doesn't it?) why not just go daysailing? Then ask HER what's important to her, instead of a bunch of strangers on the internet?

[GrowleyMonster]

True, the McGregors that I am thinking of don't normally come equipped with a proper head, but you can get a jabsco manual pump model for $150 at West Marine, add a tank and a suckout fitting, vent, Y valve, etc and be under $300 all-in and not have to smell blue chemicals down below. Unfortunately air conditioning without a genset is probably not a realistic goal with outboard power, but it's a weekender and a top of the line Igloo cooler will keep ice for a couple of days, no prob, and a small 12V fan could be workable.

[David M]

What is the tow rating on your vehicle?

[Bash]

You need a head with a solid door that shuts, and a galley with something better than an alcohol stove. I think a tender boat such as a water-ballasted McGregor is a huge mistake. Most trailer sailors sail poorly because of all the compromises that have to be made to get them onto a trailer. You're far better off with something like a Nonsuch 30 that makes sailing a pleasant experience and that you leave in the water so you don't take up 25% of your weekend towing and launching.

Nonsuch 30 Sailboat Review | Cruising World