Hiya, from Kansas

[Skwhirl]

Yes its flat. Yes we have tons of wind. No I still can't see the ocean. No I don't have a sailboat but hope to change that soon. What am I doing in Kansas you ask? I ask myself the same question every single day so I'll let you know when I figure it out lol. I grew up in San Diego and always wanted to sail but my family never really had the means to do it so i was just as happy watching. When I was 17 I joined the army and would you believe my first tour of duty was Hawaii? Well as anyone in the military can tell you, you can't afford a sailboat but I didn't let that stop me from enjoying the killer dive locations on the island and used to walk thru the marinas checking out the beautiful sailboats telling myself that one day I would own one, live on it and sail where ever I pleased as I love traveling to far away places to explore ever nook and cranny of a new area as well as its culture. Well in short after a couple tours and getting caught up in life, (not living) I ended up here staring out my window watching the snow drifts build up but in truth I was envisioning myself in some far away place jumping off my boat to dive some new area and as I'm diving I'm feeling pity for all the poor poeple staring out their window and the snow drifts building up Problem is I really don't know the first thing about a sailboat seeing all my boats I've owned were motorboats so it was off to google and I ended up here reading and reading and reading. I've learned a ton as this site is packed with the knowledge of a Tome and as of yet I only have one question so far I can't find an answer for but I'm sure someone has the answer for it and it will be asked in the correct area.
My plan so far is this (tell me what you think): Head to San Diego this summer and take a 3-7 day liveaboard sailing course and get my ASA certs and if I find I truly enjoy sailing then my first boat will probably be a MacGregor 26 because it is trailerable, (and that is a must for were I live currently Topeka,KS) inexpensive brand new and seems like it will be a well suited boat for the lakes I have avalible to me and then practice practice pratice. that as far as I've gotten but the end result I'd like to be a liveaboard home port San Diego to learn to ocean side to sailing and if money allows go wherever for however long I want till I see a new place of interest. Well that's it for now, (what do you mean that's it? You just wrote a book) and I hope one day I can be as big a help to others as you all have been to me so far. Thanks in advance^^

[GordMay]

Greetings and welcome aboard the CF, Skwhirl.

It sounds, to me, like you've outlined a sound plan for getting into sailing, then cruising.

[Pappy Chris]

I am about an hour + southeast of you (south of Ottawa KS). I've sailed Perry, Pomona and Melvern Lakes here for several years. Some of the hardest sailing I've done is right here in Kansas. It has been said (by some that sail here) that if you can sail here you can sail anywhere. It's work for sure. I can't remember to many leisurely sails I've taken and not many over nights on the lake that did not end up in a storm. Very changable. It is quite a place.
I am moving to Corpus Christi in the next couple of months (pending sale of the house). My wife is already moved and working 2 weeks ago. She's waiting on me to arrive with our boats.
Yesterday she was in Joe's Crabshack overlooking the city marina and the bay texting me telling me about the sailboats on the bay. I'm certain her intention was to make me jealous.... it worked. Meanwhile I sit here in this freezer with fog so dense I can't see my shop or any of the boats parked down there or even the night lights. Can't wait to sail year 'round.
Good luck with your plan. I never plan anything that well.
Chris
===

[hugosalt]

Welcome aboard...Plenty of wind...no water...sound like a
prairie wagon may be in order!
I grew up in similar situation in NYC, joined the Navy when I was 17 and first sailed on a special services sailboat in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba...Took another 10 years to really know how to sail and
own my first boat...
Keep the objective in mind, make your plan(you have a good start) change said plan when needed and follow through. good luck!

[hugosalt]

that is a wind wagon...basically a prairie wagon with sails...really look it up!

[Stephen Hicks]

Your plan to go to San Diego seems solid one thing you might want to look into is purchasing a used centerboard boat so you can trailor it there are a number of brands beside the McGregor. Catalina and Tanzer anr two other choices you may want to consider. By purchasing a used boat you will generaly have a lot more gear on board as well as saving a far amount of cash to use for the next step. Good luck and enjoy the journey. Steve Hicks

[Islandmike]

We were in Olathe KS when we decided to move back to the coast and begin our quest. I loved KS, it was great for my kids, two are Jayhawkers, but wanted to move back to the water, the sea...Which we did, purchased a sailboat, worked on it for a couple of years then quit work, sold our house and sailed South....At this point, living the dream.... Welcome to the board and good luck on our quest, I think you will love the forum as we have...

[Stephen Hicks]

Hi Mike thank you for the welcome I see you are in Jacksonville. We plan to move our boat there or Brunswick Ga. can you make any recommendations?

[SkiprJohn]

Aloha and welcome aboard!
My first duty station was a Destroyer out of Pearl Harbor. Different service but same island.
Thanks for serving.
Too bad you didn't take some of the MWR sail courses while you were on Oahu but you got to see a lot of underwater stuff anyway. I had some great dives on Oahu too and it was a lot of fun.
regards,