I currently don't, but am thinking of going the same route you have, our local club has lessons and a couple of boats that can be used for free once you have your training. Would love to retire to a boat, but I haven't sailed in 25 years and then nothing much bigger than 4 meters. Gonna try and get some time in on a friends boat and some lessons this summer.

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Jim

**Note above poster works for a retailer selling bikes and related gear*

Yep...hole in the water into which we throw money. Took off for 6 mos on our sailboat with the family and explored Mexico / Sea of Cortez. Sailed to Hawaii...We do about 20 trip/yr on our boat to the local islands and spend weekends on boat projects. I actually really enjoy working on the boat and fixing stuff. I get grumpy when I have to pay someone else to fix things.

Great family hobby. We have a 46' Tayana Pilothouse - more of a world cruiser than racer...

No, but now I have Christopher Cross singing stuck in my head.

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The secret of a long life is you try not to shorten it.
-Nobody

Nice, the club here has the same deal with using their boats for free. If you're like me, you'll still be looking at buying something verrrrry quickly after you finish those basic courses. If it ends up being your thing, it can be quite addicting.

I'm planning to sail across Lake Michigan this summer. I'll be starting in Milwaukee, WI and not completely sure where in Michigan I'll go yet.

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my strava

Looks like a great boat! Once I've got enough experience and money, being able to cruise the world on something like that sounds really tempting.

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my strava

You could do a hell of a cruise on a Pearson 28 - out of the great lakes down to the Caribbean. Always amazed me the boats we'd see out cruising. Your boat may be a bit small if it's more that 2 people but it's a strong, good sailing boat and you don't need much more unless you're planning major crossings. We had an old Columbia 29 that was outfitted well for cruising and we sold it for $6,000 to a guy who took off to Panama from SoCal. Still out cruising as far as I know.

Yep that's my plan, first going to get some cruising experience this summer around Lake Michigan. Next stop would probably be the Caribbean, hopefully sometime next year. Being 31 and single, now I just need to find a lady crazy enough to come with me.

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my strava

Well, let's stick with the boat discussion. The crazy lady discussion may send this thread seriously off track ; )

My wife loves sailing/cruising, so do both of my daughters. They're on the boat as much as I am either hanging out or doing the trips out to the local islands. I'll retire in about two years and we'll take off again, this time on an open-ended cruise. Both my daughters will be in college then (youngest is a Junior in HS) and they'll join us when they can, might even delay college for a year and join us for a bit. Can't wait to get back out exploring.

I'll warn you, it's addictive to get off the beaten path on a boat for months at a time. You can also do it very cheaply. When we were in Mexico there just wasn't much to spend money on as we stayed in isolated coves and out of the marinas.

2 happiest days or a sailors life are the day they buy the boat and the day they sell it.......

Used to have a 15' Snipe years ago. Started looking again at used boats last fall and checked out slip fees (about the same here as what yours are). I live 15 miles from Lake Michigan and am leaning towards a day sailer that I can trailer. Planning to crew this spring to get my feet wet again and some first hand experience on various boats.

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Don't piss down my back and tell me it's raining

Last Sunday I completed my first course, Basic Sailing, through the City of Ventura's Parks & Rec at the Leo Robbins Sailing Center. Looking forward to going all the way through, completing ASA 101 and beyond. I would like a boat, but it's a lifestyle and I'm not ready for it. I'm seeing that the better way right now is to take it slow, do the Wet Wednesday races out of Ventura Harbor starting in April (looking forward to that!), and then join a club, where I'll be able to use their boats.

Putting the logical part of my thought aside ... fuck, I'm always browsing Craigslist for sailboats. Congrats on the purchase. Enjoy. I'm jealous. Dreams of setting out to the islands with a couple tanks, some charcoal, nice wine, and great weather! It's so freakin close!

Fuck the money.

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Gnothi Seauton.

I sail a 19’ daysailer (Flying Scot) that my parents bought in 1975, on Lake Michigan. It’s still going strong. My parents had a bigger boat (Tartan 10) for about 17 years; they offered it up when they got up in years and the boat was a bit too much to deal with. But, it was more boat and $$ than my own marriage would bear, so I took over the Flying Scot instead. Not sure even this makes sense financially, but it is important for my mental health.

Even though it’s small, I would like to try some small scale overnight trips at some point. In my crazier moments I imagine crossing the lake in her, but then I remember that I want to stay married, and the urge goes away.

some on this thread are making it seem like a whole lot of fun. getting images of sunshine, open water, interesting new places.......and making that thing go somewhere other than the direction the wind is blowing always seems amazing

then i remember reading that you can get the same affect as owning a boat by standing in a cold shower and ripping up money

My Dad has been a sailor his whole life. Plenty of Wednesday night racing and multiple Transpacs. He spent 10 years cruising around the world and the racing did come in handy even on a boat built for cruising. He would sail into a port as another boat was leaving. Spend a week in the port. Spend a week in passage to next port. Spend a week in that port and the other boat would finally arrive. And there was the time he had to outrun pirates in the Gulf of Aden.

Very Nice!

Post a TR w pics some time of one of your cruises--would love to see that

/r

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Steve

Last tour in Afghan I ate breakfast each morning with this CIA guy who turned me on to SV Delos videos on YouTube. Very entertaining. I will never get a boat or sail like that but it sure is neat to day dream about. Check out SV Delos on Uboob

/r

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Steve

Here's the craziest story I've ever heard about running into pirates. Definitely worth a watch.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y_3j3aLtiaU

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my strava

I've met Cap't Fatty at a cruising boat show and read his books (entertaining to say the least). If I remember correctly, this story does not end well, the German is eventually beheaded by the pirates.

I've owned a half-dozen or more sailboats, everything from a Lazer on the small side up to a 1948 mahogany Luders 16 ( https://www.google.com/...biw=1747&bih=943 ) .

My favorite boats were the racing boats like the Buccaneer, Flying Scot and Flying Dutchman. Dingys are much less expensive than keel boats, just keep them on a trailer or lift.

But, any sailboat can be expensive, especially if you race and have to have really good equipment, fresh sails, a vehicle to pull the boat and travel costs. Getting a $4K boat is just.the.beginning.of.the.expenses.

The really nice thing about sailboats is there are so many avenues for folks to discover. Some, like me, like day racing (buoy racing). Others, long-distance or ocean racing. Or cruising. Or day sailing. Or boat building, which is another who rabbit hole to go down. I've also built a couple of wooden boats and restored both wood and fiberglass boats.

The funny part of the sport was I got really good at racing, so showed up at most regattas with a target on my back. With triathlon, I'm a nobody. It is kinda nice to race anonymously (which is my way of saying I'm a MOP racer).

Good luck!