# Hello!



## Christopher (Feb 1, 2014)

Hi, my name is Christopher. I came across this forum as I have been reading up on sailing for the last couple of months. For someone who has yet to sail my own boat, I have to say..I'm already hooked! A friend bought me the book, "Sailing for Dummies, lol! I've never read one of those books, but it does seem to be rather informative. A bit surprised. I'm as green as they come. I'm sure I can gain tons of knowledge from the people who are out on the water, experiencing a genuine sense of freedom!

So here is what I want to do...I'm looking to move down to the FL panhandle. I have spent so much time there since I was a kid, I've lived in Pensacola, and there is no other place I feel so at calm than beside the Gulf of Mexico. I've been talking to people who have sailed around the gulf, visited many island nations, and countries via sailboat. I want to find a good boat that I can both learn to sail the gulf, and live aboard. Everyone I've talked with about this has suggested I need around a 30'-35' boat to be comfortable living on, and can sail on my own once I get familiar with handling the boat. I hope to interact with you all, and get some good advice on where to start. I understand this is not easy, and sailing open water is nothing to take lightly. I've done a lot of sport fishing off the gulf coast, and I have seen conditions can get ugly very, very quickly. That being said, this is something I feel I need to do for myself, and can get me back on the water I love so much! So, hello everyone! I'm glad to be a part of your community!


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## bljones (Oct 13, 2008)

Welcome aboard. Nice intro. I think you'll like this place.


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## Lake Superior Sailor (Aug 23, 2011)

Good to hear from you! I'm sure you will find sailnet invaluable,and some of the members too! Welcome...Dale


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## Christopher (Feb 1, 2014)

Thank you both for the welcome. I've already met a few characters in the chat room. I believe I've found the right place!


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## CatMan22 (Apr 16, 2012)

Welcome to sailnet, this is a great place to gain information and get questions answered from a lot of helpful people. One of the valuable things here is access to all the past threads, just about every question I've ever had has been asked somewhere here.


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