# Anyone out there enjoy Dinghy sailing?



## merlin2375 (Jul 12, 2007)

Most of you guys have fairly large boats, I was wondering if any of you enjoy dinghy sailing. I have been learning on a lot of dinghys (15', centerboard or keel) and I don't really enjoy it that much. I am a full sized adult and I find it a pain to move around. I have a much more enjoyable time on a larger boat where I won't be tipping it over with just my body weight.

So my questions are...
Do you enjoy dinghy sailing at all?
Did you learn on a dinghy?
If you learned on one but no longer sail dinghys, are you glad those days are behind you


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## erps (Aug 2, 2006)

We have a little Minto sailing dinghy that we take with us each summer on our vacation. I sail the dinghy more than I sail the big boat. The problem I run into is that the dog always wants to go too, and that doesn't leave much room for the beer cooler.


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## timebandit (Sep 18, 2002)

NO
NO
+more char


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## bobmcgov (Jul 19, 2007)

erps said:


> The problem I run into is that the dog always wants to go too, and that doesn't leave much room for the beer cooler.


These are the decisions all great Admirals struggle with. Dog... or beer? (Lord Nelson famously opted for "a hip flask and smallish dog" -- it's why he won at Abukir Bay, some historians think.)

Yeah, we dinghy sail. You are right, it is physical and uncomfortable and rife with crowded moments. Wouldn't trade it for anything. My girlfriend finds the Buccaneer too demanding, agility-wise. She enjoys it but bruises easily.


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## Lion35 (Sep 28, 2007)

I grew up dingy sailing and still enjoy it. I don't get to do it as often as I would like but when I do I love it. I have a Laser that's in need of work and it never gets the attention away from the big boat.


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## nolatom (Jun 29, 2005)

Yes, yes, and no, respectively.

The best racing sailors tend to come out of dinghys rather from heavier boats. It's fun, but is it more difficult as you get older? Yup. Your weight is still equal to the boat's weight (or worse), and it's slower for you to move it around, which latter is critical to boat balance.

Lasers are the bomb. But as I approach 60, I light that fuse less often ;-)

I'm thinking skiing is similar. At 20, you ski the double-diamonds and hit every mogul. At 50, you are satisfied with the single diamonds (steep, but not lumpy). At 60, you cut a few turns, and are happy to arrive back at the base lift.


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## sailingdog (Mar 19, 2006)

Dinghy sailing is great for fine tuning your skills...but dinghies are fairly limited in what you can do in them... can't really overnight in them, can't anchor most of them... etc....so it is back to the bigger boats for most of us.


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## Plumper (Nov 21, 2007)

I learned on 505s, Kolibris, wayfarers and Lasers. I have a Minto as well and I love sailing around the anchorages.

I still sail dinghies and still love it. 

I firmly believe that the fun in boats is inversely proportional to size. Once I get tired of cruising I will buy another small trailerable dinghy or keel boat.


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## merlin2375 (Jul 12, 2007)

Thanks guys for the responses, just trying to get a feel for others opinions. I haven't yet sailed a laser but seems like I would enjoy it more if I was going to get wet anyways. 

Oh, and don't get me wrong, I'll do anything to be out on the water


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## poltergeist (Oct 26, 2006)

*Dinghies*

My Flying Scot is not what most people would consider a dinghy, but it's certainly one of the smallest and least complicated boats represented here on Sailnet ... and that's exactly why I chose it. I learned on Rhodes 19's, so the size and performance feel very comfortable to me.

It's big enough that I won't capsize it by moving around, and the cockpit is huge, so the typical dinghy complaints of banged shins and heads are kept to a minimum. I can rig and splash it off the trailer in 15 minutes and do what I want to do ... get out on the water by myself or with two or three friends with minimum fuss. I'm also shopping for a cheap used Laser to knock around on.

It would be nice to have a boat I could occasionally sleep aboard, I guess, but that usually implies a head, electronics, through-hulls, motors, dockage, and the myriad other complexities that most readers here put up with as a matter of course. It's just no for me.

Kurt


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## merlin2375 (Jul 12, 2007)

I have been out on a Rhodes 19 a couple of time, nice boat! When I say dinghy I really mean smaller boats (even those with a keel) where the human being is a giant ballast


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## TSOJOURNER (Dec 16, 1999)

I learned on a dinghy - first a hand made wooden no-name beast, then a sunfish, then a 14 foot O'day Javelin. Fun to sail, tough to live aboard! As far as age limiting your enjoyment of small boats, since I am no longer approaching but am retreating from 60 (and 65,too!) I can no longer imagine spending a lot of time in or on anything under 24 feet! I will admit that the lack of trailerability (is that a word?) is a disadvantage of my present 37 foot 20,000 pound tub, but I am not in any hurry anymore so I can go wherever the water connects to the Mississippi. With a trailerable, I can get to the North Channel in a couple days, by water it takes a couple weeks! But the joy of a cruise is not entirely in the destination. Much of the pleasure comes from getting there.


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## sailingdog (Mar 19, 2006)

There are a lot of smaller pocket cruisers, like the Compacs and such that would allow you to trailer them, yet still have the capability to overnight on them.


poltergeist said:


> My Flying Scot is not what most people would consider a dinghy, but it's certainly one of the smallest and least complicated boats represented here on Sailnet ... and that's exactly why I chose it. I learned on Rhodes 19's, so the size and performance feel very comfortable to me.
> 
> It's big enough that I won't capsize it by moving around, and the cockpit is huge, so the typical dinghy complaints of banged shins and heads are kept to a minimum. I can rig and splash it off the trailer in 15 minutes and do what I want to do ... get out on the water by myself or with two or three friends with minimum fuss. I'm also shopping for a cheap used Laser to knock around on.
> 
> ...


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## nolatom (Jun 29, 2005)

sailingdog said:


> There are a lot of smaller pocket cruisers, like the Compacs and such that would allow you to trailer them, yet still have the capability to overnight on them.


Sure, but they're not dinghys, nor is the Flying Scot. Think 15 feet, or say 250 pounds, and under, centerboard or daggerboard, one or two crew, where crew weight placement and body english is crucial to propulsion. That's a dinghy. Learn in one, and you'll never forget those lessons, no matter how big a boat you sail afterwards.

The converse is not necessarily true.


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## swadiver (Jan 17, 2007)

I learned on a Lido 14, three years ago. Moved to a 30' Shields Keel Boat, then to a 42' Coastal cruiser. I then boat my own 30' boat a year ago. I did not want to start on a dinghy sailer but that is what the school offered. After the classes I really fell in love with them. For the last 3 months on the Lido's I was single handling and had a blast. In my opinion you get a better feel for sailing with them, especially when just starting out and they are so responsive. Frankly, I miss the Lido 14' and have thought about buying a used one just to play with.


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## sailingdog (Mar 19, 2006)

Nolatom-

Never said the Compacs were dinghies...said they were pocket cruisers. I've sailed sailfish, sunfish, snarks, lasers, hobie cats (technically not a dinghy), 470s and a few others. Hoping to get a chance to go out on a Moth Foiler this summer.


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## kwaltersmi (Aug 14, 2006)

I learned on a Laser by trial and error...mostly error. The Laser is still in the family and I get out on it a couple of times per year. It's a fast, wet, fun boat. However, the things I enjoy most about sailing (family time, slow pace, marina life, living aboard, etc.) are all better on a bigger boat.


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## chucklesR (Sep 17, 2007)

I built a custom v bottom 10 ft sailing dinghy just so I could sail dinghy's.
Below is a picture of it after the first coat of primer -for some reason I can't find any of the many pic's I took after it was done. I use a SideWinder sail for it on a 14 foot mast that flexes in puffs. It's been done for three years and sailed only one time. With me and a buddy in it we planed across the creek - scared the crap out of both of us.

I'm taking lessons on a 420 this summer just so I can learn to use it. It's too damn pretty (now) to leave it sitting in the front yard.


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## capt.stu (Oct 5, 2004)

*to dinghy or not*

I learned on Thistles and now race a Flying Scot. I feel that learning to sail by racing small boats gets you up the learning curve faster as far as boat handling and sail trim go. That comes in handy when cruising beam on beam with another catalina on the bay.
Stu


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## nolatom (Jun 29, 2005)

capt.stu said:


> I learned on Thistles and now race a Flying Scot. I feel that learning to sail by racing small boats gets you up the learning curve faster as far as boat handling and sail trim go. That comes in handy when cruising beam on beam with another catalina on the bay.
> Stu


That's my sentiment. Small-boat sailors can adapt to big boats much easier than big-boat sailors can to dinghys...


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## chucklesR (Sep 17, 2007)

nolatom said:


> That's my sentiment. Small-boat sailors can adapt to big boats much easier than big-boat sailors can to dinghys...


That is precisely why I'm taking lessons - It's backasswards because I already have the big boat - but I'm hoping to pick up more of a feel for the boat. Then again - there is not much feel on my boat anyway.


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## Lion35 (Sep 28, 2007)

> I miss the Lido 14' and have thought about buying a used one just to play with.


My brother has a Lido, they're really fun boats and pretty quick too.


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## bubb2 (Nov 9, 2002)

My "play boat" is 1973 15 foot Chrysler Mutineer. Lots of fun. I got on a Laser 2 years ago. It just reminded me that I don't fold like I use to.


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## maellis (Oct 27, 2006)

The nice thing about boats is there is a boat suited for just about every purpose and personality. If a boat serves your purpose and you like it, then by my definition it is a good boat. Although there are many different types of boats placed in the dinghy category, my preference is a sailing dinghy such as the Minto. For one, because I make the Minto, but more significantly I have had one for 28 years and in between big boats, I was never "boatless" because I would never consider letting go of my Minto. Besides being a great little rowboat, it also is the answer to the question I invariably ask myself once the anchor is set or the Cape Dory is tied to the dock, "what do I do now?" I go sailing. Even if there is little wind there is enough to make sailing the Minto fun. When the wind picks up it becomes exciting. Not "Laser" exciting, but exciting enough to satisfy my sailing hunger even if we had motored all the way from our last destination. In the NW our sailboats function as motor boats on more summer days than anyone wants to admit.


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## Maine Sail (Jan 6, 2003)

*I really..*

I really improved my sailing as a kid sailing on my Laser (hull #14). I've kicked myself in the ass every day since I sold it to my neighbor. I used to love to make it hummmmm and it made this really cool noise when planing that is etched into my memories of being a child!!

I've tried about ten times, un-successfully, to buy it back. He's given me right of first refusal for the day when he eventually swallows the anchor. I sailed that boat far and wide for years when not sailing my parents big boats. I once sailed it, at the age of twelve, from North Hampton NH to the Nubble Light North of York Harbor, ME and back with only a thermos of water and a sandwich. My mom was PISSED OFF when I got home..... I also had a Dyer sailing dinghy but I long to get hull #14 of the Laser back in my possession most..

I think it is very important to the understanding of sailing to sail small boats....

I love sailing dinghy's!!

This is an early photo of me, at about 10, bringing our Rhodes 19 into the mooring after a race! As you can see I also learned the fine art of varnish at a young age too.........


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## rennisaint (Oct 25, 2007)

I learned on a sunfish, raced lasers, then MC's, still have one, doesn't get used too much, but it's fun.


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## lharmon (Jul 26, 2005)

Our tender is a dyer dink. I used to love to sail it until I snapped the mast. Once I get the new lower section I'm sure the love affair will start up again. I wish the mast parts were easier to stow on the biger boat. The dink gives us the ability to play once we are anchored and it will be a wonderful platform for our daughters to learn the basics.


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## merlin2375 (Jul 12, 2007)

It sounds like many who love the dingy sailing were those who grew up doing it  I wish that I had but better late than never


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## TSOJOURNER (Dec 16, 1999)

Just give me the chance! It hard to credit that any yachtie doesn't enjoy the occasional freedom and blast of a dinghy. Or that you ever get the most from sailing without.


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## OasisII (Dec 25, 2007)

*I have a Sumner 8 foot sailing dinghy*

I bought a Sumner 8 foot sailing dinghy last summer. Thought it would be fun to sail around the mooring field on lazy days when we are just hanging out. However, my kids prefer to play on the motorized RIB. Gonna sell it this spring.

Mike
Pearson 323


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## freddy4888 (Nov 16, 2006)

I had a Rhodes Bantam when I was a kid. I used to sail it all around Erie bay. What a great way for a kid to spend summers, I loved it when it would get up on a plane and I would blast pass larger cruising boats. I wish I could get another small sailing dinghy but at 53 and 60lbs overweight I don't think I would be agile enough to handle it.


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## CaptKermie (Nov 24, 2006)

Although I first learned on a 26' Thunderbird I spent several summers thereafter on a 15' Venture catamaran, which I think qualifies as a dinghy -250#, human ballast, 15'LOA. Even thought it was a fast wild ride it was also a wet ride, my memories were of wearing a wet suit and always being wet. If I was on a warm lake/climate I think a Flying Scot or something similar (Bombardier 16) would be a nice choice for quick daysailing. For now I'll stick with my bigger dry ride.


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## Paysay (Apr 4, 2007)

I learned to sail on an old sunfish before I was a teenager. I remember having the time of my life sailing all over Casco Bay on that Sunfish. Today my boat is a Pearson 36-2, Selah. I love it! It's a great but, but it's not the boat my grandkids are going to learn to sail on. This past fall I was given a Laser. I'm looking forward to trying it out as soon as the water gets a little warner. It'll be interesting to see if I can bend and move around fast enough these 50 years later to keep a Laser on it's feet. I have no delusions of racing in a Laser. Now my grandson is 11 and about 100#. He has the agility, but he'll have to climb up some more of the learning curve before he's ready to take the Laser across Casco Bay. The same friend who gave me the Laser gave me the rig for a Sunfish. I'm going to try fitting this rig to the Laser. Maybe Jake can learn on a Laser with a Sunfish Rig. We'll see. I'm looking forward to strapping the Laser to the foredeck of Selah and taking it along on a weekend cruise. The best of both worlds. BTW, I'll be naming the dingy and the Laser this spring: Jot and Title.


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## bobmcgov (Jul 19, 2007)

Paysay: even better than trying to match a gaff rigged Sunny sail to the Laser, you might look for a used Laser Radial rig. It's matched to that hull but cut substantially smaller. Designed for women, kids, and skinny dudes like me.

The cold water thing really throws, well, cold water on dinghy sailing around here. Most of our lakes spend six months in solid form; even in July, they are bluddy COLD. For spray and fear of capsize, it's all hands to the wetsuits on our Buccaneer18. That gets hot in the sun, and it's uncomfortable for long days. A major reason we got the SJ21. The friend who sold me the Bucc got a Laser for easier singlehanding; he sailed it three times last summer, then declared it too cold. Most of the windsurfers around here wear drysuits with hoods.


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## truewind (May 17, 2007)

OasisII said:


> I bought a Sumner 8 foot sailing dinghy last summer. Thought it would be fun to sail around the mooring field on lazy days when we are just hanging out. However, my kids prefer to play on the motorized RIB. Gonna sell it this spring.
> 
> Mike
> Pearson 323


Mike
Did you ever sell the Sumner 8 ft dinghy? I am interested in getting a hold of a sail and other parts for my Sumner 8 footer.

Fred - Truewind


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## runner (Aug 25, 2008)

I hope being 50 and over weight doesn't disqualify ya from sailing in a small boat! I am about to find out!


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## lakesnbays (Oct 15, 2008)

*American 14.6*

I'm surprised no one has mentioned the American Sail line of dingys.....just bought a 14.6 last month; having a blast learning....sailed a bunch of sunfish and phantoms when I was younger, but love the higher position of the boom on the American...


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## Delirious (Dec 16, 2001)

Flying Scots and Thistles. The Thistle is pure, distilled sailing.


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## tenuki (Feb 11, 2007)

yes
yes (and hobies)
no, although we'll see when I start sailing in the dink with my son to teach him to sail next summer.


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## TSOJOURNER (Dec 16, 1999)

The first boat I sailed on was a Lido 14. Shortly there after a Hobie 16 and Shields 30 I currently sail a Morgan 41 IO and a Catalina Morgan 50. I enjoy the larger boats every time I'm on them,with all their eminities but I always yern for the simple afternoon outings on the smaller day sailers.


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## Classic30 (Aug 29, 2007)

Yes
Yes - first in a Sabot and last in Impulse
Yes - although some here might consider that I still sail a dinghy..

Cameron


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## lasbrisas (Apr 21, 2010)

*searching for a sumner*

i just saw that you purchased a sumner
i am looking for that boat but never been
able to find one can you help me find one
of those 8 or 9 feet sumner sailing boat
thank you


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## HatterasJack (Mar 31, 2004)

Sail my Cape Dory 10 all the time! Nice to just gunk hole with a small craft to visit the landlubers! Jack


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## SoftJazz (Aug 31, 2009)

Yes, no & don't know. 

I learned to sail from a school that had a collection of POS boats, then went to a Beneteau 36.7 to race, now moving to a C&C 33 to race. Last fall I tried frostbiting in dinghies, but found that I need some time alone not racing to get the hang of these things. I think I'd actually like just cruising around in one as opposed to racing. They are fun, but I'm not too secure with them yet. Sort of afraid, really, but getting out & learning will help me overcome that.


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## Barquito (Dec 5, 2007)

"I want to sail a freak'n Laser" (said like Mini-Me)


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## 14432 (Oct 24, 2006)

Yes, Yes & Yes

Been sailing a Lightning for about 30 years. Have raced Lightnings & Sunfish around the Southeast but do relatively little racing these days. Have plenty of frineds with bigger boats who always are looking for crew and someone to help the with electrical, plumbing and other problems that I love to work on but don't care to "own"  - maybe in a few years.

I enjoy cruising but camping & sailing together is pretty nice as well.


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