# Sailor soon to be...



## Maaax (Sep 22, 2021)

Hello. I am 67 and have never sailed a boat before. My wife agrees that I need to take sailing lessons soon. We live close to Morro Bay California and they have an active sailing club. I will be posting questions in the dinghy section soon because, don't laugh, my neighbor just gave me my first sailing boat! It is an 8' Flipper from the 1960's. Should be fun. Gary


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## capta (Jun 27, 2011)

Hello, and welcome. I highly recommend a good wet suit if sailing a dinghy in cold water, both for warmth and flotation, should you go in the water.


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## Jeff_H (Feb 26, 2000)

Welcome to SailNet.

The Flipper was a surprising good little boat. They were a small version of the Kite, and were meant to be a 1960's version of kid's modern single-handed trainer. They have enough sail area to be mildly entertaining without being hyper athletic boats to sail. They had full floatation and were self rescuing (which in the vernacular of the 1960's, meant that they could be righted if they capsized and sailed off without needing a tow to the beach to drain them.

Morro Bay is a lovely spot.

Jeff


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## Arcb (Aug 13, 2016)

Nothing wrong with an 8 ft boat, I have had a couple. Liked them because they were easy to car top or toss into the back if a Pickup or carry on a larger boat.

I even loaded mine up with camping gear and did multi day cruises in the local Islands.

Enjoy.


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## Annapolitan (Feb 22, 2021)

Good luck in and enjoy your new endeavor from another new member. Sailing lessons is a great idea. Worked well for me.

Cheers,

Annapolitan


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## Don L (Aug 8, 2008)

Hey just have fun


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## Minnewaska (Feb 21, 2010)

Welcome aboard. Take lessons and have a great time!!

How well an 8ft boat suits you will be individual. This old college linebacker, with bad knees, would struggle to fit folded up comfortably for very long. Two people would be completely out of the question, for me personally. It may depend on how you plan to take lessons. You may take lessons in the instructor's boat.


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## overbored (Oct 8, 2010)

here is a Flipper with a 10 year old sailing. you are not going to fit two adults in it to learn to sail. I sailed Flippers and Kites when i was in high school. worked for the dealer. best to take a lessons in another small boat that will fit two adults , you will learn faster. still can sail the Flipper singled handed to practice what you learn in a lesson. Morro bay has a rough coast line so find a beach area to practice you don't want to get blown on the the rocks that line the bay. years ago there was a pair that had a beach where they launched the small hand carry boats but no lunch ramp as i remember .


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## 22catcapri (Feb 21, 2017)

Maaax said:


> Hello. I am 67 and have never sailed a boat before. My wife agrees that I need to take sailing lessons soon. We live close to Morro Bay California and they have an active sailing club. I will be posting questions in the dinghy section soon because, don't laugh, my neighbor just gave me my first sailing boat! It is an 8' Flipper from the 1960's. Should be fun. Gary


Welcome to sailing! My wife and I are both 67. When we were in our twenties/thirties we sailed a small 12' sloop and a Force Five. IMO, both required a fair amount of agility and limberness. When we retired a few years ago, we decided to give sailing another go. Our main concern was our physical ability. With that in mind, we decided to get a larger sloop to see if sailing was going to be awesome once again. Turns out we are loving it. BUT, the boom is high enough to prevent extreme bending, and we have enough boat to stay dry, unlike the old days. And, capsizing and hauling oneself out of the water is far-fetched, (fingers crossed). So, yes to lessons, wet/dry suit, and start getting that neck and back limber!


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