# Those of us who are above, lets say, 60 please muster up.



## Boasun (Feb 10, 2007)

Of course if you are doubled nickeled we won't mind either.

I met my Seven Zero on Boxing day of 2010. Always made my lively hood from the sea. Now semi-retired and spend half a month as a maritime instructor.

I don't want this to be the "Old Fogey's site. Mainly because my mind set is permanently on Adventuresome. Anyway I like to think so. Or is it that I've always lived that way and know no other...

So how many here are graying some what and looking for what is over the horizon?


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## Jeff_H (Feb 26, 2000)

I just hit the big 60 earlier this year. My knees aren't what they were but otherwise I am not slowing down much. And yes I am definitely graying some but still looking for what is over the horizon (in a good way). 

And for what it is worth, I come here to help those with fewer gray hair and wrinkles get into and enjoy this sport which has so enriched my life rather than tell war stories to us old guys. 

Jeff


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## jackdale (Dec 1, 2008)

63

But I am not aging; I am maturing, like a fine red wine. Lay me down in a cool, dark place, turn me every 3 months and keep my cork wet.


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## capecodda (Oct 6, 2009)

*double nickels*

Double nickel + 1.5

Just shy of the club (although I sensed there might be "junior" membership allowed from Boasun's post). I'm on my 5th last boat on this many decade voyage. Yup, this is the one, I'm done, I swear! We aren't getting older, just smart enough to know we really don't know what we are doing


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## Faster (Sep 13, 2005)

The "sailing while older' thread has sure brought out the senior citizens!

I'm not far off, but not there yet.. I do have to say that hearing of all stories lately I'm inspired to keep plugging away. We do have friends approaching 70, and another into his 80s still sailing, often short/singlehanded.

Unlike not so many years ago, "70" doesn't seem so far away


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## rikhall (Feb 7, 2008)

I'll be sixty-five this coming April. Knees are what knees are usually like after playing goal in ice hockey for 40 years, but there are lots of parts that still work pretty well.

Linda and I both love the water, love our sailboat and look forward (God willing) to many more adventures on the water.










Psalm 107: 23-30

Rik


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## wayne56 (Mar 28, 2009)

Still a short few years shy of 60; but hoping to become one of those weatherbeaten 75 year old sailor guys. Last spring, anchored in a cove in the Spanish Virgins, we met a couple who were on their 13th year of a world cruise; having launched themselves onto the oceans after age 65 retirement. Pretty inspiring for me (if not my spouse!).

My plan right now...stay fit for sailing, and sail to stay fit.


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## CanadianDave (Jul 17, 2010)

while I'm still only in my early 40's.

i was outside today taking down the last of my 100 sets of Christmas lights and decorations, I sure as heck feel like I'm 60


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## sailingdog (Mar 19, 2006)

I'm surprised SWAY and DENBY haven't posted here yet... or Fuzzy...


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## BudgieSmugglers (Jan 10, 2011)

for those still in their twenties sneaking a peak, thinking "thank god, i`m not replying to this post"......IT WO`NT BE LONG MATE....the older one gets, the more one realises how quick the years go by... make the very best of your life..... fill it with challenges, dreams, love & thoughtfulness....which in turn will give you adventures & fullfilment in life...best advice....keep the challenges coming whatever your age. at least then you can look back without regrets & look forward to more adventures.


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## jjablonowski (Aug 13, 2007)

*Me, too, and I take advice from magazines*

One of My favorite _Sail_ articles: Geezer Think Smart


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## jrd22 (Nov 14, 2000)

Geez, I really feel sorry for all you old geezers that are over 60! 60, I can't imagine what that must be like, I mean that's like older than dirt, good thing I won't be hittin that for another, uh, hmmm, er, ....week )


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## waterdog52 (Oct 10, 2010)

58.5 years.....like most guys who work for their pay. Knees well worn. Hands have very little feeling. Ticker good. Head full of weighted opinions.


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## bljones (Oct 13, 2008)

Would all of you please shut off your damn turn signal!?!


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## Driftsailing (Nov 22, 2008)

I turn 65 in April, retiring this year. Now get out of my way.


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## Boasun (Feb 10, 2007)

There's a turn signal??

We are not over the hill.... What hill... I don't remember any dag nabit hill...


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## omaho5 (Jun 5, 2008)

Wise words, BudgieSmuglers. Wise, indeed.


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## Izzy1414 (Apr 14, 2007)

sailingdog said:


> I'm surprised SWAY and DENBY haven't posted here yet... or Fuzzy...


Fuzzy, yeah ... Denby, maybe ... but Sway will have to get old enough to forget why he doesn't post here anymore. Besides, he's my age (far too young to post on this thread  ). We've got a long ways to go before we get that forgetful .... ..... uhm .... ..... What was my point? ..... nevermind .....


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## Izzy1414 (Apr 14, 2007)

bljones said:


> Would all of you please shut off your damn turn signal!?!


Quit yer tailgatin', whippersnapper!


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## jrd22 (Nov 14, 2000)

bljones said:


> Would all of you please shut off your damn turn signal!?!


Not my fault, if they'd make the damn turn signals with a louder noise so I could hear it, I'd turn it off. Till then just learn to live with it!


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## Boasun (Feb 10, 2007)

Izzy1414 you need some hot chocolate and viagra.
The Hot chocolate to help you sleep all night.
The Viagra to keep you from rolling out of bed.
  

Now who else is in our Club where it takes time to qualify?


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## johnshasteen (Aug 9, 2002)

I'm a young 68 and my bride of 46 years is a child of 65. We still sail offshore whenever possible.
Whenever I feel old, I call my old sailing friend Gene, he's going on 92. A few years ago, he decided he was too old to single hand anymore, so he donated his Bristol 29.9 to the Corpus Christi Sea Scouts, with the understanding that they will take him sailing from time to time.


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## LakeCruiser (Nov 11, 2010)

Just started my 65th year, having bought my 1st boat last year. I sail wth friends as often as possible in the BVI's, and on the lake most of the summer.. I've found that living "light" (sold the house) is liberating, and now I'm trying to figure out how to live the winter months and not have an apartment. Still not completely free.... Any ideas you can share?


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## mgmhead (Jan 14, 2007)

Count me in the senior group. I try not to act it but I'm 64. My knees feel the years but that's all, still young at heart.

I'm reminded of a Rotary Luncheon several years ago when a fellow announced he was "happy" to be celebrating his 90th birthday. He went on to say that if you wonder who would be happy to be 90 ... it's someone that was 89 yesterday. 

Love of life and sailing keep me young, well that and a good wife.

Fair winds to all...MGM


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## chrisncate (Jan 29, 2010)

Hmm, let's see here.. If you are in your 60's, that put's you at my age now (roughly speaking I guess) back in the 80's. You guys are lucky!

I remember the 80's very well and with a lot of vivid detail, but from a kids/teens perspective of course. It must have been great to be in your 30's during the 80's. I am 38 now, and I feel cheated that this is the era I get to be this age at. It's not all horrible these days of course, you get free refills on sodas now and all, but...

How was cruising back then compared to now? Which of you here we sailing in the 80's?


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## mccary (Feb 24, 2002)

62 in just sixteen days... as so many here, my knees too are somewhat lacking in their abilities. But what they lack my desire for sailing more than makes up. And there are so many gunkholes to yet explore on The Chesapeake Bay.


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## PBzeer (Nov 11, 2002)

62 this year for me.


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## 2140 (May 25, 2001)

chrisncate said:


> How was cruising back then compared to now? Which of you here we sailing in the 80's?


I started sailing in the early 70's. I used to go to the Bahamas with friends or by myself on my sailboat. Back then, you cleared into the country for $10. You could go days in the northern Abacos and see nobody. I don't know if it is still like that since it has been awhile since I was last there. Nevertheless, we always had fun.

The BVI's were a much different place back in the 80's. The Bitter End Yacht Club was the only place you could find a mooring ball and it cost $10 per night. All the BEYC had on shore was a restaurant back then.

There were no other mooring balls anywhere and few beach bars. The Soggy Dollar was not even a glint in some future owner's eye, but Foxy's was there. It was a ramshackle place (no restaurant) where you got a drink and talked to Foxy in between his singing a few bars. I alway liked to look at the pictures and notes left at Foxy's by the likes of Walter Cronkite and Jimmy Buffett.

Anchorages were always interesting. You got in early - just like you do today. However, not like today, you tried to engineer it so no one would try to anchor near you. One of the reasons there are mooring balls today can be traced back to the poor anchoring skills of so many charterers back then. It was a great source of amusement.

I'll be 65 in a few years. If my health holds out, I am going to buy a sailboat. By then it will have been thirty years since I sold my last boat. Even though I continued to sail by doing deliveries for a living and serving as a charter boat captain, sailing your own boat on your own schedule can't be beat.

Capt Tony


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## chinook88 (Nov 23, 2008)

*64 and just flew the spinnacker yesterday*

Had a great day out on Saturday sailed around 35 miles on westernport bay and myself and the son who is 17 got brave enough to fly the kite for the first time ( had the boat for 3 years)
What a rush but did get the heart rate up a bit so that bit still works

never been on a boat with the kite up before so had to try it for once

keep on sailing


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## Dirtboy (Jul 13, 2009)

I'm a 68 year old "re-entry" sailor. Got back into the sport a few years ago after 15 years without a boat. I always missed having a sailboat and thought it would be a good balance to my deep passion for motorcycling.

I was infected with the "motorcycle disease" at 14, when my friend let me ride his scooter (Zundap Bella.) Inspite of falling 10 minutes into the ride and hurting my hand, the motorcycle infection had begun and it remains today. I've been a daily rider since 1977 and have always perfered light, good handling, powerful sport bikes. I also keep a track bike for track days, it's been too long (a little over a year) since my last track day but I'm getting ready to dust off the old girl and have another romp this spring.

I also ride off-road and was busy this weekend helping with the layout of our big ride the end of this month. Saturday I rode 85 miles of rough jeep trails and today put in another 65. I ride with guys in their 30's and 40's mostly but there are other old farts like me.

I've really enjoyed having a boat again ........... even thinking about racing.

DB


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## BudgieSmugglers (Jan 10, 2011)

bljones said:


> Would all of you please shut off your damn turn signal!?!


 TURN SIGNALS !!! i remember the little arm that popped up out of the door pillar, if you were lucky, it had a light inside..... if you were luckier you did`nt have to bang on the pillar when the little arm got stuck......everyone still used real hand signals & if you forgot to bring in your arm, some truck would take it off...........signed...a one armed potential sailor


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## Omatako (Sep 14, 2003)

It was Mick Jagger who said "The older one gets, the older one wants to get". That's because the alternative is not that attractive.

I'm 62 in April, looking forward to going long term cruising when I'm 65 so it's getting closer seemingly quicker. By my reckoning, I have just 50 paydays left to retirement and sooooo much work to do on the boat.


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## sailjunkie (Nov 4, 2009)

capecodda said:


> Double nickel + 1.5
> 
> We aren't getting older, just smart enough to know we really don't know what we are doing


Another Double Nickel + 1.5 here. Very well said.


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## sailjunkie (Nov 4, 2009)

You are as young as you feel. My wife's sailing instructor last year was Gillian West. She is in her early 80's and still going strong. If I am that fortunate when I am that age, I will be a happy man.


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## centaursailor (Nov 7, 2010)

Turned 60 in Feb 2010 and just gettin reved up. Doc says you have to expect a few aches and pains but they are definitly more accute when dossin around.
Happy sailing
Brian


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## Flybyknight (Nov 5, 2005)

75 here. Big plan is to circumnavigate the Delmarva peninsula and gunk hole the lower Chesapeake this year.
Dick


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## Toucanook (Jan 15, 2011)

I'm turning 60 this June. To commemorate the event, I'm clearing out of Florida and heading off for the South Pacific. I planning to sail over to Texas, truck the boat to San Diego, and sail off for the Marquesas April Fools Day next year. Seems appropriate.


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## LakeSuperiorGeezer (Oct 8, 2010)

Just turned seventy. Knees and joints OK unless I overdo it yanking the snow blower around. I bought the big one and maybe should have gone a little lighter, but had 24 inches all at once this winter and was glad for bigger then.


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## christyleigh (Dec 17, 2001)

At 61 I'm waiting patiently to retire and get out of the snow belt since yesterday I had to shovel my dock for a half hour just to get on my boat to work on it. Like I said - patiently - though because on the down side of the roller coaster ride time just flies by waayyy tooo faaaast


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## FishSticks (Nov 16, 2007)

Here's Old Gaffer leaning on the boom, surrounded by a crew of fellow boat owners. This was around 1969 after a schooner race in Gloucester. All but one of these septuagenarians are still sailing and caring for their own wooden boats. In my case the same boat since 1962. I was born in 1935, my boat in 1939. The tow-headed kid, now nearly bald, is my son.


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## Boasun (Feb 10, 2007)

Has anyone here come from the days when back staffs and astrolabes were used? Or a latitude board that used a knotted string for each harbor's latitude? (held that desired knot tween your teeth and determine if you are on the right latitude, while easting or westing along the latitude line.)


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## travlin-easy (Dec 24, 2010)

I'll be 71 in October, which I guess puts me in the old codgers category. I still work 6 to 7 days a week as an entertainer, and with luck I'll sail 60 to 70 times a year. Ironically, I've only been sailing 5 years--but loads of power boats prior to that. 

A good friend and local charter fishing captain once told me "Life is like a roll of toilet paper--the closer you get to the end, the faster it comes off the roll." I was in my 50s when he said that, and I can honestly say that no truer words were ever spoken. 

Cheers,

Gary


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## Omatako (Sep 14, 2003)

Boasun said:


> Has anyone here come from the days when back staffs and astrolabes were used? Or a latitude board that used a knotted string for each harbor's latitude? (held that desired knot tween your teeth and determine if you are on the right latitude, while easting or westing along the latitude line.)


I reckon that any person still living today who used astrolabes etc, were doing it in the same way as most of us GPS-navigators sometimes use a sextant, recreationally.

Given the fact that the sextant was invented and pretty much replaced other forms of navigational devices (octants, staffs, astrolabes) in the mid 18th century, there can't be too many of those devices still in existence outside museums.


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## Dirtboy (Jul 13, 2009)

> TURN SIGNALS !!! i remember the little arm that popped up out of the door pillar, if you were lucky, it had a light inside


They're called "trafficators" and were outlawed because they could injure pedestrians.

My secret to enjoying the ageing process is being lucky enought to have good health, keeping active and working (and playing) with young people. I'm sure my long participation in activities like motorcycling and sailing have kept me young in spirit and body.

I bicycle WFO for 20 minutes, 4 mornings a week. That's my total fitness plan.

I eat whatever I want but keep the "bad" stuff in moderation. I've never been a big drinker; two beers is my limit.

I've learned that strength is more mental than physical. I'm not "buff," quite the opposite, but I've surprised more than one person with my skinny girl-arms. LOL

I've learned that laughter is universal language. It elevates, heals, builds bridges, and puts life in perspective. Costs nothing and everyone has it.

'Corse, everyone gets wiser with age ........ some of us started "in the hole" and took years to achieve any kind of reasonable outlook on life; I finely got there!

DB


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## Minnewaska (Feb 21, 2010)

Here's a bit of a divergence, but I think appropriate to the discussion. 

I was on the exercise bike a few weeks ago and watching a re-run of All in the Family. For those not in the US, this was a sitcom that ran in the early 1970s about a bigoted curmudgeon that was completely disconnected from his kids generation. Archie Bunker was the father. Does anyone know how old Archie was in the sitcom?........ I was shocked....... He was 48!

That is how a roughly 50 year old man was viewed in the 1970 and looks very old by today's standards. I truly believe people now stay younger longer.

p.s. I did an extra 10 mins on the bike that morning


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## kenhoneycutt (Dec 3, 2006)

Don't post on sailnet very often but this thread hit home. Just turned 61 - only regret is that I didn't have the resources financial or otherwise when I was younger to afford what I'm doing now. It's encouraging to see posts from sailors 10 to 20 years older. Means I've still got a lot of time to left for this sailing obsession.


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## jackdale (Dec 1, 2008)

*My secret*

Bronze plague in my home office:

"God does not deduct from our allotted life-span the time spent sailing."

I also play squash a couple of times a week.


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## mainemandean (Dec 21, 2006)

I hit the Big Six Oh last year, and the odometer will click again in two weeks. But for this summer I am planning my most ambitious cruise ever.

Anyway: Do old salts wear boxers or briefs?

...

...

Depends.


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## davmarwood (Jan 12, 2008)

*Who's Old?*

"You are as old as the woman you feel!" Groucho Marx

63 in March, but since my good wife is only 57, I feel great! When I am close to her, I feel 21 all over again.

She says I have a memory like a steel trap. Old and rusty!

Regards to all fellow "mature" skippers.


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## rayncyn51 (Aug 8, 2008)

Six Oh coming up in April. Almost got cut short in '94. Fortunately, still here, mostly. Usual aches and pains, glad to hear that others manage to sail on with disgruntled knees. I'm glad that I was 30 when I was, it'd be hell to be that young now. Sailed some in the 90's, got away form it, just bought another boat 2 years ago. Wife and I will spend '11 and '12 season fitting out the boat, honing sailing skills, and finishing my day job. April 2013 we kick off a 1 year cruise of the entire US east coast ending up in Key West. From there, maybe we keep going, maybe we'll pick a spot, or maybe we'll hate living on a 30' sailboat all together. It's not a life, it's an adventure. 

I like the toilet paper roll analogy. Very true.


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## Sanduskysailor (Aug 1, 2008)

63 in December. Still have all my original parts including the half gray hair. I'll being doing another MAC (19) again this summer. My 59 yr old wife keeps me young. She still does foredeck on our boat and still goes up the mast. Some of the guys I race against are in their 80s. Amazing. A day sailing is a day added on to your life.


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## Izzy1414 (Apr 14, 2007)

Sanduskysailor said:


> ..... A day sailing is a day added on to your life.


Well said!!


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## omaho5 (Jun 5, 2008)

I'm 65 and sail with an "active" 89 year old. He has a girlfriend that is 37 and HOT. 
She wants his "company' almost every night, sometimes twice......
His only problem is that he not remember where she lives.


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## rikhall (Feb 7, 2008)

davmarwood said:


> "She says I have a memory like a steel trap. Old and rusty!


At least she didn't say you looked like a million dollars, green and wrinkled.

Rik


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## lancelot9898 (Dec 30, 2008)

Just turned 64 this month, but I don't look a day over 62. Retired in my mid 40's and lived aboard my boat sailing mostly in the Cheaspeake. The fondest memories are the cruiseing people that I've met over the years. Still have the boat and sail as often as possible, but don't live aboard now. Miss that part....but not in the winter.  Always wanted to sail to those far away places with the strange sounding names, but it's really not the destination but rather the journey which is important.

Three years ago my daughter was able to out run me in the Va ten miler and this past year my granddaughter beat me. I'm training to be more competitive this coming September !


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## Boasun (Feb 10, 2007)

lancelot9898 said:


> Just turned 64 this month, but I don't look a day over 62. Retired in my mid 40's and lived aboard my boat sailing mostly in the Cheaspeake. The fondest memories are the cruiseing people that I've met over the years. Still have the boat and sail as often as possible, but don't live aboard now. Miss that part....but not in the winter.  Always wanted to sail to those far away places with the strange sounding names, but it's really not the destination but rather the journey which is important.
> 
> Three years ago my daughter was able to out run me in the Va ten miler and this past year my granddaughter beat me. I'm training to be more competitive this coming September !


Aren't you sure that you just let them win for their self esteem? That is what I would be telling people.


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## CapnRon47 (Jul 29, 2007)

*Old F$&T*

Just turned 64, and as my birthday card said,
"You may be another year older, but you haven't run out of GAS yet!"

I mostly day sail (singlehanded) or short overnight trips with the Admiral in coastal NC waters. I am sill working, but hope to retire SOON and then we will take some extended trips up and down the coast.


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## genieskip (Jan 1, 2008)

I hit six dozen last year and hope to celebrate this summer's 73rd birthday while cruising my boat to the French islands of St Pierre and Miquelon off the southern coast of Newfoundland. I started sailing in 1960 while stationed at the Great Lakes Naval Training center and haven't been cured yet. In the sixties and seventies it was mostly bluewater racing. Took a little time out to raise a family but started again, mostly cruising on my own boats this time, though I sneak out to do a bit of racing now and then. I still prefer the kinds of races where you end up someplace like Cowes or Halifax rather than the afternoon around the buoys. Saving that (and golf) for when I get old. 

My big problem is that my wife of 42 years doesn't sail. I made the mistake of taking her aboard the boat I was skippering back after the 70 Bermuda race, with the wives of three other crewmembers. Four couples on a 54' boat. Should have worked. I got her back to NY tanned and five pounds lighter but her memory still worked and she hasn't spent a night on any of my boats since. I daysail around the Hudson for part of the summer and then in the late summer I get a few sailing buddies together and we go on a cruise. Could be better, but it could be lot worse. 

Most parts still work, though a decade ago I had a shoulder replaced (and the SS sets off the alarms at all airports) and three years ago I tumbled down some stairs and tore the whole quad off a knee. Bailing wire and chewing gum (and some dammed good surgery and physical therapy people) put everything back together again and I can still get to the foredeck to handle sails. One of the Transatlantic races I did back in the sixties was on a boat with a 72 year old owner and a 68 year old sailing master. I viewed them as positively antediluvian then. Now I would love to once again sail with them as contemporaries and buddies.


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## Flybyknight (Nov 5, 2005)

75, and am longing for a windlass.

Dick


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## tweitz (Apr 5, 2007)

64 with no intention of retiring or stopping sailing in the foreseeable future. My wife just retired last June, freeing up some more sailing time. My soon to be 95 mother is not so mobile any more, so I can't figure out how to get her out sailing with us.


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## bodarkk (Jan 21, 2011)

Good to see this thread. I am 67, but feel like a spring chicken. I want to eventually sell by place and buy a sailboat. But, How does a woman my age ever get started sailing? I have lived by the ocean a few times,(Costa Rica 22 years) but always painted it instead of sailing. Now, I am land locked, but ready to retire and want to learn to sail. Should I get a boat on the lake first, go to sailing school, send son (27) to sailing school? Any suggestions out there?


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## jackdale (Dec 1, 2008)

Flybyknight said:


> 75, and am longing for a windlass.
> 
> Dick


Or would that be a wind lass?


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## Boasun (Feb 10, 2007)

When I get my boat it will have winches on board to help with the lines.
Also would love to have a lovely wench on board to help with the sailing amongst other things. But you know how wishful thinking is... 

But you now know the difference between Winch and Wench. Guess which one is Low maintenance?
But at my age it doesn't hurt to dream a little.

Would be my luck in that she would say: That's Captain Wench to you Galley Slave.


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## Sequitur (Feb 13, 2007)

My birth certificate indicates I turn 67 this year; my appearance, fitness, health and agility all convince others I'm in my early 50s; my mind and spirit still seem to see me as 18. It's great to be young!


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## tb4244 (Sep 3, 2010)

61 next Thursday, but younger every time I sail.

What a great thread, it's a pleasure to know so many young geezers are sharing wench and Groucho jokes. I saw many of you when I read every post in the thread about sailing bra-less. I'll add a Woody Allen line: "I don't want to achieve immortality through my work. I want to achieve it by not dying."

Tom

C&C 24 SugarDarlin
St Johns River, FL


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## FishSticks (Nov 16, 2007)

Does anyone have tips for dealing with CRS (Can't Rememberr Stuff)?

I attached a chartplotter to my binnacle and that helps a great deal in reminding me where I set off for.

Good idea about installing an anchor windlass, but that's a lot of trouble on my crowded foredeck. I've started using a lightweight Fortress anchor in place of my CQR and that's worked pretty well so far.


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## CalypsoP35 (Jul 24, 2006)

Sailors don't get old, people get old when they stop sailing.

(Or something like that, I saw it on a T-shirt somewhere) Geeez my memory's going and I only just passed 50)


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## rikhall (Feb 7, 2008)

You mean like:
*
Just when I finally got it all together, I can't remember where I put it.*

Rik


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## Boasun (Feb 10, 2007)

FishSticks said:


> Does anyone have tips for dealing with CRS (Can't Rememberr Stuff)?


I also believe in the "Here After". Whenever I go into another room, I'm always thinking; What am I Here after??


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## FishSticks (Nov 16, 2007)

Or...... _I'm lost. I've gone to look for myself. If I should return before I get back have me wait._


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## Flybyknight (Nov 5, 2005)

*Aw Come on!*



jackdale said:


> Or would that be a wind lass?



Nope. Will be celebrating out 50th this June.
My wife can be described as a blend of:
Jaclyn Smith for looks
Condelisa Rice for brains
Mother Teresa for goodness.










No, by back is a mess and I can't hoist an anchor.

But thanks anyway for the thought.

Dick


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## AirborneSF (Dec 14, 2010)

I'm mustering up. All I've got to say.


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## bornagainsailor (Nov 9, 2010)

After a 30 year absence from sailing, I purchased, at the age of 65, a 22' sloop last spring. Celebrated my 66th b-day sailing around Vineyard Sound. Look forward to doing the same on my - gasp! - 67th this upcoming summer. Pleased to report that all of my body parts are in working order, just move a bit more reluctantly. Still hank on the jib; no roller furling. That may come in the future. As a concession to the years, will add a transom-mounted swim ladder this summer. If anything, my re-entry into sailing has allowed me to maintain a youthful enthusiasm for life. Can't wait for the first sail of the season. Look forward to seeing my Q-tip chronologically-gifted sailing cohorts as well as younger sailing enthusiasts somewhere out on the blue.
UG


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## travlin-easy (Dec 24, 2010)

Get the roller furling system. It could save your butt, especially when sailing single handed and the weather takes an unanticipated change for the worse. Struggling with a hank-on jib while getting slammed by high winds and towering waves is not what an old guy needs to be doing. I should know! 

I purchased an Alado Roller Furling System four years ago, it was relatively inexpensive, a snap to install, tough as iron, and built to last. Take a look at Alado Nautica USA Reefing and Roller Furling Systems Home Page and I believe you'll like what you see.

Gary


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## bornagainsailor (Nov 9, 2010)

Thanks, Gary. I have little direct experience with roller furling. Checked out the Aldo website. Helpful.
UG


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## Sailormon6 (May 9, 2002)

FishSticks said:


> Does anyone have tips for dealing with CRS (Can't Rememberr Stuff)?


I take a baby aspirin and a ginko biloba per day. They seem to help. My mind is crystal clear (some on the political forum might disagree.) Consult your physician, of course.


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## LarryandSusanMacDonald (Apr 3, 2005)

Saltwater Suzi and I celebrate 45 years together this coming May and I'll turn 66 on the next "Talk Like A Pirate" Day. Getting old comes at a bad time. You should do it while you're young and have the strength. 

I still pull up the anchor the hard way - but I'm shopping hard for a good price on a manual windlass. I used to hate the mud more than the pain - but now I hardly notice the mud. Getting old is not for sissies.


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## captbillc (Jul 31, 2008)

i have been reading this post all the way through and got some laughs at the jokes . interesting reading! i will be 89 on the 4th of july and expect to be sailing my 30ft nimble express many years yet. of course, the roller furling headsail and in boom furling on the main helps.


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## LarryandSusanMacDonald (Apr 3, 2005)

Capt Bill!! 89 and still sailing. I am humbled - I thought 65 was old to be sailing. Like your signature line, too.


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## DwayneSpeer (Oct 12, 2003)

*Old Fart*

As my moniker says, I'm an Old Fart (62) but one of my best friends is 84 and still sailing most weekends. We both like to spend our summers in Desolation Sound and a couple of years ago my wife and I circumnavigated Vancouver Island.


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## AirborneSF (Dec 14, 2010)

Captbillc, 89, and still sailing,or anything else for that matter, GOD has blessed you! May he always do so! My, 02.


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## Boasun (Feb 10, 2007)

Many of us are blessed with the Genetics to remain active into retirement.
I have seen many people who are a tad younger then ourselves that are stoved-up to a walker or worst with senility. We do need to help them enjoy life if possible.
I am thinking of a possible boat's name.... "Kid's Inheritance" or something like that. After all we earned it and should enjoy it.    
Besides that my son keep telling me, that he doesn't like the sea. And yet that is were I earned the funds to put a roof over my family's head and food on the table. Gesh!!!


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## Boasun (Feb 10, 2007)

Just wondering if there are any other "Spring Chickens" who are over that double nickle mark in their years... Have we heard from you yet?


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## NCC320 (Dec 23, 2008)

71, mostly single hand local waters. Sometimes, forget that I'm not 35, but then the body and mirror have a way of reminding me otherwise. Some things wrong according to doctors, but I'm lucky, I don't feel them for the most part. Plan to keep on keeping on (sailing).


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## captflood (Jan 1, 2011)

Captain flood is 54, in April But I dye my, (little bit of) hair gray so as not to upset my buddies who are all nearly natural bone heads thats even shorter than a skinny heads Go Safe And Have Loads Of Fun


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## dongreerps (May 14, 2007)

*don't look back*

74 and counting. Still vigorous and active. Won a couple of championship ribbons horse riding last spring. Still sailing. Still enjoying much of what life has to offer, BUT three years ago I stood on the top of step ladders to build stuff. Don't do that any more. Balance isn't what it was. Two years ago used to walk the dogs in the middle of the night. Don't do that now. Can't see the chocolate lab by starlight now. Still see the Dalmation just fine thank you. Still sail, often singlehanded, but now I think abouyt what I am about to do no longer just do it.
Some things are better than three years ago. Blessed with a loving wife. Walk the dogs (without a leash) in the local big box stores. Used to not have the patience to train them like I do now. I don't count my blessings, just enjoy them. As Satchel said, "don't look back . . . "


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## captbillc (Jul 31, 2008)

AirborneSF----i don't believe god had anything to do with it. i believe it is a healthy life style & good genes. i am an athist


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## captbillc (Jul 31, 2008)

spelled it wrong -- should be atheist


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## TQA (Apr 4, 2009)

63 and Sailing the eastern Caribbean. The electric anchor winch was a good investment and like many other geezers my knees are not what they were.


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## centaursailor (Nov 7, 2010)

TQA said:


> 63 and Sailing the eastern Caribbean. The electric anchor winch was a good investment and like many other geezers my knees are not what they were.


Only 61 and feelin good most of the time. 
Still planning that big cruise to the Med but keeping it simple day to day.
Was going for the first sail of the year this weekend, lovely spring weather here in Dublin, but struck down with kidney/back pain  so just went down to the harbour with the dog and enjoyed watching the fishermen and a single sailboat coming back in.
Maybe next weekend. 
Safe sailing


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## proflyer (Aug 13, 2007)

72 and sail mostly single handed, going to Desolation this July with my daughter and son in law. Looking forward to it. I had a bypass three years ago but things have finally settled down now. I will change my prop tomorrow and change marinas on Thurday. Wish me good weather!!


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## mgiguere (May 22, 2004)

At 67, still sail on the Chesapeake Bay with friends. Sunday, went out single handed on my 37 foot sloop and sailed back up the West River onto a temporary mooring unassisted. (ok, it had a pick-up buoy that Hartge's maintains for us in winter). Absolutely spectacular day...and yes I didn't see one other sailboat between there and Thomas Point Light.


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## ebs001 (May 8, 2006)

Just turned 65, four days ago. I now get all the senior discounts like free fishing license. free bus rides on Wednesdays, and free drugs and get OAS (old age security) Still working full time which involves alot of stairs and ladders so keeping fit. Will be taking off work next fall to cruise for six months. Life is good.


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## sailor1950 (Dec 8, 2009)

started at age 9 with sunfish. bought our first boat, 21 venture in 1978. Moved up to a San Juan 23 the nest year. Sold the San Juan in 1991. Sailed a Laser from 1995 until we bought a used precision 23 last year. We made the mistake of going to the Annapolis boat show last Oct. We just bought a new never owned Hunter 31. My wife and I both turn 61 next week. Same day same year. This is the last one, unless we hit the lottery.


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## SailingGma (Oct 25, 2010)

My husband and I fit the criteria. After 4 years of full time cruising in our fifties, we've slowed down a bit, and stay closer to home, but we're still looking for adventure. We did allow ourselves a new furling main this year, and enjoy how easy it is. Easy seems a little more attractive now than it used to!
Sailboat Cruising in the 90s


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## Boasun (Feb 10, 2007)

I saw them bring up that whippersnappers thread of under 35. 
We all know that "Old Guys Rule"


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## captbillc (Jul 31, 2008)

i see all you youngsters sailing. i finally got my boat in the water yesterday. today we put up the mast using the marina's boom. then they hoisted me to the top in my boas'ns chair so i could put my wind instruments back on. i'll be glad to get out sailing on lake superior again. i will be 89 on the 4th of july.


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## captbillc (Jul 31, 2008)

i see all you young people sailing. we launched my boat yesterday. today we put the mast up using the marina's boom. then they hoisted me to the top in my boas'ns chair so i could put my wind instruments back on. i will be glad to be sailing on lake superior again. i will be 89 on the 4th of july.


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## captbillc (Jul 31, 2008)

sorry about the double poast. i hit the wrong thing the first time and my message disappeared so i wrote it again. when i posted it both messages were posted.


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## TropicCat (Oct 14, 2008)

I turn 60 in October. Still sailing 2-3 days a week, 11 months of the year. However, I am slowing down a bit as I did buy a catamaran...


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## killarney_sailor (May 4, 2006)

Turning 63 soon and sitting in Moorea on way to Australia for cyclone season. Most of the long term cruisers out here seem to be their late 50s to early 70s. I guess this is the time of life when people have the time and money to head off. The exceptions seem to be Europeans - there are a lot more of them who just take off in their 20s and 30s for a shorter period of time on a cheaper boat.


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## Boasun (Feb 10, 2007)

Now there is a thread for those over 36... It must fall tween 35 and 60. Even though we do accept those who are doubled nickeled. that age group must have felt left out in the scheme of things of this world....


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## sailpower (Jun 28, 2008)

I just turned 64 and am boat shopping again for the first time in almost twenty years. This is a very encouraging thread as most people I know think I am nuts! I say that the planets have aligned and I have the health and ability so why not?

Great topic!


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## primerate84 (Jun 14, 2006)

Will be 59 in a month but I like the post that said "God doesn't deduct the time sailing from your life." Now that is a real motivating factor to get out on the water!


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## ccher (Jun 24, 2011)

63. Still working full time but lucky enough to have my boat parked in front of my house (front is the waterside in these parts) so spend a lot of time aboard. Just moved from a good ole boat to a fairly new one last year so projects now are getting her geared up for serious cruising instead of constant repair and maintenance. Figure 2 or 3 years then out of the foxhole!! Sailpower, you ain't nuts.


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## centaursailor (Nov 7, 2010)

61 and not finished yet. 
Safe sailing


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## downeast450 (Jan 16, 2008)

You don't loose any days for fly fishing either! Life is full. My Jeanie and I just bought a "new" double-ender. We may celebrate my 65th with a cruise to Lunenburg, NS this August. We launch Tundra Down, our Islander 28 tomorrow. Later than usual for us. The new double-ender is a marathon racing canoe. So much to do! Skiing starts in just 5 months! How did I have time for a regular job? Ha!

Down


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## primerate84 (Jun 14, 2006)

Downeast, you're right about the fly fishing. We ski in the winter also. Maybe we should start a thread about what sailors do in the winter, at least those in the northern climates.


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## downeast450 (Jan 16, 2008)

Prime,

Since I bought my first sailboat at age 11 and sailed on the estuary of the Croton River, I have known I would move aboard and sail away some day. I am still of that mind but am not so sure I want to give up so many other outdoor enjoyments to go sailing full time. Such a tough spot to be in. Our home is a spectacular cruising destination. The fly fishing is great in Maine and I have been hard it for 40 years. For us Memorial Day weekend means canoe racing. Then there are the slopes and trails in the snow! We love all of it. Ha!

One day at a time. I guess we will see if the cruises get longer and closer together. Our next extended adventure may be a three year cruise from Seal Harbor to Duluth, MN and back. We will park the boat at least twice and could extend the trip if we want to. Up the Hudson and back down the St. Lawrence. We will be close enough to enjoy all the other stuff and in that climate won't be involved in sailing in December.

Down

Down


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## ccriders (Jul 8, 2006)

sailpower said:


> I just turned 64 and am boat shopping again for the first time in almost twenty years. This is a very encouraging thread as most people I know think I am nuts! I say that the planets have aligned and I have the health and ability so why not?
> 
> Great topic!


Go for it Sailpower. I went boat shopping when I was 63 for the first time in 35 years and have no regrets other that I should have done it sooner. I had talked myself out of it when I shatterred my hip. Ten years later I had a hip replacement (at 57) and as I got stronger, the call got louder. I've made no great voyages, but have truly enjoyed fair weather sailing, doing upgrades and regular maintenance. I have even climbed the mast. So much for avoiding ladders as the doctor warned. Now is a great time to be boat shopping. 
John


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## Cubkin (Jun 30, 2011)

Our first sailboat, purchased in our mid-20's, was a high-performance racing catamaran. When we were close to 30, we traded in the cat for a 22' S-2 sloop we sailed for several years. But when we lost our free slip (in front of my parents' home) we traded into a powerboat, the biggest mistake we've ever made. When we hit 50, we bought kayaks so we could at least get out on the water. Now that we've hit 60, we finally made our way back to our first love. We found ourselves standing on the pier all summer admiring other peoples' boats and saying "someday when we retire we'll buy another sailboat". I finally convinced my husband that we weren't getting any younger, and were stupid to use retirement, at least 2-3 years off, as a goal for sailing. Last fall we started shopping and found an absolutely beautiful Endeavour 33. We're back on the water again and having a wonderful time!


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## Harborless (Nov 10, 2010)

BudgieSmugglers said:


> for those still in their twenties sneaking a peak, thinking "thank god, i`m not replying to this post"......IT WO`NT BE LONG MATE....the older one gets, the more one realises how quick the years go by... make the very best of your life..... fill it with challenges, dreams, love & thoughtfulness....which in turn will give you adventures & fullfilment in life...best advice....keep the challenges coming whatever your age. at least then you can look back without regrets & look forward to more adventures.


What a mind reader this guy! Haha. I was also thinking to myself that this thread has received more post faster than the other age group threads combined seem to have! 
You were all just waiting for your turn


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## captbillc (Jul 31, 2008)

downeast450. contact me when you get to duluth. i'll show you around town. you'll find that the north coast of lake superior is a lot like maine.


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## dabnis (Jul 29, 2007)

I just turned 76 last month. Been in pretty good health overall but
I am noticing my balance is not as good as it used to be and that
I don't recover from stubbing my toe on obstacles as well as I used
to. I think it would be difficult now for me to go forward and try to
wrestle down a flapping jib with the boat bouncing around. I don't think
things will improve as I get older, but I can only speak from my own
experience, your mileage may vary. I am sure there are still some 80 year 
olds out there that can leap over tall buildings with a single bound.
My only advice is to do it as soon as you can even if you have to stretch a bit, FWIW, my 2 cents worth.

Dabnis


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## aeventyr60 (Jun 29, 2011)

I was grey in my 30's, went offshore sailing when I was 37. Now just shy of 50, still at it, keeps on getting better as I mellow. Hope to be doing it until my 80's. Most of my sailing friends in their 60's. Nobody wished they worked any longer...
one of my favorite old timer sayings"your only as old as the gal sleeping next to you"!
Cheers!
Matt


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## Dennishg (Feb 16, 2012)

Been away from sailing for a few years but at 68 bought another sailboat (Beneteau 285). Not as agile as I once was but more patient and wiser. I was an enthusiastic MORC racer in the '70's and '80's in Miami on my Lindenberg 26, Magic. Looking forward to low key club racing in Saint Augustine. Barbara and I might even cruise Bahamas and East Coast. Adventure is ageless.

Dennis


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## chrisncate (Jan 29, 2010)

dabnis said:


> I just turned 76 last month. Been in pretty good health overall but
> I am noticing my balance is not as good as it used to be and that
> I don't recover from stubbing my toe on obstacles as well as I used
> to. I think it would be difficult now for me to go forward and try to
> ...


Great advice for sure 

Dabnis (and anyone else over 60), how's your diet? If typical and "so so", ever consider going the Jack Lalane route of focused and targeted healthy juicing and healthy eating + regimented daily exercise? Might help out in the healing/reflex department... might even take a decade or more off your "true" age (the age your body is due to it's "use", not your calendar age).. just getting off meat can do wonders in and of itself..

?


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## nical (Nov 26, 2002)

Soon turning 65 and working full time prepping the boat for a leisurely circumnavigation starting this year. It sure has been a long time coming! Anyhow we should all be conscious of just how incredibly fortunate we are to be able to do this stuff. 99+% of the rest of humanity cannot summon everything needed to own and sail .
In "life's lottery" everyone on this site are flat out winners. So enjoy your great fortune!

NL


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## Dirtboy (Jul 13, 2009)

> In "life's lottery" everyone on this site are flat out winners. So enjoy your great fortune!


Yep, I'd say we're all "winners" here.

Just turned 69 last month. I still do just about everything I could 30 years ago. I think I'm actually better on the dirt bike now ('corse it could be the bike, LOL,) a lot calmer on the street bike (smoother too) and can still singlehand the boat. My diet has changed but not at my direction, it just sort of wandered off red meat and processed foods. I've learned to control my weight and keep it between 175 and 180. I thank my parents for never having soft drinks in the house and I never developed the addiction that I see all around me. I think lack of soft drinks (and a dislike for fast food) may be one reason I'm so healthy and fit 'cause lord knows I've done everything wrong most of my life. Really.

DB


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## smurphny (Feb 20, 2009)

Just received my Medicare card a couple of weeks ago.....now if I can only remember where I put it.


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## FishSticks (Nov 16, 2007)

*Exit strategy*

At age 76, with a boat only four years junior, I won't deny that decrepitude is creeping up on both of us at a somewhat faster pace. This would be a perfect mutual exit strategy I have sometimes thought.

Eddie Albert reads "The Wonderful One-Hoss Shay" - YouTube


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## travlin-easy (Dec 24, 2010)

I hope to celebrate my 72nd birthday while heading down the ICW in October. I try to keep myself in relatively good shape, drink a few Margarettas, maintain 3 acres of lawn, and sail single-handed 50 to 70 days a year. I still work 4 to 7 days a week as an entertainer, which helps keep the wolf away from the door.

My fondest hope is to shot in the back of the head by a jealous husband at age 108, while leaping from a second story window with my trousers down around my ankles and a 19-year-old screaming don't leave me--don't leave me. The way I look at it, I'm gettin' closer to that fantasy. My wife says I'll probably be shot by a jealous 108 year old long before I enjoy that fantasy. 

Cheers,

Gary


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## chef2sail (Nov 27, 2007)

Being a three years short of that 60 mark ( I am 8+ in DOG years) I am starting to feel like a young wimmpersnapper in this thread. I have already led a full luife both in regular as well as sailing adventures. Luckily I was introduced into sailing at age 12 in scouting and my father had a keel boat kept in Rock Hall. Although he ran the boat like Captain Blye ( he was a thorassic surgeon and had godlike tendencies) and we were considered as mere scrub nurses ( his crew) if loved being out on the water so much I was ther only child in the family who did not mutiny and would go with him despite is antics.

When I got into my late teens till mid twenties I was able to I raced hobie cats nationally in compettion, and got to crew on a couple of transatlantic crossings as well as some boat deliveries from central america and the carribean. At age 25 I bought my first keel boat a 28 Islander which I kept for 8 years until a vindictive ex wife decided it ws really her boat and sold it out from under me during divorce proceedings before they were finalized. Back to the hobies I went and raced with people with keelboats till I was about 40 when I fell in love with our C&C 35. 

We are now looking for our final boat ( this search may end tomrrow or in a few years) when we purchase a blue water sailor to use at retirement ( for me 21/2 years) to allow us to travel to the carribean and comfortably cruise for months at a time. Although I love to travel and a world crossing would interest m,e, my wife who only starting saining 8 years ago has no such desore and I am thankfull for her interest in what we are doing and plan so I will not push it. I have heard many older sailors say they will eventually move up to a slow trawler, but I cannot envison that althoughti do think there will come a time when the work of running the sails may become too much, so this last boat must have that kind of ability to be motored also. Besides sailboats are more stable and safer so why the trawler. God willing when I can no longer sail tyhey will be putting me on the sailboat and goiving me the Vicking funeral treatment.

Remember 60 is the new 40 ( dont tell my knees or back that)

Dave


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## travlin-easy (Dec 24, 2010)

Dave,

Did your dad practice in Maryland? If so, there's a good possibility that I may have worked with him at one time. I worked at the University of Maryland Hospital from 1963 till 1968, then at Johns Hopkins Hospital from 1970 till 1975. I was the Chief Cardio-pulmonary Technician at both facilities and worked with all the thoracic surgeons and pulmonary specialists.

Gary


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## chef2sail (Nov 27, 2007)

Gary he was Mayo trained...I was born at the Mayo clinic and practiced in a large center city hospital in Phiadelphia that had a medical school.

Dave


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## nauticalrich (Aug 31, 2001)

Well I'm going to try to keep this post alive as well as myself.:laugher

68 years and still sailing long island sound. Hope I can keep sailing even in Heaven.

I too play music when I can. Just getting hard to carry all the equipment.


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## travlin-easy (Dec 24, 2010)

nauticalrich said:


> Well I'm going to try to keep this post alive as well as myself.:laugher
> 
> 68 years and still sailing long island sound. Hope I can keep sailing even in Heaven.
> 
> I too play music when I can. Just getting hard to carry all the equipment.


Rich,

About 10 years ago my equipment weighed darned near as much as my boat, at least it seemed that way. I had some monster Peavey speakers that tipped the scales at 105-pounds each, two 50-pound keyboards, mic stands, a 600-watt Peavey amp, speaker stands, keyboard stands, and tons of cables. It took 8 trips to the van to get the gear into the venue using a heavy-duty refrigerator dolly.

Today, my entire PA system weighs just 23 pounds, the keyboard only weighs 25 pounds, no more speaker or mic stands, very few cables, and everything has been streamlined so I can set up and be playing in 7 to 10 minutes. All of my gear is loaded on a Rock & Roller R-10 cart that was specifically designed for musicians and it's one trip from the van to the venue. Attached are some photos that will give you an idea.




























I'll be taking my equipment down the ICW with me this fall and use it throughout the winter. I'm installing anchoring points in the cabin to hold the gear firmly in place and keep it dry. I figure it will all fit comfortably on the quarter-berth and I'll have room to spare.

The Rock & Roller carts are available at several online music stores and I highly recommend it for working musicians and entertainers. You can take a closer look at the cart at RocknRoller® Multi-Cart®

Cheers,

Gary


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## chef2sail (Nov 27, 2007)

Oh my a traveling sound system down the ICW. Now that will make the complainers about generators noise at anchorage sit up and take notice. Haha

Good for you Gary....Rock on...:laugher:laugher:laugher:laugher


Dave


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## Smart Pig (Feb 19, 2012)

will be 69 in a month

like the saying goes ......... the older I get, the better I was!


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## greene2108 (Oct 29, 2008)

So, I'm sitting here reading through all these posts about sailing at 60+ and I wake up to find I am on the same post 20 minutes later. If I'm like that now, is there any hope for me later?

Brenda


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## SloopJonB (Jun 6, 2011)

I cleared 60 last birthday. I may be adding years to the tally but I'm not getting any older and never will.

I had a very enlightening experience about aging vs. getting old when I was still a teenager. One of my friends had a grandmother who had been a dance hall girl during the Klondike gold rush. I was about 16 and she was way into her 80's at the time. Someone brought out a bottle of Johnnie Walker and when she saw it her eyes lit up and she said "Oohhhh, Johnnie" in a very "bad" voice. 

That girl had way more than her allotment of years on her but she had NEVER gotten old.

Actually, the only things that even make me aware of how many years I've got under my belt are how young they allow cops and doctors to be these days and the fact that girls under 30 look like beautiful children, not women.

I plan on thinking and acting like I'm 30 until they carry me out with a cigarette in one hand and a martini in the other.


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## Rick486 (Sep 14, 2010)

SloopJonB said:


> I cleared 60 last birthday. I may be adding years to the tally but I'm not getting any older and never will.
> 
> I had a very enlightening experience about aging vs. getting old when I was still a teenager. One of my friends had a grandmother who had been a dance hall girl during the Klondike gold rush. I was about 16 and she was way into her 80's at the time. Someone brought out a bottle of Johnnie Walker and when she saw it her eyes lit up and she said "Oohhhh, Johnnie" in a very "bad" voice.
> 
> ...


Well said. I have much in common. Except now there are an incredible number of really attractive women 55 and up that I never imagined would be so attractive.


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## SloopJonB (Jun 6, 2011)

Rick486 said:


> Well said. I have much in common. Except now there are an incredible number of really attractive women 55 and up that I never imagined would be so attractive.


Women 35 and older were ALWAYS the ones I found most attractive but I foolishly got married before I could indulge myself.  If I was still a kid I'd be logged on to every one of those "Cougar" dating sites. 

When I was still working I was having a conversation along these lines with a couple of my staff - one was my age and one was 26. The one my age said "when you're his age you're pretty well restricted to girls between 24 and 28 but when you're OUR age, anything between 16 and 80 will do".


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## travlin-easy (Dec 24, 2010)

One of the neat things about being an entertainer is I'm surrounded by good looking ladies every day and night of the week. The photo I posted above was taken in December, and all those very attractive ladies love it when I sing their favorite songs. The photo was taken at an upscale jewelery store in Bel Air where I've performed for the past 8 years when they had their "Ladies Night Out" sale. With any kind of luck, I'll be performing for the same age group when I arrive at Marathon Key, FL in late October. I love my job, I love my job, I love my job... 

Cheers,

Gary


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## larrytwo (Aug 31, 2011)

68 years old and still enjoying life...though i'm finding that what i used to do all night it takes me all night to do...


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## Flybyknight (Nov 5, 2005)

Pushing 77, not slowing down a bit, but stamina fades rapidly.
_"Time is a rider that breaks us all"_
Arnold Gingrich


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## unomio (Jun 8, 2007)

Couple of thoughts from the feminine side of geezer cruising. We started our long-distance cruising when he was 63 and I was 60--in 2006. I was (and mostly am) scared by open ocean sailing. We've had the usual non-fatal disasters (engine fires, 80-knot squalls, 6-knot currents, near misses in the dead of night) and we're still afloat. Our health was lousy (heart problems, cancer) when we started and we've both had unexpected (and unrelated) medical problems involving 3rd world hospital stays and surgery. When we started neither of us was particularly fit. We're not particularly fit now (how do you exercise on a tiny sailboat?). Our boat--the basic boat, that is--has been terrific; the gen set has cost us many hours of repair time--with each failure we say to ourselves, "We've got to get rid of that thing." Our boat has been broken into--and consequently filled up with rain water--while we were away; all the wiring and the canned goods in the bilge corroded. Of course, being full of water made the mildew go crazy. That said, we've made good friends of doctors, nurses, diesel mechanics and outboard repairmen, been invited to heivas by snack (small restaurant)owners and expats, become very fond of cruising kids, learned how to make dill pickles (they don't sell them west of Hawai'i except in Samoa), and most important of all, learned that you _must_ add 25% to any wind velocity prediction on a GRIB of the south Pacific. Now our biggest argument is whether we a) return the boat to the Pacific Northwest (an uphill slog), b) go through Indonesia and head via Mauritius (maybe) to the Cape (pirates expanding operations every year, and friends of ours were killed last year), c) put the boat on a ship and have it taken somewhere interesting (Toulon?) even though it costs a fortune, or d) sail for the Horn in the Roaring Forties.

It's been quite an adventure. I don't know how to sail any better than I did starting out, but I sure know how to sail smarter. And you know what? About 80% of the cruising sailors we've met out here have been our age. It's also been super nice not hearing about US politics, not being marketed to all the time, and getting to know a different view of life. And we discovered a side benefit: we both get seasick, so nobody wants to eat (or cook) on any passage. Solves the weight problem and means we don't have to provision much between ports ;^)


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## rickvw (Feb 21, 2012)

I just turned 60 a few weeks ago an am just beginning the adventure. I will be taking my first sailing school in June. I am fit and able and will continue to follow where ever life takes me. I have never been one to put it off for a "better" time. The best time is now. This is just one more exploration into what I am curious about.


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## Smart Pig (Feb 19, 2012)

I am 69 -- two artificial knees and an artificial Aortic valve. Heading out tomorrow to conduct a rigging party for my fleet of Flying Scots -- 40 strong (I am Fleet Captain) -- to kick off the 2012 season. Just purchased a new set of Ullman Sails, so yeah, you could say I am psyched about getting back on the water.

I've been racing since I was 5, aboard my dad's Hampton One-design. (If there is a finer sailing centerboarder anywhere, you're going to have to prove it)






No intentions of packing it in anytime soon.
The real Sloop John B.

May you always find yourself on the lifted tack.


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## geoduck (Aug 12, 2011)

I'm 62 - my boat is 71. The boat will last longer than I will. I've been sailing since early 60's. Worked the water all my life. I'd like to be around when my boat hits 90 - maybe with any luck.......?


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## travlin-easy (Dec 24, 2010)

Took my first sailing lessons 7 years ago, I'll be 72 in October, and with any kind of luck I'll be celebrating my 72nd birthday aboard my Morgan 33 Out Island while cruising down the ICW toward the Florida Keys. I wish my wife of 50 years was in better physical condition so she could make the trip with me, but unfortunately, that's not going to happen. 

Cheers,

Gary


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## scratchee (Mar 2, 2012)

I'm only 45, but my knees are 60. Can I get in?


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## travlin-easy (Dec 24, 2010)

Bad knees--you're in! 

Gary


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## RedtheBear (Sep 14, 2010)

The ol' gray Bear joins in
Sorry I haven't been on the net much lately so I did't see this when you first posted or I would have jumped in earlier. Glad to say I'm 70. Been sailing since I was a teen, crewing at Buckeye Lake in Ohio. Discovered Hobie's after a tour in the SE Asia war games and have been in love with them since though I will admit a full afternoon in 10 to 15 knot wind will make me early to bed and dead to the world all night. I still love to "beach bounce" camping out overnight up and down the Gulf Coast of Fla, Ala, Miss, and LA, not so much anymore Tx and down to Northern Mex. 
My wife's health is seriously declining and being out is becoming a 'not today' thing. 
Thinking about getting a small (25-30) trailerable cruising boat that I can single hand while she reads and decorates the bow. 
This looks like it could be a very interesting site if it goes where it suggests it will. I'll be watching and chiming in.
The Bears two cents worth.


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## tdw (Oct 2, 2006)

Sadly I now qualify. Not a club I am at all happy to be a member of , even though the members may well be a fine bunch.


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## Dirtboy (Jul 13, 2009)

> Sadly I now qualify.


It's much better than the alternative; never qualifying.

DB


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## joemcknight (Mar 27, 2012)

Turning 60 this year. Amazing how aches and pains go away once the sails are set.


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## SloopJonB (Jun 6, 2011)

joemcknight said:


> Turning 60 this year. Amazing how aches and pains go away once the sails are set.


They sure return when you climb down to the dock though.


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## PCP (Dec 1, 2004)

travlineasy said:


> Took my first sailing lessons 7 years ago, I'll be 72 in October, and with any kind of luck I'll be celebrating my 72nd birthday aboard my Morgan 33 Out Island while cruising down the ICW toward the Florida Keys. I wish my wife of 50 years was in better physical condition so she could make the trip with me, but unfortunately, that's not going to happen.
> 
> Cheers,
> 
> Gary


Cheers to you and many years of sailing.

When I was looking for my boat one of the boats I looked was a 2008 Salona 42. The boat was a bit negleted for a 4 year old boat, I mean the interior, the rigging the sails and the cockpit was impecable.

It turned out that the boat was property of a 83 year old sailor and his wife that was not much younger. The lady was not "boat keeping" much and the interior showed but the guy could not only take care of a performance 42ft as it had exchanged it by a brand new performance Grand Soleil 43 and a 43 Grand Soleil solo is a lot of work, even for a younger sailor

Regards

Paulo


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## PCP (Dec 1, 2004)

Dirtboy said:


> It's much better than the alternative; never qualifying.
> 
> DB


I hope to qualify in some short years

Regards

Paulo


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## Capt Len (Oct 9, 2011)

69 this June and I can still come down the forestay hand o'r hand although lately I've started to ask why I should.


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## SloopJonB (Jun 6, 2011)

Capt Len said:


> 69 this June and I can still come down the forestay hand o'r hand although lately I've started to ask why I should.


I've never been able to figure how anyone does that - how do you keep a grip on that skinny piece of wire? It's tough enough on thick rope in a gym.


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## travlin-easy (Dec 24, 2010)

tdw said:


> Sadly I now qualify. Not a club I am at all happy to be a member of , even though the members may well be a fine bunch.


Fuzzy, don't be sad about joining this elite and elegant group. Celebrate the fact that you've, obviously, made it this far and you can still function much better than you thought you ever would. Today, for example, began with fixing some wiring on the boat, then heading home to take a shower, dress up kind of fancy and play music to 50 people at a retirement community. Then, after a sip or two of a small Margaretta, it was off to an Italian restaurant to perform for 60 to 70 folks that love to dance the night away. Tomorrow, a 9:45 dental appointment, then it's off the boat to work on replacing a section of rub rail. (Tomorrow's easy!  )

Welcome to the over 60 club old timer, 

Gary


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## Capt Len (Oct 9, 2011)

Ha, the secret is to grip the jib halyard and the forestay. I've given up climbing that way and use the ratlines now. When I met Irving Johnston (Yankee)in Palma in '67 he was still telling of holding himself 90 degrees from a shroud. Now that is impressive .But we were both younger then. The oohs and ahhs are fading or my hearing is going too.


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## shaile (Dec 29, 2009)

I just turned 60. My knees and back remind me their existence after jogging. Cholesterol a bit high but I take statins. Further I am feeling good.
Don't have yet a boat of my own but I plan to buy one in two years from now and make the sail of my life .


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## helenwiley (Jan 1, 2006)

OK.. I am 63. I took up sailing when I was 58. That was because I gave up horseback riding for fear of breaking more bones. My friends say I like archaic forms of transportation. What I like is being active and outside. My theory--one should begin something new late in life to keep the little gray sells happy and improve physical condition. Besides...the nicest folks sail. 

Helen Wiley, First Mate, Finnsailer 35, Savannah, GA. Cruising the ICW and New England


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## tdw (Oct 2, 2006)

travlineasy said:


> Fuzzy, don't be sad about joining this elite and elegant group. Celebrate the fact that you've, obviously, made it this far and you can still function much better than you thought you ever would. Today, for example, began with fixing some wiring on the boat, then heading home to take a shower, dress up kind of fancy and play music to 50 people at a retirement community. Then, after a sip or two of a small Margaretta, it was off to an Italian restaurant to perform for 60 to 70 folks that love to dance the night away. Tomorrow, a 9:45 dental appointment, then it's off the boat to work on replacing a section of rub rail. (Tomorrow's easy!  )
> 
> Welcome to the over 60 club old timer,
> 
> Gary


Ain't that the truth Gary. 60 sounds horrid and no doubt I'd prefer if it was 40 but yep, I do feel a damn sight chirpier than I ever thought I would.

In a couple of hours we'll on board and heading out for a few days. Things could be worse.


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## Mystic1 (Feb 16, 2012)

smurphny said:


> Just received my Medicare card a couple of weeks ago.....now if I can only remember where I put it.


I'm not quite there age-wise (being a young 55) but I certainly feel the years at times. Remembering where I put things is sometimes a problem, but I was diagnosed with symptoms consistent with MCI (Mild Cognitive Impairment) late last year, apparently caused by a protein-in-the-brain issue. I bring this up because I used to joke about becoming forgetful as I got older, and it turns out, I actually was! So, seriously folks, if you think you're forgetting things, or if you're having trouble remembering names, events, or mix up details from different events, get yourself checked out. Symptoms can vary and are not as serious as Alzheimer's, but they are quite real.


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## Dirtboy (Jul 13, 2009)

> OK.. I am 63. I took up sailing when I was 58. That was because I gave up horseback riding for fear of breaking more bones.


Interesting. I'm 69 and became a "re-entry" sailor three years ago. I wanted a companion activity to motorcycling, something a little more sedate. I say a "companion" activity because I will never, Never, NEVER give up motorcycling as long as I am able to operate the machine! LOL

I understand those horses can be quite dangerous, I have many friends with horse related broken bone stories.

DB


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## Clarity2 (Jan 12, 2011)

Turn 65 this 4th of July; retiring end of June; acquired a 42 foot sloop last spring; 1st boat owned since the advent of kids sent my Triton over the horizon years ago; just charters from time to time since, plus lotsa reading. Can't wait to splash the new baby this spring and put some miles under the keel. May take her south, NJ to Fla., next winter or may wait another year until more of my regular crew join me in retirement. But anxious to get in the wind, to be sure. Fair winds & following seas, all!


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## Mark1948 (Jun 19, 2007)

20 months to Medicare, 32 till most of the readers on the site are paying me to sail.


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## byrsch (Oct 16, 2011)

62 and fully retired. We are looking for a boat again to live aboard and cruise for awhile.


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## jersey girl (Feb 11, 2012)

69 yrs young, dont know the guy i see in the mirror. just hay bad a triple bypass and i will be sailing from barnegat bay nj to cape cod bay in aug if im allowed i bought an old chrysler 22ft and its almost ready to go


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