# Permission to come aboard?



## AUspiciousAU (Sep 1, 2011)

Hello everyone! I wanted to introduce myself as I'll be pestering many of you for information. I live in north Alabama right next to the Tennessee River. I grew up here and spent a lot of time on the water, but only to water ski and fish...never sailed. It always seemed inaccessible, for a variety of reasons. 

Well, I'm older now and I realize that sailing is no longer quite as inaccessible as I once though. As I said, I've never sailed, so my fascination may seem unusual to someone who grew up sailing, but there is just something about it that is tugging hard at me. When we go to the beach, my wife and I like to drink coffee on our balcony and watch the sun rise. Seeing all those sails dotting the horizon makes me rotten with envy. We also really enjoy walking the docks when we are at the beach or at the local marinas, simply looking at boats. It's hard to articulate, but there's just something about it...I want to sail!

I'm thinking about my sailing future in phases. Phase 1 is educating myself and getting some experience on the water. I've read several books and have been lurking sailing message boards. I have a couple friends who have sailboats and they have both offered to take me out on the river. I also have another friend who may be looking to unload a small catamaran. I've also considered taking some of the ASA courses. Those provide several days on the water, plenty of information, and some sort of certification. Phase 2 would be procuring a boat and slip at the local marina. I'm thinking about a used 25'. Hunter, Catalina, and C&C are all very popular on this river. I figured a 25' is enough boat to accommodate me, the wife, and my three boys for daysailing, and then me and one or two others for overnighters. Phase 3, and much longer term, would be acquiring a larger boat (30'+) and coastal cruising in the Gulf of Mexico. I'd like cruise with my oldest son to Key West before he goes to college...within the next 7 years. 

Anyway, that's my story. I hope to get some sailing experience on the river this fall, and then maybe head to the gulf for a couple ASA courses this spring. I welcome any wise counsel from you sailing veterans. Thanks!


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## jackdale (Dec 1, 2008)

Permission granted.

Welcome aboard.

That is a good plan.

JAck


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## cahow (Aug 27, 2011)

Welcome aboard! Sounds pretty well thought out but from my somewhat limited experience Phase 1 is concurrent with all other phases and pretty much continious with sailing life.
Good luck, I wish you the best!


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## deniseO30 (Nov 27, 2006)

Welcome aboard AU! Do get out here on some of the boats friends have offered to take you on. Suggestion, wait on buying a boat until your sure of your needs.. 25 ft imo,is small for 5 people. Heck, even on my 30 ft. boat, 4 seems a crowd to me. 
Years back I listened to the "buy smaller first" advice and wound up with a lovely hunter 23, I sold it in the first year! Way too small for my "needs"


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## Donna_F (Nov 7, 2005)

AUspiciousAU said:


> When we go to the beach, my wife and I like to drink coffee on our balcony and watch the sun rise. Seeing all those sails dotting the horizon makes me rotten with envy.


Wait until you're drinking your coffee sitting in your own cockpit watching the sun rise. Heaven.



AUspiciousAU said:


> It's hard to articulate, but there's just something about it...I want to sail!


Seemed pretty darn articulate to me. 

One word of caution about your kids: Don't be upset if they don't share your dream.

When we bought a boat large enough to haul more than the two of us I was excited about getting my niece and nephew involved (we have no kids), imagined trips with their friends, etc. They both took a boating safety course and did well. My niece was all into charting and navigation. Then their teenaged lives interfered with my plans. In theory they love the idea of sailing and the few times they sailed with us, they had fun. They simply have other activities going on that interest them more.

A neighbor of ours spent years with his family (wife and four or five kids) sailing all over the Chesapeake in a 27 foot boat. When he was able to he moved up to a 36-footer to give his family more room and expand their cruising beyond the Bay. Once the kids reached aged 18, one by one they refused to step foot on another sailboat. Now he hopes that his grand kids are more open to sailing but in the meantime, he and his wife sail up and down the East coast.

You mentioned "your" sailing future. I like the plan, but if your wife shares and encourages your dream (and some don't), I hope that she participates in the sailing classes as well and learns how to operate the boat equally. If something should happen to either of you, the other should know how to get the boat back to a safe harbor (dock, anchorage, etc). And really, it can be fun to learn as a couple and interesting figuring out each others strengths. You each might surprise the other, no matter how long you've been together. It can also make the division of labor aboard the boat more natural.

Also, when you choose your boats, don't forget to consider her input if she will also spend time on them. Nothing worse than one partner blindly and enthusiastically making all the decisions and finding out the other is miserable.

Actually, I would encourage your wife to join the forum herself. 

Good luck and welcome to sailing!


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## cahow (Aug 27, 2011)

Good points, all well made DR.


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## fryewe (Dec 4, 2004)

XXspiciousXX, your plan sounds great to me, but YOUR plan has to be YOUR plan (and of course your mate's). Great to get advice here, but the great thing about sailing and the sea is the xxtonomy you have, and the liberty to make every little thing about your life at/around the sea your own.

This site is a great place to learn. Another will be any forum you find that is made up of owners/salivators of the boat you decide to own. Long term owners of boats like the one you will eventually buy will have already solved most problems you will have with sails, rigging, engine, interior, leaks , autopilot, lighting, and so on, and will have discussed them at length at their forum.

Good luck. Sorry, but I can't bring myself to type that XX thing you have as part of your ID. Roll Tide!


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## rgscpat (Aug 1, 2010)

Ya'll have a great time out there, you hear!

Ya'll - you all
Yawl - a two-masted sailboat with a small mizzen (back) mast aft of the stern post


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## rbrasi (Mar 21, 2011)

fryewe said:


> XXspiciousXX,
> Good luck. Sorry, but I can't bring myself to type that XX thing you have as part of your ID. Roll Tide!


I was reading that, thinking, what's wrong with that guy's keyboard? Very apt-RTR!


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## wingNwing (Apr 28, 2008)

Hi and welcome! Nice intro, BTW. One thing that's certain about your plans at this stage ... whatever you plan, it won't turn out exactly that way (but that's part of the fun.) Try to sail on as many different types of boats as you can before narrowing down anything to look at buying. Friends, courses, charters, you haven't had time yet to establish your style. Donna has given some good advice.


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## tomperanteau (Jun 4, 2009)

What's the hold up? Get your ars out there and buy a boat. Learn by doing, and have WAY too much fun.


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## cahow (Aug 27, 2011)

Hey just a quick tip about about any potential monohul purchase. My 22 doesn't have a roller furled headsail and that's a bit of a pain while sailing shorthanded because when I have to change the sail plan forward it's all by hand with the tiller lashed.
Another thing my boat has a plaining hull which makes it great for trailoring and accessing shallow water spots in good part to the swing keel but it feels like a cork bobbing on the water and has a shllow cabin as compared to the displacement hulls I'v sailed on.

I hope this helps you out.


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## kamala (Jul 15, 2011)

*another alabama sailor*

I hear you. I'm from and still live in Alabama, never sailed growing up, and had the same "strange" desire to start sailing. Living in Birmingham is not exactly an optimal port of call for a sailor but nonetheless I bought a 1988 Catalina 22.

My complete lack of experience (and money) did not stop me from learning how to sail. Courses cost money and are likely overrated because my wife and I had a blast teaching ourselves how to sail. The key is just taking the plunge and buying a boat.

I like the very trailer-able 22' because we have taken it to the lake (Martin/Guntersville/Weiss/Hartwell/Lanier), bay (Choctawhatchee), ocean (Atlantic-Charleston/Savannah). Our next trip is either going to be in the Mobile bay or Horn Island. Stepping a 22' mast is very easy with 2 people (ie my wife and I) but I've heard that a 25' has a much heavier mast.


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## AUspiciousAU (Sep 1, 2011)

Thanks to all for the comments. I'm incredibly stoked about learning to sail. 

Kamala, I've considered a 22' boat, but I wanted something that would be comfortable for a day trip with the entire family. I think a boat that size would be perfect for me and the wife, but I'd like to be able to take the boys out too.

Am I biting off more than I can chew with a larger boat...like 25'? Should I start with a smaller boat to learn? I've heard people say they quickly got tired of their small boat and sold it after a year to move up in size.


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## PorFin (Sep 10, 2007)

AUspiciousAU said:


> Should I start with a smaller boat to learn? I've heard people say they quickly got tired of their small boat and sold it after a year to move up in size.


Damned War Eagle, 

As others have suggested, don't be in too much of a rush to buy your first boat. My suspicion is that many who buy small then move up within a short time do so because they were unsure of themselves initially. Using the "crawl, walk, then run" analogy, do your crawling phase on other people's boats. It'll get you up the steep initial learning curve and go a long way towards boosting your confidence.

Another thing to consider given your initial sailing grounds is draft. When we came south from Lake Michigan a couple of years ago, we detoured up the Tenn river to see my brother in Decatur. As I recall, there wasn't a lot of deep water outside of the channels (but then again, we draw almost 6' so I kind of ignored anything less than 10' unless we were forced to.)

Welcome aboard and best of luck!

(btw: The Auburn jab was a hanging curveball that I had to take a cut at -- I'd never be able to go back to Gator Country with any dignity if I hadn't )


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## AUspiciousAU (Sep 1, 2011)

PorFin, I live in Decatur. You're right, around Decatur, the water gets pretty shallow outside the channel. But closer to Wheeler Dam, it's very deep shore to shore. That's the area for best sailing, and likely where I'll try to get a slip.


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## kamala (Jul 15, 2011)

AUspiciousAU said:


> Thanks to all for the comments. I'm incredibly stoked about learning to sail.
> 
> Kamala, I've considered a 22' boat, but I wanted something that would be comfortable for a day trip with the entire family. I think a boat that size would be perfect for me and the wife, but I'd like to be able to take the boys out too.
> 
> Am I biting off more than I can chew with a larger boat...like 25'? Should I start with a smaller boat to learn? I've heard people say they quickly got tired of their small boat and sold it after a year to move up in size.


If you are going to just keep it in a slip then I would definitely get the bigger boat. My father-in-law told me that 22' was too big to start with but I thought that was ridiculous. The only thing that has kept me from getting a bigger boat is the fact that we mostly trailer ours. The second I move somewhere that we can easily put the boat in a slip I'm going to go for the upgrade.

That being said, we frequently go out with 4+ people on our boat and never feel crowded. I always just tell people on the drive to the boat that no matter where you sit on a sailboat you are going to be in the way.


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## SHNOOL (Jun 7, 2007)

I am going to swim against the tide here (as I tend to do)... but I would argue the cockpit of my 22 footer is bigger than most 30 footers. I can sail (and have) with 5 adults aboard, and have not even thought twice about it (make sure to have safety equipment for each person aboard).

Do as others have said... hop a few boats (as volunteer crew), and see what you like and don't before you buy... Or hell, just buy cheap, so upgrading is easy.

Now having a decent below-decks is handy (25 foot range and better). With kids it gives them a place to duck out and go play... It comes down to how you are going to sail. Expect some kids to love it, others not so much.

I've been sailing since I was 5 or so... gave it up for years, and picked it up for real recently (last 4 years or so). I have ALWAYS had that love of the water, and bigger and bigger sails.

Welcome aboard. Oh and congratulations... that feeling of wanting to sail, starts around December, and doesn't let up until about November, the following year. There are a few cold days that turn you off to sailing sometimes, then it starts all over.

The butterflies of excitement build as you learn to do bigger and bigger sails (meaning larger longer trips)... and learn to sail heavier and heavier winds.


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