Keelboat Questions

cfitz

kmick wrote: »

yeah maybe three if you are a fast learner. Dinghies teach you HOW to sail but as you rightly pointed out in a very wet and uncomfortable manner. Cruisers add a bit of comfort but a lot more responsibilty.

Well I better get going so if I don't want to be an old man before I start cruising!

Tabnabs

I've been in a dinghy maybe twice. I am a keen amateur sailor with my own boat. I crewed for one season on a friends boat. Then after a season of crewing with friends on my boat, I decided to try singlehanding as I couldn't always get crew. Dinghy sailing isn't the be all and end all route for learning to sail. Learning from your own mistakes on top of advice from others is a well worn path too.

That little Potter boat you are looking at is a mistake IMHO. It's too small. You're mrs will laugh at you if you think she will overnight in it, there's more space in your car than that cabin. It's brand new so you will loose money when you go to sell it. For 3/4/5k euros you can buy a really good little second hand yacht that you will sell on for similar money in a few years.

I highly recommend a coastal skipper night course too, it will teach you all about tides, navigation, passage planning, weather, all the interesting stuff on yachts/motor boats.

I would also highly recommend you join the YBW.com forums. There is a universe of information on there. Use the search button to look back on small boat singlehanding or any other subject you can think off, it's been discussed over there.

Above all, I would recommend to get out on bigger boats (and anything is bigger than a dinghy!) to get the feel of it, "try before you buy".

ValerieR

Maybe plan to do courses during the winter too such as the yachtmaster and a VHF course. They require a bit of time but are well worth it.
Valerie

cfitz

ValerieR wrote: »

Maybe plan to do courses during the winter too such as the yachtmaster and a VHF course. They require a bit of time but are well worth it.
Valerie

Is it best to build up sailing experience before doing these courses? Or is it a good idea to get the courses done then get out and practice? (Even the course title: 'Yachtmaster' sounds a bit daunting at this stage!)

cfitz

Dyflin wrote: »

I've been in a dinghy maybe twice. I am a keen amateur sailor with my own boat. I crewed for one season on a friends boat. Then after a season of crewing with friends on my boat, I decided to try singlehanding as I couldn't always get crew. Dinghy sailing isn't the be all and end all route for learning to sail. Learning from your own mistakes on top of advice from others is a well worn path too.

That little Potter boat you are looking at is a mistake IMHO. It's too small. You're mrs will laugh at you if you think she will overnight in it, there's more space in your car than that cabin. It's brand new so you will loose money when you go to sell it. For 3/4/5k euros you can buy a really good little second hand yacht that you will sell on for similar money in a few years.

I highly recommend a coastal skipper night course too, it will teach you all about tides, navigation, passage planning, weather, all the interesting stuff on yachts/motor boats.

I would also highly recommend you join the YBW.com forums. There is a universe of information on there. Use the search button to look back on small boat singlehanding or any other subject you can think off, it's been discussed over there.

Above all, I would recommend to get out on bigger boats (and anything is bigger than a dinghy!) to get the feel of it, "try before you buy".

Thanks for the tips. By the way, my wife has seen some pictures of the Potter, but perhaps when she saw it in real life her reaction might be like you've suggested! Anyway, I won't be in a position to purchase for quite a while and I could do a weekend charter holiday in a Potter at some stage if I am close to buying one.

At the moment I'm just trying to make sure that I take the quickest path towards my goal - to be able to sail a boat with sleeping facilities single-handed.

bmoregan

Hi Cfitz - There's nothing wrong with web-surfing for ideas but I really recommend just getting out on the water !

I'd done 2 weeks as a kid in a sailing school and in my 30s knew I wanted to get into sailing with no idea how. I did a 3-evening "Intro to Sailing" with one of the clubs in Dun Laoghaire (DMYC) which is basically an opportunity to get the phone numbers of a few skippers who race on Thursdays/Saturdays.
If you buy your own wet-gear and show up ON-TIME you get to go "round-the-cans" for a few hours.

The reason I mention it is because I didnt really "learn to sail" (i.e. in terms of being able to control a sailboat) until later when I bought my own dinghy (a Fireball) and raced it. However, once you get on a "yacht" and start bouncing around in a Force 5 - even in Dublin Bay - you wont know if coastal sailing is "your thing".

I've not done a lot of Inland Sailing but I do know its much nicer capsizing a dinghy in fresh water than salt :-)