Day Sailors?
 

Anyone here in the sailing hobby? I'm thinking to take up the hobby with the lady friend who has 40+ years sailing experience with her Dad. Ideally searching for a boat with a swing keel, 22-25 feet that is able to be hauled and launched with a trailer. I'm 6'4" and 275 pounds, so interior cabin room is going to be tight IF at all possible in a boat that size. Not really looking for a good racer, just a cruiser type. It's the one hobby that the lady friend can tell me what I'm doing wrong....and she'd probably be correct. :D

I spoke with a sailboat broker last week and gave him my concerns, and having been in the business he put it like this: "You can get a boat that is small enough to "trailer sail", and it will probably take you an hour and a half to rig it and launch it the first few times, then you'll cut that time down to half, then when you have a wonderful day on the boat and something goes wrong during the take down, it kind of ruins the day. At that point you'll be thinking how much easier it would be to rent a slip for a few months and only have to haul out and launch the boat once or twice a year. Now the trailer is going to take up space somewhere, and since you are paying for the slip, you wonder "why didn't I get a larger boat to begin with?".

I'll be looking at a 30 foot boat this afternoon, at a "I'm tired of dealing with 3 sailboats and I'm old" kind of price. Problem is it's a BIG boat in a 33,000 acre lake, a fixed keel, no trailer, it weighs 8000 pounds and there is only one contractor in the area that will lift this size boat out of the water at a cost of $1500. The slip rental is $200 a month. The boat has been for sale for quite a while with no takers. It's more of a coastal cruiser and I can't imagine what it would cost to get it to where there is a larger body of water (the gulf coast) and maybe the resale market would be better because of the location. Of course I'd have to rent a slip there and then drive a few hours to go sailing.

So, from those experienced in the sailing hobby, thoughts?

Is there a sailing club on the lake or another facility where you can store the boat on a trailer without taking the mast down?
200 a month for in the water storage sounds cheap, maybe a smaller boat than the 30 footer you store in the water. I think you will use it more.

There is a sailing club that I could probably join (Lady friend and her Dad 40+ years members) and leave a smaller boat mast up on a trailer. But this 30 footer, it's only coming out and going back in the water with a crane (at $1500 a trip) and there is no trailer in the deal.

^^^This. I wouldn't recommend the 30 footer. More expense and you'll need a fair amount of wind to get it moving. From my experience sailing on lakes in the Southeast, the winds are more typically light, and shifty. Experienced sailors are able to get/keep their boats moving in these conditions, but it might be more frustrating for a newbee to learn in these conditions.

We had a 22ft sailboat (J/22) that we raced throughout the Southeast, and we kept it on it's trailer with the mast & boom in place at a yacht club on Lake Lanier (GA). It was pretty fast/easy to get it into the water.

What's the lake like, depth-wise? Will a wing keel or even a fin keel boat allow you to sail most of the lake without worry of grounding?

As to your physical size and comfort on the boat, you have to decide how you are going to use the boat. Are you day sailing, or are you living aboard it from time to time, too? Most day sailors are out on the water for a few hours and wrap up and go home. If your girlfriend is into racing and gets you into it, too, then you'll probably only spend time sailing and interior accommodations can be quite spartan (to save weight and go faster!). In the day sailing and racing cases, you only need a cabin to store what's needed for the day's activity (beer, water, food/snacks, life jackets (req'd), porta-potty, etc.). A small cabin can do the job.

If you want something with living space, you'll want to be around 27 ft, or longer. But I think as a beginner, that's not as likely a scenario as the other ones mentioned above.

As a beginner boat for day sailing or racing, the swing-keel Catalina 22 is pretty good and usually quite readily available on the used market. But there's other boats that'll also do a great job, depending on your preferences. Keep asking questions and I'm sure the sailors here will help you get off on the right foot.

Sailing club....always lookin' fer crew, etc. Most of my sailing (a novice) was on a 30'er in the St. John's and Atlantic over 25 years. A big boat for a lake and you'd feel like a sardine down below :)

Test the H2O by hooking up with others and learning ....save yer relationship :).

Sailing is a lifestyle and a total blast....have fun and listen to Jim...

PM pelican UserID sunroof for his suggestions.

I have had a Chrysler 22 and O'Day 26. Both swing-keel. I kept the 22 rigged on a trailer and launched-recovered each time. It was easy and we used it all the time. The 26 was launched and put in a slip for the season. Both are nice ways if the situation fits the bill.

I will say that I would not have wanted to launch and recover the 26 each time as it was just a little too much, too big to want that.

You answered the question I think.
Looking at the rez videos and that is not that big of a lake plus there is plenty of mucky areas (good for fishing) where a larger boat would just get stuck. A cabin is nice but made for longer trips or bangchickabowwow breaks. That seems like expensive overkill for a slight bit more comfort unless you're planning on more open water in the future.

The smaller Hobie Cat is a great racer but there would be zero storage and quite a bit of raw exposure to the wind and elements, which limits the season.

My father had a https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laser_2 which was fast as heck and could hold a cooler and blankets. A great boat and slightly deeper than others. It can take a spinnaker as well. The boom is quite low and when used with a larger main sail jibes will lead to a serious knock on the noggin for taller people unless longer legs are planned. Maybe there are boom pads which can be added. It will also flip in high winds as discovered many times but is easily uprighted.
http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1567371911.jpg

I would agree with joining a club and try out a few boats and day experiences before making any bigger decisions.

Better idea, trailerable boat stored on the trailer at a lake where you can leave it rigged-that way put up/takedown is a once a season affair. Did this with a catalina 22 when I was between bigger boats. If its performance you want, seek out a Holder 20. Short lived design, but its a full on race boat that's reasonably forgiving for just day adventures. Enough to hold the interest of your s/o.

https://www.catalina22.org/

https://catalina.sailboatowners.com/classified2/adsmanager.php?task=res&brand=Catalina&location=Al l&pr=1000000&loa1=21&loa2=23&rank=date_last_insert ed&dir=DESC

Here are some photos from the boat I looked at this afternoon. It's a 1974 model C&C 30 that's had a $8-10,000 full bottom cleaning-coating-paint job up to the deck in the last 3 years. Receipts and photos of the process I looked at. The topside was painted at some point in the past. Overall, it is solid as a rock. Couldn't find any soft spots in the deck, all the hardware appears usable and in good condition. Has an Atomic 4 gasoline engine that would crank and start but only run for a few seconds, so there is some fueling issue there.

The inside cabin of the boat had a lot to be desired. Has the cushions which are in ok shape, but the cabinetry at the aft end of the cabin needs to be completely redone and refitted. All the large keel to hull studs/bolts looked good in the bilge and there might have been a cup of water in the bilge. Very dry. Rigged for a depth finder, speed etc. doo dad but that's not part of the deal with an asking price of $5000.





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C&C's are good boats. They make great coastal &/or Great Lakes cruisers. The inboard gas engine would not be something I would buy. A diesel would be safer. YMMV. It'll be moderately fast and stable in a fresh breeze, but possibly a bit sluggish in light winds.

This pic brought back fond memories of hours spent sailing our old Chrysler 15' Mutineer on a local reservoir. A centerboard dinghy teaches one about sailing...a larger ballasted boat teaches one more about boat camping.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mutineer_15

We call the Atomic-4 the Atomic-Bomb. Danger, Danger, Danger.

Yeah, they’re great when they don’t explode.

I was pretty active in sailing for 20 years in SoCal. Mostly multihulls but a dozen or so dingys and keelboats I pulled strings on as well.

The C&C was a solid boat in it's day and a well respected coastal cruiser. They like a fresh breeze and anything under 10kts of wind will be pretty sedate. I don't know the wind and weather in your area but she might be a good choice if you are not looking to set speed records. She is 45 yrs old and there will be issues you have not found yet but at that price you don't have a lot to lose.

Greg Lepore gives good advice if you are going to sail in the same water. In my racing days we did exactly that. Boats were stored on trailers fully rigged.

If you want a trailerable day-sailer that you can take to different waters easily look into a MacGrgor 26. It fits all your criteria. Headroom, swing keel, trailerable on a low trailer, rigged in 15 minutes.

https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=1&cad=rja&u act=8&ved=2ahUKEwjHz9mVm7HkAhVyzlkKHTrLD-UQFjAAegQIABAB&url=https%3A%2F%2Fasa.com%2Fnews%2F 2017%2F07%2F24%2Fcruising-boat-spotlight-macgregor-26m%2F&usg=AOvVaw0bRCBc0YCG7Bgjco8hORc0

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1567396040.jpg
http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1567396040.jpg

Hmmm. I’m not a fan of the MacGregor, but to each, their own.

I own the little sister of the C&C 30 - a 27.

Great boat.

Question is, is it the right boat for your situation? I was thinking a Catalina 22 may be a better fit. They point poorly but other than that, people love them.

I also think a j/24 could be loads of fun.

Minimum things to break and maintain = more fun. Really.