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Search for the perfect first boat

2K views 4 replies 3 participants last post by  jmig7 
#1 ·
Hi all,

Enjoyed reading all the forums here. I have next to no sailing experience but have begun reading heavily and will start with lessons this summer. I''m starting to research used boats although i do not expect actually buying for a year or two- until i have spent enough time on the water for my needs/wants in a boat to solidify a bit better. However, I do have a number of questions pertaining to the best boat for my needs:

The boat will be for myself and my girlfriend with the occasional guest or two. We would like to spend a few years sailing around New York and ideally as far as Cape Cod and points in between. We are not interested in racing only crusing. Their are 3 main issues which i think will impact our choice of boats;

me: 6 feet 4 inches
her: 5 feet 2 inches

My intial idea was to look at boats in the 28-32 foot range but finding 6'' 5" of headroom seems next to impossible in anything under 38-40 feet. I refuse to have to crouch in the cabin, I must be able to stand up.

Secondly, my girlfriend has MS (Multiple Sclerosis) which limits her strength and stamina significantly. So what ever we get should be easily single handed by me. I don''t know if there is anything we can do to make a boat more user friendly for her?

Finally the budget is naturally our limiting factor. Since I don''t yet have a handle on all the reoccuring costs, i can only speculate that our budget for a used boat would be in the 20-30K range.

Given the above factors, do any of you have any boats to suggest? I suspect we''d be more likely to want to go out for a week or two or at least several days at a time rather than just day sailing.

I''d also like to know the pros and cons of either learning on a small dingy then moving up vs. learning on the boat you actually wish to own. I am thinking about buying a small boat to sail this summer like a Laser, escape etc. From what i''ve read this seems to be the best way to learn (ie, in a small boat) If any of you have opnions on the best small boats to learn to sail, do share.

thanks,

john
 
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#2 ·
John,
Here''s my 2 cents:
1) Learning on a smaller boat is good in my opinion. The larger boats are more forgiving than smaller boats, so I think you''ll be a better sailor if you learn on a smaller boat.
2) There is one boat that is definately in your size range, price range and has 6''5" head room(through-out the cabin): Morgan OI33. I recently owned one. It has a full keel. It weighs 14,500 pounds. It is definately a cruising sailboat. I sold mine since I was only really daysailing with my family on Lake Michigan and I decided to get a 26'' sailboat with a very small cabin and a large cockpit. What really sold me on the Morgan OI (Out Island) was the headroom and spacious interior. It has an almost 12'' beam. I am also 6''4" and I really did have headroom throughout. I could actually stretch out when standing. Most of these boats are in Florida, but occasionally you can find them in the NE. You can get one of these boats for between $20 and 30K. Definately have it surveyed to make sure it doesnt have any problems if you find one.
There will be some people that are going to respond that they don''t like the Out Islands for various reasons, but talk to people that own them and you get a different story. If you want any more info on these boats feel free to email me at: rbh@execpc.com and I can set you up with all the pertinent web sites etc. Good Luck Rob ~~~~_/)~~~~
 
#4 ·
hi Im in the same boat i have been looking for acatalina 30 6''2" hight You will have to get used to bendind over stand up on deck .I am6'' + And there are few boats ican stand in.Ihave been looking for ac30 for 8 months. I think the inside of this is the largest .I have had two survays and did not get a boat yet We looked at atleast 40 boats and they all have problems . You should start looking now it mite take 2 years to find a boat Istarted sailing in a22'' catalina it was ok for over nighting. it took me about 1/2 hr to learn how to raise sail and go .That was how long the free lesson was. ithink it cost 1500 in 1990 We had alot of fun on that small boat ac22 is alot easer to sail then adingy and you can go out for a hole day and be comfterble .I have allready done more work looking for a c30 then i put into the five years of sailind my 22. I may byanother c22
and forget the hole thing good luck leakey
 
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