woman singlehanders

Bayfieldsail · #1 (**permalink**) 11-24-2003

Dear fellow sailors, I''m just wondering if other lady singlehanded sailors out there have fresh new ideas/tips to share. The love of my life, a 31'' cutter-rigged sailboat, & I are from great lakes and are now near FL Keys. I''m a long-time liveaboard & prefer to cruise without crew but enjoy caravan cruises/sails with other boats. What do other singlehanders out there think about things like rollerfurling vs hanked-on when in heavy weather? Do you trust tiller (or wheel) pilots & use them? Have any other lady sailors been treated unusually by male sailors when they find out you singlehand? Mostly, people are great but I''ve had some guys treat me rather strangely when they see me handling my big boat alone. It''s no fun. Is this because sailing is traditionally men''s "territory"? Why are so many fellows uncomfortable with independant gals who''d rather sail & repair their own boats/engines/ect.? I can''t help being curious about other people''s experiences in this area...
Anyways, thankyou for this great site & for sharing.

kokopelli9 · #2 (**permalink**) 11-24-2003

I do not singlehand on a boat as large as yours...mine is a 23...but I have had the opposite experience. Most men I have found are quite supportive and very enthusiatic that I even have a boat much less sail it. I will admit that I have on occasion seen them watching me from the other docks when I''m coming in and out of the slip in rough winds, but I have also had them come over afterwards and tell me "good job" when everything was still in one piece.

I don''t expect anyone to grant me special considerations because I am a woman who singlehands, but I hope for the support and comraderie given to any sailor who is out there feeding their passion.

Kokopelli

Denr · #3 (**permalink**) 11-26-2003

Yeah, I can even picture you with a huge smile on your kisser with the boat heeled over about 25 degrees going to weather at about 7 knots :-)Have you ever sailed the Great Lakes Kokopuff?

Bayfieldsail · #4 (**permalink**) 11-27-2003

Thank goodness most fellow sailors are comrade-like and many usually don''t give special treatment just ''cause the sailor is a woman. Sailing that nice 23 footer sounds like great fun!
Am originally from the Great Lakes, but never heard of "Kokopuff". Is that a race? Lately, have raced cruising class in Key West, but when singlehanding a boat with four sheets, I''m not fast on the draw and end up last. Am afraid of my spinnaker!

PBzeer · #5 (**permalink**) 11-27-2003

Last I knew, sailor didn''t have a gender

Though not female (which I add only for perspective), I do singlehand and enjoy it. It is nice though, to sail with other boats, and be able to share, as well as be alone. The main thing is doing what you love, and knowing the only one you have to please, or impress, is yourself. IMHO, any man that has a problem with a woman singlehanding, isn''t much of a man, so don''t let those few bother you.

Fair winds,
John

seame · #6 (**permalink**) 02-23-2004

I sailed over 7,000 miles in the South Pacific and home to San Francisco with my 2 children, which other singlehanders call half handing. We had a 44ft steel ketch an Endurance.

Some men were rats and some admired me. The nice thing about sailing is if you don''t like your neighbor you can just pick up the hook and move. We buddy boated with other families and other single handing men, and sometimes sailed alone. So there is a great variety. I did most of the engine work myself, which I admit is a challenge, but good maintenance prevents a lot of the work and also if you have a diesel engine remember to let it do some work, because lack of use is worse than too much use.

I definitely loved my roller furling foresail, for quick and easy reefing. I had a self tending stay sail which was also great. You can see a picture of EASY on my personal page. 44 feet is a bit too big for me, I am only 5 feet 2, but that was what I had, so that is what I dealt with. 40 feet would have been perfect.

I had a troublesome Autohelm which finally became beyond repair and we used the Aires wind vane even under motor. I have no preference to wheel or tiller. Tiller is easier to bungy cord and rig self steering. The Aires was my best crew!

If you have any other questions I love nothing more than to talk sailing.

seame

MNSailGal · #7 (**permalink**) 10-13-2004

Great thread! I just purchased my first boat (Hunter22) and am learning to singlehandle. Didn''t even know there was a name for it. I''m curious about the rest of you. Anyone else an ONLY CHILD? I am and feel this contributes to my love of alone time and independence. I sail, drop anchor, swim, practice MOB drills. Love to decorate and "play house" on my boat - even at age 40.

starcresttoo · #8 (**permalink**) 10-18-2004

my mother woulndt understand any of you but I certainly do.she would say where do you eat where do you sleep where do you take a shower what if you have to go...you know...and then she would say well what about that time of the ...well you know...what if you need something from the drug store for that time... you know...

Luvtheisland · #9 (**permalink**) 10-25-2004

You women ROCK!! I''m going back and forth about buying and living aboard my own sailboat.....Have recently found this site and this link.....You inspire and encourage! Am interested in finding out the pro''s and con''s (if any) of living aboard.....I think it will be quite the adventure.....!

Izabella01 · #10 (**permalink**) 10-26-2004

grins.. buy a boat.. live on her, go sailing..
now what part of that do you not understand???? grins...

just because you are a woman does not preclude you from your dreams. In fact it is a bonus in my opinion.

and I get to go sailing anytime i can talk the captain, that would be ME, into taking me out. That is not a hard/long talk either..

what? my shift is canceled? oh dear... lol.. it took me all of 30 minutes to pack things away and get underway.. and have a lovely afternoon sail last sunday. Sure i left as everyone was coming in and came in after dark. but the sunset was stunning and i had the bay to myself NO one to run into or avoid. I sat becalmed for an hour reading a book until the daily windshift at 5:30 and it picked up even better than before. I got a bristol 32 up to almost hull speed for a whole minute before it settled into a steady 6 knots.

that entice you.. i cad do better..
''bella