Hello world!

[ClaireFAISE]

Hello, all!

I'm 21 and from San Diego, California. I've never owned a boat, but I've been on a couple giant yachts, operated a small motorized fishing boat, and when I was little I rode on a boat with my father in Big Bear Lake.

I'm a video game artist and when I work on a new project I study things in real life similar it so I can recreate it digitally as accurately as possible. It was because of a project where I had to design a hot-air-balloon-suspended galleon that I learned about sail boats, thus falling in love with them. As embarrassing to admit as it is, I've also fallen in love with the open sea because of Sperry Top-Sider's marketing. Haha, those shoes sell the romantic notions of the open sea so well, don't you think?

I came to sailnet because I wanted to learn more about boats than I could from wikipedia and youtube, and find some kind of connection to the greater sailing community, of which I have no connections with yet.

I hope I find it here.

[AboardIndigo]

Hi.

That's the best I can conjure up right now.

[mgmhead]

Welcome, plenty of resources here including some old salts and an archive of posts. Enjoy...MGM

[rgscpat]

Welcome, Claire. You live in a wonderful part of the world for trying out sailing. Books and videos can only give you a pale ghost of what it's like to be sailing on your own, and even the trips on big boats have only the smallest connection to sailing on all but the largest yachts.

The best thing for you to do is hang around sailors, watch them, get some tips, and try it. Places like the Mission Bay Sports Center would be a nice way to get a taste of sailing. And once you have a little bit of experience, you can try signing up for crew bulletin boards at sailing and yacht clubs, joining some sort of club, taking lessons, etc. Lots of communities and marine businesses also put on safety lessons and basic boating classes that are cheap or free.

Many sailors believe that the best way to become a skillful boat handler is to practice, crew, and take lessons on small boats. Things happen fast on small boats and little boats generally tell you very quickly if you mess up. And you don't have to worry much about breaking any thing!

Then, once you have the basics down, try different kinds of sailing. Sailing is many different things to different people. Before spending much money on a boat, it's usually a fantastic idea to get experience with lots of boats so you know what kinds of sailing you do and don't like, what things you do and don't like in a boat ... and to be sure you don't miss out on what may turn out to be your favorite kind of sailing.

Now tell us about what kind of sailing and boats you think you might like and how sailing might relate to the kinds of things you already like to do. Do your personality and interests, for example, lean more toward performance, excitement, escapism, comfort, puzzle-solving, nature, kinetic, artistic, or social activities?

[casioqv]

Hi Claire,

I'm in SoCal also and trailer my boat to Long Beach, and Big Bear Lake- both great places to sail.

Most sailboat owners are always looking for crew, so you could probably find an experienced racer or cruiser to crew for, and get some sailing experience for free.

Also, if you're looking at buying a sailboat there's hardly anyone buying right now and lots of good deals on craigslist.

Here's a book I highly recommend on learning to sail:
The Complete Sailor: Learning the Art of Sailing by David Seidman

And this is a book I wish I had read before I bought my first sailboat:
Complete Illustrated Sailboat Maintenance Manual by Don Casey

[ClaireFAISE]

@casioqv - Thank you, and thanks for the references! Just for fun I did look at boats on Craig's List and I was very surprised at how low the prices were. I was almost certain that even a modest sailboat was going to cost me more than a luxury car.

@rgscpat - I want to cruise rather than race. I'd love for sailing to become something I can use to escape and relax. Something I could do to bond with my family, entertain friends, or if I become skilled enough one day do alone. I've lived my whole life being no more than 15 miles away from the ocean. Every time I see it I get really happy, and feel kind of depressed when I'm away from it. Being closer to the water is something I have trouble picturing not being in my future.

[sailingdog]

Welcome aboard Claire.

I would recommend that you get and read Dave Seidman's The Complete Sailor, if you have any interest in learning how to sail. This book is required reading for my crew and something I have recommended/given to many new sailors. The book is an excellent sailing primer that covers a wide breadth of theory, history, skills and knowledge regarding sailcraft of all kinds.

[casioqv]

Originally Posted by ClaireFAISE

@casioqv - Thank you, and thanks for the references! Just for fun I did look at boats on Craig's List and I was very surprised at how low the prices were. I was almost certain that even a modest sailboat was going to cost me more than a luxury car.

My wife and I paid $800 for our Catalina 22 a year ago, and we've since taken it on a week long cruise to Catalina Island. But IF I had read the second book I listed above, I would have realized how many repairs it needed, and paid more for a boat that would have been cheaper in the long run.

It's *possible* to put together a bare-bones cruising sailboat for less than the price of a nice laptop computer, if you're willing and interested in learning how to fix and upgrade things yourself.

Originally Posted by ClaireFAISE

@rgscpat - I want to cruise rather than race. I'd love for sailing to become something I can use to escape and relax.

I feel the same- but still found volunteer crewing on a race boat to be the best way to learn to be a good sailor. A lot of cruisers never really learn how to adjust sails properly, which makes the boat slower, less comfortable, and less safe.

[smackdaddy]

Hey c - welcome to SN dude. You'll like the place.

[CalebD]

Plain old C language:
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main;
cout >> "Hello Claire";
}

Welcome to the sailnut forum.
There's plenty of crazy people here who are like twice your age, at least.