I've been wanting to buy a sailboat for quite some time now and I finally have the funds to do it. However my experience is very limited so I wanted to ask a few questions first. Just as some background; I took a several week sailing class a few years ago did OK. However since then I've been so busy with work and family I haven't sailed much. The largest boat I sailed was only 22 feet (I think it was a Santana 22 or something like that) . What I would like to buy is a small Schooner. I just like the look of them. I've been looking around on the internet and I see a few in my price range. I was thinking of something around 30 feet. Ok so here are the questions.
1) Is 30 ft an OK size to start with? I would like something with a reasonable cabin that I can take family and/or friends places on weekends. How big can I go before it gets hard to handle with two people?
2) Is a Schooner OK as a first boat? As I said I mainly like the looks. I understand it won't go to wind like a sloop but I'm willing to live with that.
3) What are maintenance costs like? I know they vary based on the boat but I just want a rough estimated based on size or length (whatever makes sense)
That's all I can think of for now but any comments and opinions are welcome. Sorry in advance if these are stupid questions or have been answered elsewhere. If there's a good FAQ on this feel free to direct me there.
1) Is 30 ft an OK size to start with? I would like something with a reasonable cabin that I can take family and/or friends places on weekends. How big can I go before it gets hard to handle with two people?
2) Is a Schooner OK as a first boat? As I said I mainly like the looks. I understand it won't go to wind like a sloop but I'm willing to live with that.
3) What are maintenance costs like? I know they vary based on the boat but I just want a rough estimated based on size or length (whatever makes sense)
That's all I can think of for now but any comments and opinions are welcome. Sorry in advance if these are stupid questions or have been answered elsewhere. If there's a good FAQ on this feel free to direct me there.