Take ASA classes or buy sunfish/small sailboat

[ccriders]

Hey Finite,
What are you majoring in? Consider transferring to Texas A&M Corpus Christi and you will find all the sailing you ever wanted. The racing crowd is always in need of good deck hands plus other opportunites, e.g. join the Bay Yacht Club (not expensive) and make yourself available to other members to crew. If you got a dinghy sailer and lived in student housing you could drag it a few hundred yards to the beach and launch from there.
And, I'll bet your tuition and fees would be lower.
John

[Finite]

My major is finance, and I'm here at Tech because of scholarship money. So unfortunately I'm here to stay, although it's not that bad. I just miss the simple things, like trees, green grass, hills, and large bodies of water. I've only got 45 more hours to go here after this semester so I'm not too worried about it. Also, the upper level classes I've taken this semester wouldn't transfer either. And for some reason everyone tells me TAMUCC is a really boring school to go to. No idea how that is though, seems like it would be a blast. If mom and dad were paying for school I would definitely give it some thought though. I love the ocean. Thanks for the idea though.

[Finite]

Originally Posted by dnf777

I was in your same position. I came across about 3k and had to decide whether to go to classes, or buy a boat. I went for the boat, and am glad I did. With all the excellent books out there, you can mostly learn on your own in light conditions.

this may sound wimpy, but going out alone, I would always ask the fisherman launching with me, if they would keep an eye on me, and they were more than happy to.

As for sloops vs. sunfish..... Good advice in both directions, and probably just personal preference. By matter of circumstance, I ended up with a sloop rig, and again, am happy for that. My first sojourns were with just the mainsail, until I got comfortable with the points of sail, tacking and gybing, and other basics. Then it was easy and FUN to add a second sail...and really see how much better the boat handled with the jib.

With one sail or two, it is a blast. Having the second sail just got me more comfortable with a little more complexity, and got me one step closer to my goals of being an accomplished sailor.

Like I said earlier, I'm all in favor of formal classes and certs.....but not at all in favor of putting off getting on the water!

I'll be lucky to come across 3k. Haha. Bills and what not kill my bank account.

Ideally I would come across a boat with a jib but we'll see. I think sailboats are priced a little bit cheaper in Central Texas than most other places, so I'm fortunate in that aspect. My mother also used to race sailboats casually on the weekends when we lived in Florida until she broke her tail bone on a cleat so hopefully I can get her to pitch in as well. My dad also surfs so he may have some interest in it as well.

But I definitely will get formal training when I can.

[SeaLifeSailing]

I just weighed in with another sailor, and strongly encouraged him to take some lessons, but his situation is different. He's going to be sailing in coastal BC where there's just a lot more to know in order to be able to cruise safely. If I were in your position, provided you are a decent swimmer, I'd probably grab a little skiff and start sailing, or even cheaper, join a sailing club that gives you lots of access to sailing for a nominal annual fee maybe some free instruction, and lets you try out a variety of boats.

As for the footwear, if you have runners, topsiders or closed toed sandals, wear 'em. If you aren't sure if they are non-marking, scuff them aggressively on a nice, white linoleum floor. If they leave a mark, they aren't non-marking.