[acem]

Hi!

I am a sailing newby. I have power boated some and have canoed alot but never even been in a sailboat. I am here to learn and interact with other sailors.

I have allways been interested in traveling by boat (I now realize they call this cruising). For years I expected to use a power boat because I knew nothing about sailing. I realized I could afford the boat but could not afford all the fuel that is required. So I have put this off for years due to the cost of fuel.

I was recently down at Galveston Bay and saw all the sailboats. I got to thinking that I should check out sailing. Well I have read alot and have looked at some sailboats for sale. It appears I can afford to sail and it I am sure it is something I can learn.

I am thinking I should join a sailing club in my area as well as joining this site. I am looking for sailing clubs on Lake Dardanelle and Beaver Lake. I want to buy a 22 - 25 ft trailerable sailboat (something like a cat 22) to learn on and gain experience. I live very near Lake Dardanelle so it would be handy The marinas on Lake Dardanelle are 40 miles away but boat docks are handy. So I think a sailboat that is trailerable would be best at this time.

Are there any sailors here from Western Arkansas?

Is anyone a member of a sailing club in Western Arkansas?

Thank You
Martin 'Ace' Mershon

 

[acem]

I have found alot of boats for sale but am now mostly looking at cat 22 sailboats. I have found several for sale at good prices without trailers. Finally I found a trailer for sale that comes with a cat 22 parts boat.

The trailer owner has a cat 22 that apparently is soft all over but the trailer is newish. He says the trailer is very solid and in good shape. The boat has a very soft deck so the boat is only good for parts. So I am going to look at it hopefully this weekend (it is 5hrs away).

The boat is three hours away (the other direction) and by the description he gave it is in good/solid physical condition but needs some cosmetic work. He has owned the boat for many years and sailed the boat twice this summer but is looking for a bigger boat. I hope to look at it this week.

Hopefully next week I will have a good sailboat, trailer and parts boat.

Once I get the trailer/parts boat home I will have to unload the parts boat. Luckily I am a farmer/rancher so I have alot of space to store stuff (outside). I can unload the sailboat with my loaders and truck crane.

Will it hurt the sailboat to lay sideways or do I need to build a cradle to hold it up right?

Thx-Ace