Starter Sail Boat

madrasahs · 07-09-2004, 08:43 PM

I should buy a Sunfish: just throw it in, sail around, pull it on shore. No rigging delays -- just go. (Sailfish -- very similar boat -- older, cheaper, smaller rig. They're around!)

The Laser sailboat is also simply rigged -- faster than a Sunfish, popular, and relatively cheap. It will not bore a teen, and...faster is safer.

I found my Laser too "tender", as they say. (Really for kids -- lots of moving around for stability/speed).

Browse the sailing magazines. There's one (Modern Sailboating? -- not Sail) that puts many silouettes of the various boats that will fit your requirements. Look near the back. From that page, you can access the various websites for those boats.

Keep in mind that there are several colleges that offer scholarships for sailors -- and that sailing is a credited activity of the U. S. Naval Academy.

I'd search the Internet (using a New England limit in the search).

Most boats larger than a Sunfish (still an excellent choice) come with trailers (that you could sell), and some kid/owners would be happy to drive from Maine or Massachusetts to "unload" their boat to a Winnipesaukee buyer. (How I bought my sailboat -- sight unseen).

Good luck.

Learning to sail -- and sailing -- teaches balance, weather, physics, aeronautics, important knots, mechanical advantage, and "anticipatory boating".

(I just made up that term. Important, on Winnipesaukee -- "to anticipate")

Competitive sailing, available on Winnipesaukee, intensifies learning.

07-09-2004, 08:43 PM	#3
madrasahs Senior Member Join Date: Apr 2004 Posts: 381 Thanks: 0 Thanked 1 Time in 1 Post	Laser? I should buy a Sunfish: just throw it in, sail around, pull it on shore. No rigging delays -- just go. (Sailfish -- very similar boat -- older, cheaper, smaller rig. They're around!) The Laser sailboat is also simply rigged -- faster than a Sunfish, popular, and relatively cheap. It will not bore a teen, and...faster is safer. I found my Laser too "tender", as they say. (Really for kids -- lots of moving around for stability/speed). Browse the sailing magazines. There's one (Modern Sailboating? -- not Sail) that puts many silouettes of the various boats that will fit your requirements. Look near the back. From that page, you can access the various websites for those boats. Keep in mind that there are several colleges that offer scholarships for sailors -- and that sailing is a credited activity of the U. S. Naval Academy. I'd search the Internet (using a New England limit in the search). Most boats larger than a Sunfish (still an excellent choice) come with trailers (that you could sell), and some kid/owners would be happy to drive from Maine or Massachusetts to "unload" their boat to a Winnipesaukee buyer. (How I bought my sailboat -- sight unseen). Good luck. Learning to sail -- and sailing -- teaches balance, weather, physics, aeronautics, important knots, mechanical advantage, and "anticipatory boating". (I just made up that term. Important, on Winnipesaukee -- "to anticipate") Competitive sailing, available on Winnipesaukee, intensifies learning.