Posts by casualfox9

If you simply install screens on all your windows, you won't have to deal with mosquitoes at all. You can pick up a set of screens for about 20-$17 per window.

Walter Myers6 said:Why's that? Is that considered a 'major' class here in the States—like, for big regattas and all that?

Unfortunately, you won't find much of a scene for the Merlin Rocket or the National 12 in America.😢

If you're looking to get into competitive racing here, your options are pretty limited. You're mostly looking at Olympic classes like the 470, 49er, or the Star... though even at the national championships, you rarely see more than a handful of boats in those fleets.

As far as the other classes go, people mostly sail the 505, the Snipe, and occasionally the 420 if a local club still keeps it alive. I know one crew out there that runs a Flying Dutchman.

Just go ahead and build your own National 12 or a Merlin Rocket. You can easily pull up the blueprints online, and if you want to save some cash, you can always order used sails from England.

David Gray44 said:Hey everyone,

Is nobody going to say anything about that condemning verdict against Damir Miloš?

Hi,

What does any of that even have to do with sailing???

Walter Myers6 said:Thanks... does anyone happen to know how the racing is organized near the river? Are they strictly divided by class, or are there "open" races where boats compete based on their handicap rating?

YES, the folks in the local area have actually started up what they call the Yugoslav Cup—essentially a regatta of different sailboats where sail time is corrected using PY numbers. You should reach out to the Galeb Yacht Club for all the specifics!

Jesse Sanchez50 said:Honestly, we don't even have a proper term for small sailboats around here.🤷

In certain circles, you might come across the Italian term "derive" being used to describe specific types of vessels.

Just trying to breathe some life back into this thread... is anyone planning a trip down to Memphis? 🙂

Brenda Perez8 said:just like being out on the water near San Francisco

It was alive, but we were sailing outside the race course; we were really pushing that 505 sailboat, tearing up the waves between a small town in the US and San Francisco.

Brenda Perez8 said:So why on earth does that need to be happening all year round?

I get that 🙂 Unfortunately, other commitments get in the way... but at least we're getting out on the water almost every weekend.

Brenda Perez8 said:There are still people out there competing in regattas.

It’s been slow recently, but things should pick up again soon.🙂

jadescout56 said:Hey there, fellow sailors;
I’m heading out on a sailing trip with some friends next week, and I would love to get some advice from those of you who have experienced that—as many describe it—truly once-in-a-lifetime feeling. What should I pack? What kind of clothing will keep me most comfortable out on the water?

Grab some technical sailing pants and a weather-resistant jacket... that’s your foundation. Beyond that, here is what you'll need:
- Deck shoes or non-slip sneakers
- Waterproof boots
- Sailing gloves
- Sunglasses
- Sunscreen
- A warm tracksuit, plenty of socks, and a few extra T-shirts

That should cover it...

cosmicfox15 said:You’re absolutely right there. On smaller waves, the rolling motion actually helps offset the weight of the sails, even if it does heel the boat over. As for heavy swells, I haven't even considered that possibility.
I once had a dream of sailing an 8-meter sailboat weighing about 7,700 lbs, and it felt incredibly stable. These Polish boats, though, are only around 3,300 lbs—otherwise, I wouldn't even be able to tow one.
Does the Hunter have a lifting keel? Because if it doesn't, it's out of the question.
By the way, the TES owners are almost better organized than the sales department. There's a site, for example, www.tes-freunde.de, but they seem more focused on the technical specs of the boat rather than actual sailing or handling swells. Besides, not many people over there can speak to that, since they mostly sail on lakes and probably haven't even seen a real swell.

The Hunter Sonata was designed with both fixed and lifting keels, so you should take a closer look at the details here:
http://www.sonata.org.uk/about/index.php

The issue, however, is that it utilizes four bearings.

cosmicfox15 said:We can do that if you're down.

Thanks for getting back to me so quickly. Everything you mentioned resonates with me; I really just need something suitable for cruising from cove to cove and getting some swimming in. It absolutely has to have six berths because my family is a group of four, and honestly, it gets pretty lonely being out on the water by ourselves. Ideally, there should be enough room to host a few more friends, whether they're adults or kids.
Regarding the towing situation, I currently drive a Santa Fe which has a 2,400 lb capacity, and I’m looking at picking up a used 2,500 lb trailer for about $2,500. My main hurdle is getting my BE license first. Once I have that, I’ll be able to tow everything up to roughly 4,000 lbs, provided the width stays under 8.4 feet. Otherwise, I’d have to deal with those ridiculous $650 permits. That’s why the Twister, Raptor, and Tango are off the table for me.

Look, I don't mind if the sailboat is heavy or a bit slow, but I would definitely struggle if it was constantly bouncing around in the waves. I'm not entirely sure how these smaller sailboats handle, but I'm hoping they perform better than powerboats. Honestly, spending hours hauling anchors on a powerboat would drive me absolutely insane.
It's actually not like that on sailboats. Even though they're small, they carry a heavy keel. Don't you agree???
By the way, I find the Viko a bit uninspiring too. My top choice is the TES 678, but it's significantly more expensive and sometimes feels less robustly built. I might try to hunt down a used TES for around $15,500, but I haven't made up my mind yet. What's your take? From what I've seen, it looks like high-quality work produced by a charter company that builds TES models for their own fleet and for resale.

Any sailboat is bound to be more comfortable than a powerboat. 🙂😁

The issue with a smaller sailboat comes down to the chop... it certainly won't be "comfortable," but as long as you have wind in the sails, you can manage.

I don't know much about TES specifically. It might be best to search online for something like "TES 678 owners or reviews..." If I spoke Polish, I'd probably dig through some Polish forums to see what people are saying.

If I were choosing a boat like that, I'd personally go for a Hunter Sonata if I could find a decent used one in good condition. You get less space than the TES, but the sailing performance is incomparable.
A friend of mine recently bought an H-boat; he might bring it over to the States sometime, so I'll try to get some sailing time in on it.

cosmicfox15 said:Lately, I've been thinking about picking up a sailboat in the 20-26 foot range equipped with a WCon and six berths, featuring a folding keel so I can tow it on a trailer.
Does anyone have experience with this kind of setup or any recommendations?

In the US, the Vika 25 is advertised quite a bit (around $15k excluding gear and taxes), but there are plenty of other, cheaper Polish boats that haven't even hit the American market yet. For example, I really like the TES 678. Or maybe the Viva 700, Sasanka 660, Corvette 650, Twister 700 and 800, or the Raptor 26 and 27, etc.

Can anyone with similar interests shed some light on this?

Why is it so important to have six berths? Are you planning on bringing a whole troop of kids along? 🙂 Honestly, six berths is just overkill for any sailboat under 30 feet, or even slightly above that.

Everything you mentioned is relatively similar, though the Raptors might offer a slightly more modern design (but they are heavy). As for those Vika 25 boats, looking at the photos and specs, I’m not particularly impressed; it feels more like a toy than a real sailboat. Everything else you listed is a much better choice.

The main issue with these types of boats is that people try to cram too many berths and living amenities into a relatively small hull. This inevitably makes them heavy, sluggish, and frankly, boring to sail.
On top of that, they end up being too heavy to tow with a standard car, so you'll need something with decent pulling power and weight.

Simply put, a short waterline combined with high weight is a major limitation—top speeds usually hover around 5-6 knots in ideal conditions. You might get one of them to plane down a wave occasionally, but don't expect miracles. In light winds or when the swells pick up, these boats are just miserable.

In this category, the best sailboat ever built (performance-wise) is probably the Hunter Sonata, but unfortunately, they haven't been making them for a long time. They are still very popular in Britain and live on as an one-design class. You can find them used at great prices. They handle beautifully in a regatta, though they aren't exactly known for planing downwind.

The International H-boat is also worth considering; even though the interior space is tighter, it sails exceptionally well in both light air and heavy wind or waves.

Of course, if all you need is a boat for short hops from island to island and speed isn't your priority, then everything you mentioned is fine. At that point, it’s just about the price and making sure your wife likes it.🙂

If I were in your shoes looking for a boat like that, I’d look for something with a maximum weight of around 2,600 lbs, a wide and flat transom to allow for planing downwind, and naturally, a tall mast and plenty of sail area.🙂

If you have a bit more cash and are actually interested in sailing rather than just cruising, you might consider something ultra-light and fast, like the T8sc, which still offers a relatively comfortable stay for 3 or 4 people.

A test of the T8sc will be out on the sea and on the blog soon (), so I'll write up some thoughts on what matters most to me in these kinds of boats.

Chris Miller6 said:but I get it... we've had our power die on us three times over these last 14 or 15 years, but none of those instances were actually linked to the engine. Twice it was just human error, and the third time could potentially be tied to the motor—one wire shook loose from the terminal due to vibrations.
yanmar rules!!!
how's sailing at Lake Central Park?

As long as your mast is standing and you have sails, you can pretty much dock and set off almost anywhere.🙂

Central Park is great right now in the spring; there’s plenty of wind, and it often blows quite hard, but the summer tends to be pretty rough unless a light breeze happens to roll in. Finally, the days are getting longer now that Daylight Saving Time kicked in, so it's actually possible to get out for a sail after work.

Unfortunately, hardly anyone sails at Central Park anymore. A fair amount of the older crowd takes the Laser training courses, but very few of them stick around with the club. The club only has five old Lasers left in mediocre condition, though they're fine enough for lessons and just messing around. It would be fantastic if they could pick up another five boats to make racing more viable. But hey, we know how to pull off a match race once in a while, and that's always a blast in Lasers.

Back in 2005 and 2006, we used to run the Central Park Cup regularly... but that all fizzled out once there wasn't anyone left to push people to participate. If the club hired someone on a permanent basis, maybe the cup would get going again, because there would always be someone present at the club.

I've actually got a newer Laser coming this Saturday (finally bought one!), so I just need to polish it up and rig it up XD. Or maybe I'll look into some G-XD systems, and then perhaps I'll head out to the sea for a regatta if I can manage it.

Chris Miller6 said:haha, and don't forget the cheap pastries from the local bakery 😁
It doesn't look like there's much cabin space, but since I've only ever seen it online, I guess I shouldn't be surprised.

There is definitely a cabin; four adults can sleep in there quite comfortably. There’s also a small kitchenette setup, and you could easily fit a portable toilet in there.

On a side note, I really dislike having internal combustion engines on sailboats. They are almost always the root cause of some headache that ruins an entire trip, regardless of whether the boat or the engine is brand new or old. For instance, just recently on a brand-new sailboat, they had installed this fancy new keyless ignition system (Caterpillar), and of course, the whole assembly failed by the second day. Since the unit is completely encased in epoxy, your only real option is to swap out the entire box. In the meantime, we were getting the engine started using nothing but a literal piece of wire...

The only times you actually need an engine on a sailboat are when you're trying to maneuver into a crowded marina or during a total dead calm—say, if you're trying to set a net or if you're genuinely in a hurry and there isn't a breath of wind. For those specific situations, an electric motor is far more practical, simpler, and reliable, plus you don't have to deal with the stench of diesel or gasoline.

Chris Miller6 said:So you're basically looking for something for everyday leisure...
I honestly thought you were hunting for something much larger. It's actually quite decent 🙂

It’s more than enough for a couple cruising along the Atlantic Ocean... it features an electric motor, solar panels, and a wind generator... essentially, it's time to ditch the diesel and gasoline once and for all 🙂

Chris Miller6 said:Do you have any specific plans for it?

Yes, T8sc... you can go check it out at the marina over in Ičićs.

Chris Miller6 said:if you actually got a chance to see it and test it out, you wouldn't find the price too steep🙂
those who have spent time on her always say the same thing...

That boat is just getting too old... sure, you can refurbish it and pack it with new gear, but age eventually catches up with you.
As for me, I am planning on buying a vessel later this year, though I'm looking for something entirely different from a Nike 31.

Anonymous said:Look, I'm not trying to be critical. It's just that I can't stand it. I've always been pretty sensitive when it comes to animal cruelty and stuff like that. 🤷

And what about cruelty toward people?