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**boatman61** · 07-04-2018, 06:13

Quote:

Originally Posted by TrentePieds

Quote "... to take away the self pity ."

You??? That I woulda liked to see :-0)!!

TP

The early days.. when some said I would be slightly handicapped at the very best.. kinda depressing for someone who prefers looking on the darkside so everything in life is a wonderful bonus.. even if a dark gray.

Edit:
Should explain further.. There were 6 bits of bone where my kneecap used to be and the Doc in ER said I would be fitted with a plastic knee and face the prospect of replacements every 5yrs or so as they wore out.
However.. as I was being wheeled into surgery to be prepped etc the surgeon had a chat and told me he loved jigsaws and.. if it was okay with me he'd like to have a go at wiring the bits together and see if it worked.
It would mean a couple of extra ops but then again I would be good for at least 10yrs if it worked or.. I could go plastic and be okay in a few months.
I opted for the wires.. 3 months later I was opened up again to check all was well then 9mths later they removed the wires..
32yrs down the line I still have full flexion and zero handicap..
I love the National Health Service.. the amazing nurses and doctors who keep it going and are its sucess story.. and in particular the surgeon who kept me truckin..

**TrentePieds** · 07-04-2018, 08:00

See what I mean :-0)!!

Kidding notwithstanding, I am very glad it turned out so well for you in the end.

Quote: "I love the National Health Service."

Me too! We, in this 'ere colony, are the inheritors of much that was in Billy Beveridge's White Paper way back in 1942. Let's hoist a yard of ale to him!

TP

TP

**boatman61** · 07-04-2018, 08:35

2 yards and you've got a deal..

amremington · 07-04-2018, 18:23

You all are the best! I am so glad I found these forums!

Sorry, I skipped the age. I honestly just forgot. I am going to be 35 next month.

I took a closer look at the local sailing club and hopefully next weekend or so I will be heading up there to talk to some sailors and get some more good input. The marina that they meet at also has sailing classes and boat rentals. I have a feeling this hobby/desire is going to eat at my bank account. I also have a feeling that I am 100% OK with that lol.

As for the racing, my buddy told me the same. "Once you get on a good boat and have a good crew that knows how to push it fast, you'll love it!" I am still skeptical about that but I won't knock it till I try it for sure. When I look at sailboats I picture traveling and seeing new places and being out on the water with nothing around but solitude. That, to me, is a slow relaxing pace. I would love to take a weekend (or week vacation) to just sail out somewhere quite, throw a line out, and relax.

With that said, I know sailing is no picnic. I have seen enough video, blogs, etc to know that it can be a lot of work. But I have also seen that (in most cases) it is well worth it.

I dream a lot and I dream big. Right now I am not sure where I want to go with sailing but I do know that it is something I really want to learn and work towards getting good at. I picture myself sailing to exotic locations and seeing new places. But with my financial background, I don't see this coming to reality. I guess in the meantime I plan to learn it the best I can and see what happens.

**TrentePieds** · 07-04-2018, 19:11

Remington:

I am here, as you will be there, surrounded by "gold platers". The Salish Sea is full of sailboat that will set you back a half million bux plus 50 grand a year in upkeep, and of stink pots that are even more exorbitant than that! So what? As long as they observe the COLREGS the are my equals :-)

Our little ship cost my beloved and me, as I said, not very much at all, and during a long life I've learned to do myself all the maintenance she requires. Always remember that for a mere 20% of the expenditure in time and money required to reach your goal, you will reach 80% of that goal. So learn to know when enuff is enuff :-)! Cruising needs not be expensive if you are realistic about things. Remember that poor men went to sea for hundreds of years before we had the fancy electronic doodads we have to day, and the shiny coffee-grinder winches. I still navigate the old-fashioned, pre-electronic way because it gives me pleasure and satisfaction to do so. TrentePieds only sticks down less than five feet. I can SEE bottom before I'm in danger of touching it. I'm a woos. If it's coming on to blow, I find a hidey-hole. And let me tell you that the only time in my life I ever thot I wouldn't see the shore again, was one grim morning after the night before when I relied on someone elses - an official meteorologist's - weather forecast, rather than on my own.

Even at my age I can still sweat up a halyard a get it plenty taut enuff for cruising. And I like doing it that way because to prevent yourself going mentally stale at my age, you gotta keep the old bod active! TrentePieds is not a race winning boat in any event so why bother to try for a bar-taut headsl luff?

The thing you cannot skimp on is seamanship. Boat handling I could teach you in a weekend. Skippering is a kettle of fish of a whole different colour. That takes a lifetime to learn - so get you boots on :-)! I'm glad you are off to the sailing club. You will, as I did, get to sail boats that you couldn't possibly afford to own. And - Boy! - will you ever learn a lot :-)

TP

amremington · 09-04-2018, 05:07

So I know where I can go for hands on learning but what about the other things like wind patterns and whatnot? I see a lot of other YouTube channels and they are using software to see wind patterns in their areas. What is a good place to start? Let's say I want to sail from Miami FL to the Bahamas. How do I figure out the best time of the year to do that and if I were to sail it today, what would I use to plan and map my trip?

**boatman61** · 09-04-2018, 05:53

Everything is seasonal for optimum results.. just like gardening..
There's a 15yr old lad on the forum who has just published an excellent book on studying clouds and interpreting their message.. Get it..
http://www.cruisersforum.com/forums/...ok-189727.html
Also invest in a book/atlas of ocean currents..
Florida to Bahamas is pretty simple.. you have a strong current running North so avoid crossing when the wind has any North in it.. by that I mean blowing from the North.
Ideal winds would be from the South round to the West..
South East can be done but could be a beat depending on your start and desired destination..
Once you understand the sea and sky you will be able to utilise weather services more effectively and forsee possible events ahead they may miss.. which happens.
Nature usually gives one ample warning of whats coming.. learn to read her and you will be the better seaman for it.

**TrentePieds** · 09-04-2018, 07:11

A wonderful thing about sailing is that it is ALWAYS about learning! As I said, skippering takes a lifetime to learn, but as you are rightly implying, there is a certain minimum of knowledge that you must gain quickly in order to carry a skipper's first responsibility: Keeping the crew safe, which can only be done by keeping the ship safe. Weather is the principal threat to ships, and therefore even a neophyte skipper MUST be able to do weather forecasting in HIS locale.

You need to set yourself a syllabus on the subject of meteorology. But you cannot divine that learning. It must come either from formal courses or from textbooks you use for self-study. You can find introductory texts either at your local lending library or at second-hand bookstores. Start with simple stuff: In your locale, what point of the compass does "weather" (meaning dangerous winds) come from? What are the typical cloud formations that herald the coming of weather? What use is the barometer? How does the rise and fall of the barometer in combination with observations of how the winds shift through the points of the compass help you to predict how weather is going to develop in the next several hours?

Once you understand those fundamentals, you will find yourself constantly aware of the dynamics of the local weather, and weather forecasting becomes rather subliminal - you "feel it in your bones". Until you get to that point, best not to set yourself up a skipper :-) But as always, you only learn about danger by going near it, so do do that. Go out in increasingly severe weather, to see for yourself what weather can do to you and your ship. And what your own reaction to it will be. But like I always have, ALWAYS have an "escape plan". I said I'm a woos ;-). Have a hidey-hole within reach, OR have a ship that can take the weather, remembering that a WELL-found small sailboat will take care of her crew better than the crew can take care of her :-) A small boat that ISN'T equipped to take what the weather will be offering her is a danger to all aboard, and to those who might try to rescue her!

Here is a link to a program that is free and will begin to show you something about weather patterns: Look at the wind-arrows that indicate wind direction and strengths. Note the pattern of "swirls".

https://www.marinetraffic.com/en/ais...y:49.3/zoom:10

Just this morning there is nothing particularly noteworthy off the coast of Florida. This programme is updated every few minutes, so just keep watching it over a period of days and you will begin to get a feel for the movement of cyclones in your locale and therefore for the development of "weather". There is a "baby cyclone" off the coast of Belize, so look at that to see what a cyclone looks like on a weather chart.

This morning, so sez this chart, if you were on a "rhumb line" (more or less) from Miami to Nassau, you'd expect the winds to be slightly forward of your starboard beam, and that they would blow at something like 15 knots.

"The Coasties" transmit weather reports ("synopses") on a dedicated weather channel on your VHF. As I go about my skippering, and I am listening to our local WX channel, a mental picture develops in my head that is very much like the chart in the link above. Listen to your WX channel to begin to develop this ability.

So in summary: STUDY, learn to use the tools, and practice, practice, practice! :-)

TP

jsc7 · 15-04-2018, 14:48

Uh, join a sailing club, read a book about sailing, then jump in a laser and see what happens?

Thorne · 15-04-2018, 16:04

Find a sailing club with sailors that do the kinds of sailing you like to do.
a. Fast.... Catamaran is the only way to go. That is how I learned.
b. Tactical.... Either Cat or mono hull
c. Long reach " you go a long ways before you have to tack "... monohull usually, especially on lakes.
d. Open ocean vs lake..... Boat size makes a difference here but experience makes more of a difference, try to crew w a captain that can explain why he does what he does and doesn't mind telling you.

As with anything, "You are what you practice" so the bottom line is, keep a weather eye out and just get out there.

amremington · 18-04-2018, 08:50

Thank you so much for all of the great advice everyone!

I just got a 16ft sailboat for free from Craigslist and it only seems to need some transom work. Once I complete that and figure out how to put the mast and sails together, I am going to take it out on the lake for some practice.

In the meantime I am still fixing up the 22ft Seahorse for the YouTube channel and hopefully some overnight adventures.

I am still having a little trouble wrapping my head around the wind and weather stuff. This weekend I am going to look into the books suggested and get some reading done. I also took a look at some websites that have been mentioned on some YouTube channels I watch. Predictwind.com and Cruisersnet.net are a couple. There is just so much information out there I am struggling to find a start. I am also going to check out the local sailing/racing club to see what I can get involved in.

**Don C L** · 18-04-2018, 10:06

Don’t try to wrap your head around all that info. You are putting up a cloth wing, get it oriented right so the wind is blowing over it at just the right angle and it makes that beautiful full wing shape and voila! You have speed! Once you got that push the tiller back and forth and you’ll see how steering works. The best advice now is to just stay away from the expensive boats!

**boatman61** · 18-04-2018, 10:13

Basically your looking for the wind to catch your sails at around a 45degrees angle.. then play around to find the optimums on different points of sail.

amremington · 23-04-2018, 16:33

Thanks for the great advice everyone! I am going to continue my research and buy a few books that some others have pointed out. Essentially, while I learn to sail I am going to be completely planning out a long sailing trip. Hopefully it works out in the next few years, but if not, I am sure I will still have fun learning the ropes.

Also I finally launched that channel last Friday. If anyone wants to follow along, feel free to check out the first video https://youtu.be/nAR27HedC8E

Let me know what you think, even if you think I am in over my head lol. Honestly, I am starting to think so.