Where are all the newbie sailors?

[Don C L]

Originally Posted by CFS Klopas

This newbie sailor makes a concerted effort to not post because I rarely have anything intelligent to say.

The rules only say "be nice," not that you have to be an expert or intelligent... thank God, for me.

[GordMay]

Greetings and welcome aboard the CF, Dreaming.

[valhalla360]

Originally Posted by CFS Klopas

This newbie sailor makes a concerted effort to not post because I rarely have anything intelligent to say.

I might phrase is a little more kindly but I suspect that's why you don't see a ton of responses to questions from newbies.

The only time I've seen it get a bit testy is when the newbie comes up with what they think is a new idea and then gets frustrated and don't let it drop when people explain why their idea is neither new nor a good idea.

[Lonestaralaskan]

Newbie here. Don't be dissuaded by the opinionated crowd here. Many of them have valuable advice to offer, and the rest - well, they're just a lil salty is all. Pretty easy to figure out who knows what they're talking about and who doesn't.

Dive in and ask questions. I've experienced nothing but good feedback and solid information.

[MARIADZ]

Welcome, to sailing and the forum.

We were all newbies once, my turn was not very long ago. Agree with getting qualified so you understand the theory and then there is no substitute for experience, either personal or second hand.

We have been writing up our adventures as we prepare for a circumnavigation in our blog (other blogs are available!). Mariadz.com if you are interested. Some of the sailing log may give you some good advice on what not to do!

[nomadRD]

Originally Posted by Dreaming2Sea

Dory aka OP, this is such a great question and I really appreciate it. I have been a long time lurker and finally logged to respond. We are in the process of purchasing a boat and thought that the best process would be to wait and take the classes on our own boat so that we a) get more familiar with our own boat and b) Admiral (wife) gets instruction on how to use the boat from someone much smarter than her first mate - which might ultimately help with the survival of the first-mate (me-husband).

I would love to hear feedback from nomadRD as to whether taking all of the course on a foreign boat vs taking them on the boat you own is of value. This might apply to you as well - do you take them now in the US or wait till you get your boat in Turkey?

This is a great forum and I really appreciate all of the input from all that contribute.

For all interested, I made a little blog about sailing school. Believe me, it’s not much, just what I was able to whip up during the mornings on the boat while everyone else was studying or eating breakfast. You can find it at nomadnutritionist.com/blog.

Dreaming2Sail - we’re not sure as we have no comparison of doing it another way. We’ve seen Gone with the Wynns do it on their own boat (and we had their instructor as well). But for us, it was more of a way to get our feet wet. I knew I was resigning as of June 30 and my husband as of Sept. 30, and we knew this in October of last year. So waiting for the time to purchase the boat didn’t seem right either. I think your instructor being familiar with the school boat as opposed to your own boat would be an advantage, but principles of sailing are the same. We also did it this way as we didn’t want to purchase a boat blind. Prior to sailing school, we thought we were looking at a Lagoon 450 but after doing a walk through we found that perhaps a 420 would suit us just fine. So the next phase of the plan is to charter a 420 and see if it’s OUR boat. Having these little steps in place has helped us to keep our eyes on the prize and not get discouraged that we aren’t getting there fast enough!

Finally, I had much confidence (not enough to do anything foolish) after the course. Despite a little moment of frustration between husband and wife, we managed to not kill each other, and it reaffirmed that this (boat life) was the right decision for us. I’ll probably feel like a fool the next time I get on a boat until we refresh ourselves and settle in (practice those knots), but I definitely won’t feel clueless.

Any questions you may have on the experience, I will be happy to answer. I know we were disappointed in the lack of information on what to expect.

[newhaul]

Welcome aboard for all the new people from a real Newby. Ask all the questions you want there are many of us on here that will be more than happy to answer them .

[newhaul]

Originally Posted by Don C L

The rules only say "be nice," not that you have to be an expert or intelligent... thank God, for me.

don why would I start being nice to people?

[Corvidae]

As a newbie myself I have to say this site is a wealth of knowledge. Which is why I don't post very often. Usually a search turns up the answer, or at least leads me to where else I need to look.

[Don C L]

Originally Posted by newhaul

don why would I start being nice to people?

Well, yeah, you, you're a different story

[inet-projects]

2016/2017 looking at various boats in Italy, Croatia and Mallorca.

Purchased my first boat in Croatia July 2017 (Tons of research and help on here and other sites), never sailed before, Flew a RYA instructor from the UK to complete our Competent Crew & Day Skipper, on our own boat I did as much as I could at home in the months prior to these courses, Went through every aspect and every nook and corner of the boat, this was well worth the money.

After a few weeks felt competent with the boat with my wife, in April 2018 sailed it from Split Croatia to Trieste in Italy for cheaper moorings.

Now ready to relax and start our adventures.