From boating virgins to living aboard - so many questions

[kered]

RO water is perfect wherever made.. Remember that the filter stops salt NaCl with a molecular weight of 58. There is nothing harmful small enough to get thru the membrane. Only problem is it clogs the pre-filters quicker. I lived in Luperon Hbr, DR for some 10 years, and they were used right at the river mouth, except right after a storm.
As to how to learn to sail.. many of the greatest sailors ever, like Bernard Moitessier, recommend learning to sail and race in a one person dinghy..... When you flip it over there is no-one else to blame but yourself.

[mako]

Originally Posted by kered

As to how to learn to sail.. many of the greatest sailors ever, like Bernard Moitessier, recommend learning to sail and race in a one person dinghy..... When you flip it over there is no-one else to blame but yourself.

we used to flip the thing on purpose all the time. Really pissed of our instructor!

[lo2jones]

For these Sailing Virgins, does anyone know if the Islander 44 has an iron keel? If shopping for an Islander, exclude any iron keels from the list. Lead only, should be the rule. I was inspecting an iron keel Islander a month or so ago and was horrified by what the keel looked like under the fiberglass skin.

[bcboomer]

It looks like Islander built them with either iron or lead. Definitely something to look at. I was keen on an Islander until I looked at the frequent problems they have with rot at the deck to coachroof joint. Sure enough the one I wanted had rot there.
Like any boat purchase, a good survey will find these issues.
Getting a good survey is a whole other problam.