First boat for a tallish sailor

[EntropyUK]

Hi all I am starting to think of buying my first boat. I have my day skipper but very little experience.

My current current thinking is to try and find something in the 25ft to 30ft region for me to gain experience I expect to spend weekends, but not every weekend, on the boat. I am 6ft 1in and big so headroom is a huge factor for me.

I hope to be on the east coast just north of the Thames. Ideally a bilge keel but will consider anything if it fits my needs.

So what models should I be focusing on when I start looking as headroom is not a piece of data that is always available.

 

[Tranona]

Once you get above 26' and looking at cruising twin keels (think Westerly, Moody, Cobra, Sadler) 6'1" is not generally a problem. For weekend use headroom is not essential I am 6'3" and owned a 26' boat with well under 6' headroom for over 30 years and cruised every year along the south coast and across the channel. It was only as I got older that it started to become a nuisance. Twin keels are not essential on the East Coast despite what you might think. It really depends on whether you want to take advantage of what they offer such a the use of a drying mooring, exploring upper reaches and drying out and not needing a cradle for out of water storage. You don't give a budget, but most will be well over 30 years old and far more important to consider condition and equipment rather than specific design. Look at as many boats as you can.

 

[Bobc]

Bilge keel Moody 29.

 

[Concerto]

So you want to become a PBO (poor bloody owner). With little experience may I suggest you join a yacht club and crew on cruising and race boats for a year or more. You will learn a lot very quickly and with having sailed on a variety of different boats, which will assist in deciding what you want to buy.

I have sailed on the East Coast since 1965, all in fin keel yachts except the very first boat my parents bought. Drying out in this area is more sitting in mud rather than hard standing. The slightly shallower draft will make very little difference if you want to anchor in any creeks as there is always plenty of room.

Click on the link in my signature to see all my videos, presentations including the forum posts I made whilst sailing singlehanded round Britain via Out Stack (the most northerly piont of the UK).

 

[B27]

Standing Headroom is unlikely.

Some boats you may have issues with the lengths of the berths.

 

[johnalison]

I once met a German group with a mid-sized Hanse. Their tallest member went around in a cycling helmet to prevent head bangs.

Many smaller boats in the past gave only sitting room for even those like me much less tall than you, Stellas for example, and we sailed a Mystere for many years. You get used to going below and just shuffling around, but of course it is not ideal.

 

[andsarkit]

How about a Parker 275?

 

[ylop]

So you want to become a PBO (poor bloody owner). With little experience may I suggest you join a yacht club and crew on cruising and race boats for a year or more.

This is oft quoted advice.

You will learn a lot very quickly and with having sailed on a variety of different boats,

Not everything you learn is actually going to be that useful… eg if you are racing round the cans you may learn tactics and racing rules, fast sail changes, trimming every sail for 0.1knot improvement… but if your intended use is quiet weekends on an anchor you’ll never learn anything about anchoring, selecting the idyllic anchorage, when to say screw it lets motor home before the squall arrives etc. Of course you might find a club with people who do exactly the sort of sailing you fancy, who happen to be one man down on a regular basis and so slot in nicely, or you might not know what you want to do so a club with diversity might be good to suck it and see.

I see people who have been sailing longer than I have been alive who are anxious coming in and out of marinas, people who use marinas so often that picking up a mooring is a major chore and husbands and wives who have sailed together their whole married life but she’s never been trusted enough to to take the helm for the close quarters stuff… You may learn a lot, it may be as much about human nature as it is about sailing.

which will assist in deciding what you want to buy.

Is the “population” of boats you will actually get to crew on sufficiently diverse to provide useful input. Eg if most people looking for extra crew tend to have bigger boats then experience of a roomy 40 footer with full headroom for 6’1” may be an unhelpful intro if his budget is sub 30’!

Sailing in out the same harbour every day is great experience of that harbour/marina but may mean your options become focussed on one niche, one way of doing things.

If it’s purely experience then many schools offer mile builder options where you make up space on their training boats. That gets you exposure to different boats (likely bigger than op is considering) as well as different instructors/styles. If it’s real experience you want jumping around areas, eg the solent, Falmouth, N Wales, Clyde, Hebrides, should give you loads of different experiences. However none will ever give you the true experience of “well it’s your boat, you are in charge and there’s no skipper or owner to look at for a reassuring glance that your approach to fixing whatever mess you’ve got yourself into is going to be good. And if you are a solo/loner type clubs and schools aren’t necessarily ideal.

 

[ylop]

I once met a German group with a mid-sized Hanse. Their tallest member went around in a cycling helmet to prevent head bangs.

Maybe I need to try that - I’ve got sufficient headroom below but keep whacking it on the sprayhood frame!