While window shopping on craigslist the other day I saw a Vagabond 14 with trailer for $600. The post said it was stored inside every winter, pulled out of the water every day while sailing, and just had all new lines put on. I thought that sounded like a pretty good deal for a little boat like that.

I have never heard of a Vagabond before and wanted to know more about it. One of our older sail club members has sailed and repaired boats as a business since he was 16 and I thought he would be an excellent person to ask about it. I flagged him down at the club and went to show him the post and within a split second just said "no. hell no. Just flat out no". I was surprised by how quickly he responded and was eager to learn why this specific boat was so bad, so I asked him to elaborate. Our following dialogue went like so (paraphrasing):

Him - "it's slow, that boat has no use. It has no real reason to exist. People shouldn't own it, people shouldn't buy it."

Me - "Okay, but what specifically is bad about it?"

Him - "There are faster boats, there are better boats. Like my Laser or my Finn. How much do you weigh?"

Me - "230"

Him - "See, you'd be great in a Finn. Y'know? Why buy a Ford when you can buy a Ferrari? You want the Ferrari, see?"

Me - "Yea, but I'm not afraid of scratching or messing up a $600 Ford. I can beach the Ford"

Him - "Ahhh, why'd you ever want to beach a boat."

And then I just shifted the conversation because I wasn't getting the knowledge or insight I was after. I looked up a Finn later that night and saw a used one was around 10-15 grand

Is this an elitist take? Is the Vagabond really THAT horrible of a sailboat? Does anyone have any real insight or reasons why the Vagabond 14 would be so hated?

This boat has been sitting around my yard for a couple seasons and I always wondered what it is. Any ideas? Appears to be around 45-48’.

Greetings all,

I've been lurking the subreddit for a year, reading, learning, and taking sailing lessons with an instructor on a 17' centerboard on a lake in Italy.

For my first sailboat, I just bought a 1984 37' Gib'Sea 106 Plus. It is getting worked on in the boatyard and will be ready for me in a few weeks.

I'm going to be sailing in the Med in the beginning, mostly around Italy and Albania. I actually was inspired to get into sailing because I was taking the ferry between the two countries often, and I thought to myself "Ya know, I would have a lot more fun if I was driving".

I grew up in America, where we used powerboats on lakes and rivers to go fishing and camping without a license. I understand that as an American with an Italian-flagged vessel sailing around the Med, I'm going to need to get an ICC (and the easiest/quickest is to be through RYA Day Skipper or Coastal Skipper first).

For a long time my plan was to wait until I had my own boat in my hands, and then get an instructor to come do the 5-day practical on my boat. That way, I'm getting hyper-specific lessons on my boat, maybe even saving some money along the way, and I'll be licensed and prepared to start doing some day sailing on my own.

However, now that I am ready and reaching out, I'm having a hell of a time finding an instructor who actually does Own-Boat-Tuition. I contacted a handful of schools that even listed this as an offering, and nobody seems to want to do it. A few have said that they don't do it, or they won't travel to me (Ravenna, IT).

So my question for the group is, does anybody know of an RYA instructor who travels for Own-Boat-Tuition to Italy?

Or should I drop that idea, just get my Day or Coastal Skipper the normal way at a school, and then trust that the lessons will transfer over to my boat?

Thanks guys, and happy sailing!

Hi everybody,

Next week I'll be joining a sailing trip from Malaga to Lanzarote. The route includes two planned stops, one in Gibraltar and one in Rabat, and the whole trip should last around 10 nights.

I've sailed before, but mostly on shorter trips and in milder conditions. Since this will involve several consecutive days at sea, including night watches and offshore sailing in the Atlantic, I'm trying to figure out what gear is really necessary and what is just nice to have.

What I'm unsure about is:

• How cold does it typically get at night on this route in November?
• Do I need proper offshore foul-weather gear? If so, what kind would you recommend? (is this good? https://www.nencinisport.it/it/musto-m-br1-channel-jkt-3706291.html , or this will do the job? https://www.nencinisport.it/it/helly-hansen-crew-hooded-midlayer-jacket-2-3169248.html?_gl=1\*5ji28t\*_up\*MQ..\*_gs\*MQ..&gclid=CjwKCAjwuobXBhBXEiwAYUaIlRbf1vtCh2cOoksas5wTYs28tDElWSYJTjlt915I6aK1fgyfYG1cIhoCPh0QAvD_BwE&gbraid=0AAAAAD_cvX9dk6oukgjJsjs2HrsBOM9Xf)
• Can I get by with my Nike SB Vertebrae, or should I buy proper sailing shoes?
• What clothing layers would you recommend for this trip?
• What gear do first-timers often forget but end up wishing they had brought?

If anyone has done a similar Malaga-to-Canary Islands crossing, I'd love to hear what you brought, what you didn't use, and what you wished you'd had on board.

Thanks!

We don't have too much experience and since we are racing on a river the downwind leg is pretty much straight down wind. The asymm that we have does not like to go deep at all and we made a discovery that if we go wing on wing, and even having the main by the lee a titch, that it is as if the main is scooping the wind into the assym and we can keep it inflated going straight down wind. We have been using a preventer on the main as the wind is often squirrely and we do not want to gybe. A friend of the captain told them that this was dangerous and you should absolutely not use a preventer for this and if you don't feel confident sailing downwind without gybing you shouldn't do it.

What say you? It wasn't made clear what the danger was.

He sailed from Woods Hole MA to Mystic CT solo with an overnight stop at Fort Adams (Newport RI) after taking ownership of the Bristol. The overnight stop wasn’t planned; the batteries died, nav lights were out and his phone was dying. A friend helped map his coordinates and phoned it in. Coast Guard escorted him to Ft Adams where he spent the night and he set off the next morning. I was lucky enough to have breakfast on board with him before he set off. He was home by 8 pm and exhausted but thrilled.

The Coast Guard was exceptional, they helped change a stressful situation into a positive experience. I’m very grateful my boy got help when he needed it and made it come safe. He just added a heater to the cabin so I probably won’t see him for a month but it’s all good.

Am I looking at gel coat only or should I remove some material and fill it with resin and/or fiberglass? I don’t see any obvious holes, but there is a decent amount of material dinged up. Both at the base of the leading edge and at the far end of the base. It’s a roughly 30 year-old daggerboard.

Will this West System kit cover my needs? I’m assuming the repair doesn’t have to be heavily structural as it won’t see a huge load. It just needs to not take on water. Thanks!

https://powerboatsupply.com/boat-supplies-accessories/paint-maintenance/west-system-products/west-system-fiberglass-boat-repair-kit-105k/?sku=655-105K&utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=&utm_content=&utm_term=&ran=oBX&gad_source=1&gad_campaignid=22308591838&gclid=CjwKCAjwl4HXBhAjEiwAHlpWhBDVPVIMU5b9hpVnCmfxo60F9sbHdjklohUXcVxYvcz8By3eVznUbxoC0awQAvD_BwE

Today I finished the purchase of my first sailboat - a Freedom 21 catboat. The seller took me out for a few sails this season. I live in Buffalo NY so I won't get to enjoy my new boat again until the spring. But that means I have some time to work on it and get it ready for my adventures.

The boat currently has only a masthead windex and a knot-meter. I'm a new sailor, and a geek. I think at a minimum I would like to have gauge(s) displaying the apparent wind direction and speed.

I'll be venturing out into Lake Erie (when conditions are mild) so I think I should have some form of navigation to find my way home. But maybe my cell phone would be sufficient with - is there an Android app that combines charts with GPS?

I would like to ask the sailors here: What would be your priorities for instruments? And is there a budget version of those options?

TIA

Basically what the title says. I'm considering on ordering one and hoping somebody had past experiences

On my first flotilla holiday and first time flying solo as a skipper since getting my day skipper ticket. Taking my wife and kid around the northern ionian. What a phenomenal experience and really making it real that "I can do this" while fully appreciating my limitations.

And what a blessing to be somewhere non-tidal having learnt the hard way in very tidal UK!

We recently completed ASA 103/104 and are looking at flotillas as a bridge to our first bareboat chartering. We are looking at trips offered by Med Sailing Adventures for 2027. Has anyone sailed with them--looking for any and all feedback.

This is my first year as a boat owner and I live where it can get to minus 20 C during the winter months. I'm getting different answers from a lot of sailors on how to keep them safe until spring--leave them where they are, disconnect them, take them home and use a trickle charger, etc. Not sure what's the best bet to insure they start up next season.

Both are Motomaster Nautilus Group Size 24 Starting Battery that were purchased last year.

If anyone has advice for keeping them charged and in good working order I would appreciate it!

Last month I bought my first sailboat and got a slip at the Berkeley Marina. This is one of my neighbors. Keep an eye on those thru-hulls!

Just wanted to share last moments on the water in this season. I’m grateful that I managed to get my girlfriend interested in the hobby this season + assembled a great team to compete next year!

Like many, I attended the Annapolis boat show earlier this month. Overall we had a great time browsing and chatting with vendors and brokers, though most of the boats on display were out of our scope and budget.

I'd like to hear some other takeaways from the show - what boats did you like, which ones did you hate - what was the coolest tech you saw?

It has been over 20 years since I attended the show, so I can't speak to the overall trends over that span, but it was striking how many absolutely ENORMOUS catamarans were on display, and how many people were lined up to gawk on them. I suppose I'm relatively blind to how much the catamaran market has evolved over the last decade. Everybody complains that nobody can afford to sail, let alone buy new boats, but these guys are out here showing off $2-3mil supercats. I assume the market for these is charter fleets, but still - they've got to rent these at $20k+/week to make the financing payments!

We were also impressed with the Tartan display - I liked the new 34 and 37, they seem to be striking a good balance of comfort and sail performance - though the price tags are still pretty steep and I fear will make it a challenge for them to be truly successful competing with the Beneteau Firsts & such.

Surprisingly, my wife's favorite boat was the new J/40, and I did not protest this assessment. That seemed like one of the only boats that was designed with movement and usage of the cabins/salons while underway, and it had a simple, succinct arrangement that made the interior feel more usable and comfortable.

One yacht that caught my attention, for better and worse, was the Kufner 54 that wall towards the back of the docks. While it was generally a better looking boat from the dock than many of the other new "Med-style" production boats on display, once on board I was disappointed with the poor quality of the finishes. This is a show boat for sale for half of a million dollars(allegedly reduced from $1.5m), and the veneers were peeling, the padding on covers was ripped and falling off, etc. The build quality appeared to be more akin to a cheap camper than a top-dollar yacht.

I don't mean this as a complete write off of the builder, but it makes me wonder if this is the "flagship" that they brought to a major boat show to attempt an entry into the US/Caribbean market.

In the tech world, I thought the EZ sextant app was one of the most novel ideas of the show. The developer built an app that shoots a sight with your phone camera, then does all the calc's and provides you with your LOP pretty much instantly. The app has all the almanac and SRT data stored internally, so no cell reception is needed. If it works consistently, I think this would be a fantastic addition to a backup navigation suite. I'm going out on a delivery next week and am planning on testing out the app to see how good it is. For $25, its worth it if only to double check your sextant observations and calcs.

Has anyone done a catamaran trip with a 16-month-old? We’re planning to charter a Bali Catspace in Croatia next summer (our child will be 16 months old then). I'd love to hear any tips or experiences! A bit nervous, but mostly optimistic!"