"Peter Bennett" wrote in message
news.com...
On Tue, 26 Apr 2005 08:37:50 -0700, "JG"
wrote:

Peter, we have a Y30 in our fleet. I find it to be a great boat... the
engine in the front was a bit strange at first, but it seems to do quite
well in heavy chop.. much less hobby horsing that you typically get. How
long did you have it? Did you have any significant problems? I think the
only thing I don't like about it is that it has a full rig, and that means
no big jibs (we sail in SF bay). Our isn't set up for single-handing also.

I had a later model Yamaha 30 - it had the engine aft, but most others
around here had it forward. I think the yen got too expensive shortly
after the aft-engine model was introduced, as mine was one of the last
ones imported.

Ah... yeh, ours has the engine under the v-berth... long prop shaft, with
the engine intake right next to the shaft. We have a big sign next to the
valve that says watch your fingers.


I had a tall rig, and had a 160% genoa, if i recall correctly. Don't
see why the tall rig would restrict you to small foresails.

It doesn't. It's just that we can't take advantage of the three larger
sails, because we get so much wind on a regular basis here.

My boat had a tiller, and the only modification I made for
single-handing was to rig a "tiller holder", so the tiller would stay
where I put it (for a short time, at least). I also had an autopilot,
which helped somewhat...

Ours is a wheel. I had a "tiller tender" on my Cal 20. Worked great. It gave
me up to about a minute of hands-free.

I had the boat for about 10 years, then decided to become a
stinkpotter, as I had spent too much time sitting outside in the rain.


--
Peter Bennett, VE7CEI
peterbb4 (at) interchange.ubc.ca
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Dave wrote:
On Tue, 26 Apr 2005 20:24:52 -0400, Jeff said:


However, you were quite specific that you were looking for a
Chesapeake Bay cruiser, that could also be used for more extended
coastal cruising. In these situations it is very unlikely that you
would need to heave to. In fact its usually not desirable if you're
closer than 50 miles to land.


Have to disagree there. I often find it useful when single-handing on LI
Sound, particularly when dropping the sails.

Dave
I'm not sure what you mean. The "heaving to" that we're discussing is
a heavy weather technique for sloops where the jib is backed and the
helm is down. A Nonsuch without a jib, and even a Freedom with a
small jib can't really do this.

I don't understand how you do this as you "drop the sails," though I
can imagine that on a normal boat you might want to stall it while you
drop the main. On a Nonsuch, of course, the wishbone with lazy jacks
does a rather good job of gathering the main, and with no other sail,
the engine is likely running (or you're at anchor) when you drop sail.

I know that some singlehander will heave to make lunch, or do some
other chore, but with modern autopilots it isn't really a necessity.

(initiator of thread) Thanks for the suggestions and comments. One of
the problems that I am having in narrowing my selection is due to the
fact that my principle harbor, Havre de Grace, MD, has one marina of
significant size and, I swear, 90% of the boats are either Hunters or
Catalinas (the marina is also a dealership for these boats - there is
kind of a 'monopoly' feel about the place, though everybody is nice and
it does not have that 'uppity' feel that Annapolis has. That most buy
from product from the 'oligopoly' is not a bad thing, but when I walk
around I do not run into owners of Freedoms, Bristols, or even Sabres
and Tartans, etc. So, like others here, I have to rely on forums like
these to narrow my search. I plan to buy in the Fall before the boats
are out of the water. I need time to raise cash, but I also suspect
that it is a decent time to buy, much like waiting for October to
purchase a motorcycle. This weekend I may again drive down to
Annapolis, this time to see a Bristol 27.7 and 29.9. There is also a
nice looking Freedom 32 listed with Rouguewaves, and a 30' Sabre with a
smaller broker. I am definately thinking smaller (and feeling
wealthier). The Tartan 37, Ericson 38, etc. are now off of my short
list.

wrote:
what are you sailing (or did I miss it in your text )? Nice boat!!

If directed at me, I am owned by a Cape Dory 28.

--
Good luck and good sailing.
s/v Kerry Deare of Barnegat
http://kerrydeare.home.comcast.net/

a cape dory 28'?

I have been searching under the assumption that a 30-32' J-Boat would
be a bear to single-hand, except for highly skilled/experienced
sailors, because it is built (light with substantial sail area)
principally for crewed races. Am I wrong? Thanks

wrote:

... One of the problems that I am having in narrowing my selection is due
to the fact that my principle harbor, Havre de Grace, MD, has one
marina of significant size and, I swear, 90% of the boats are
either Hunters or Catalinas ... [and] ... when I walk around I do not run
into owners of Freedoms, Bristols, or even Sabres and Tartans, etc...

I suspect you will almost always find that owners of particular boats are
inclined to "shill" (as another writer put it) for their own boats for a
number of reasons. Makes sense. But a more detached approach admits that
any design is a compromise. I don't know how many times I've decided that a
Corsair 31 was the perfect boat, or a Morris 42, or a Bristol Channel
Cutter, or a Gemini 31, or a Newick Native, etc., etc. All different, and
all very good for certain purposes and pocketbooks. Yet most of us end up
with one boat, and hold onto it for a while.

You must (well, not really "must," I guess) decide what you want to do and
where to do it, then work backwards. If you intend to sail short handed out
of Havre de Grace, you need a reliable engine (long entrance channel), not
too much draft, a boat that won't cost an arm and a leg to pay for a slip (I
cannot recall if there are moorings there, since I have anchored out on my
visits). This results in a long list. What you want to do is buy "smart"
with a good survey and at a fair price, then stick with that boat until you
are absolutely certain that it's time for a change.

And that day may never come.

--
Good luck and good sailing.
s/v Kerry Deare of Barnegat
http://kerrydeare.home.comcast.net/

Frank wrote:

Under sail, general handling while raising and lowering sails,
switching to engine, anchoring, mooring, etc. my experience has been
that a Freedom 36 (or 38) is infinitely easier to singlehand than
any "standard" Marconi-rig sub-30 footer. And yes that includes
singlehanding a tri-radial 'chute, which I wouldn't even try on most
keelboats.

I think that, once again, "it depends." I single hand a 28 foot sloop and
routinely set a conventional tri-radial spinnaker without mishap. I'm no
athlete or "diehard" racer, but I like to keep the boat moving, and that's
what's required. However once you get up near 40 feet, a tri-radial can get
to be a lot of cloth very quickly. In addition the average bloke will
usually decide it's just too much trouble in many cases, and resort to
fossil fuels. Among the cruising people I've known, laziness is often
considered a virtue.

And going to 40 ft., I'll remind y'all that Garry Hoyt singlehanded
his *engineless* prototype Freedom 40 all around the Caribbean,
winning races against full crews, and anchoring and docking in
notoriously crowded harbors ... And the Freedom 44 is essentially the
same setup as the 40. So, AFAIC, we're up to 44 feet and still comfortably
singlehanding. With the right boat.

There are individual cases on both ends that support whatever argument is in
need of support. Michael Ritchie sailed "Jester" all over the place, and
someone or other sailed "Mediteranee" (sp?) to those same places. "Jester"
was about 26 feet, and the other multi-masted monster was ten times her
length. Length alone is not a limiting factor, but for average folks it's a
reasonable indicator.

I think the main factor for practical people is that while length increases
linearly, related items do not. Volume, weight, equipment size, and cost
definitely do not stay within the bounds as length increases. And in my
experience it's usually the smaller boats that leave the mooring regularly,
while the larger boats are waiting either for crew, or for refrigeration
spares and parts.

--
Good luck and good sailing.
s/v Kerry Deare of Barnegat
http://kerrydeare.home.comcast.net/

In article . com,
wrote:

I have been searching under the assumption that a 30-32' J-Boat would
be a bear to single-hand, except for highly skilled/experienced
sailors, because it is built (light with substantial sail area)
principally for crewed races. Am I wrong? Thanks

A used J32C might be too expensive but I have sailed one off coast of RI
in thoughtless seas (why did they ever see the need to be that big)
without any sense of fear or regret. The boat is solid, easily single
handed, fast and comfortable below.

harlan

--
To respond, obviously drop the "nospan"?

On 27 Apr 2005 04:33:25 -0700, wrote:

I am definately thinking smaller (and feeling
wealthier).

Well, you have that part exactly right. Smaller is cheaper and cheaper
still on a per-foot basis. When I got my 33.5 footer in 1999, I was
squarely in the middle of boat size at my club. Six years on, and I am
at the high end of "small" and 27 footers stay unsold for months and
go for what is in my opinion a song. It's a great time to buy a 25-30
foot late '70s-1990 boat, I think. A friend here can't move an updated
race-winning '84 Newport 27 (essentially a C&C 27) for $15,000 Cdn.,
which is about $11,500 U.S.

The good news is that you can reasonably over-budget on the basis of
getting a circa 30 footer that is immaculate and/or discounted on the
basis of known and easily fixable stuff. Frequently you will see an
older fellow or couple who have been the single owners of a smaller
sailboat for 25 + years. The things frequently look factory, and some
have been incrementally improved (hot running water, newer electrical
panels, etc.) by owners who spend a long of time aboard.

Frequently, the only problems are old, sometimes original sails and/or
tired rigging. You can say that as you will need to buy these items,
you wish a discount. Frequently, you'll get it and then some, and with
new sails and rigging on a dry, tight, well-maintained boat, it's
essentially new at 15%-20% of the price of a comparably new boat...if
you can find anyone making a 30 foot or under boat that isn't a pure
one-design. The idea is that you get to buy a better boat for less,
and then do a major gear upgrade at once, given that the hull and
systems are either good or gone, but you'd probably change the sails
anyway.

R.