... I see my father at 77 he is in great shape but i'm wondering if
around 70s it is still feasible.

I've followed the Dashews for the last 20 years and to see them go onto
powerboating while they had the biggest and most weather built sailboat has
been a shock to me.

The Dashews will do what works for them, and so should you. I have a
friend in his mid 70's who sails his 40 foot boat from New Zealand to
New Caledonia and back every year. He takes crew along for the
passages and his wife flys but they run the boat themselves when on
soundings and he is always very much in command. I've met lots of
folks in their 60's who do similar things or are working on
circumnavigations or long cruises. So, it is certainly something that
people can do late in life and you can probably make it happen, too, if
you want to. Of course, cruising in a motor boat can be nice or you
might want to join a chess club with a view of the ocean or whatever...


-- Tom.

"André Langevin" wrote in news:ehdqdv$q66$1
@utornnr1pp.grouptelecom.net:

André, I've found your boat:
http://www.amel.fr/pages-amel/edito.htm
Isn't she beautiful?!

She even speaks French!

Let us know when the christening date is so we can all bring the champagne
and caterers.....(c;

We'll be watching for her from:
"Lionheart"
Amel Sharki 41
Charleston, SC, USA

Her maiden crossing could be after the Med cruise bringing her home!.....
.....a proper ocean-going sailing vessel.

Larry, 3rd mate, Deck and Engineering...

She is marvelous ! What a sailboat, i wouldn't have any concern in sleeping
at night in the middle of the atlantic !

The only problem is that i have to save about the equivalent of 2
Toronto-Paris air ticket every month to be able to have her within 5 years
(grin)


"Larry" wrote in message
...
"André Langevin" wrote in news:ehdqdv$q66$1
@utornnr1pp.grouptelecom.net:

André, I've found your boat:
http://www.amel.fr/pages-amel/edito.htm
Isn't she beautiful?!

She even speaks French!

Let us know when the christening date is so we can all bring the champagne
and caterers.....(c;

We'll be watching for her from:
"Lionheart"
Amel Sharki 41
Charleston, SC, USA

Her maiden crossing could be after the Med cruise bringing her home!.....
....a proper ocean-going sailing vessel.

Larry, 3rd mate, Deck and Engineering...

"André Langevin" wrote in
:

She is marvelous ! What a sailboat, i wouldn't have any concern in
sleeping at night in the middle of the atlantic !

Even in the Sharki, you feel totally safe. When you sit IN, and I mean IN,
the cockpit, the level of the sides of the cockpit are even with your
shoulders. (Of course, flying fish know that and fly OVER the coaming to
land in your lap, anyways, scaring the crap out of you on a midwatch.)
Amel forsaw this event and conveniently installed a freshwater washdown
hose at the base of the mizzen so you don't have to carry the awful flying
fish smell below to clean out your Speedos...(c;

The only problem is that i have to save about the equivalent of 2
Toronto-Paris air ticket every month to be able to have her within 5
years


Oh.....You were looking for recommendations for a boat. You didn't say it
had to be under a million Francs...or was that Quebec Francs??

You even get a beautifully mounted quartz-powered recording barometer....
(c;

Andre,

I think your concern about the possible physical constraints of aging
and any limitations it might impose while sailing are reasonable but
perhaps a little premature. Unless you have serious health issues
right now (history of heart disease, genetic risks or cancer, obesity,
addictions, disabilities, injuries, etc.) then you can probably assume
that should you decide to go cruising your age (in and of itself) will
not be an issue for quite a while - most likely longer than the expected
lifespan of your proposed vessel.

On the other hand, my wife and I thought long and hard about this very
issue and decided that given our age and the fact that we both have bad
backs and joint problems (especially knees) from years of overdoing it,
sports injuries, accidents, etc. it made sense for us to choose a
catamaran instead of a monohull for our long term cruising vessel. We
found that the additional stability and space afforded us more that made
up for the cost, and that we felt safer and more comfortable while at sea.

We find that for us (but maybe not for anyone else) life on two hulls
was much easier on our bodies. We also find that we sleep better when
not healed over or rocking about, which has greatly improved our
enjoyment of blue water cruising, but we believe it also allows us to
get better rest and has improved our fitness while at sea, at least
compared to a monohull.

If you really believe that your physical abilities might be a long term
issue, then I'd suggest you at least try looking into the possibility of
chartering or day sailing a blue water catamaran in the 35 to 45 foot
range to see whether this option holds any possible benefit. There is
a significant number of used cats for sail and there are considerable
prices ranges as well.

Hope to see you out on the bay sometime!

Cheers,

Robb


André Langevin wrote:
Good day to all of you group fellows,

I don't know if it has ever been discussed but i am curious to hear from
other's experience regarding this subject. I'm 46 right now and i have
enjoyed several sailboat starting with small daysailer then to keel and last
of them was a Tanzer 26. This was 10 years ago. At that time i was tired
of being held hostage by the tide and reversing current of Quebec City (5
knots going down for 6 hours and 4 knots going up for 4-5 hours). So i
bought a powerboat and i still have it today altough i'm currently thinking
of selling it for a larger boat. This boat is depicted here :
www.langevin.biz/marinette34

Now i'm thinking at the next boat and i would like a sailboat to do coastal
navigation and even trans-atlantic crossing and long distance travel. Since
it will take me some years to get to this next boat, suppose i'm 50 years
old and i finally have that big 43-45 feet sailboat. What are the chances
i could use it for 15-20 years ? Could it be my last boat or will my last
boat invariably be a powerboat ?

André

André

Take a look at a catamaran like this one.

http://www.pacificbliss.com/

Lois and Gunter Hofmann are on a voyage around the world and Gunter is 70.

Note: this is an interesting read. Lois is a good writer.

Indeed ! Thanks for providing the link !
wrote in message
...
André

Take a look at a catamaran like this one.

http://www.pacificbliss.com/

Lois and Gunter Hofmann are on a voyage around the world and Gunter is 70.

Note: this is an interesting read. Lois is a good writer.