BoatBanter.com - Motor Cruising - Buying My First Boat

Camper wrote in news:237f481f-e0b0-4f1e-ac5e-
:

What do you recommnend as a good buy? Length 21 - 25 feet, 4 berth,
£20000. I would prefer the cockpit covered permanently, something like
a Princess 25.

Don't buy anything for a while. Go hang out at the docks of your local
marina and befriend some of the more civilized people who already have
boats. Captains are always needing crew to help handle boats they
cannot handle themselves. Wives are more than happy to let YOU do their
husband's boat crew bidding so they can be princesses-of-the-yacht doing
little lazing around.

Once involved in this manner, you'll soon hear all about every kind of
boat available from those yachties who have owned them or know someone
else who has owned them. You'll also gain lots of real, first-hand
experience in boat handling, rules-of-the-road, sailing technique noone
can sell you.

Your way aboard their boats is quite simple. You have a skill they
need, you offer to use that skill to their benefit on their boat for
lunch and some fine ale. You ask for nothing, but pitch in to help
whatever task is at hand. You learn from people who've had many boats
and spent years at sea, which is your unimaginable paycheck. Your
captain will introduce you to his friends, other captains in need of
your skills, or simply an extra hand as simple as handing him tools
while he's stuck in the bilge fixing something. Soon, you'll be in
demand by more boats than you care to sail on as your reputation and
fine character goes before you.

If you finally decide this isn't enough sailing, on yachts you'd never
be able to afford for virtually nothing in return, you'll be armed with
tons of first-hand information and some great new friends who can be of
great help finding you the boat you desire. That captain you have
befriended will be more than happy to "look over" your new boat pointing
out lots of problems and things that need fixing....saving you more
money than if he had paid you a hundred quid an hour while you were
aboard his boat!

Besides, it's great fun and you meet some of the nicest people on the
planet....(c;

I'm sailing on about 8 of them, myself, at the moment. I just helped
sail back number 8 from Florida offshore with some friends, a beautiful
Jeanneau French sloop. I spent about $US180 on the whole trip, mostly
on the train going down....a cheap vacation with friends.

After working on someone else's boat for a while and seeing how much
serious money they pour into this hole-in-the-water, you may come to
your senses and discard this stupid notion of owning a boat that's going
to BLEED YOU DRY!....(c;