"Silver K" wrote in message
...

"txmxrider" wrote in message
...
Hello,

Please forgive me for asking a newbie question. I'm considering getting a
smallish (19'-23'), swing keel, water ballast, sailboat for family
recreation on local lakes. I don't know much about sailing but I've been
a
power boat owner for 30 years. Big difference, I know, but bear with me.
For
budget reasons I prefer not to have to rent a slip and would like to keep
my
boat at home and trailer to the lake on weekends. In all of my years of
boating I have never seen anyone trailer a sailboat to the lake, raise
the
mast, and launch. Every sailboat I have ever seen either came from a slip
or
at the very least, was sitting on a trailer stored at the marina with the
mast up and presumably launched right there in that manner. I see photos
and
ads for 'mast raising' systems but I have to assume that it's too much
trouble to trailer a sailboat on weekends or more people would be doing
it.
Obviously it would be more involved than launching say a bass boat, but
really, how much trouble is it? Is the idea totally impractical? Are some
models easier than others to launch?

Although I'm not a lazy guy, far from it actually, I'm still very
concerned
that a boat with a poor work-to-fun ratio will sit in the driveway and
not
get used that much.

I appreciate any thoughts the group may have on this subject, pro and
con.
--
Everett
'04 KTM 300 EXC (Treefinder)
'75 Kawasaki S3 400 (2-stroke triple)
'74 BMW R90/6 (Gentleman's Express)

The only problem with trailering a sailboat is the amount of time it takes
to rig the mast and attach the sails and other gear. I trailered a Hunter
23 for a few years and it would take an hour by the time I was ready to
sail or drive away. I had to raise the mast, tension the stays and
shrouds, attach the boom, run the halyards and sheets, raise the jib on
the furler, run the jib sheets, attach the main, put the anchor on the
roller, attach the dodger, launch the tender, attach the outboard and by
the time this was done, the beer was chilled. I had to do everthing in
reverse when it was time to leave. It ended up being much easier to leave
it on a mooring. One consideration is the length of the tongue on the
trailer. Most boat ramps are not made for boats with keels. I had an
eight foot extension on the tongue that allowed me to back the boat in
further and guides on the trailer that helped to align the boat when
loading it back on the trailer.

Silver K


I agree. It's not difficult, but it puts a damper on one's enthusiasm about
actually going sailing. Even my little Windrider trimaran (one sail) took
about 45 minutes from trailer to water or reverse. On my current Sabre 30
(in a slip), I can get underway in 15 minutes, less if pressed.

--
"j" ganz @@
www.sailnow.com