69 replies to this topic

[Soñadora]

Boomer's comment in one of the other threads got me wondering. I could easily count all the boats I've ever sailed on on two hands, maybe one. The first boat I EVER sailed on was a Chrysler 23, but there was no wind and the guy's girlfriend bitched the whole time we were out so I won't count that.

Instead, I figure the first boat I ever sailed on was a Catalina Capri 25 named Texana and owned by Dallas Johnson.

(sistership)


That was a great experience and sealed the deal on my desire to sail. I could see myself owning a Capri 25 some day. The poor man's J24.

[Steam Flyer]

Boomer's comment in one of the other threads got me wondering. I could easily count all the boats I've ever sailed on on two hands, maybe one. The first boat I EVER sailed on was a Chrysler 23, but there was no wind and the guy's girlfriend bitched the whole time we were out so I won't count that.

Instead, I figure the first boat I ever sailed on was a Catalina Capri 25 named Texana and owned by Dallas Johnson.

... ...

That was a great experience and sealed the deal on my desire to sail. I could see myself owning a Capri 25 some day. The poor man's J24.

That's a nice sailing boat. Raced one and also it's little sister the Capri 22... looked for the Capri 23.5 (the poor man's Melges 24, unfortunately not a success in the market) for a while...

But Sons, I thought you were a dues-paying mamber of the crab-crusher brigade?

Anyway I don't recall the first boat I sailed on; but the first boat I skippered without a grown-up supervising was a Butterfly. A mini-scow with a marconi cat rig and daggerboard. Fun boat, when I see them for sale I have to resist temptation to get one. Also the first (and only) boat I've capsized with a dog.... poor girl... that afternoon she went from being -my- dog to my sister's dog, and she made her preference clear. Oh well.
.


I think in scow country, the Butterfly is almost as common as Sunfish everywhere else...

FB- Doug

[Soñadora]

Boomer's comment in one of the other threads got me wondering. I could easily count all the boats I've ever sailed on on two hands, maybe one. The first boat I EVER sailed on was a Chrysler 23, but there was no wind and the guy's girlfriend bitched the whole time we were out so I won't count that.

Instead, I figure the first boat I ever sailed on was a Catalina Capri 25 named Texana and owned by Dallas Johnson.

... ...

That was a great experience and sealed the deal on my desire to sail. I could see myself owning a Capri 25 some day. The poor man's J24.

That's a nice sailing boat. Raced one and also it's little sister the Capri 22... looked for the Capri 23.5 (the poor man's Melges 24, unfortunately not a success in the market) for a while...

But Sons, I thought you were a dues-paying mamber of the crab-crusher brigade?

Anyway I don't recall the first boat I sailed on; but the first boat I skippered without a grown-up supervising was a Butterfly. A mini-scow with a marconi cat rig and daggerboard. Fun boat, when I see them for sale I have to resist temptation to get one. Also the first (and only) boat I've capsized with a dog.... poor girl... that afternoon she went from being -my- dog to my sister's dog, and she made her preference clear. Oh well.
.


I think in scow country, the Butterfly is almost as common as Sunfish everywhere else...

FB- Doug

haha...

That's a good story and a neat looking little surfer.

The first boat we owned was a Capri 22.

As for the 'crab crusher', there's no substitute for displacement and sailing Soñadora is an experience beyond compare.

But she'll be spending her years for the foreseeable future up in the land of flannel on Lake Superior. That's a 3 hr drive from here, so no chance for any weekday sailing since I'm still at the age where I have to drive a desk. So I'm keeping on the lookout for a Capri 22 or a Capri 25.

'on the lookout' means 'seeing one for sale and using my imagination to actually sale it' since the likelihood of us being a 2-boat family is pretty slim.

[boomer]

My grandpa got a '23 Cub as partial payment from a fisherman, for repair work done to his seiner. I was a wee young tyke about three years old. My grandpa was up working on a project and I was down on the Cub getting her all cleaned up, so we could take her out. I remember my grandma came down when I was hauling junk off the boat and up the dock and giving my grandpa what for, "who's watching him", I remember her saying. My grandpa replied, "he's fine, he's busy on that boat"...my grandma gave me a look..."I'm fine grandma", I said....my grandma replied,"Your to young to be down there by yourself'"....grandpa said, "he's fine"...."I'm fine grandma", I said again....grandma turned on her heels and walked off in a huff....grandpa looked at me and smiled...I always looked up to my grandpa, but even more so after that....from then on my grandpa was God to me, my hero!

[boomer]

I liked all the Capri line....fell under my thinking of, if they look fast, they probably are....looked to me like they had a pretty good turn of speed.

[Ishmael]

My first sail ever was on a Sea Spray Catamaran in Saskatchewan. It was well-named, a wet little beast. Didn't get me hooked.



The one that did get me was sailing on a friend's father's San Juan 28 in the Gulf Islands when I was out here camping.
That prompted me to buy a Wayfarer when I got back to Saskatchewan, which I learned to sail, then a couple of boats later I moved out to the coast so I could sail year round. I never looked back.

[Jose Carumba]

First sail was on my uncle's Butterball pram around 1959.

Only picture I could find:

 Butterball.jpg   22.98K   4 downloads

Specs: http://sailboatdata....p?class_id=7258

[Figment]

Does a Bic windsurfer count?

Sunfish after that.

[MidPack]

I learned to sail on a rental (green) Dolphin Sr like this one...

[jackdaw]

Sunny. Camp Hiawatha Boy Scout camp, UP Michigan. Maybe 1973?

[On the Hard]

THe first keelboat I sailed on (doesn't everyone start on a sunfish?) was a Cal 20. indestuctible little brute. In those days there were a couple of Cal 20's and a shitload of Columbia 22's racing MORF in Corpus Christi. The cal 20 was so sturdy my friend's older brother would skipper and there wasnt anyone over the age of 14 on the boat. Won a few races when it blew, which was most of the time.

I've had a soft spot in my heart for Cal 20's ever since. (BTW, way ahead of its time with a torpedo bulb on the keel)

[Salazar]

I don't know what boat this I'm sailing on but this is the first time I remember sailing. One photo is me, one my sister & I, and one of my mom, probably in 1967. We went from Soufriere, St. Lucia around the point to Anse Chastanet Beach on beautiful sunny day. If anyone is able to tell me what boat this is from these photos I'd be happy to know.

The first boat I was able to take on my own was a Laser. No photos of that, sorry.

Attached Files

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[Kirwan]

my First Time was in the back seat of a VW Bug... oh wait, what was the question?

I had a sunny, and sailed it all over the little lake, but for me the eyeopener was the ability to sail, drop the hook, and wake up in some distant cove. The first one I got to do that on was a Catalina 27. Nothing special, except the adventure it brought.

[kimbottles]

Rental daysailor Newport Beach, California about 1950, I think I was two when my Dad started taking me sailing, so in effect I have virtually always sailed.

I have a picture around here somewhere.

[Innocent Bystander]

Not counting the rowboat with a blanket and oar attempt, it was an Opti. First boat I owned was a Sea Snark when I was 15 or so. Dad had a friend that smoked Kool cigs so I got the logo'd edition for a bunch of proof of sale stuff and a few bucks shipping. Found a way to carry in on top of an MGA when I was 16 and had a ball.

[Slim]

It was a Kool boat - a Super Snark. I would have been a passenger, maybe 4 or 5 at the time. I sailed myself for the first time on a Force 5, I was probably 10 or 11.

[Joli]

Started forward at 12.



Picture stolen from the Thistle Class web site.

http://www.thistleclass.com/

[U20guy2]

First ever sail Hmm. Late 70's bright yellow Hobie 16 with a huge Chiquita Banana sticker on each hull. Off a beach some place in the Sacramento Delta. I think I was like 6yrs old Scared the living hell out of me. I went back to my parents 18ft ski boat very glad to be off that Banana Boat!

I took up sailing in college when water skiing was just too costly - and I had seen far too many people hurt and the lakes turned into high risk weekend drunk fests with people getting run down and killed. Sailing places where the stupid boaters didn't go seemed like a nice alternative and much safer way to enjoy the water.

[hard aground]

First boat I sailed on would have been a Mirage 24. Would have been about 8 at the time and it never really had a big hold over me. The sail that changed my disposition towards sailing was about a decade later on their C&C 33. A few years later bought a Mirage 24 of my own.

[steele]

The first boat we owned was a Capri 22.

As for the 'crab crusher', there's no substitute for displacement and sailing Soñadora is an experience beyond compare.

But she'll be spending her years for the foreseeable future up in the land of flannel on Lake Superior. That's a 3 hr drive from here, so no chance for any weekday sailing since I'm still at the age where I have to drive a desk. So I'm keeping on the lookout for a Capri 22 or a Capri 25.

'on the lookout' means 'seeing one for sale and using my imagination to actually sale it' since the likelihood of us being a 2-boat family is pretty slim.

I know a Catalina 22 is not the same boat as a Capri 22, but around here you can get one on a trailer with an outboard for 2-3K if you don't mind scraping some moss off first. It was the first "big" boat I sailed alone, the first was an El Toro. The first sailboat I was on as a kid was dad's Tbird.

[boomer]

Loved the T-birds, great boats and had one from 76-82....hull number 205 the last and 35th T-bird by Ed Hoppen.

It still occasionally crosses my mind to get another one.

[dinghydoc]

Schock's Lido 14. Decent trainer. (The Laser that came later was a lot more fun and probably had more influence on me that this.) Have not seen one since I left So Cal.

[boomer]

The North Kitsap High School as well as other's in the NW still race Lido 14's in NWISA events,as well as Flying Juniors and Vangaurd 15's.

[steele]

Loved the T-birds, great boats and had one from 76-82....hull number 205 the last and 35th T-bird by Ed Hoppen.

It still occasionally crosses my mind to get another one.

Dad's TBird was an early plywood version, it had a plaque in the coclkpit stating it was made in Japan. I do not remember a lot about it, but do recal being down below in a blow one time and watching lots of geen water go by the cabin windows. It is still great to see a few out racing on the sound.

[blackbird]

Around our fleet it was said that the T Bird was the box Cubs were shipped in. : )

The Cub wasn't the first boat I ever sailed, though it was close. I gues my first would have been a Sailfish with my Dad on Thetis Lake. The Cub arrived a few years later.

[boomer]

Loved the T-birds, great boats and had one from 76-82....hull number 205 the last and 35th T-bird by Ed Hoppen.

It still occasionally crosses my mind to get another one.

Dad's TBird was an early plywood version, it had a plaque in the coclkpit stating it was made in Japan. I do not remember a lot about it, but do recal being down below in a blow one time and watching lots of geen water go by the cabin windows. It is still great to see a few out racing on the sound.

Loved the T-birds, great boats and had one from 76-82....hull number 205 the last and 35th T-bird by Ed Hoppen.

It still occasionally crosses my mind to get another one.

Dad's TBird was an early plywood version, it had a plaque in the coclkpit stating it was made in Japan. I do not remember a lot about it, but do recal being down below in a blow one time and watching lots of geen water go by the cabin windows. It is still great to see a few out racing on the sound.

Seen two that were built over there. The quality of the build was impressive!

[boomer]

Around our fleet it was said that the T Bird was the box Cubs were shipped in. : )

The Cub wasn't the first boat I ever sailed, though it was close. I gues my first would have been a Sailfish with my Dad on Thetis Lake. The Cub arrived a few years later.

When I was a kid, the chines of the T-Bird turned me off to the design. When I got out of the service got a chance to cruise an old friend's T-Bird, and found out what a sweet sailor they were. I was hooked and it wasn't long before I bought mine. Glad I did, mine was painted the same colors of the Canadian flag, with so many T-Bird's out of Victoria and Vancouver, everyone thought my T-Bird was just another Canadian boat. In six years going over the border back in the day, I never bothered with checking into customs. Wouldn't get away with that these days.

Was your 23' Cub one of the cedar planked hull's. The one my grandpa had was cedar planked with oak frames. My grandpa liked fir a lot, said the boats could have been built with fir. When I was in high school one of our neighbors dad built one with yew wood frames, first time I ever heard of using yew wood for frames. I suspect they were probably built every which way to Sunday, by backyard boat builders. When I got out of the service we had a couple fiberglass Canadian built Cubs in Kingston. If I remember correctly they were built in Victoria or rather Sydney, is that correct? When I did search for them the other day, I was surprised there wasn't more on the net about them. Only found one forum discussion about six posts long and a query in 48 North. Thought that was odd because they were a sweet little boat.

[Balder]

My first sail was in Desolation Sound on a Penguin we brought on deck of a large powerboat. About 1981 I would guess.

Pics stolen from internet, not mine, no one can find ours any more. Last seen in a field

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[Ishmael]

Around our fleet it was said that the T Bird was the box Cubs were shipped in. : )

The Cub wasn't the first boat I ever sailed, though it was close. I gues my first would have been a Sailfish with my Dad on Thetis Lake. The Cub arrived a few years later.

When I was a kid, the chines of the T-Bird turned me off to the design. When I got out of the service got a chance to cruise an old friend's T-Bird, and found out what a sweet sailor they were. I was hooked and it wasn't long before I bought mine. Glad I did, mine was painted the same colors of the Canadian flag, with so many T-Bird's out of Victoria and Vancouver, everyone thought my T-Bird was just another Canadian boat. In six years going over the border back in the day, I never bothered with checking into customs. Wouldn't get away with that these days.

Was your 23' Cub one of the cedar planked hull's. The one my grandpa had was cedar planked with oak frames. My grandpa liked fir a lot, said the boats could have been built with fir. When I was in high school one of our neighbors dad built one with yew wood frames, first time I ever heard of using yew wood for frames. I suspect they were probably built every which way to Sunday, by backyard boat builders. When I got out of the service we had a couple fiberglass Canadian built Cubs in Kingston. If I remember correctly they were built in Victoria or rather Sydney, is that correct? When I did search for them the other day, I was surprised there wasn't more on the net about them. Only found one forum discussion about six posts long and a query in 48 North. Thought that was odd because they were a sweet little boat.

The fiberglass Tbirds were built by Booth in Victoria. He's still in business, but the market for Tbirds sorta went away. I'm sure he'd be happy to build you one.

http://www.boothboats.com/

[boomer]

Yes I'm aware of the Booth T-Birds....and though I think the Booth's are the best, because of the cabin and the build. I'd rather have a wood T-Bird,

if I was to ever get one again. More then likely if I build a boat again, it'll be a Murray Peterson "Susan". But I'm boat poor, I need to sell some

boats before I can consider another boat. Not wise to pay moorage on that many boats.



The 23' Cub is a Bill Nightingale design. In the early 50's Bill a local Lake Union/ Seattle boat builder, designed and built the Cub for his daughter.

The Cub had a round hull, typically planked in cedar with the sheer plank sometimes of mahogany like my grandpas. They used a Star keel and a

spade rudder The mast was tall,about a 35' fractional rig. It had a cabin that could sleep two, with a toilet, a galley consisting of a counter and

shelves, a sink and a stove. The Cub was built in Seattle and in Victoria usually by amateurs. There was a fleet in both locales during the 1950's

and 1960's. In the 60's fiberglass versions were built in Victoria or Sydney, I can't remember which location for sure.



We had two of these fiberglass Cub's in Kingston,one was owned by a local painter and the other owned by the fellow and his wife who had the

Sears mail order outlet in town. The same time I was looking for a T-Bird in 1976, the painter put his Cub up for sale. So figured I'd check it out.

Having just spent three weeks cruising on a T-Bird, the Cub was dog comparatively, not the fast sloop I remembered as a little boy. My wife and I

were living on a boat at the time in Poulsbo, and I remember that week, watching Thorvald here on SA racing his family T-Bird, with the the local

Poulsbo Yacht Club fleet. Watching that T-Bird Thorvald was racing, I made up my mind and bought my T-Bird a week or so later. The painter sold

the Cub to a young fellow. The young fellow took the boat out on his first sail singlehanded, fell off the bow and drowned. The painter felt really bad

about the whole episode, and so did I.


Small world on this side, Thorvald knows the painter I'm talking about, because he does work for him as a private contractor. Even smaller world,

Thorvalds family T-Bird was built by a family friend in Port Orchard, a math teacher named Dick Richards who has since passed on. Dick sold the

T-Bird and got a Gary Mull designed Miller 29 built on Bainbridge Island by that little big man, Earl Miller. Anyone who knows Earl, knows exactly

what I mean by that.

[sailman]

Here was my ride at around six weeks:

 Early_Sailing0020.jpg   442.01K   8 downloads

[blackbird]

My father's Cub was cedar, strip planked, IIRC. She had the mahogany sheer strake. The was quite a good fleet at R Vic when I was growing up... and we all went cruising together as a fleet, too. The kids would sleep in the open on the dock or in the cockpit. Great times. Never knew they'd ever been made of glass. I remember them being very sweet light air/smooth water boats.

I've googled the Cub several times and haven't found any more than you did. Curious to know what became of them.

My father ended up selling the Cub in the mid 60s and getting a Haida. There was an excellent little boat for a breeze.

You're right about the TBird being a very good boat; a friend family sailed around Vancouver Island in theirs one summer. Pretty impressive for a plywood box!

[Jose Carumba]

Raced on my friend's T-bird (#297) quite a bit when I was in my 20s. He later set a Round the Sound record with it. Great boats. In addition to Booth building 'glass birds there was Jim(?) Lane in Kent. Booth boats were better looking though.

[auggie]

my mother signed me up to sail a Turnabout (or N10) as crew for a kid about a year younger than i. I thought sailboats were slow and boring. Well, was blowing the first night. Boat was plowing under, spray flying, skipper was almost crying and I was hooked

[Chris King]

My first boat was ordered off the back of a cigarette pack. It was styrofoam but my dad fiberglassed it. Sailed on Clarke Hill Lake in Georgia.

[Dale dug a hole]

First boat I sailed by myself was a Sabot, First capsize was about 2 minutes later, just after I tacked.

[floating dutchman]

My first time, When I was 14 I got invited to sail a boat overnight on what was to be a four or five hour sail ( i think, long time ago ). I asked if I could take my girlfreind along for the trip. I had done lots of sailing, not much at night and not much on a big boat ( 50 something foot ). After we left port My mate's dad (was only the four of us on the boat) when down below for a kip and left us three teenagers to it. My mate had sailed the boat lots and his dad trusted him.
Didn't take long before my girlfreind got bored with sailing in five knot's of wind, and you can't see much at night so she suggested we go for a kip too.
Well I'm not explaining the rest!

That was what was meant by "Your first time" right?

[Dale dug a hole]

Pics or it never happened

You lucky bastard, first time and on a boat. beats doing it in sand dunes on a towel. fucking sand, well you know what I mean, bloody sand. oh bugger it. Well that didn't happen till later.

[Bob Perry]

The first boat I sailed by myself was a rented Sea Scouter. These were about 9' LOA weighed around 300 lbs. Horrible boats. The single sail was held to the mast with shower curtain rings. I think they rental cost was $1.75 an hour. I can remember sitting out there on Lake Washington, going nowhere and watching Star class boats just zoom by me. I probably paddled it back to the rental place. But I was determined to learn to sail.

[svgreatwhite]

The first boat I sailed by myself was a rented Sea Scouter. These were about 9' LOA weighed around 300 lbs. Horrible boats. The single sail was held to the mast with shower curtain rings. I think they rental cost was $1.75 an hour. I can remember sitting out there on Lake Washington, going nowhere and watching Star class boats just zoom by me. I probably paddled it back to the rental place. But I was determined to learn to sail.

I had a Sea Scouter. My first attempt at sailing though was with a little boat built to one of the Douglas Fir Plywood Association plans. It was only five feet long. My uncle gave it to me. It was a spritsail rig. I built a mast and my mom built a sail from a cotton banner from where she worked. It would not sail upwind, or at least I could not make it sail upwind. I was 14. My dad had a new powerboat and in the summer he worked nights and was at the marina all day. My sister and I were dock rats. The Sea Scouter was a big impovement for me and I sailed it a lot.
 Sea Scooter0001.jpg   176.9K   11 downloads

[Bob Perry]

White:
I think making that Sea Scouter go was good training. There must still be some around. That hull was indestructable.

[svgreatwhite]

White:
I think making that Sea Scouter go was good training. There must still be some around. That hull was indestructable.

There are a few around. They show up in Craigslist for sale. There were a lot built. A Yahoo group was started by a lady in Idaho that has one and is trying to round up all the info she can find. I had an old brochure and scanned it for her.

I had to learn to sail by myself. My dad was a powerboater and did not know anything about sailing. Most of my friends in school had no interest. My dad did set me up with one of his coworkers when I was 15 who had a 30ft Atkins schooner(Little Maid of Kent design) and I worked for him on a "one for one" of working on the boat and sailing an equal amount. We started sailing more than working. Unfortunatly the owner died of brain cancer after a couple of years. The last time we sailed together was to move the boat to another marina closer to his home. He wanted me along to get the boat into the marina if he collapsed.

Here is my rather hokey "Sailing Autobiography" video:

http://www.youtube.c...hU&feature=plcp

[Bob Perry]

White:
What is that IOR boat in your video. It almost looks like my half tonner.
I don't think your vid is hokey at all.

[svgreatwhite]

White:
What is that IOR boat in your video. It almost looks like my half tonner.
I don't think your vid is hokey at all.

It is. It is a Bystedt 30. One of your designs. I owned it from 1977-2000.

[Bob Perry]

Cool, if you could sail that thing downwind in a blow you could sail anything. What was the name of it. Mine was CHINOOK.

[svgreatwhite]

Cool, if you could sail that thing downwind in a blow you could sail anything. What was the name of it. Mine was CHINOOK.

It was "Good News". I never raced it IOR. I put a lot of miles and had a lot of good times on it while I owned it. I remeber Chinook.

[Jose Carumba]

Bob, what was the name of the black one? At least I think there was a black one. It was too far ahead of us on Future Schock to tell.

[Cruisin Loser]

It was probably an O'Day Puffin, my mom's, she kept it in front the house in Edgewood, RI. I still remember sailing up to the shipyard and being invited aboard a submarine.

[Bob Perry]

Jose:
The black one was hull no.1. I forget the name. I sailed a very rough Swifsture on that boat. We went through a lot of duct tape. But as I recall we always had a hard time beating the Schock.

CHINOOK was my boat. I saved weight by making the cabin sole out of strips of teak with ,25" gaps between the strips. My buddy decided to put some of that bilge soap in the boat. Unfortunately we had a hydraulic motor in the top of the keel for our prop.. When we started the engine the bilge water and soap worked together whipped up by the prop shaft and bubbles oozed out of our cabin sole. It would have been funny on somone else's boat.

[svgreatwhite]

Jose:
The black one was hull no.1. I forget the name. I sailed a very rough Swifsture on that boat. We went through a lot of duct tape. But as I recall we always had a hard time beating the Schock.

CHINOOK was my boat. I saved weight by making the cabin sole out of strips of teak with ,25" gaps between the strips. My buddy decided to put some of that bilge soap in the boat. Unfortunately we had a hydraulic motor in the top of the keel for our prop.. When we started the engine the bilge water and soap worked together whipped up by the prop shaft and bubbles oozed out of our cabin sole. It would have been funny on somone else's boat.

Wasn't the black boat named "Cayambe"?

[Bob Perry]

Exactly! I kept thinking Cayanne, Cheyanne but you nailed it.
I remember vivdly that Friday trying to get the boat to Victoria for the race. It must have blown 30+ in the Straits and here we were on a half finished boat. A lot of boats couldn't hold it up and ended up in Sidney, We kept her up and made it into Victoria. More guts than brains that's for sure. Sometimes when you are young you think, "Hell, everyone must be doing this so I can do it." And, you do it. I'd like to feel like that again.

[Gatekeeper]

Me, Folkboat...how it that for cliche??

(but it's true)

[WarBird]

8 or 9 and there was a house up the alley being built. I nicked a 1/2' 4x8 they used as a ramp for a wheel barrow. Built a boxy thing , pointy at one end, with that as the floor, some 1/4 2'x 8' kind fastened at chine logs. Screw in eyes, ya know zinc or plated as pintles with dowel for the gudgeons(or is that backwards). Closet hangar pole for mast and boom (screw in eyes for goose neck) and a old bed sheet, sewed it myself for a sail. Discovered the need for lee boards early, and a bailer.

[Bent Sailor]

First one for me would have been the Corsair 16' dinghy. It was from an introductory sail on one of these I jumped from the long-time "wishing I could sail" procrastination to actually "learning to sail". I believe they were once an Olympic class boat (though I'm not 100% sure), but with that said - it's hard to find good pictures of them. Chose three from our 2011 Nationals that I hope show them off well enough:







First one I sailed on my own was a Laser (more than enough pictures of them to go around).

[CPN]

First boat was a beamy Abaco Dinghy in the Bahamas...
Stock Google images result (http://samanaketch.c...08/HPIM2268.JPG)

[SemiSalt]

When I was a little kid, my parents took my sister and me to the NY Boat Show. They had particular interest in the display from Alcort. The next winter, my father built a Sailfish from a kit. This was before there was such a thing as a fiberglass Sailfish. It was screwed (or nailed?) and glued with resorcinol. Dad brought sub-assemblies in from the cold garage to glue in the warm house. The next summer, he taught himself to sail on Swartswood Lake. As best I remember, that was the first boat I went sailing on. It's certainly the boat I learned to sail on.

At that time, we sneered at the Sunfish for being heavier and using the same sail. Later on, I realized that the Sunfish is really the better boat.

After a few years, a friend got him interested in GP-14s and GP-14 racing. That boat was from Bell Woodworking, via Jack Wright (Philadelphia). We got a lot of comments on the varnished decks.

[Soñadora]

I'm a bit surprised.

Considering how many Catalinas and Hunters were built back in the day, I would have expected more Catalina 22s or 25s.

A Lido is the boat that taught me to sail. They use 'em here on the city lakes for sailboat training. I could see owning one for daysailing on the lakes.

[kdh]

My first was an Old Town Lapstrake that was left to my uncle in the camp he bought on East Grand Lake in Maine. My dad and brothers figured out how to sail her. Here is one that was modified with a cabin to cross the Atlantic. "Tinkerbelle."



My other first was very soft.

[Bent Sailor]

Somewhat related, how many cruisers started their sailing in dinghies (say, sub-twenty feet) compared to those that jumped into sailing larger boats? As I mentioned above, I started in the dinghies but I get the feeling from Soñadora's post that there might be quite a few folks that started in the larger boats first.

[Ishmael]

My first boat, a Wayfarer 16, with the previous owner. I renamed her Vorpal Blade from something Scandinavian.

Redberry Lake, Saskatchewan, home of the largest horseflies in the world.

[viktor]

I started out in an old pram,el toro maybe, that was handed down to me from my sister.She had moved up to what were called Cub boats on the lake we grew up on. I was like 5 or 6 at the time.

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When she moved up to C scows I got the Cub boat and sailed and raced that until we moved away. I never got a scow but crewed for my Dad and sister a lot.

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Our family also chartered a Fishers Island 31 on the east coast every summer.I think I have posted this pic before. Oh well it's a cool picture.

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I feel blessed to have had such a wonderful childhood with a loving family. Many tears were shed when we learned that we had to move from the lake

[Bob Perry]

Viktor:
That is a sweet looking sloop.

Ish:
"Vorpal Blade" is from JABBERWOCKY by Lewis Carol although the exact wording is "vorpal sword".
"He took his vorpal sword in hand"

How do I know this?
Because when I was in 5th grade in Australia we had to memorize that entire poem by lunchtime on Friday or no lunch.
Of course I didnt look at the poem until Friday lunchtime so I sat in the classroom by myself trying to memorize the fucking poem while the other kids ate and played.
But I finally got it with 5 minutes left in the lunch hour and to this day I can still recite JABBERWOCKY.

[Ishmael]

'twas brillig, and the slithy toves did gyre and gimble in the wabe...



One of my favourites. I love Lewis Carroll.

Edit: there is a "vorpal blade" in the poem...


'Twas brillig, and the slithy toves
Did gyre and gimble in the wabe;
All mimsy were the borogoves,
And the mome raths outgrabe.

"Beware the Jabberwock, my son!
The jaws that bite, the claws that catch!
Beware the Jubjub bird, and shun
The frumious Bandersnatch!"

He took his vorpal sword in hand:
Long time the manxome foe he sought—
So rested he by the Tumtum tree,
And stood awhile in thought.

And as in uffish thought he stood,
The Jabberwock, with eyes of flame,
Came whiffling through the tulgey wood,
And burbled as it came!

One, two! One, two! and through and through
The vorpal blade went snicker-snack!
He left it dead, and with its head
He went galumphing back.

"And hast thou slain the Jabberwock?
Come to my arms, my beamish boy!
O frabjous day! Callooh! Callay!"
He chortled in his joy.

'Twas brillig, and the slithy toves
Did gyre and gimble in the wabe;
All mimsy were the borogoves,
And the mome raths outgrabe.

[Tucky]

I always thought Bandersnatch would be a good boat name- just enough connotations to be interesting, though it fails the "clean and easy to use when calling for help on the radio" test.

I've got to remember to read this poem to my four year old grandson. He loves odd words and will shout "calooh callay" over and over. Of course he still likes to say poop over and over. He has already named his imaginary boat "Starlight".

[boomer]

I like BANDERSNATCH....William Atkin always came up with interesting boat names as well.

[SemiSalt]

He has already named his imaginary boat "Starlight".

When my son was little (and very into language), he said if he had a boat, he'd name it "Flounder."

[kdh]

He has already named his imaginary boat "Starlight".

When my son was little (and very into language), he said if he had a boat, he'd name it "Flounder."

Can't help thinking of "Animal House." Came out just before I went to college. Flounder's on the right.

[Anomaly2]

"Face it, you fucked up. You trusted us."

[Anomaly2]

PS

Hey KD, can I borrow the Hinckley? Got a new girl I want impress. Thanks!

[Slick470]

First time was on either a sunfish, snark, or dolphin at boy scout camp. First time I realized I was going to be a sailor was when my dad decided he wanted to buy a boat when I was in junior high. He was looking for a fun family activity and a release from a job he didn't really like. After a little bit of looking he ended up with a MacGregor 22. It was a great lake boat and perfect for how we used it. Those older Macs are nothing like the current abominations. I was the only one in the family who really took to the hobby though. Two different friends have owned that boat since.

To make Sons happy, the first boat I raced on was a Catalina 25.