"Free Boats" and Sailing Aging Out

[Marty Gingras]

We need to invite people to join the sport we love and help them see that it is something they too could devote a portion of their precious leisure time to.

This'll go a long way toward solving the problem.

Yesterday I briefly sailed with a couple of struggling racers --- who've been using their club's boat a year --- to teach them how and why to use the backstay adjuster (after fixing it for them) on their fractional keel boat. I got the distinct impression that one of the two became hooked. He certainly had a big grin. The other one seemed to want to get hooked, but he got seasick instread. We'll try again.

 

[Santanasailor]

Had The Perfect Day

Teens wanting to be in the boat. A whole family dropped by.

had the Perfect Day….Except.

No wind, lots of sun but no wind. I got a couple young teens our in the scow. put one on the tiller and one on the mainsheet. The young lady at the helm had trouble understanding how it worked, but with a little time she could get the picture. My mainsheet trimmer would trim exactly like I showed her.

Problem was, we had just enough wind to make three slow tacks. Hand to paddle back to the dock and slip.

Its not just that we want to and have young people who are willing to try, but without the perfect wind, it was all a loss.

Mother Nature, its not ok to fool with us either!

Addendum

The heat got to one of the young ladies (she was from up north) and they left early. The lake was still and flat until about 4:00. Then we had a serious summer thunderstorm. Estimating winds in the 40’s to 50’s or more. Wind was strong enough to blow the waves flat. Hail and rain so heavy we could barely see across the cove we live on (about 175 yards.). In my 30 years of living on this lake, this was perhaps one of the top three worst summer thunderstorms to hit.

An entire day’s wind all concentrated in about a half hour.

I like my wind to be just a bit more spread out during the day,

 

[MattFranzek]

I think there is a correlation between old cars and early fiberglass boats. Yeah, we like looking at a well maintained version of both, we like working on both to a certain extent, but are you really going to teach a 16 year old to drive in a ‘67 Mustang GT-500 or old Chevy truck? Probably not the best tool for the job. Taking someone out to learn to love cars in an old station wagon from the 70s with out seatbelts probably isn’t the best idea, just as taking someone out sailing on an old IOR boat probably isn’t the best idea. Yeah, pre-ABS and pre-traction control cars are fun to drive, but not nearly as fun (or safe) as a car with ABS and Tranction Control.

Everyone can look at a classic car and enjoy them, but we have evolved past building cars from the 50/60/70s because evolution. So why are we still forcing boats from that era down new sailors (of all ages) throats? Lasers are from the late 1960s. Is there a car that is still in production from the 1960? The last original VW Beetle rolled off the line in 2003, more than a million were made. Yeah old Beatles are cool and were cheap, and a ton them were built, but NO ONE would say they are the best option for racing, and therefor force anyone who dreams of the Olympics to race them. Never less force the top race car drivers to race them. The newest “sailboat” (I’m excluding the iW Foil and Kite board here for the point of my argument) is the 49er, which is from the early 1990s.

Cars have gotten more complicated in 100+ years, just as boats have, but you can still get a basic model with almost nothing for options in them. Go look at a Ford or Chevy basic work truck model, not much there. Both offer top spec super gucci models that cost an arm and a leg, but they also offer cheaper options. Boat builders, if they want to survive, I think need to look at this model to sell more boats. Not everyone wants a WiFi network wirelessly connecting everything on board. Some want nothing more then a mast, hull, rudder, and sails, even in a bigger platform then a dinghy.

Lastly, someone earlier said they like their old boat and don’t want to get a new boat because they don’t know if they will like it, and a few people have agreed. My question is so you still drive the same car you drove when you bought that boat? Or were you able to make a decision that that car wasn’t safe and too expensive to keep? You test drive a few cars, then pick one, same with a boat. As cars get old, we fix our cars as needed, then once it’s too old we sell them and shop for a new car. I’d argue that every single boat >30 years old needs way more work than anyone is willing to admit to be safe. I’m talking all new standing and running rigging, all new sails, every block and line needs to be replaced. Just like a car, old boats just need to be replaced. Yeah they float, just like an old car can keep running, but doesn’t mean either has huge issues waiting for disaster to strike. Fiberglass lasts way too long, and because of that we ignore the rear of the issues that creep up over time.

I will admit I’m guilt of keeping an old boat going. I have a late 1980s Lightning, a box rule design from the 1920s, that hasn’t seen many changes since the 70s. I just bought it, and have already replaced every line, every block will get replaced. As will the shrouds, forestay, backstay, eventually the mast and boom. Why? Because after being raced/sailed since then 1980s, a lot of stuff is old and tired and I don’t feel I could ask the insurance company to replace something if it broke, knowing I was negligent. After I make the argument that old boats need to be let go, yet I have a 1980s Lightning, I’m guilty as everyone else, but there are niches the rules fall apart, and for me it’s the strength of the one design class. If I was into racing cars, and old Beatles were the car, Id have one and drag it on, replacing the steering gear, suspension, wheels, engine, etc etc as needed.

My point is hanging onto old boats because of all the reasons listed are bullshit. We don’t hold onto old cars because they are not as complicated, they use real steel not aluminum, because we own them. We move on because of evolution. It’s time to let old boats die.

 

[TradingUp]

I’d argue that every single boat >30 years old needs way more work than anyone is willing to admit to be safe.

Truth.

There are just a handful of boats younger than this at our club. Most are pre “luxury tax” models.

I’m struck by the diversity of boats available across the pond that would be entirely suitable for myself — an old wizard with accompanying grey beard — and younger peeps. Seascape 18, viko 21, etc… too bad they are rare as hens teeth in NA.

Mind you Euros seem to have a younger sailing contingent and a functional supply chain — thank you 🇵🇱.

I think though a bit shift was the embiggening of the “starter boat” — many older members at our club raced and cruised tanzers, c&c25 before transitioning to bigger boats. Now the minimum starter size seems to be > 36ft with accommodations for a football team. These rarely leave the dock unless weather is guaranteed. And seldomly have a mainsail up, Genoa only.

(I pass most > 36ft sailboats with my 25ft mirage by the simple fact I actually use both my main and jib… and the awesome design by Bob Perry…)

 

[knh555]

I think there is a correlation between old cars and early fiberglass boats. Yeah, we like looking at a well maintained version of both, we like working on both to a certain extent, but are you really going to teach a 16 year old to drive in a ‘67 Mustang GT-500 or old Chevy truck? Probably not the best tool for the job. Taking someone out to learn to love cars in an old station wagon from the 70s with out seatbelts probably isn’t the best idea, just as taking someone out sailing on an old IOR boat probably isn’t the best idea. Yeah, pre-ABS and pre-traction control cars are fun to drive, but not nearly as fun (or safe) as a car with ABS and Tranction Control.

Everyone can look at a classic car and enjoy them, but we have evolved past building cars from the 50/60/70s because evolution. So why are we still forcing boats from that era down new sailors (of all ages) throats? Lasers are from the late 1960s. Is there a car that is still in production from the 1960? The last original VW Beetle rolled off the line in 2003, more than a million were made. Yeah old Beatles are cool and were cheap, and a ton them were built, but NO ONE would say they are the best option for racing, and therefor force anyone who dreams of the Olympics to race them. Never less force the top race car drivers to race them. The newest “sailboat” (I’m excluding the iW Foil and Kite board here for the point of my argument) is the 49er, which is from the early 1990s.

Cars have gotten more complicated in 100+ years, just as boats have, but you can still get a basic model with almost nothing for options in them. Go look at a Ford or Chevy basic work truck model, not much there. Both offer top spec super gucci models that cost an arm and a leg, but they also offer cheaper options. Boat builders, if they want to survive, I think need to look at this model to sell more boats. Not everyone wants a WiFi network wirelessly connecting everything on board. Some want nothing more then a mast, hull, rudder, and sails, even in a bigger platform then a dinghy.

Lastly, someone earlier said they like their old boat and don’t want to get a new boat because they don’t know if they will like it, and a few people have agreed. My question is so you still drive the same car you drove when you bought that boat? Or were you able to make a decision that that car wasn’t safe and too expensive to keep? You test drive a few cars, then pick one, same with a boat. As cars get old, we fix our cars as needed, then once it’s too old we sell them and shop for a new car. I’d argue that every single boat >30 years old needs way more work than anyone is willing to admit to be safe. I’m talking all new standing and running rigging, all new sails, every block and line needs to be replaced. Just like a car, old boats just need to be replaced. Yeah they float, just like an old car can keep running, but doesn’t mean either has huge issues waiting for disaster to strike. Fiberglass lasts way too long, and because of that we ignore the rear of the issues that creep up over time.

I will admit I’m guilt of keeping an old boat going. I have a late 1980s Lightning, a box rule design from the 1920s, that hasn’t seen many changes since the 70s. I just bought it, and have already replaced every line, every block will get replaced. As will the shrouds, forestay, backstay, eventually the mast and boom. Why? Because after being raced/sailed since then 1980s, a lot of stuff is old and tired and I don’t feel I could ask the insurance company to replace something if it broke, knowing I was negligent. After I make the argument that old boats need to be let go, yet I have a 1980s Lightning, I’m guilty as everyone else, but there are niches the rules fall apart, and for me it’s the strength of the one design class. If I was into racing cars, and old Beatles were the car, Id have one and drag it on, replacing the steering gear, suspension, wheels, engine, etc etc as needed.

My point is hanging onto old boats because of all the reasons listed are bullshit. We don’t hold onto old cars because they are not as complicated, they use real steel not aluminum, because we own them. We move on because of evolution. It’s time to let old boats die.

Not everyone who wants to sail can afford a new(ish) boat but some can afford to buy an old boat and deal with the maintenance item-by-item. Consider the difference in start up costs can be 10x or more depending on the type of boat and sailing we’re talking about. For those people, it’s the difference between owning a boat or not owning a boat. Just like not everyone buys new cars.

If talking one-designs, I’m maintaining an older boat that’s a particularly fast specimen. Buying a newer used boat has a good shot at being a slower boat. In other words, I’ve got a keeper. The cost of a new or couple year-old boat is very high compared to replacing rigging, hardware, and even the mast. Throw in the fact our shrinking sport is softening the value of these boats after a few years use and a good older boat plus maintenance can make sense, though the effort is not for everyone.

 

[sailorbandido]

I go back to, it's not the boat. I recently gutted a 50 y/o one design, as an experiment of our refurbishment model. We fixed the issues with the boat and brought it back to class weight. Updated the rigging and lines to modern carbo blocks and dyneema lines, so everything works the way is should now. Took that thing to a major regatta, and had more fun than I had in 30 years of racing. Why? 1.) It was a new to me boat, that I've not sailed before. 2.) The people at the regatta were all super nice and friendly. 3.) They welcomed me to the class, offered suggestions on further improvements, and 4.) most importantly made me feel welcome to the class. I have gone to lots of regattas where I did not feel that way.

We had a blast in the 70s-90s racing. I can't say the same for since then. It's not the boat, it is all of us. If we don't spend the effort to make people feel welcome in our clubs, on their boats, and on the race course, we will not grow the sport. BTW, that class has regattas routinely with 50 boats on the line.

 

[Steam Flyer]

If I have 3 wives working I can quit and just be the harem master
Oops......my wife just reminded me I would be outvoted 3:1 on every decision

And you would be lucky if they let you actually vote.

 

[kent_island_sailor]

And you would be lucky if they let you actually vote.

Yeah - I would probably get told to STFU, if they want my opinion they'll unlock the basement door and ask me

 

[JohnMB]

Yeah - I would probably get told to STFU, if they want my opinion they'll unlock the basement door and ask tell me what it is

FIFY

 

[kent_island_sailor]

I think there is a correlation between old cars and early fiberglass boats. Yeah, we like looking at a well maintained version of both, we like working on both to a certain extent, but are you really going to teach a 16 year old to drive in a ‘67 Mustang GT-500 or old Chevy truck? Probably not the best tool for the job. Taking someone out to learn to love cars in an old station wagon from the 70s with out seatbelts probably isn’t the best idea, just as taking someone out sailing on an old IOR boat probably isn’t the best idea. Yeah, pre-ABS and pre-traction control cars are fun to drive, but not nearly as fun (or safe) as a car with ABS and Tranction Control.

Everyone can look at a classic car and enjoy them, but we have evolved past building cars from the 50/60/70s because evolution. So why are we still forcing boats from that era down new sailors (of all ages) throats? Lasers are from the late 1960s. Is there a car that is still in production from the 1960? The last original VW Beetle rolled off the line in 2003, more than a million were made. Yeah old Beatles are cool and were cheap, and a ton them were built, but NO ONE would say they are the best option for racing, and therefor force anyone who dreams of the Olympics to race them. Never less force the top race car drivers to race them. The newest “sailboat” (I’m excluding the iW Foil and Kite board here for the point of my argument) is the 49er, which is from the early 1990s.

Cars have gotten more complicated in 100+ years, just as boats have, but you can still get a basic model with almost nothing for options in them. Go look at a Ford or Chevy basic work truck model, not much there. Both offer top spec super gucci models that cost an arm and a leg, but they also offer cheaper options. Boat builders, if they want to survive, I think need to look at this model to sell more boats. Not everyone wants a WiFi network wirelessly connecting everything on board. Some want nothing more then a mast, hull, rudder, and sails, even in a bigger platform then a dinghy.

Lastly, someone earlier said they like their old boat and don’t want to get a new boat because they don’t know if they will like it, and a few people have agreed. My question is so you still drive the same car you drove when you bought that boat? Or were you able to make a decision that that car wasn’t safe and too expensive to keep? You test drive a few cars, then pick one, same with a boat. As cars get old, we fix our cars as needed, then once it’s too old we sell them and shop for a new car. I’d argue that every single boat >30 years old needs way more work than anyone is willing to admit to be safe. I’m talking all new standing and running rigging, all new sails, every block and line needs to be replaced. Just like a car, old boats just need to be replaced. Yeah they float, just like an old car can keep running, but doesn’t mean either has huge issues waiting for disaster to strike. Fiberglass lasts way too long, and because of that we ignore the rear of the issues that creep up over time.

I will admit I’m guilt of keeping an old boat going. I have a late 1980s Lightning, a box rule design from the 1920s, that hasn’t seen many changes since the 70s. I just bought it, and have already replaced every line, every block will get replaced. As will the shrouds, forestay, backstay, eventually the mast and boom. Why? Because after being raced/sailed since then 1980s, a lot of stuff is old and tired and I don’t feel I could ask the insurance company to replace something if it broke, knowing I was negligent. After I make the argument that old boats need to be let go, yet I have a 1980s Lightning, I’m guilty as everyone else, but there are niches the rules fall apart, and for me it’s the strength of the one design class. If I was into racing cars, and old Beatles were the car, Id have one and drag it on, replacing the steering gear, suspension, wheels, engine, etc etc as needed.

My point is hanging onto old boats because of all the reasons listed are bullshit. We don’t hold onto old cars because they are not as complicated, they use real steel not aluminum, because we own them. We move on because of evolution. It’s time to let old boats die.

I am going to disagree here quite a bit.
First off, old cars are quite unsafe and unreliable compared to modern cars. Less fun though....no they are not. My old MG Midget was pretty slow, it redlined 4th at about 105 MPH. It was WAY more fun than most modern cars though, the wonderful direct steering and direct mechanical action in every aspect of operating it made it hugely entertaining. Also you learn a lot more about driving when the car does not cover up for your every mistake. Their really is not a good boat analogy in here.

On to boats - this seems to be an ongoing theme that the non-sailing masses are staying away because boat owners are not buying boats that are good enough for them to come down to the club and crew on. I guess even a free ride isn't enough, they need something worthy of their time. Even a fast sailboat is slow compared to my Boston Whaler or the car they drove to the club, I don't think that is the issue at all.
Speaking of old boats, do you REALLY think the people sailing $35,000 boats would really be sailing $400,000 boats but somehow have been tricked into not doing so? It is nothing like a car, there is no real significant safety or reliability advantage to the newer boats, in some cases quite the reverse. (assuming the old boat is not falling apart) My keel has been on for 50 years now and I expect it to be on 50 more. I don't need to go raid the airport for people with NDT equipment every time I run aground.
As for ancient one-design dinghy type boats, they last because there are other ones to race. It can get frustrating, I freaking HATE the damn Optis, but unless you convince every club to scrap them and get the new SuperOpti at once, the kids in the new fun boats that are not a box that needs constant bailing have no one to race.

 

[dogwatch]

We don’t hold onto old cars because they are not as complicated, they use real steel not aluminum, because we own them.

Some people do. For instance I know a number of people who keep these as a second or third car. They are maintainable with basic tools and knowledge and they hold or increase in value. They don't appeal to me but they do to some people.

 

[dogwatch]

Yeah, pre-ABS and pre-traction control cars are fun to drive, but not nearly as fun (or safe) as a car with ABS and Tranction Control.

Safer with the gizmos, sure. More fun? I can't say I agree. The most fun car I've driven was an old-school sports car that fed back every twitch and bump and would kill you if you made a mistake. That concentrates the mind.

But I sail an Aero not a Laser. Do I contradict myself? Very well then I contradict myself.

 

[Bump-n-Grind]

I had 6 under-21s on the race to Monterey last weekend. Anyone else take some youth out?

ayup, all the damn time. not sure if they're having fun but I am increasing their vocabulary!

 

[MattFranzek]

All good points, and yes old cars are fun to drive, IF you know what you are doing. But are you going to take your 16 year old kid or grand kid out for their first driving lesson in any of the cars mentioned? Probably not, that is if you want a transmission left when you get back.

And correct, 35-40ft $35k boat owners don’t want a 35-40ft $400k boat, but I’d argue those same $35k boat owners can’t afford either, even the boat they “own.” If they had to replace the standing rigging on their 35ft boat because a shroud broke, could they? The Ed’s last podcast is a perfect example of someone who didn’t get into too much boat and came across as 100% amazed at what things cost in 2023. I could walk down to Miami and buy the Farr 40 Mr. Brightside, but could I afford a new main, standing rigging, etc? Absolutely not. So having boats we can buy, and boats we can afford, are two very different things and I think todays generation, with the average house costing $500k knows the difference between what they can buy and what they can afford.


DogWatch, super cool car, close to my dream car of a 40s Town and Country Woody, but you made my point. They have that as a 3rd or 4th car, not their every day go to. Having a classic boat/car is cool, but it’s not your daily driver for a reason.

Sailbandidito, maybe that’s the model for the future then, refurbish old boats. But you need a target audience and idk many people under 40 who are too interested in 50+ year old designs, excluding some niche one design classes.

 

[knh555]

And correct, 35-40ft $35k boat owners don’t want a 35-40ft $400k boat, but I’d argue those same $35k boat owners can’t afford either, even the boat they “own.” If they had to replace the standing rigging on their 35ft boat because a shroud broke, could they? The Ed’s last podcast is a perfect example of someone who didn’t get into too much boat and came across as 100% amazed at what things cost in 2023. I could walk down to Miami and buy the Farr 40 Mr. Brightside, but could I afford a new main, standing rigging, etc? Absolutely not. So having boats we can buy, and boats we can afford, are two very different things and I think todays generation, with the average house costing $500k knows the difference between what they can buy and what they can afford.

I'd argue you're painting a broad brush and making assumptions about other people's budgets, knowledge, and priorities. You're assuming the $35k to get into it is their entire budget and that they don't know what they're doing for how they intend to use the boat. For some people, sure. But not for all. Older boats can work and can be a good value when done right.

 

[kent_island_sailor]

All good points, and yes old cars are fun to drive, IF you know what you are doing. But are you going to take your 16 year old kid or grand kid out for their first driving lesson in any of the cars mentioned? Probably not, that is if you want a transmission left when you get back.

And correct, 35-40ft $35k boat owners don’t want a 35-40ft $400k boat, but I’d argue those same $35k boat owners can’t afford either, even the boat they “own.” If they had to replace the standing rigging on their 35ft boat because a shroud broke, could they? The Ed’s last podcast is a perfect example of someone who didn’t get into too much boat and came across as 100% amazed at what things cost in 2023. I could walk down to Miami and buy the Farr 40 Mr. Brightside, but could I afford a new main, standing rigging, etc? Absolutely not. So having boats we can buy, and boats we can afford, are two very different things and I think todays generation, with the average house costing $500k knows the difference between what they can buy and what they can afford.


DogWatch, super cool car, close to my dream car of a 40s Town and Country Woody, but you made my point. They have that as a 3rd or 4th car, not their every day go to. Having a classic boat/car is cool, but it’s not your daily driver for a reason.

Sailbandidito, maybe that’s the model for the future then, refurbish old boats. But you need a target audience and idk many people under 40 who are too interested in 50+ year old designs, excluding some niche one design classes.

I can replace my shrouds if I have to. I have at least one shroud-length 1x19 wire coil in my shed right now. A newer rod-rigging boat - different story. This is where newer is not always better.
Is your point that many boat owners really shouldn't have a boat? Maybe you are correct and sailing needs to shrink down to about 1/4-1/3 the boats we have now to a core that have large surplus mountains of cash and the vast majority of boats in my marina and at my club need to be scrapped.
If people can't afford fixing an old boat, they sure as hell can't afford a new boat either. Maybe you are correct, sailing as many of us new it was a happy accident of fiberglass and a healthy middle class with leisure time and those things are gone for good. Maybe we do need to just admit it is time to do it like it was 1920 again. We'll have 1%ers in their 100+ foot boats asking each other for Grey Poupon and the rest of us will sail one designs off trailers like Lightnings. Lightnings, Comets, Penguins and so one WERE what got people out there a century ago or so. Before that it was millionaires and working sailors racing their working boats back from the oyster grounds or whatever, the average person never dreamed of a boat as a hobby.

* of course this doesn't explain why the used boat market seems to have been strip-mined, SOMEONE wants all but the most beat-to-shit boats at prices I never thought they would sell for

 

[bluelaser2]

Maybe you are correct, sailing as many of us new it was a happy accident of fiberglass and a healthy middle class with leisure time and those things are gone for good.

Ya think?

But race committees at clubs don't know it. Still running racing like there are 20 boats in each class, with divided starts and courses etc. Meanwhile, classes are doing 1 mile spinnaker legs for a handful of 30+ foot keelboats, which amounts to zero fun for anyone involved.

 

[kai_]

I don't post much, but haven't seen my perspective here much so I am going to make the attempt at a coherent post.

I am a 22 year old college sailor who is about to graduate with a master's degree in engineering. I have been the captain of my college team for three years, since 2020, and been involved with both my conference and ICSA (national governing body) leadership in my time. What I have seen is that participation in college sailing has never been higher post-covid. There are more regattas, more sailors, and hundreds of college kids that get introduced to the sport every year, even on top varsity programs. Our team has grown from around 20 people since I arrived at school to 80 paying dues last year, with a high percentage of those actually sticking it out for the whole year. Our open events that are more JV-level regularly have 35+ boats and 150+ sailors. I should note that we (and most of our conference is) student run, with no coaching and with practices run entirely by students. Our conference culture is super strong and everyone is out to have a good time and learn together, even at serious team race events or conference championship regattas.

I have been thinking about sailing post-grad a lot. I am sticking around in my college town for an engineering job, and probably will be helping coach my old team if they'll have me. Since I have been racing since I was 11, I kind of know my way around yacht club culture and getting rides on big boats, especially since I have had time and privilege to create a keelboat resume I can be proud of. I've also been able to form connections with owners at the yacht club that supports my college team, so I will be able to sail in some capacity at least once a month. This doesn't really exist for my teammates, who maybe only started sailing in college and have learned as they went from knowledge trickled down from juniors and seniors. The majority of the team has never touched a spinnaker or a trapeze, and in a lot of cases haven't wound a winch in their lives. I think it is these people that we need to pay attention to and create an environment where their budding passion for sailing can grow and evolve. They love sailing, but only sailing in spinnaker-less FJs and 420s is limiting in terms of building a skill set.

People like me are not the concern of sailing in the future. I raced in middle school, high school, and now college, and I will continue to find my way onto a sailboat of some description, and hopefully own a boat I can be proud of in the future. I was raised with a passion for the ocean and for sailing and nothing can pull me away from that. I have met sailors like me, but we are few and far between in terms of the overall college structure. For my less experienced teammates, I think that they get left behind when the college sailing structure (or indeed the junior sailing structure) goes away. They can't walk the dock on race day and peddle their skills, since they need more time and exposure to a keelboat for that. Yacht clubs are far more prohibitively expensive than college teams in terms of dues and initiation structure, and are full of aging members who we don't really resonate with, besides maybe liking sailing (in college, they were surrounded by people who liked sailing AND related to their own life experience). Asking them to buy a boat they don't know how to sail with poor comprehension of the work involved seems ridiculous too.

These are the boat owners of the future though, and the ones that can enable sailing for the generation after us. Software developers, engineers, businesspeople with no kids and some disposable income that at present, do not have an easy way to enjoy sailing like they did when they were a part of junior programs or college programs, and need the skillset to enjoy sailing to the fullest. They don't have the connections of parents who sail, or necessarily know what to ask for when they approach a yacht club for the first time. I don't have a solution to this problem, but I think that these people need to be considered when we talk about how to bring sailing to my generation and beyond. I don't want this sport to die around me and I will be fighting to preserve it to the end because to me, there is no more elegant machine than a sailboat powered by human strength and the breeze.

Edit: typos

 

[sunseeker]

I don't post much, but haven't seen my perspective here much so I am going to make the attempt at a coherent post.

I am a 22 year old college sailor who is about to graduate with a master's degree in engineering. I have been the captain of my college team for three years, since 2020, and been involved with both my conference and ICSA (national governing body) leadership in my time. What I have seen is that participation in college sailing has never been higher post-covid. There are more regattas, more sailors, and hundreds of college kids that get introduced to the sport every year, even on top varsity programs. Our team has grown from around 20 people since I arrived at school to 80 paying dues last year, with a high percentage of those actually sticking it out for the whole year. Our open events that are more JV-level regularly have 35+ boats and 150+ sailors. I should note that we (and most of our conference is) student run, with no coaching and with practices run entirely by students. Our conference culture is super strong and everyone is out to have a good time and learn together, even at serious team race events or conference championship regattas.

I have been thinking about sailing post-grad a lot. I am sticking around in my college town for an engineering job, and probably will be helping coach my old team if they'll have me. Since I have been racing since I was 11, I kind of know my way around yacht club culture and getting rides on big boats, especially since I have had time and privilege to create a keelboat resume I can be proud of. I've alos been able to form connections with owners at the yacht club that supports my college team, so I will be able to sail in some capacity at least once a month. This doesn't really exist for my teammates, who maybe only started sailing in college and have learned as they went from knowledge trickled down from juniors and seniors. The majority of the team has never touched a spinnaker or a trapeze, and in a lot of cases haven't wound a winch in their lives. I think it is these people that we need to pay attention to and create an environment where their budding passion for sailing can grow and evolve. They love sailing, but only sailing in spinnaker-less FJs and 420s is limiting in terms of building a skill set.

People like me are not the concern of sailing in the future. I raced in middle school, high school, and now college, and I will continue to find my way onto a sailboat of some description, and hopefully own a boat I can be proud of in the future. I was raised with a passion for the ocean and for sailing and nothing can pull me away from that. I have met sailors like me, but we are few and far between in terms of the overall college structure. For my less experienced teammates, I think that they get left behind when the college sailing structure (or indeed the junior sailing structure) goes away. They can't walk the dock on race day and peddle their skills, since they need more time and exposure to a keelboat for that. Yacht clubs are far more prohibitively expensive than college teams in terms of dues and initiation structure, and are full of aging members who we don't really resonate with, besides maybe liking sailing (in college, they were surrounded by people who liked sailing AND related to their own life experience). Asking them to buy a boat they don't know how to sail with poor comprehension of the work involved seems ridiculous too.

These are the boat owners of the future though, and the ones that can enable sailing for the generation after us. Software developers, engineers, businesspeople with no kids and some disposable income that at present, do not have an easy way to enjoy sailing like they did when they were a part of junior programs or college programs, and need the skillset to enjoy sailing to the fullest. They don't have the connections of parents who sail, or necessarily know what to ask for when they approach a yacht club for the first time. I don't have a solution to this problem, but I think that these people need to be considered when we talk about how to bring sailing to my generation and beyond. I don't want this sport to die around me and I will be fighting to preserve it to the end because to me, there is no more elegant machine than a sailboat powered by human strength and the breeze.

Excellent points.

 

[rmgeis]

I have to agree with the old car / sailing analogy. I just got back from the event called "British car day" that I have been attending, for IDK, 45Years?. There use to be 1000 cars (all British) and 5000 attendees. Today there were 120 cars and 1000 attendees. Average age then was 25, average age now is 65.

The baby boomers are dying and their kids have no interest in what interested them. Please don't come back at me with "my kid loves sailing". There are exceptions to every rule (including that one). And I am glad for your kid, but my father was a sailor and boat builder and his father was a sailor and taught my father wood working skills to build boats.

Sorry to get off the subject, but that kinda is the subject. Most of the people I knew in the '60's and '70's had a table saw in their basement. They just rebuilt the high school I attended, No wood shop, no metal shop, wifi everywhere.

Teach your kids to fix things, in 20 years, plumbers will be paid 3 times as much as html developers.

I think I am done now, let the flame wars begin.