After deciding on ASA certifications, and signing contracts with Island Dreamer Sailing School, my next step was clear. While researching how we would learn to sail, one piece of advice was common among all the skippers I had spoken with. Without exception, everyone recommended finding a small sailboat, or sailing dinghy, and "sail the hell out of it". Our ASA training would be followed up and supplemented with sailing our own small sailboat.
The idea behind sailing a small boat is that each and every move the skipper and crew makes, along with each slight change in wind or waves, makes an immediate and drastic perceived effect on the boat. This differs from large, heavy, keel based sailing yachts where actions with wind, sheet, and wheel are not as easily recognized. It was explained to me, that by gaining lots of experience on a small sailboat, I would learn to have a much better "feel" for the boat I was sailing and what effect my actions had upon it, therefore making me a better sailor.
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| Me, first time sailing a Laser (Virgin Gorda Sound, BVI) |
Deciding to buy a small sailboat was far easier than the actual act of making the purchase. There seemed to be endless options. At first I thought about really small dinghies such as the Laser and the Sunfish. I had a little experience sailing a Laser in the Caribbean. It was a lot of fun, but it didn't really appeal to Sharon after she watched me repeatedly get catapulted into the water, thus doing more swimming than sailing. Lasers, Sunfish, and the sort, are agile rides but they share the downfall of being a very wet ride and being more or less intended for one person. These options were out.
Next I started looking at what seemed to be the next size up in dinghy sailboats. These boats were generally in the 14-18 foot range and many models are sloop rigged (a main sail and a head sail) which is great as it is ultimately the type of rigging encountered on yachts we would consider living on. These boats have virtually no ballast (the skipper and crew make up the ballast), and employ either a dagger board, or more commonly a swinging centerboard. Another plus, is that they are "trailer sailors", meaning they are carried on a small boat trailer, are easily/quickly rigged and launched, and can be readily stored in one's yard right on the trailer. These types of boats seemed like a good fit, but the majority of options I found were geared towards racing, and "one design" race classes (Thistles, Catalina 14.5, Mutineer, etc). The problem for me with race boats, is that they generally have very low sides (freeboard), are extremely twitchy, require hiking (crew hanging off the high side of the boat) and end up giving a very wet ride with a high chance of capsize.
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| Getting acquainted with "Rhumb Line" on Bantam Lake |
An important part of my selection would be keeping Sharon interested - meaning dry and comfortable and relaxed. Wet, twitchy, capsizing boats were not part of what she was willing to explore - and owning a boat she wouldn't sail was pointless. I needed a boat with a design and features aimed at leisurely recreational sailing, while still allowing for spirited sailing in stronger weather. Larger trailer-sailors in the 20-22 foot range were available but presented a few other problems (Catalinas, Potters, etc). Firstly, they take up more room while stored on the trailer. Second, they take a long time to rig before sailing. Lastly, many of these boats are more meant to be launched and retrieved once a year, and left on a mooring during the sailing season. This was not an option for me.
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| Our American 14.6 "Rhumb Line", at Bantam Lake boat ramp |
With my criteria set, I was having a hard time finding options. Each winter, I attend the Hartford boat show to check out all the latest in power-boating. Unexpectedly, there were two small sailboat vendors in attendance - Catalina, and
American Sail. I was immediately drawn to a couple of American Sail models - the
American 14.6, and the
American 18. These boats stood out with features geared not towards racing, but towards an relaxing day on the water. They were straight forward beamy (wide), sloop rigged with quality Harken blocks and hardware, and were made from hand laid fiberglass right here in the good ol' US-of-A at a family owned and operated company. These boats featured a no-hiking design with a hard chine hull, overhead boom height (no ducking on tacks and jibes),
forward storage compartments in the bow, high backed comfortable seating, motor mounts, swim ladders, and even a place for coolers. The owner, Dave Stanton, quickly had me enamored with these boats which he sells in nicely setup packages.
After a continued month of researching and looking for other options, I couldn't find a better boat to suit our personal wants and needs for the sailing we wanted to do. I ordered my American 14.6 optioned with a Plexiglas door for the bow storage, a motor mount, Honda 2.3 outboard, trailer, multi-colored main sail, and cover. While most use boats like this without a motor, it was a requirement for me. My sailing grounds would be Long Island Sound, and the launches available to me require motoring out of channels upwards of a mile before being allowed to raise sails. On delivery, I outfitted my American with a Danforth anchor and 100 feet of rope rode, a handheld Garmin GPS, waterproof charts, lines, and a few bumpers. After our ASA training, we would be ready to "sail the hell out of it".
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| At the helm on Bantam Lake |
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