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Catalina/Capri 25/250 Sailor's Forums

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Family Boat

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haley
1st Mate

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USA
59 Posts

Initially Posted - 07/14/2006 : 07:32:16

Hello,

I lurk on and off, but now have a shot at a '90 C25 at a good price. My question is for members with families. I have a 4 year old daughter and 7 year old son. If they had the checkbook they might be inclined to buy a different style boat. Can you folks give me an idea on how long a sailboat holds the interest of the young ones? I am thinking if done right the answer is forever and a day. But I also can picture boredom inspired mutiny with me at the end of the plank. I am curious if there is a common trend of outgrowing the family sail or if this can be off set by running them through sailing classes and keeping them involved.

John

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John
Precision 18
Rochester NY

Edited by - on

atgep
Master Marine Consultant

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1009 Posts

Response Posted - 07/14/2006 : 08:43:10

I sail with a 5-7-9 yo. You will find a little bit of both in all kids. I keep the kids really involved. Making PB&j sandwiches, getting drinks. Tending to dock lines. We also do a lot of fishing. It is crab season here and The family yacht is now a crab boat! All 3 of mine want to lear how to sail which is a big plus. The portable dvd player helps mom and dad enjoy the "boring" times. That is my opinion. Also, do not skimp on the life jackets. I have been using standard life jacket for the kids until I read a review of the Mustang life jackets and purchased them for the kids.

Tom.

Edited by - on

Ericson33
Admiral

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USA
892 Posts

Response Posted - 07/14/2006 : 10:23:47

I have been taking our son on our boat since he was 3 months old. I would say from 3 months to 1 year was a good time, but when he started to walk we backed off a little bit as how often we took him.

From 1 to 3 we took our son out 5 times, Life jackets kept him hot, so we decided that the only time we would take him out was during the moon light sails. At this time he played with the tiller and the winches. Then would go down and fall asleep in the birth.

He is right now 3 1/2 and I have to say that I still keep a very close eye on him, I think that children get bored in the teens when they would rather be talking with their freinds. So I would say up to 13 you can keep any child very active in sailing.

As soon as our son knows how to swim, and keep himself up in the water (around 6) I will put him in Sailing Camp. If he likes it he can go every year, and we will then talk about getting him his own dingy (around 9).

Sailing camps or a school is a great idea in getting your child more active in sailing. We have a great program at our Sailing club, and the members push for all children to be active in a camp. After the camp he will be able then to go on the sailboat for a race.

At this time I can teach him what to do and give him an active job on the boat, then when we go out for a daysail he will know what do.

I grew up around sailing and our father had bought us all a Laser, I was 7 at the time, My older brother was 14 and he raced a Nacra 5.2 Cat. I learned fast and we had great time up on the lake. At 7 on a wire hanging over the pontoon going around 20 knots was a blast, at this age there is no thoughts of danger going thru your head, Just how fast can we get this thing going untill it flips.

I have great childhood memories of sailing. Just got to keep them busy.

Edited by - on

cks
Navigator

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126 Posts

Response Posted - 07/14/2006 : 11:39:28

i have 7 and 10 year-olds with little interest in the acutual sailing aspect although the older one took a one-week sailing course last year. portable dvd helps alot on the longer trips. they also seem to like to swim after we anchor. this year, we bought a portable "ice cream maker" from ll bean which is great. promise of ice cream after lunch really seems to grab their interest in coming on the boat.

Edited by - on

Paul
1st Mate

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57 Posts

Response Posted - 07/14/2006 : 12:00:02

From three years of experience sailing with two boys ages 5 and 7, 6 and 8, and now 7 and 9; all sailing time requires the promise of doing something more interesting before, during, or after. For my guys, that means swimming or fishing. While sailing, I try to involve them with the lines or helm, but usually they prefer a game of checkers, chess, or the card game Uno. There are magnetic, travel versions of lots of standard games that work well on board. Snacks are also an important matter.

Posts from other family guys on this and other sailing forums indicates that you would be expecting a lot from someone in the single-digit years if you take them out for more than a couple of hours. I personally would broaden the scope to say that no one in your family will be as enthusiastic about sailing as you. If you want them to come with you in the short term, you've got to consider ways to accomodate them and/or compromise on the amount of time you go out. Longer term, I think you've got to expose your young crew (and usually your spouse) slowly to the time and various conditions of sailing if you ever intend to take longer cruises with them.

Let me add a parting endorsement of the C25, for just this matter. If I had spent the kind of money one can easily spend on a 25-30 boat, I would be pretty frustrated by the number of times I wasn't using it or had to come in sooner because of my crew. No such frustration with the value proposition most C25s offer.

Edited by - on

Gambit
Navigator

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USA
160 Posts

Response Posted - 07/14/2006 : 12:04:16

We take our kids, now 11 and 13 out quite a bit. Since they are close in age there can be the normal carping between siblings so that adds a wrinkle. They do well when busy unless they want to eat, sleep or otherwise loaf off. For racing, I normally put my daughter on the bow at the start to keep an eye out for boats, I'll give the watch to my son (13) to count us down and keep an eye on flags etc. My wife and I do the other duties. Once the race starts they will help here and there with the jib sheets and as rail meat.

We carry plenty of food and drink and have a magnetic backgammon board at the ready. My kids always carry a book in case of boredom so that is the back-up. We will also drift and let the kids play in the water with boogie boards tied to dock lines. That way they don't get left behind if we start to drift too fast.

Actually, the kids seem to do best when I take just one of them with me and they really have to help such as sailing on and off the mooring, getting fenders on/off etc. I wear a life vest most all the time and always when forward of the cockpit so they never give to much complaint about doing the same.

We have a nice rec room at our club so sometimes we will just let the kids go there and chill while me and my wife take a quiet sail or race.

We have a sunfish as well, old and cheap, so they do have the option of racing that. They attended sailing camp at this club before we joined, so actually our kids helped teach us to sail

So, I think you will be well served by this boat but be ready to throw a change up to keep them interested/entertained/watered and fed.

Edited by - on

Champipple
Master Marine Consultant

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USA
6855 Posts

Response Posted - 07/14/2006 : 12:19:06

Real simple answer here -

Ask any ten professional sailors when they started.... 8 of them will tell you an age before 10, most will say as long as they can remember.

Get them into sail camp - they do a lot of sailing but do a lot of fun stuff. In their early and late teens, they might like the competitive aspects of racing. Sailing is unique in that you excersize your body and mind while racing...moreso than in other sports.

The one bit of advice a family of avid sailors told me (all 5 kids are now sailing and racing in their own programs and I wanted to make sure my daughter loved sailing, she is two) Don't force the issue, especially at the beginning. Just let them do as much or as little as they want - and let them steer often. I'm at the beginning of the same sort of journey.

Good luck

Edited by - on

raulpou
Navigator

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144 Posts

Response Posted - 07/14/2006 : 14:41:43

I started as a kid and have been in the water all of my life. At all ages, I was on the boat for weeks at a time. As a matter of fact I swam before I could walk! I think that the best bet is to have somewhere to go, not just do doughnuts indefinitely. This gives them something to look forward to as well as swimming and all of the things previously mentioned.

I know we make a lot of not wanting the kids to be bored, but sometimes it pays dividends to sit and talk, interact, or just simply be. I know I did not have the DVD's, PDA's, MP3's, or PSP's and I managed to survive!
You will be surprised how much they will appreciate sailing and most often will end up enthusiasts themselves.

I must tell you that my grandfather's proudest moment was the day I purchased my first boat. He was ecstatic that his love for the ocean was passed on to me and became my passion.

All in all, it is a great hobby that the whole family can partake in the same activity and share some great memories.

I say GO FOR IT!!!!

Edited by - on

djn
Master Marine Consultant

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USA
1561 Posts

Response Posted - 07/14/2006 : 14:49:13

My sister has triplets and they are 8 years old. I've taken them out a couple times and play the roll of teacher and I keep them busy the whole time....they love it. My sister just signed them up for sailing school and looking for a good starter boat just becasue the trips are so much into it. I don't think you will ever regret being involved with your kids no matter what the activity. That is the best way to teach them how to be normal. Cheers.

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