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my new boat, first lessons learned

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new sailor
1st Mate

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USA
38 Posts

Initially Posted - 08/03/2006 : 20:47:52

Hello everyone,

Today I became the owner of a 1989 Catalina 25' tall rig with a wing keel. Let me preface all of this with the statement that "this is my first boat ever and I have no clue how to sail or even drive a sail boat under power."

O.K., now that the disclaimer is out of the way, I hope you get a chuckle out of some of my first hard lessons learned.

So I show up to the broker's office and he hands over the outboard and rudder which had been in storage for over two years. A condition of the sale was that the outboard turns over(doesn't have to start) and the boat must be purchased "as is where is." The owner had no interest in coming down to drive the boat to the yard for a haul out nor would the negotiated price be fair for him to hire someone to do it. I decided I'd take the risk.

So I put the gas tank, motor, and rudder in the back of my SUV and drive to a gas station to fill the tank. $15 tops it off, and off I go back to the marina to put the motor and rudder on the boat. On my way in, I smell a strong odor of gas in my SUV. Not thinking anything of it, I continue. When I got to the dock and opened the back door of my 4-Runner, gas was pouring from the hose all over the carpet in my truck. A whole gallon must've come out. Turns out, the pressure that built up from the hot, slushing gas forced it out of the hose. Lesson #1, open the vent of the gas tank while traveling from the gas station.

Lesson #2 came when putting the motor on the boat. I was wise enough to tie the haliard to it while getting from the finger pier to the boat, but now I know to always hold on to something on the boat as I step on it it. Yep, I fell in the water. The motor was safe cause I had already set in on the deck...but I was in over my head. Good thing no one saw me. The hardest part about the ordeal was getting back out. The swim ladder was tied in the up position, so I had to climb aboard using the rudder mounting bracket as a step. Anyway, the good news is the 8 HP Suzuki outboard started on the 4th pull after sitting for over two years. Impressive.

Lesson #3 came when leaving the slip under power to drive the boat to the yard to have it hauled out for the bottom job. This is an easy one here, just make sure all the dock lines are out of the water before you get under way. The outbaord stopped abruptly as the dock line got tangled in the propellor.

Lesson #4 deals with docking; it was my very first time and I was solo. I now know that its a great idea to have all of the lines ready to tie to the dock before reaching the slip. What a freaking ordeal I got my self in not knowing that. I won't go into the details, but I hit the dock pretty hard and took a big chunk of wood from the pylons. Next time I won't kill the motor until I'm tied up. That way, reverse will be available should I need to stop.

Well, many more lessons are to be learned in this fine boat. I'm sure its a great boat to learn on; I just hope it can handle the abuse of a complete amateur.

Former owner of a 1989 C25 WK/SR #5862
Clear Lake, TX (near Houston)

http://www.myspace.com/a_boat_called_lafawnduh

Edited by - new sailor on 08/03/2006 21:13:19

ilnadi
Captain

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452 Posts

Response Posted - 08/03/2006 : 21:02:40

welcome onboard. our first was the same (89 WK TR). It has an inboard, which has a bit more bite. I think that is the only thing that kept me from t-boning a Cape Dory first time (you can read about it in the blog). We did however take lessons in FL (which involved docking first a J24 with a tiny outboard and then a C30 against a concrete pier many many times) which helped a lot.hang in there, it does get easier.

Edited by - on

djn
Master Marine Consultant

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USA
1561 Posts

Response Posted - 08/03/2006 : 21:10:42

Welcome aboard!!! Looks like a great boat and you will have many hours of enjoyment learning all about sailing. I screwed up soooo much worse than that my first time out. It happens to all of us so just learn for the fun. Cheers.

Edited by - on

OLarryR
Master Marine Consultant

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USA
3477 Posts

Response Posted - 08/03/2006 : 21:30:43

Good luck ! Looks like you picked up quite a list of lessons learned but nothing that became a real setback.

We have sister ships ! When you get a chance, add your hull number into the list of owners = Check out the "Owners" link.

Edited by - on

Champipple
Master Marine Consultant

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USA
6855 Posts

Response Posted - 08/03/2006 : 21:48:01

she looks really sharp for a 15 year old boat. Welcome

Edited by - Champipple on 08/03/2006 21:49:08

gbeardjr
Navigator

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USA
101 Posts

Response Posted - 08/03/2006 : 22:16:36

Nice Boat, Is that watergate in the background? I'm 3weeks ahead of you I bought a 78' 25' Catalina swing keel. It was docked at Legend Point I have now moved it to a private slip accross the lake though.

Edited by - on

Jmurfy
Navigator

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USA
176 Posts

Response Posted - 08/03/2006 : 22:21:24

Congrats on the boat! I just celebrated my 1st year on August 1st with my boat. (and sailing for that matter). I also fell in the lake and the water was 45 degree's F and at night! I learn something new everytime I go out. One thing I've really learned (sometimes the hard way)is always be cautious and always be prepared for the worst thing to happen at the worst possible time.

Edited by - on

new sailor
1st Mate

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USA
38 Posts

Response Posted - 08/03/2006 : 22:31:29

<blockquote id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote">Originally posted by gbeardjr
 Nice Boat, Is that watergate in the background? I'm 3weeks ahead of you I bought a 78' 25' Catalina swing keel. It was docked at Legend Point I have now moved it to a private slip accross the lake though.
<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></blockquote id="quote">
Yep. That's where i'm gonna keep it. Can't beat $100 a month for a slip at a marina like that.

Edited by - on

Frank Hopper
Past Commodore

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Pitcairn Island
6776 Posts

Response Posted - 08/03/2006 : 23:53:25

Hey Colby,
Sweet!

Edited by - on

cat1951
Admiral

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USA
636 Posts

Response Posted - 08/04/2006 : 00:18:55

Welcome to the Catalina group. You will find that you get a great deal of help here when you need it. We bought our first sailboat 1985 C-25 Standard Rig in March. As you stated, don't turn off that motor till you are really not going to need it anymore.

And so you don't feel too embarassed, we hit another boat in a slip our first time out. I thought my wife would be better steering and me making sure that we didn't hit the dock side on our way out. Well she wasn't used to tiller steering and she forgot to turn it when we started forward. Luckily we weren't going too fast and we mostly drifted into the other boat (a Catalina 30) and put a small gouge on the starboard bow. So just get back out there and go again, you will get there.

Also, you might consider some lessons. We took a 2 day keelboat course with ASA last fall and learned a lot for just a couple of days at sail.

WELCOME

Edited by - cat1951 on 08/04/2006 08:50:30

stampeder
Master Marine Consultant

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1608 Posts

Response Posted - 08/04/2006 : 01:03:03

Welcome aboard Colby. Nice looking boat.

Thanx for the report.
Since no other boats were damaged, your own boat is unscathed, you are unhurt and very much alive, you were able to climb out of the water without being seen, only a dock was injured, no unexpected expenses....HEY sounds like a good day.

Its a long strange learning curve we jump onto when we buy a boat.

You will find that whenever a goofy embarrasing situation happens to you...that something similar has happened to many other boaters.
Stick with it, its a great ride.

Edited by - on

Lightnup
Master Marine Consultant

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USA
1016 Posts

Response Posted - 08/04/2006 : 06:08:16

Welcome aboard Colby. All those "first time calamaties" will serve to make you a better sailor - or at least keep you dry and free of smelling like a gas pump.

1. First (or second or third, I don't remember) rule of docking: Neutral is your friend.

2. An ASA beginner's sailing course is worth 10 times what it costs in terms of knowledge and confidence.

3. The best off-water instruction you'll ever get is waiting for you in the archived posts on this site. If you want to get "up-to-speed" as a C25 owner the fastest, that's the place to spend your non-sailing leisure time.

Steve

Edited by - on

Justin
Admiral

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502 Posts

Response Posted - 08/04/2006 : 07:02:33

Hey Colby,

Your boat looks great! We've all made mistakes and learned from them. I laugh thinking about the first time I decided to sail my boat back in January. You may have read some of my mistakes on my blog, but we all learn. Glad to see you hopped on this forum, it is SO helpful. Congrats on becoming a boat owner and welcome to this site!

Edited by - on

PamC
Navigator

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171 Posts

Response Posted - 08/04/2006 : 09:34:33

What a great looking boat! Of course we're all a tad partial here

We're in our second season of sailing & Catalina 25 ownership. We also jumped in and started "learning by experience".

I've found one of the greatest learning aids I have is a lack of concern about public humiliation. It's pretty tough to look cool right off the bat. But if you don't try & do, you won't learn. That's what I love about sailing, it's a new game every time I go out with new lessons to learn.

This forum is wonderful. The resources are huge and the members are helpful and kind

Edited by - on

crcalhoon
Captain

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USA
303 Posts

Response Posted - 08/04/2006 : 10:21:39

My old computer doesn't have enough memory to contain all my mistakes. I am of the firm opinion that sailboats are placed here to teach us humility and restore it every time we begin to think that we know what we're doing. What you'll notice over the years, is that you rarely remember that perfect day, fair skies, 10 knot winds, crystal blue water, good friends, etc, but BOY, that time we pranged the dock in Key Largo, . . .

Edited by - on

Gambit
Navigator

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USA
160 Posts

Response Posted - 08/04/2006 : 13:30:25

Welcome and congrats on a nice looking boat. Sounds like the tuition for your first lessons were not too expensive in time, money or public embarrassment.

I do have a tip for lesson two:

<blockquote id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote">Originally posted by new sailor
 The hardest part about the ordeal was getting back out. The swim ladder was tied in the up position, so I had to climb aboard using the rudder mounting bracket as a step.

<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></blockquote id="quote">

I secure my ladder with a bungy cord with both hooks attached to the bottom step, facing the same way. That way one only needs to make one quick reach up to free the ladder. Don't remember if I thought of that myself or read it here or elsewhere.

These boats do coast a long way, depending on the wind. I like to go to neutral early enough to be at a stop or close to it when I get to where I am going. Don't trust reverse to overcome momentum.

Have fun with the boat.

Edited by - on

tinob
Master Marine Consultant

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USA
1883 Posts

Response Posted - 08/04/2006 : 13:46:43

Sounds like a fairly ordinary first time out with a new boat. Why the self recrimination? The important thing is that you've learned not to do any of these things again. RIGHT!

Val on Calista # 3936, Patchogue, N.Y.

Edited by - on

stampeder
Master Marine Consultant

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1608 Posts

Response Posted - 08/04/2006 : 14:17:12

<blockquote id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote">I secure my ladder with a bungy cord with both hooks attached to the bottom step, facing the same way. That way one only needs to make one quick reach up to free the ladder. Don't remember if I thought of that myself or read it here or elsewhere.
<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></blockquote id="quote">

Maybe you heard it from me....well at least I hope you didn't. At the beginning of the sailing season here, I joined the local sail club. At the conclusion of the first club meeting we all headed for our boats which are on mooring balls. My boat is on the closest mooring ball to the dock. I rowed out, and was standing on the bow of our inflatable and reached out for the ladder, the ladder was held up against the pushpit rail with a bungee. I grabbed the ladder... the bungee slowly stretched out in slow motion while the inflatable got slowly got pushed out from under me....I hit the water face first, but I kept a good grip on the ladder. The inflatable drifted off while I clambered into the boat.
The whole sailing club was there to witness this event. I'd never met any of them before this, but afterwards I was well known and was greeted with a large smiles everytime I saw one of them.
Not one of those sailors had anything but positives to say, because everyone of them, like us here, has had a humbling situation that stacks up to mine.

Edited by - on

jerlim
Master Marine Consultant

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USA
1484 Posts

Response Posted - 08/05/2006 : 22:26:36

Colby
Welcome aboard! Not to worry - keep asking the Forum. This is my first season, and the other members are AWESOME!
Jerry

Edited by - on

Dave Bristle
Master Marine Consultant

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Djibouti
10005 Posts

Response Posted - 08/06/2006 : 10:40:40

<blockquote id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote">Originally posted by Lightnup
 1. First (or second or third, I don't remember) rule of docking: Neutral is your friend.
<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></blockquote id="quote">
Actually, that's second. First is, "Don't approach a dock any faster than you're prepared to hit it."

Another tip I think you've already learned... You can't stop a 5500# boat by sticking your foot out!

Congratulations--you're on your way!

Edited by - on

dlucier
Master Marine Consultant

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Virgin Islands (United Kingdom)
7583 Posts

Response Posted - 08/06/2006 : 20:42:53

First, welcome to the fleet and the forum Colby!

Nice lookin' boat!

One of the first lessons I learned with my C25, my first relatively heavy boat, was that it carries a LOT of momentum. My previous boat was maybe a third of the weight and I usually motored right into the slip, but not so with the C25, as I learned fairly quickly. With the C25, I put my outboard in neutral fairly early and bleed off speed so I'm barely moving as I enter my slip. I come in so slow, that sometimes I have to give it a short shot of forward just to get the boat the rest of the way into the slip. I also use a dockline thrown over the winch as I'm coming in to the slip to prevent my bow from tapping the dock.

Again, congratulations. I look forward to reading about your new experiences with LaFawnduh.

Edited by - on

pjeffarch
Navigator

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USA
135 Posts

Response Posted - 08/06/2006 : 21:07:55

Well, you've already discovered this forum, which I have found to be worth more than most books or lessons. But nothing beats being out sailing for learning.
Have a great time, and welcome!

Edited by - on

pjeffarch
Navigator

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USA
135 Posts

Response Posted - 08/06/2006 : 21:09:52

Welcome to the forum! This is Lesson #1: better than any books or lessons, the forum is the best place to learn about all aspects of sailing your Catalina 25!
Thanks for the great post - your writing is fun!

Edited by - on

Brooke Willson
Admiral

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USA
983 Posts

Response Posted - 08/07/2006 : 06:02:09

Welcome, Colby. I'll add one more Axiom of Maritime Incompetence: a male Captain's boathandling ability is inversely proportional to the attractiveness of a young female passenger. It has been years, literally, since I've blown a docking in our home slip. Last week, with my son's cute sorta-girlfriend on board (and my wife too, so ease off, guys!), it took me three tries to get into the slip. The last time I ran really hard aground (with the keel UP!) was when my son's then-girlfriend -- who won the swimsuit competition in that year's Miss Virginia pageant -- was aboard. Both times, I wasn't even looking at the girls when disaster happened. No, really.

Humility is a good thing, right?

Brooke

Edited by - Brooke Willson on 08/07/2006 06:04:52

cat1951
Admiral

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USA
636 Posts

Response Posted - 08/07/2006 : 07:52:30

Was she "sorta" his girlfriend, or "sorta" cute?

Sorry, just couldn't help myself.

Edited by - on

Alan Clark
Captain

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406 Posts

Response Posted - 08/07/2006 : 08:02:57

Welcome

, A good friend of mine said "Never go into the dock faster than is propotional to the size of the check you can write"!

. -

Edited by - on

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