Finding Crew

TiggerToo

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So, it is time to start thinking seriously about this "Crew" thing.

Next year, I hope to start doing some "serious pootling" around our bit of the Atlantic. This may entail longer stretches of offshore sailing (e.g. AZAB - but not with the organised thingy). Ideally, I would like to sail in company. I was planning to let my various acquaintances/friends/family know and ask them if they would like to come along. However, realistically, there may well be "gaps".

What do peeps here think of using "(sail)Dating Apps" like Crewseekers? Does anyone have any direct, or indirect, experience? Any alternatives?

The sailing will really be "pootling" i.e. not competitive. Just enjoying it out there...
 
Ocean crewlink works. So do the various Facebook groups. I also suspect that posting here would get some responses... I would be interested,
 
One thing to bear in mind if you are doing a leg of at least a couple of days offshore it would be a good idea to know a bit more about your crew than a chat on the dock and a brief days sail in the solent.
 
Years ago in SE Asia I ended up crewing on a big traditional boat around Malaysia & Thailand for a few weeks, then on a Rival 38 from Thailand to Maldives - 1500 miles across the Indian Ocean. Through one of the crewing sites, can't remember which but there were a lot of skippers on there looking for crew on a shared expenses basis, i.e. share of fuel, food & ports of call expenses. I paid a fee to be a member so I could access the contact details...
 
I set up a whats app group for my local area. Trying to get crew 'married up' to skippers so both are able to do their thing. (we may get married off and a few divorces by the end of the season maybe !)
There are about 35 folk on there now.


Some of my regular crewfolk were taking the daft deadly step of buying their own boat after I trained them up - so they will be unavailable for the foreseeable !
 
So, it is time to start thinking seriously about this "Crew" thing.

Next year, I hope to start doing some "serious pootling" around our bit of the Atlantic. This may entail longer stretches of offshore sailing (e.g. AZAB - but not with the organised thingy). Ideally, I would like to sail in company. I was planning to let my various acquaintances/friends/family know and ask them if they would like to come along. However, realistically, there may well be "gaps".

What do peeps here think of using "(sail)Dating Apps" like Crewseekers? Does anyone have any direct, or indirect, experience? Any alternatives?

The sailing will really be "pootling" i.e. not competitive. Just enjoying it out there...
Posting on here isn't a bad idea to be honest.

It was a similar post to yours which lead me to joining a great chap on his lovely little classic yacht to sail to the Azores a year or two after I started sailing again.

Great learning experience on many levels. (Cheers Mickey Boy! )

We did meet before hand over lunch to check the cut of each others jib as it were. Hit it off right away and he joined me some years later to help me shake down my yacht after I bought her.
 
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