Learning About Boats etc...

[laika]

Wrong forum? I hope not for the boat maintenance stuff. I know PBO has come in for some criticism for having gone more to the flappy side and become a sort of yachting monthly for the financially challenged of late but it's theoretically not a "sailing" magazine and from the point of view of what gets discussed on this forum, GRP sailing boats have more in common with GRP mototboats than wooden sailing boats. I'd have thought that this forum was the place to discuss marine electronics protocols, scuttlebutt and the mobo forum are the places to ask if anyone knows a good electronics installer.

Nigel Calder's Boat Owner's Mechanical and Electrical Manual which NigelMercier mentioned (http://www.amazon.co.uk/Boatowners-Mechanical-Electrical-Manual-Essential) is an excellent place to start. The illustrations are of both sailing and motor boats . His diesel engine book is pretty good too, but I'm not so keen on his "practical and technical cruising manual" which seems a bit opinionated and random.

 

[Spirit of Glenans]

Take the RYA Competent Crew and then Day Skipper courses.

+1. Also I think a 41-footer might just be a little big as a starter boat.
Do a couple of courses, buy a good manual, do a shore-based theory course or find a good interactive online one, then organise a charter trip on a similar sized boat with some experienced friends. You can also gather a lot of wisdom from these forums. Also, don't completely dismiss sailing, your knowledge of aerodynamics would be relevant.

 

[JumbleDuck]

To be honest, you might be better holding off buying a boat until you have learned a little about them. As a pilot what would you say to someone who said, "I know nothing about flying, but I'm going to buy an aeroplane".

I knew someone who bought an ASH-25 (super-high performance two-seater racing sailplane) to learn to fly gliders in. He was a bit rich.