What made you do it?

Lifeboat

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What made you take to the water? ie, why did you start sailing (whatever form), was it the freedom? a love for the sea/water? Tell us all! /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif
 

Phoenix of Hamble

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Forcible participation by parents at the age of 2 or so.......

Gradually turning into childhood obsession by the age of about 12 or so....

Never seem to have lost that 'need' to be on the water....

The wheel has now turned full circle..... my kids are now very enthusiastic about our new boat purchase......

PS... my kids are also being indoctrinated with a healthy dose of Arthur Ransome, as was I (along with many others on this forum I suspect) ...... /forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif
 

Bladerunner

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I had been a competitive cyclist from the age of 11 until I suffered a heart attack 10 years ago at the age of 34. /forums/images/graemlins/shocked.gif

Tried to make a comeback after a long recovery period but was frustrated because I couldn't compete at a high enough level. Forced back into retirement and decided I needed a new, more sedate /forums/images/graemlins/confused.gif challenge.

Wish now I had taken up sailing 30 years ago. I spend as much time as I can out on the water. /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif
 

VicMallows

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Intrigued by your USERID......It's the name of a huge barge that transports aeroplane/helicopter wings down the Medina River (Isle-of Wight) from Newport to Southampton water, often at night. It's a good idea to keep out of it's way!

Vic
 

aidancoughlan

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I was into hill-walking and climbing, and enjoy being in the outdoors (even did a bit of hot-air ballooning - that's a real blast). Filled in on a club-racing crew one day, and got hooked. Gave up the other stuff as I got older, but still saililng... and now i've just bought my first boat, so it'll go on for a while yet!
 

ongolo

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Not sailing, but maybe the freedom, the only way to travel with my books and eat the food I like, carry a motor cycle and a lathe around and the prospect of living as long as I like where other people can go for two week holliday.

Inspired by Utz Muellertreu a German sailing a Norwegian registered boat who had lived 27 years on his boat and was completing his 4th circumnavigation when I met him. And of course "Shrimpy" and "Ice bird" by David Lewis and later the book for self sufficiency "Sailing the Farm".

ongolo
 

tsmyth

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When I was about 20 I had the idea that I would like to try sailing, but I did not know anyone who had a boat, and I had no idea how to go about it. I rather thought that one needed to be "well off' to beome involved. Later, I again had a feeling that I would like to try, but at this stage of my life I was studying and supporting a family - which continued for a number of years - and I could not afford even a small sailing boat.

In about 1996, after we had moved to a small town, which had a lake and a small saling club, and following the death of my wife, I tried to enrol in a sailing course. I found that the course was already in progress and it was too late. So, I bought a Hartley 16 and tried to teach myself, with some hints from a few club members. After a year or two I sold the Hartley and bought a Careel 18. This was somewhat larger and had higher freeboard, so I felt more secure. Recently, I sold the Careel and bought a Boomarooo (Jaguar) 22, which is larger and has more freeboard again. So I feel more secure.

My problem is that I seem not to be able to find much time to sail. As a consequence, I am still very much an amateur, and I still get rather nervous on the water. Perhaps this is in part because I do not swim well, but lack of ability to control the boat might be the main factor.

It remains that I enjoy mucking about in the boat. Even sitting in it and looking at other boats gives me pleasure. Perhaps, with more practice I will be bolder and sail a little further and in more thatn a light breeze.

Ray
 

Lifeboat

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Well i ought to add my bit really!

I started on a Topper as a teen, moved to a Mirror, then to an Enterprise, then to Cat's of various makes & sizes. I even did the old narrow boat thing, a bit here & there out at sea on various boats of all sorts of shapes & sizes,dont get me wrong nothing great & fancy,fishing vessels,sail boats,motorboats, lifeboats,dry suits /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif etc,etc.

Just have some strange love for the sea & water, i have always loved from being a young lad. Now my little girl loves the water, so we are doing all the water safety stuff & just letting her enjoy it! The best way.
 

William_H

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Hi Lifeboat I started with a hankering to mess around with boats at about 20yo. I built a small cat then anotjher and finally a bigger cat learning to sail at the same time. Due tio change of location I bought the present trailer sailer and 24 years later still love it. I like messing around in boats and got into racing. With this boat it seemed easy to beat the opposition and became a bit addicted to winning. However for all that I don't love the sea so much and am always happy to leave the boat after a few hours sailing. Fortunately I live 2 minutes walk from the boat on swing mooring and my wife and I tend to swim around the boat every day for 6 months of the year so the A/F gets rubbed off pretty quickly. Come the end of the season about now) I am pleased to have a break from weekly racing and glad to pull the boat home for maintenance. I enjoy the maintenance but find after a month or 2 I am hankering to go for a sail again. There is no pleasing the old bugger. Anyway don't know why I do it but life would be a lot more boring in retirement without it. (and this forum) olewill
 

ShipsWoofy

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Come from an old fishing family so no choice really. Always out on a boat of some kind. Sailed on family dinghies such a a GP14 and Enterpise from a toddler.

At around 12 years old got home from school one Friday evening to be told I was to be picked up by my uncle to work on one of the family trawlers the next morning. Started as 'the boy' cleaning and tidying for a couple of quid for a 10 - 12 hour days work. This became my weekends and holiday job until I was around 17, then full time until I was 20 when I started work in land based comms and radar career (only done to shut my mum up about getting a proper trade, intended to go back to boats after a couple of years but never did!).

Always found time for pleasure sailing, angling and at 17 was skippering a 40ft converted MFV for charted diving and angling parties at weekends. Also skippered a few trawlers for short periods of time. Actually did not enjoy skippering the trawlers as this meant sorting out crew and handling the money.. quite stressful.

Had some great times sailing a mirror with my best mate. We then started buying old wrecks of ships lifeboats and taking them out angling. Got tied into a yacht racing team by being in the sailing club and saying yes on drunken night. When it appeared after the third Sunday that I was expected to turn up every Sunday without fail until the end of the season I told him to stuff it, I did not enjoy the racing, it was far to serious and did not really fit in with working, I was finishing a night trip on a trawler and going straight onto a small sailing yacht for the next 10 hours, not good. I got a bad name in the local club after that!

As for the lifeboat, it just happened, my family has always been on the local boat, I started going with my dad from around 8 years old, cleaning the boat when she came back in, cleaning the shed when she was out. Working on the stalls on open day etc. At around 10 I went across the shore as shore crew, pulling skids (with a lot of help). Until I was 18 and started to crew proper. Left at 24 due to moving away and the fact my health was causing problems that meant I could no longer be an active member of the crew. I do miss it though.

So in answer to your question, it just kinda happened!
 

Grehan

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Boating was snatched away

Swallows and Amazons, of course!
Our having gone to the Boat Show (such excitement!), my dad put a reservation on a 'cabin cruiser' as they were called (are they still?). Fantastic.
Then he went and bought a blinkin' caravan instead. /forums/images/graemlins/crazy.gif

It took 30 years for that deep-rooted sense of personal deprivation to become a need, ultimately to crystallise into learning to sail and actually getting something.
 

mikewilkes

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Like some of the others - used to climb and ski. Knackered the right knee so my buddy from Ullapool took me out on his Connie 32. Hooked ever since and like Colin Scott now a livaboard.

Dont like houses!!!!
 

Evadne

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I was completely non-boaty until I went to a school that had a sailing club and a handful of dinghies. I suddenly realised that I could go out on the water in a boat and although I was only there for one year, I was hooked and haven't looked back since. (The school was St. Peter's, Burnham-on-Crouch, and the year was 1973).
 

anglo_saxon

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aged 26
read the book --shrimpy
did the course -- day skipper
bought the boat -- cobra 850
did the med & new zealand -- did more in 6 years than in previous life
met the girl -- the best thng that ever hapened to me
made a pact -- to return to the rat race with £460.00 for exactly 7 years.
and no one day more then sail off again on the best boat we could affoard

departure date march 15th 2006
 

aitchw

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Lifelong fascination with boats and a realisation that at 55 if I didn't do it then I would never do it.

As is common to many like me I always saw the reasons 'not to' outweighing the reasons 'to'. Only now do I understand how wrong I was to put it off.

Anyone out there wondering whether to join the madhouse? Don't hesitate!
 
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