Which dinghy for an older bloke?

Tam Lin

Tam Lin

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I gave up sailing my Wanderer a couple of years ago as I could no longer duck under the boom when tacking due to dodgy knees. The gooseneck was fixed so I couldn’t adjust it higher. I have a hankering for another dinghy, but which one? I don’t want to race, just potter about on the tidal river.
I am 6ft 3ins tall and drawing my pension so need something easy to handle with a high boom and not too much clambering about. I would like to sit in it rather than on it but and the seating position can’t be too low due to my knees not working when they are up around my ears!
I will most likely be sailing single handed but would take a crew sometimes. Looking at the ads on the internet there are a couple of Gulls for sale, would these fit the bill? Any other suggestions?
Sorry if this is not the right forum but I know that there is a lot of experience on here!
 
I suspect you should have kept the wanderer and got a sailmaker to shorten the leach.
It's not impossible to move the gooseneck either.
The idea of a loose foot may be spurious, getting under a loose sail is just as awkward as getting under the boom, and there's a free-range sheet block to hit you?
 
sarabande said:
TL, why have a boom ? What about a loose footed mainsail or a sprit ?


And (this may get me into trouble with Mrs TL) how about building your own dinghy over the winter. Lots of exciting designs, some even with kits.

http://www.oughtredboats.com/

http://www.christinedemerchant.com/sail_sprit_sail.html
Click to expand...

Nice idea, but I really have to finish the headlining on my Centaur and launch her next year and I started some decorating a couple of years ago which I ought to finish! Then there is that big roll of canvas which is just crying out to be put around an old fashioned kayak frame, still to be made!
So, something second hand and ready to go sounds more appealing at the moment!
 
Boat weight is 250kg, so not a mile away from a Wanderer. I reckon you could man-handle one on a good launch trailer.
 
Solos are popular with people "of a certain age" (including me) but not sure if they will meet your high boom criteria; still only 70kg hull weight. I believe the Streaker, another Jack Holt design, has a higher boom, and is lighter still. The Supernova has a high boom but I suspect would not be to your taste. If you were thinking along the lines of the Drascombe Dabber/Devon yawl, the Cornish Crabber 17, which I use to sail, has a high boom, would leave both of those for dead and is easy to single hand but has plenty of room for crew. It's about 700kg though so not so easy to launch/recover.
 
sarabande said:
Boat weight is 250kg, so not a mile away from a Wanderer. I reckon you could man-handle one on a good launch trailer.
Click to expand...

That's double the weight of a Wanderer, and the trailer will be correspondingly heavier as well.
Even a Wanderer on a trolley is too heavy for me to recover singlehanded up a slope, unless I can use a rope to the car.
 
Scows are popular around the Solent but attract "stupid" prices as they are raced rather competitively. I'd keep one as a toy if I won enough on the lottery, it wouldn't have to be first prize........
 
As already said, a Drascombe Dabber.
I only wonder about launching. I launch/recover mine singlehanded but the trailer is connected to the car.

Sandro
 
There are many reasons why Tideways are popular with a certain age group, light enough for the dinghy park, easy to tow (all gunter spars fit in the boat), won't get you wet and can get along surprisingly well for what it is. They also have a high boom, topping lift (more useful than you might think) and other things you'd normally find on a larger dinghy. They are worth considering. Prices quite high but they hold their value.

Not all scows are expensive, there are many that fall outside club racing fleets and these can be quite cheap. With no jib and a lug they are a different kind of sailing...in my experience the boom is too low and the boat quite cramped for tall oldies.

Gulls go well, are light and easy to move around but they can get you wet.

One of the factors to be considered about aged sailing is speed of reaction when it comes to a gust. If the boat is quite tippy it demands swift and accurate movement, something I don't have anymore!
 
I'm 6' 5" and very much the the wrong side of 60 with wrecked knees after years of Laser racing and mountain biking. I just bought one of the new Hadron H2 dinghies. If is designed by a 75 year old who is still actively sailing with a long history of successful dinghy design. He definitely has in mind the older dinghy sailer. It is light construction, high boom for the stiffer back, and has side tanks that fill on capsize to bring the centreboard down near the water. Now looks like it is going to come in two sail sizes.

It's a fast, lively but very dry boat. I've not been able to capsize it yet. Being wide you sit out on it upwind. It's definitely extended my dinghy sailing life.

Here's a review from last year....http://www.yachtinglife.co.uk/h2-the-single-hander-for-golden-oldies/

And a boat test from Yachts and Yachting ...http://www.yachtsandyachting.co.uk/articles/boat-test-hadron-h2/
 
Last edited:
Tam Lin said:
I gave up sailing my Wanderer a couple of years ago as I could no longer duck under the boom when tacking due to dodgy knees. The gooseneck was fixed so I couldn’t adjust it higher. I have a hankering for another dinghy, but which one? I don’t want to race, just potter about on the tidal river.
I am 6ft 3ins tall and drawing my pension so need something easy to handle with a high boom and not too much clambering about. I would like to sit in it rather than on it but and the seating position can’t be too low due to my knees not working when they are up around my ears!
I will most likely be sailing single handed but would take a crew sometimes. Looking at the ads on the internet there are a couple of Gulls for sale, would these fit the bill? Any other suggestions?
Sorry if this is not the right forum but I know that there is a lot of experience on here!
Click to expand...

http://www.plasmor.fr/produit/skellig-1-4

14' with the option of a (tiny) cabin for shelter.

(Zero maintenance)
 
 
 
The topper Cruz (no longer available new) was designed with a high boom for leisurely sailing. Will be a lot easier to launch and recover than drascombe. Not sure if the "classic" version has the same height of boom or only the Cat Ketch rigged one.
 
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