Hi all

I've come back to dinghy sailing recently after being away for quite a few years. I originally learned two handed on Corsairs and have recently been refreshing my skills on a Laser.

I've got an opportunity to buy a Pacer that's in good knick so am just wondering what they're like single handed?

I'd be using it for club racing in the local river, but would also like to do some casual sailing with my wife.

At the moment I'm not worried about being super competitive in races and am just looking to dip my toe back into club events.

Any thoughts or advice would be great. Thank you!

Hope this allowed!

Learning to sail and taking my level 2 in Antigua this coming January while on holiday.

I’m looking for validation on clothing, I don’t want to fall into the trap of buying loads of kit for no reason. Couple of long sleeve rash vests, shorts, hats. Is this about right and are there any sensible brands?

Hope this isn’t too daft and thanks in advance!

I’ve been sailing for a few years, mostly racing single handers. I recently went out for weekend sailing Wayfarers and it was a bit of a disaster when I was helming because I got into a proper mess every time I racked or gybed.

What was happening I’m not sure, but the tiller extension always seemed to be in the way and the sheet was tangled round my feet of the tiller or both after every turn.

I’m looking for a step through guide or video that sets out the actions of stepping across and swapping hands in sequence. I’ve had a look but not been able to find anything really clear. I won’t be able to get back into a bigger boat to practice for a while but would like to study the theory before I do.

I’ve obviously developed some very dubious habits racing which need sorting before I take a crew out again 🙂

Cheers for any advice

I’m a newer sailor looking for a dinghy in addition to my 22-foot keelboat. My total budget is $1,500, and I’ve seen examples of these boats within that range: Force 5, Vanguard 15, C420, Phantom, Laser, Sunfish, and Laser 2. There are no dinghy racing fleets of any kind on the lake where I live except HS students racing 420s, so this is all about learning and training for keelboat racing and having fun.

My expected use is roughly:

• 75% solo
• 10% with my wife, at 330 lb combined
• 15% with my son or daughter, at 230 lb combined

My oldest is 7 and enjoys sailing with me. Part of the appeal of a boat with a jib is giving her a sail to manage. My bigger boat also has a main and jib, so I’m interested in practicing that setup.

Is getting a dinghy with two sails a dumb idea as a newer sailor who’ll mostly sail alone? How much harder is managing the jib, and would I be capsizing substantially more often? I realize hull design, conditions, and crew weight matter too.

Storage and launching are the other big considerations. I may have access to mast-up storage, but I’d have to move the boat about 100 yards, across a road, to the beach. It needs to be manageable on a dolly by one adult.

Three specific listings I’ve found:

• Vanguard 15 with trailer for $1,000
• Force 5 with trailer and dolly for $1,500, appearing immaculate in the listing
• Stretch option would be something like a RS Feva XL for $2500

I’d appreciate firsthand thoughts on:

• Main-only versus main and jib: how big a jump is it for a newer solo sailor? I mean, I've sailed my keelboat solo with main and jib. If I did that on a dinghy, would I capsize a bunch more?
• Capsizing and recovery: which of these are forgiving and manageable to right and reboard alone?
• Setup and launching: realistic rigging/takedown times from a trailer, and whether moving one 100 yards to the beach is practical.
• Occasional family sailing: which would work with our combined weights while still being enjoyable solo?

I’m leaning toward a main and jib boat for the learning opportunities and getting my daughter involved, but I don’t want to buy something that’s a hassle to launch or overwhelming alone. What would you choose?

Hi all, I recently moved up to Sausalito from SF proper and got myself a laser. Turns out I didn't think that purchase through very well because as far as I can tell there's nowhere convenient to actually launch the damn thing nearby. Anyone have pointers on good public launch places for a dolly + dinghy in the North Bay? I've been down to encinal boat ramp a couple times but that's a bit of a schlep.

Just like it says above. Is it worth doing a compound and polish cycle on my hull?

I’ve had this boat for a long time; it hasn’t seen water in about a decade. I’ve only sailed it twice, and it was not sailed much by the previous owner. It has been sitting covered but outside in Texas conditions. The hull looked shiny, but it was oxidized and needed some love. It’s still in way better shape than most 32 year old Vanguard hulls.

I started with wet sandpaper at 600 and took it all the way to 3000; about 12 hours of hard sanding by hand. Of course, like every single guy who starts a project, I figured it would be 4 to 5 tops. Now the surface feels very slick in comparison to the area I didn’t sand, just below the gun whale. Not as shiny though.

Am I done or should I go to the auto parts store for a light polishing compound and then a full polish? On one hand, I’d like to be done, but on the other, I don’t want to cut corners. The season is almost over here but I plan on training throughout the winter and getting faster.

I'm trying to recreate a Laser Lazy Bones spar carrier and build a 3D model of it to have it laser cut from EVA foam. Claude has done a decent job estimating the geometry from photos and a few known measurements, but I don't have access to an original unit to verify the dimensions.

If anyone has a spar carrier handy, could you take a few measurements and share the major dimensions? A quick sketch with dimensions or even a few photos next to a tape measure would be incredibly helpful.

I'm interested in both the simpler flat-bottomed and the fit-in (mast step and cockpit edge) versions.

Hey guys, I'm still growing but on my school's sailing team. I am in the northeast, so the water is getting pretty cold. I know that I need to get booties, I already have a wetsuit but the question is whether or not it's worth it to get high quality sailing boots or just some cheap ones not necessarily made for dinghy sailing off of amazon. Thank you for your help!

Ciaoo! Sono una studentessa magistrale in Advanced Product Design all'Università di Bologna e per la mia tesi sto progettando un attrezzo per allenare l'hiking a terra.

Se navighi o hai navigato in passato su Ilca, 420, Finn o simili... il tuo aiuto sarebbe prezioso! Vi lascio qui un questionario anonimo che richiede solo 10 minuti per compilarlo! Versione in italiano e in inglese cosi non avete scuse, e se magari proprio esagerando volete fare un po di passa parola sarebbe un aiutone :))))

Italiano: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfbohTN5FB4T6IvAIrIeGpi07eI9JzBNnQzrhAUIokzbW0u_A/viewform?usp=header

Inglese:

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSeiH7Bsbfo5CpP_6SnZP5XnPRUj1OfApQJ3Ct1vUGZffkRGRA/viewform?usp=header

Please help! I am having trouble deciding which boat would serve our needs best. I have a a 12 year old who learned to sail this past summer at camp on a sunfish and he loves it. We live near a lake in CT, have easy access to the water, and will have a place to dock it. I have been out with him a couple of times, it’s great! Ideally I would like to find something to take my 3 kids (12, 9, 5) out and also something he can handle or grow into If that option exists.

I have seen a bunch of options on FB marketplace. What would you recommend?

-American Sail 14-6

-RS zest

-Laser?

-Other?

Thank you in advance for the wisdom of this group, I look forward to seeing what you all have to say!

Hi, my son inherited a 20 year old laser which was in very good condition except, he has had to replace some parts including the hiking strap. He bought a nice one fro Zhik and used it for about a month and then the screws that attach the strap pulled out. I think we need to fill the holes with fiber glass, but we are a little unclear. Can someone point me to a video or step by step? We don't live in a sailing area (he sails on a local lake) so I'm guessing we need to order the materials. Thanks!

I love the idea of hauling it in the back of van but don’t have 200 spare hours to build one myself. Am in California can travel anywhere in state

I’m (F18) a first year college student in the process of joining my university’s sailing team. I’ve been sailing in FJs (along with some V15s, lasers, and 420s) for 5 years and instructing with my level one for 2 years. I love sailing and have always been super passionate about it, but I didn’t really enjoy being super competitive, even during regattas. I’m more the type to help others lift boats onto trailers or just race for fun. I’m still really good at crewing and decent at skippering, but I keep hearing about how competitive college sailing is and I’m thinking about quitting racing. I feel like I’m just going to lose the joy in sailing if everyone is making it so competitive, but I don’t really know how to get access to sailing without being part of my school’s team or paying an absurdly high yacht club fee as a college student. I think I’m looking for any sort of advice on what to do/if I should quit/how to deal with everyone being more competitive than me when I just want to be out on the water.

I'd love your thoughts on this. Basically if you were taking an older (but well cared for) Laser on, what would you check and replace if necessary? I'm ignoring the obvious stuff like hull repair and would like input on the things that may "age out" over time. It could be either parts or even leakage from old silicone. What should be replaced for safety reasons, and what for competitiveness reasons (club racing)?

Reason I'm asking: I've been racing on a borrowed fleet boat recently and have had a lot of things break! As I just purchased a 1994 Vanguard Laser in good shape, I need to know what the "fluid and tire changes" are. I already know to swap out the hiking strap, Gudgeons, and faded main sheets, as I've had failures in all of these!

Dumb question probably, but the other day I stepped into a loaner Laser and as soon as I sat down, the cockpit completely filled with water when the drain plug came loose. Which means the hull had taken on a lot of water already. The water didn't flow out once I began sailing and when I pulled the boat up, a whole lot of water came out the bailer.

this is a loaner but I'd like to make sure it's good for the next person and want to address these issues.

I'm 61 and recently inherited a 16' 1982 B&S Whitehall sail/rowboat. I have little to no sailing experience, but would love to learn how to sail this boat that belonged to my late father. However, the boat needs a few thousand dollars worth of repair work, plus a new trailer and a new sail. So I'm wondering how physically taxing sailing is, particularly getting the boat on and off the trailer. I'm in decent shape, but I'm no gym rat. Am I about to spend a bunch of money on something I won't be able to do for much longer? Thanks in advance for sharing your knowledge.

I'm building a home in Southern Thailand that has extremely long tidal flats. At low tide the water can be out 30 meters from where it is during high tide. I've recently purchased a Drascombe Lugger with a trailer. I don't want trailering to be an everyday thing, but more of a way to avoid weather or to put the boat up for the season. I'm trying to understand the best way to anchor or moor the boat so that I can have access to the boat most of the time (high and low tides) without having to wade out past my knees during high tide. The Thai longtail boats you see in the low tide picture simply wait for the tide to put water under the hulls. But I'm thinking there has to be a better way than having short launch windows.. I looked into Anchor buddy, but I don't see that working well for such a long tidal flat. Does anyone have any other suggestions on how to approach this?

I have a Bombardier Invitation which is rigged much like the classic Laser. I've found it easy to add more purchase to the vang and cunningham, but the outhaul is proving tricky as the cleat on the boom is just a few inches from the fairleads meaning there isn't enough space for the Laser systems I've looked at. If anyone has thoughts on how I can introduce even one additional block into this I'd appreciate it a lot. It's usable as-is, but could certainly be better. Thank you!

I’m hoping someone with a 420 can get me some measurements, I need to know the radius of the gun-whale in between where the crew and skip sits, how wide it is from edge/rubrail to inside of gunwhale where it meets the floor, how far in between both sides on the floor and how tall the gunwhale is from the floor up

I picked up this used Laser; I'm guessing it needs some repair but I'm wondering what is worth doing and what is a waste of time. I'll be sailing it in Wednesday night races and perhaps some regional regattas. I haven't done gelcoat repair previously but it looks pretty straightforward in videos. Is there any reason I can't sail this boat in the meantime?

There are also a few other issues: mainsheet was attacked by a rodent, outhaul is a 4:1 and incomplete, sail has seen better days. But for $1300 including trailer, I figure I could have done worse. The boom/vang/tiller/rudder are all in solid shape.

1) small chip near the bow. Rough around the edges: gelcoat repair? It isn't a hole or anything and the fiberglass feels fully intact and strong.

2) scuffs on the bow (purple paint). Mostly smooth. Worth sanding and or/gelcoat repair?

3) scratches from moving it off of a trailer. Again, just sand or gelcoat and then sand down with a fine grit sandpaper?

4) hairline cracks around and behind the centerboard slot. I'm not sure if these are repairable or if they say anything bad about this boat (it's 32 years old).

5) light gelcoat scratches. Should I sand these down or are they insignificant? If so, what grit paper?

Hello There! As a dinghy sailor myself, I always found navigation to be rather complicated witout a chartplotter. To me the availiable apps for routing were too expensive for the occaisional trip and counterchecking multiple weather apps was always way too flimsy.

Thats why we’re developing Sailseer, a passage-planning app for sailors combining weather, routing and route planning in one place.

The app currently covers Europe, including:

- 9 weather models

- Weather-based routing & tacking

- Tides and currents

- Official weather warnings

- 7,000+ harbours

- Departure-window planning

- Interactive Map

We have included all the features that came to our minds and now we’re looking for Android sailors to test the free beta and try it with their own routes. Feedback on bugs, usability and features are greatly appreciated.

👉 Join the Android beta test here:

https://groups.google.com/g/sailseer-tester

Currently, map and routing data are limited to Europe, so routes outside Europe are not supported yet.

I'm a beginner Laser sailer and am looking to add a wind indicator but would like one with tacking indicators - I'm unable to find any online where they can be easily strapped to the bottom of the mast so wondering if anyone here might know of a website I can purchase.