Sailing pics

[RoadKingLarry]

My sailing club had a poker run on the water yesterday. Pretty good turnout and a good day on the lake even thought the wind pretty well went away toward the end of the afternoon. My anticipated regular crew got forcibly "honey do'd" at the last minute and wasn't able to make it so I was single handing.
A little tricky to rig and hoist an asymmetrical spinnaker by yourself but fun and looks awesome. 



Background


My perspective

[230RN]

What a great way to spend a day, but it must have been hectic frenetic without a crew.

Terry, 230RN

[RoadKingLarry]

What a great way to spend a day, but it must have been hectic frenetic without a crew.

Terry, 230RN

I'm used to sailing solo. This was first time flying the spinnaker solo though.

[JTHunter]

Larry, is that boat a "sloop"?
I'm not a sailor although I do like powerboats as my Dad used to have a sizeable one with a "flying bridge" that he used on the Mississippi for many years.
One thing that concerns me - that "colorful" sail (the "spinnaker"?) makes me think of a "pride flag".
It could draw unwanted attention.

[RoadKingLarry]

My boat is a ketch. Two masts, main (forward mast) and mizzen. The position of the mizzen mast being forward of the rudder post differentiates it from a yawl which carries the mizzen aft of the rudder post.
As to the color scheme, A, it was cheap, someone gave it to me. B, It doesn't have all the colors of a rainbow nor the correct configuration. C, Should some ignoramus decide to take offense that is their problem, not mine. And should such an ignoramus attempt to cause me problems on the lake I am capable of repelling  boarders. 

[MillCreek]

Is a large sail like that expensive?

[Nick1911]

That's pretty cool.  I don't know much about sailing, but I know it's a lot more complicated than it appears.  How did you get into sailing?

[RoadKingLarry]

Is a large sail like that expensive?

They can be. Mine is actually a little undersized for my boat. A new sail like that would be in the $1500-$2000+ range.

[RoadKingLarry]

That's pretty cool.  I don't know much about sailing, but I know it's a lot more complicated than it appears.  How did you get into sailing?

It's not as complicated as it looks to a total neophyte.  Once you "learn the ropes" and the sailing/boating terminology it's just a matter of doing it.

I don't remember a time when sailboats didn't have some attraction but didn't get in to it till 10 years ago.
1st boat was a light 26' "trailer sailer", wife decided it was too small so I bought a heavier 27'  fin keel cruiser. Wife decided it was also too small. So I bought my current boat, a heavy, full keeled Bluewater capable boat in 2017.

[230RN]

Your remark about repelling boarders interested me.

Surely, there's some maritime, DOT, or Coast Guard reg about being armed on a boat, yes, no?  Surely the anti gunners would not have let that one slip by.

[RoadKingLarry]

Kind of  grey area as this lake is Corp of Engineers. Feds seem to have an issue with law abiding citizens being able to defend themselves. Unless it's changed CoE forbids firearms unless hunting or with specific written permission from local CoE office.
There are other options though. Flare guns can be used to rapidly summon aid if needed.

[tokugawa]

I saw a guy with 35 or 40 foot sloop many years ago who had a stainless steel BP cannon on deck- it was about eight or ten inches in diameter, three feet long, bore was soda can size. He like to fill them with concrete, although he said they would tumble after a few dozen yards.
 The man was a machinist at Boeing IIRC. He probably scored a cut-off drop on the steel, it was a big chunk.

[230RN]

...

[JTHunter]

There are other options though. Flare guns can be used to rapidly summon aid if needed.

Keep snorkel mask, fins, and a spear gun/bang stick on board - JIC.  The spear gun is better as it gives you more "reach".  The band stick is a "point of contact" tool but it has a shotgun shell in its head.