Which Ericson?

[woolamaloo]

Taking lessons, crewing on other peoples boats, and racing is all very good experience up to a point - learning the fundamentals, etc. I've felt that since having my own boat, taking it out short handed, and working on it, I've been learning things much faster than crewing. Crewing on a boat, you have a narrow task to perform. Taking your own boat out, you need to do everything! What? It was so easy taking that flogging main sail down with a crew of 8!

mark

Mark hits it here. I crewed for a decade on a club race boat. When I started, it was an aging crew and even though I was one of the biggest guys on the crew they put me on the foredeck. I was an eager learner and watched what everyone did. But I barely got into the cockpit because there always seemed to be some sort of disaster on the bow when I stepped off the cabin roof. I've had my own boat for two seasons and the first time I tried to sail downwind I was racking my brain trying to remember all the things I heard a hundred times when it wasn't my responsibility. I think the main benefit of crewing was learning what a boat can take. By all means crew on a boat with people you like. Take lessons. Spend all winter reading every sailing book you can get your hands on. Just know, you'll still be lost that first time you head out on your own. And, it's the greatest feeling in the world.

Jim
Woolamaloo
1985 30+ Hull #685

 

[Dan Morehouse]

Definately read. I crewed on no other boats before taking out one I built myself, and all I knew was what I read. (I prefer to learn by doing without someone shouting at me.) That was thirty-two years ago.

The downside is that learning alone is far slower than the alternatives, but in no alternative is voracious reading out of place. And for what it's worth, I've learned as much on this site as any combination of other stuff I've read. You're going to find that pound for pound, this place is a gold mine.

A larger boat is not necessarily a bad move, as long as you understand the limits of your own motivation. When it comes to larger boat sizes, people tend to underestimate the amount of personal resilience needed, while overestimating the amount of personal resilience available. If you're in doubt as to those values, a smaller boat will likely keep you in the game longer.

Good on ya for pulling the trigger before your self-imposed time limit expired!