Sailing boat

[LovelyBath77]

DH is into sailing. He has done up a little Lysander (kit boat from the 1960s). It looks lovely, we go sailing on it around Poole and Brownsea island, which is fine and the boys love it too.

Now, he is thinking of getting another one. This time it is a Folkboat en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nordic_Folkboat which is a bit bigger. Which I think is nice, it is not expensive either as he plans to get a sound one and do it up like the other one.

The thing which worries me though is he seems to have quite ambitious plans for us going e.g. across the channel, to Guernsey, the Isle of Wight and Holland! I am stressed about this, AIBU?

I'm happy enough pottering about on the small one and feeling really stressed about it.

While you may have anxiety, your concerns are total common sense. It is simply unsafe for there to be only one person on the boat who knows what they are doing.

He can show you the basics - how to operate the radio, how to use a lifejacket and a bit of steering. But please please get at least competent crew training from the RYA.

LovelyBath,,i too think you need a bit of training and hands on experience maybe to build confidence. Maybe you could try a daysail with an experienced skipper at a training facility,a taster maybe and then do a competent crew course?

Safety is paramount when at sea. It isnt a weakness to wear a lifejacket at all times but many people dont. If you ever go on a sailing course and practice the man over board drill (MOB) it will become very apparent that it would be extremely easy for that person to simply disappear and eventually drown even in calm waters without a life jacket. In rougher waters,in fading light, in the dark...the chances of recovery are slim.

As i say, dont stifle the dream but make sure everyone is trained, competent, confident and most of all has the right safety gear on at all time.

Someone else mentioned the Ocean Youth Trust. I have sailed with them some years ago and they are a great organisation to try larger boat sailing with where you can learn without all the direct responsibility. I sailed with the GMC and others if anyone knows it but they flogged it off years ago.

I live in Channel Islands and sail lots.
If you aren’t experienced I would recommend sticking to the Solent.
The Channel Islands though beautiful and tranquil on a sunny day are infamous for its tides and rocks. Also sea conditions can change very quickly.

Thanks! Yes i am wary of channel islands. Yes we all wear really good lifejackets, the ones which are small and thin but fill up under pressure. The good ones anyway! all the time.