Everyone, say, "Hi, Tom!"

J

JamesTXSD

Active member
No, not for my buddy Starcraft Tom. This is a sailing friend, Tom. He has been lurking here. Off and on for a while. Like me 5 years ago, he thinks sailing and powercruising are polar opposites. Oh, he's rented a fishing boat once in a while, but he's really intrigued by our C-Dorys. He e-mails me on occasion, tells me how he's "thinking about it, again," and then goes and buys another sailboat.

I remember the angst. I remember the "what ifs?"... like: what if I don't like this powercruising stuff? Or: what if it rides way different from my sailboat? Or: what if my sailing buddies won't talk to me anymore?

He likes the idea of trailerable, but he doesn't have a lot of experience towing. I've explained to him about "the right tool for the job"... and no, his Acadia isn't going to haul a CD-25. And told him that "with the right tow vehicle, it (towing) isn't a scary proposition.

Did I mention he's fair-skinned and sunburns easy? Yeah, I've told him about the wonderful protection of our inside helm. But, also how you can still sit out in the cockpit and watch the sunset... just like in a big ol' sailboat. And how you can launch these boats almost anywhere... and camp in them on the road... and spend time in the Pacific Northwest and be cruising in the Florida Keys a week later. Or stop at Lake Powell in between.

So, give my buddy Tom a hello and tell him how you use your boat. Let him know it really is the way I've been telling him. He works too much. Not in the "making Jack a dull boy" kinda way, but he could really use a boat that can get him away from his banker job, regardless of the weather.

And Tom: sign on here. This is a great bunch of folks who really know and use these boats. We'd be happy to have you join us. :mrgreen:

Best wishes,
Jim B.
 
Hi, Tom!

My brother's a sailor too. He's on boat #4, each one larger and more luxurious than the last; now it's a 36 footer with a diesel. He LOVES our C-Dory and accompanied me on the maiden Friday Harbor CBGT this past year...and he dislikes going faster then 5 knots under power. :wink:

I like sailing but to be honest...it's a lot of work...and lines...and reefing...

To quote an ex-girlfriend of that same brother..."ROPES...ROPES...everywhere!!!!!" :lol: :lol:
 
Hi Tom!

At least half of us are sailors, or "ex-sailors", if you prefer.

I'll never think of myself as an "ex-sailor" because I'll never forget how to sail, or give up the love of it, nor give it up permanently, preferring to think I'll just sail on into the hereafter, hereafter.....!

The C-Dory is a perfect boat to move into after a long voyage of sailing adventures, as I'm sure you're finding out from your C-Brat reading.

Welcome aboard the C-Brat ship, sailor, we'll be waiting to hear from you!

Joe. :teeth :thup
 
Welcome Aboard Tom

We have so very much in common that I feel like I know you already.

First there is our dear friend Jim.... :wink

Second I love sailing and I am starting the climb up the 2 footer's ladder and breaking stuff along the way. I started with a Mac 25 and now have a Luger 27. I have only been sailing for a little over 1 1/2 years now.

Third I own and love a 22 C-Dory Angler for those times when I want to get there before dark.

and


Fourth...I just love bankers....when they say "Yes".

So come on in...the water is fine and the company , well you just can't beat the company.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year
 
Hi Tom,

I know absolutely nothing about sailing but have had small power boats most of my 62 years. Several years ago I had some health issue's one being skin cancers. I was advised to stay out of the sun plus I really wasn't able to physically handle boats without the conviences that the C-Dory offers (windlass, refrigeration, AC when needed, shade from the sun). The shallow draft allows me to simply pull over most anywhere drop the hook and take a nap and I can cruise slowly and comfortably at either 6 mph or 25 mph and anywhere in between economically. If I have time constraints and wish to cruise a particular area I can load up and easily tow to the area. I'm able to single handle the boat easily despite having limited mobility. My C-Dory has added years to my boating that I would have otherwise missed. There's been some awfully good deals on used C-Dory's lately and the resell value has been pretty good. The dealer network is also great and the new aquistion of C-Dory by Sea Sport promises to be a great match up. Good luck to you and welcome to the C-Brats site.
 
Hi Tom !

There comes a time in every-mans life - for something, and maybe it's time to stop flogging laundry and pulling strings. Yep another ex-sailor (never much of one). who has seen the light.

I'm sure Jim will recommend a nice roof air so you can really enjoy civilized cruising.
 
Hey Tom,

I recently went through the struggle of changing from cruising under sail to cruising under power. Warning, this is quite a long dissertation. I sailed many boats for 40 years and always identified myself as a sailor. The transition took some time--after our 38 foot Catalina was damaged in a hurricane the insurance paid it off instead of repairing it--we thought briefly about switching to a trawler, but decided instead on a trailerable Corsair trimaran. It was great fun, we could take it with us if a storm blew up, it would get in skinny water; however, it was too spartan and athletic. Again, we looked at trawlers, fast trawlers, and trailerable trawlers. I was drawn to both a Mainship Pilot and a Rosborough RF-246. In the end though, I couldn't give up my identity and love of sailing and we bought an Island Packet cutter. Great creature comfort, not too deep of draft, definitely not trailerable, but a great boat. So we sailed on--kind of--it seems that every time we would go on a cruise we were steaming, not sailing. For every good sailing adventure we had nine marginal steaming adventures. The wife was losing her interest in going at all. We started the search for a trawler again (eventually, when we retire, we want to do the great loop, so a trawler seemed like the way to go). We took a sea trial on a Mainship Pilot and that was the last nail in the coffin for sailing, my wife loved it. After a lot of discussion, we decided we wanted a trailerable boat. There was an RF-246 for sale in our area that we looked at and really liked, but the berthing, head, and shower arrangement were marginal. We looked at the C-Dory (the same one that we eventually bought) and my wife ruled it out thinking that it was too spartan and not heavily enough built. We basically researched all of the trailerable power cruisers, ruling each one out one-by-one. We finally had come around to the compromise--as all boats are--that we would go for an RF-246 and began looking for one that met our specifications. While on a business trip to south Florida, I stopped and looked at an RF-246. I checked it out from the perspective of actually buying the boat instead of just thinking about it. The berth (I am 6'2"), the head, and lack of a reasonable shower were just not acceptable. So much for the RF-246. We went to look at a Ranger Tug and really liked it, so we put it on the list. Meanwhile, my wife had been reading about a couple that had done the great loop and lots of other cruising on their C-Dory. She decided that maybe it was built well enough for her to feel comfortable on. We decided to check out the C-Dory 26 Venture again. While looking at the boat, Marc, at Wefing's Marine, took us out for a run across the bay and up the river. That was it, we were sold on the boat for several reasons and pretty much bought it on the spot. The reasons were that the V-berth is big enough to fit us both comfortably, the cushions were comfortable, the settee converts to a great couch for the wife and dogs to hang out on while we are running (something that she had been looking for), the head is large enough to both use and shower in, it is relatively light and easy to trail, and, last but certainly not least, it is fast.

We have had the boat for a couple of months and really love it. We have taken a few trips, one of which we had done recently on our sailboat. The experience was definitely different than that sailing, but to my surprise, I enjoyed the positive factors of cruising under power enough to offset what I felt I lost from sailing. The boat handles well, rides well, and performs great. A trip that we would not have attempted without having literally all day, we made in an hour and 45 minutes. We got there rested and were not out in the elements (and the dogs loved it). We enjoyed hanging out in the pilot house with the all-around view. All-in-all, the experience was good for me and so far above that of cruising under sail for my wife that I have little question about the benefits of cruising under power (I have only gone out on the sailboat once since we got the C-Dory).

The boat, fully loaded for cruising, is easy to trail with my 1500 Suburban, which is great. We can be on the water within 20 minutes of leaving the house. I have trailed it back and forth from Apalachicola to Navarre across the Florida panhandle a couple of times, and although it is flat, I have no reservation about trailing it anywhere. We are planning a trip to south Florida in the end of January and it will be great to be able to trail the boat down and spend the time that we have exploring the Charlotte Harbor area, instead of spending our time in transit.

Like I said, quite a dissertation, but the bottom line is that we love cruising under power and, for now, are not looking back. I know that I can always go back later if I change my mind (I just might be doing it alone :cry: ).
 
Hi Tom,
We have skippered sail boats for over 68 years and owned ocean going sailboats for over 36 years--including many long ocean races--and some years racing over 100 races, plus cruising world wide. We also owned power boats from 14 to 25 feet for quick transport and trailering, plus water sports for the kids.

We went to trawlers for a few years, and then to C Dories. About 8 years ago, we picked up a C Dory 22 (I had first seen one in the 1970's and said I was going to get one when I was too "old" to comfortably sail. --we still have a Fatty Knees sailing dinghy and a sail for our Hobie Kayaks).

We trailered the 22 all over the West Coast, from the San Juans to Catalina and 5 trips to Lake Powell. This was replaced by a C Dory 25 about 4 years ago, and we used that for similar trips until this last summer when it was sold. It took us for a month to SE Alaksa, this year, and to the Broughtons last year. We also replaced our boat at our home in Florida with a C Dory Tom Cat 255 about 3 1/2 years ago, and it lives on a lift in our back yard. It can be towed behind our Food Excursion diesel. We have towed the 22 and 25 behind a number of vehicles including a 30 foot RV and several trucks. The C Dories make great "campers" when on the road. We had air conditioning when necessary either with a Honda genset or shower power.

The pilot house works well in Florida, as it does in S. Calif. or the NPW-- It gives great sun protection, and with the windows open, gives plenty of cooling breeze, even in the summer in Florida. There is a great choice of dinghies, including towing aluminum skiffs, the Fatty Knees, various inflatables, or putting Kayaks on the boat. Also the pilot house gives wonderful protection from the winter cold. We had a Cal 46 as one of our cruising boats, and a William Garden Ketch with a pilot house as one of our other long distance cruising boats. No question that pilot house boats make better crusing than an open cockpit all of the time!

Welcome aboard! Buy a C Dory, you will never regret it.
 
Hey Tom,

Back in the mid-70s I worked for Jerry Wood and Peter Carroll and their In-the-Water Boat Shows in Annapolis; later for Jerry Wood at the Annapolis Sailing School marina and photo lab (long story...). Although they presented two separate shows - the Powerboat Show and Sailing Show - as individuals they seemed to appreciate boats whether powered by sail or engine depending on how they were to be used. Working with these guys I never heard any disparagement of one power source over another, though they were both avid sailors. With guidance from his marina manager I renovated a Trojan fishing yacht for Jerry into a floating dormitory for his sailing instructors for the overnighter classes. It was the proper boat for the purpose.

All well designed and crafted boats are worthy of appreciation, regardless their power source. Given the increasing preciousness of dino-fuel and our air and water quality, the more important the efficiency of our powerboats has become. I don't see the powerboat as the problem; just the energy source. We'll figure out a better source of energy to propel boats that aren't dependent on the weather to get around. And, those who love the vagaries of sail-powered boating will continue to tangibly connect with the planet.

As I work on my hull extension project on a 22-Classic, my wife and I periodically explore sailboats and expect to own one in the next year or two. They'll both be wonderful.

If you're on the water it's all wonderful - enjoy.

T
 
Nothing like peer pressure!

Jim has shown me the light and I always have my sailboat tucked in a lake up north (because there's no easy way to get her out!)

I hope to start kicking hulls on C Dorys in the next week or two and once I start looking I generally start signing papers (I'm on something like boat #18 right now).

Thanks for the welcome!
 
Well, Tom, I don't know if anything we say here will infrluence you, but we're all good at telling our stories. I used to sail and loved it. And if you love to go out daysailing just to enjoy the beauty of using God's wind, don't even think of changing.

We developed into cruisers. And the picture shows we made it to Tahiti. And then we took that boat to Alaska, and then to the East Coast for a couple of years.
49_Papeete_Beach.sized.jpg


When we got home, in San Diego, we started thinking about our future in boating, and what we wanted to do. Though the boat was willing, it was clear we wouldn't get around the world, and in San Diego any real cruising grounds (Mexico, Pacific Northwest) were a month away and a rough trip north or south. And, a lot of our cruising was under power. We'd been doing trips to Catalina and Santa Cruz Islands for years, and whilst they're nice been there done that. So we explored other ways of being on the water in beautiful places other than sailing. That ment POWER BOATING, ugh!

As we're not the richest in the world, we went back to trailer boating. This saves money and offers mobility. Since we were used to boating in the slow lane, a trawler type of boat sounded ideal. Actually, we loved a friends 32' trawler, but it wasn't trailerable. And we (actually I ) wanted to go for a summers worth of cruising, which means 3 mos of living aboard. So Judy found the C-Dory 25, sold the sailboat, and bought the 25. Judy still loves to mention the concept of being behind a winsheild in a cabin while underway, as opposed to peering out past the dodger.

It'll go fast or slow, has a head and 2 people can live on one for a couple of mos. Also, when Judy cooks, she can look out see what is going on. And by the way, a used Catalina 36 is equal to a new C-Dory 25. Such is oil driven inflation. It also gets 3 mpg. That was a shock.

If you want to see how a C-25 travels here's our story: journey on's travels .

Just remember, if your reason for being on the water is to sail, keep on sailing. But if you want to be on new water and be comfortable, get a trailerable cruiser. I do miss sailing, but we've seen a lot of new places.

Boris
 
Hi Tom,

Cindy and I weren't experienced sailors, but I did get into cruising by chartering sailboats in the Bahamas. Since we lived far from the ocean and both had demanding jobs, owning a cruising sailboat far away on the coast didn't seem very practical.

After a camping trip on Vancouver Island (complete with a day of salmon fishing with a guide) we decided that a towable fishing boat might be a lot of fun. Poking around at a boat show, we discovered the C-Dory 22 cruiser, and immediately stopped looking at open fishing boats. This thing would be inexpensive, easily towable, good for fishing, and far more luxurious than tent camping. Little did we know how good it would be.

In the last 19 years we've spent maybe 1100 days aboard, anchoring out the majority of the time. Two-three weeks at a time on Lake Powell and other big western lakes, and months on the BC and SE Alaska coast. The CD22 was great for both - that very livable cabin with unobstructed views in all directions is hard to beat. After 7 years we changed to a 26-foot power boat with more creature comforts, but of course it has the same 360-degree view.

Our travels on the water have been such rich experiences it's hard to put into words, and we would never have done most of it without an affordable, trailerable, and very well designed cruiser like the C-Dory.
 
Byrdman":361xxuth said:
Hi Tom.
Click to expand...

"Hi Tom." That's all you've got, Patrick??? What did you do with the real Byrdman? :twisted:

I appreciate you folks here responding to Tom (and to Tom for signing on). He's one of the good guys and deserves time on the water instead of trying to resolve the world's financial problems. He's also a very entertaining writer and would be a fun addition to the "group therapy" in this forum.

No peer pressure, Tom. Just some folks who have been rag-baggers and stink-potters... and have come to realize that it's all about enjoying our time on the water. You've probably heard me say this before, but the C-Dorys are a powerboat with a sailing sensibilty.

Welcome aboard.

Best wishes,
Jim
 
Hi Tom!

As you can see by the signature, we've got two of each (power/sail that is). Can never have too many boats! Each has it's own special use and all are fun! If you've got room, keep the sailboat and go for a powerboat too! You'll like it and one can't find a better friend than Jim TXSD!

Captain_s_Kitten_002.sized.jpg
 
Hi Jim... oh dam not for me :cry

Well Tom i cant tell you anything about sail boats as I have never had the misfortune of being on a rag boat :wink: but I pass a lot of them in the sound. It does seem that a lot of sail boaters really like the sea dory fo the same reason they like their sail boats.
 
Have enjoyed some time on sailboats, but never owned one.
Yes, they are great and make wonderful items for some beautiful sun set pictures....and, they ofen let you know far in advance of a nice deep anchorage too.

Charlie: Man, thanks for that photo.. Nice to see what Charlie's playhouse looks like.

Byrdman
 
Hello Tom,and welcome to the C-Brat site!
I have sailed on a 38' Benetau (SP?) twice in a regatta at a local Yatch Club and I learned a great respect for you blow boaters! I am basicly a lazy man especialy on the water. Sail if you like...it ain't gonna make me mad!
Concerning the C-Dory boats I doubt you could go wrong. My wife, Brenda and our 22 Cruiser, Gypsy, are preparing to cruise the Great Loop beginning around Jan 15th. We have enjoyed Gypsy more than I can explain having put several hours on the boat. 8)
Now, about this group of boaters and boater wanna be's... what a fantastic group of people!!! I must say it again; this group never ceases to amaze me! The exchange of knowledge, fellowship, and ideas always baffle me. Banking can be your means, but you won't find a more diverse group to hang out with!
Merry Christmas and again, welcome aboard :xlol :beer
Mike
 
Hello Tom - Am aware of a number of C-Dory owners who moved from sailboats to our niche craft. Many had reached the age of being "less nimble" and still wanted to be around water keeping things as simple as possible, yet comfortable, not to mention economical.

This past summer I hauled my 19' Grumman canoe with sailing kit (lateen sail) to Yellowstone Lake along with my 22' Cruiser and parked both rigs for the season. Sometimes I sailed it solo, sometimes with friends (it will accommodate four). It towed easily and sailed with little wind. With extended outriggers, it can handle up to two foot chop. Great fun and as basic sailing as it gets. Having the mother ship at hand allowed us to
tow it to hand propelled areas where we anchored and the sail took over.
Since it has a square stern, I run the little 2 HP Honda on it when necessary for safety or convenience.

I mention the foregoing to suggest that getting a C-Dory doesn't mean the end to sailing if one wants to downsize. Best wishes in your quest.

John
 
Merry Christmas everyone!

You can't go wrong in a C-dory. My wife and I have sailed for 30 years plus and lived aboard several boats I raced hard for 10 years and I can say we have more fun in our dory We found our sailing radius of action on weekends to be 20- 30 miles and saw a lot of the same country over and over. I've had a couple of long voyages over the years of several months but these are tough to do sometimes. We transitioned easily to our 19 to the horror of our sailing friends. Sitting in the pilothouse bopping along at 3 times sailing speed (15 knots) comfy and dry with the wipers going is just awesome. Crossing to the dark side was the easiest thing to do.
Happy times lie ahead with the boat and the folks in this group. Welcome aboard! George
 
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