Ideas for Starter Dinghy

Hello all,

I am new to the forum and preparing to get back into sailing, but am looking for advice on which dinghy to aim for in the long term.  I tried sailing when I was serving in the forces in Cyprus and loved it, but what with one thing and another on returning to the UK I didn't keep it up.  Now I am in the position to resurrect my interest and will be visiting my local clubs to see what is on offer :)

Firstly, I am currently 44 yrs old, 6'1" tall and around 110kg - a big old lump.  I consider myself fairly fit for my age (I played football and rugby up until I left the forces a couple of years ago) and the weight comes from big bones and muscle (honest!!).  I am married - the wife endorses my interest in sailing since she did some when she was younger too and there are two teenage step-children who may or may not get into sailing too if I can drag them off the Xbox for long enough.

I intend to learn at a local club and to try out various boats to see what I like myself, but would like advice  on which boat fits my needs so that if I see a bargain for sale I can grab it when I can.

What do I want?  Ideally, I am looking for:

- something fun to sail.
- big enough to fit the family in should they all want to go for a sail at the same time.
- something that I can sail solo for those days when I can't persuade anyone to join me.
- suitable for inland and coastal.

I have been researching over the last few weeks and one boat that has caught my eye is the Wayfarer, but the occasional comments about size and weight have got me rethinking my long term strategy.  I am not averse to a bit of heavy work if that is what it takes to manoeuvre on land, but is it so bad?  Also is it difficult to solo on water?

Any other advice is also appreciated :)

I think the wayfarer would be a bit much single handed.

On the whole though I always advise against worrying too much about long term... You'll almost certainly change your mind a few times - heck there are people on this forum who seem to change boats every six weeks -or at least that's what it feels like!

The other thing about bargains in boats is they are like buses - as soon as one appears there'll be another one just down the road, so I really wouldn't worry.

Its going to be near enough impossible to get a boat that will make a good fist at everything you would like it to do, and the more multi purpose a boat is then, frankly, the more mediocre it is... In your place I'd look for a club that has some club owned boats available - especially ones you can get the whole family in. Pick a boat that fits what 75% or more of your sailing will be done in and use club boats for the rest is my advice...

Thanks for the replies guys.  Much appreciated.

With work being quite hectic at the moment and a house extension going up I am only likely to get out for an occasional weekend until around March time, when I hope to pick it up a bit.  I will be sure to have a look at the suggested clubs, but was thinking of checking out Havering club to start with (based at Stubbers).

I think I'll hold off on boat ideas for now - the wife just pointed out that she doesn't want a boat cluttering up the driveway, so it may be club sailing for some time to come.

:)

Totally agree With Steve, the clubs along the Thames are very welcoming (still havent found a more fun club than TBYC in all my various travels) and pretty much all are suited to family boats due to the drying out moorings. One issue might be the tides, especially as you would not be local to the clubs and only have occasional chances, possibly thwarted by the lack of water :/ still nowhere's perfect so could still be the best 

Glad your enjoying the GP its design spec pretty much matches what you put as your requirements. For Solo work you will find a jib (or even better a roller Genoa) as opposed to the genoa very usefull. She will sail ok on either main or jib but she goes a whole lot better on both.