To buy a daysailer or not????????

[Guest]

I am looking to purchase a dinghy next spring and possibly get into racing and also cruising with my 6 year old.. I am torn between a Flying Scott, Daysailer, or the new Precision 185. There are fleets of both FS, and Daysailer locally. I was told the daysailer fleets are thinning out is this true. I'm in a dilemna. Any suggestions!!!
Michael Lupo

Michaaaaael Incantalupo (michaelgrubs-at-aol.com)

[Peter McMinn]

I grew up racing and cruising with a local sailing club. The memories were so stong that when I became a dad, I just had to introduce my wife and kids. Bought a Daysailer a couple of years ago after researching other dinghies of the same size, weight. One of my criteria was how kind the boat would be to the mates (my young family). I needed a boat that would provide both stability and performance; a good "learner boat" for the youngins, and a good competitive boat for racing. My kids are three and six years of age, and truly love an exhilarating upwind romp. With the long, wide cockpit and the welcoming cuddy, the old DS1s are excellent for kids, as well as prized among the class racing community.

There are a couple of flying Dutchmans in our club, and frankly, they blow the DSers out of the water. The FDs are beautiful, classic boats, but I don't know how kid friendly.

Good luck!

[Peter McMinn]

Oops. Just saw that I confused a Scot with a Dutchman. I am doomed.

Anyway, I checked out the Flying Scot, and that looks like a mighty fun boat. Still wonder about the kidability, though.

Cheers

[Bob Hunkins]

Michael,

I'd suggest getting to know the people in the fleet before deciding on the boat. Would they be folks you can become good friends with? We Day Sailers are pretty nice people. I hope you'll consider getting one.

regards,
Bob Hunkins
Day Sailer Association President

[Lee Peterson]

Hi, Michael,

Well, being a Day Sailer guy, I may be prejudiced. I have two Day Sailers plus an O'Day 23. As far as the number of fleets goes it may well be getting smaller - the DSA Secretary could give you statistics. It seems like there is more and more competition for free time. However, there are still lots of fleets active all over the country and in other countries as well, plus many independent members of the DSA. You can go almost anywhere in the U.S. and find a nearby Day Sailer owner in the DSA membership directory. There have even been a few new fleets formed over the past few years. We're one of them and are actually growing our fleet in LaCrosse, Wisconsin. We have about 15 boats currently and there always seems to be a buyer when one of the members decides to sell. As with any group the growth and participation is directly related to the enthusiasm and commitment of it's leadership and members.

As far as the boats go, the Scot is a much bigger boat. I haven't sailed one but have raced against a few. Both boats are very respectable and I don't think you could go wrong with either one. I've found the Day Sailer is very easy to launch, load and trailer. I've hauled mine from southeastern Minnesota to Colorado, Michigan and the Canadian border, raced, cruised and sail-camped and given lots of people their first sailboat ride. Even the most reluctant has taken over the helm and trimmed the sails. Their smiles have been a great reward. As far as stability and seaworthyness, there was an article in "Sail" magazine a few years ago by a couple who sailed their Day Sailer up the coast of Labrador. I think the name of the story was "Spirit of the Torngat". It's pretty amazing.

If I remember correctly there have been about twice the number of Day Sailers built compared to Scots. Good luck in making your decision.

Lee Peterson

[Guest]

Michael,
I went through this same decision process ~ 1 year ago. I have been racing Catalina 27 (one-design) for over 15 years, and I was looking into racing a small boat with my 10 year old son. I still race Catalina 27s but the line loads are too great for a child. My order of priorities were (1) a two person one design boat with a local fleet, (2) a good (social, fun, etc.) fleet, and (3) a boat with a main, jib, and spinnaker. It came down to the DaySailor fleet (organized at SSA in Annapolis) or the Flying Scott fleet (organized on Selby Bay south off the South River). I chose the Day Sailor fleet because I new some people in it, and the boat was a little smaller than the FG - this means a lot to a small child who is trying to release a jib when the wind pipes up. Although, I believe the FG is a more stable boat. But, even though it is unusual to flip a DS it is not a bad experience to go through - you and your son will realize that is not the end of the world.

I have been very satisfied with my choice. My son and I are having a great time racing our boat. The Day Sailor fleet is very social and competitive. We went to our first "travel to" regatta at Smith Mountain Lake, VA in October. The best way to describe it was going to a family reunion. The competition was very good, but not overly intense - not like a J30 or J22 fleet.

We recently had our Crab Pot regatta in Annapolis and one Captain had his grandson sailing with him.

I have been in other fleets where the numbers go up and go down. They all are tend to be cyclical. I recommend talking to both the local DS and FG fleets. Get and review their social calendar, determine the type of members and racing then make a choice.

Hope this helps, and I hope this works out that you and your son find this is something that you can do together for years. That is my goal.

Duet in D (David and David Koepper)

Dave Koepper (dkoepper-at-erols.com)