If you were going to sail across the ocean, what size sailboat would you get?

[theknight571]

Perhaps you can borrow this one from the coast guard.

Or build yourself one of these.

 

[Mo0o]

Maybe you should just sail around the mediterranean, you can get away with a smaller boat

 

[GuitarDaddy]

I agree with a previous poster, no less than a 45 footer. I've spent quite a bit of time sailing a 36', and there is no way I would try it in one that size. Even a 45' would be scary, 55-60' would be more appropriate

This one would do nicely
2006 60ft Cape Fear

If money was of no concern this would be my choice
192ft schooner

 

[Deleted member 4644]

Fairly small ships *can* make it across. As I recall from school the Nina, Pinta, and Santa Maria were very small ships on the order of 50 feet.

 

[WolverineGator]

It's not the size of the boat that matters, but I would desire 36+ feet for comfort. You need an ocean going class sailboat. These boats aren't fast performers and are more expensive than regular cruise ships (like Hunter's etc.). You will need a large and heavy ballast (12,000+ pounds) and you can expect to pay $100k for a fairly nice 20 year old 40' boat.

Does it have a Bruce anchor? How good is the auto-helm? Of course there are a lot of other details to look over and one of the most important is the condition of the motor and how many hours it has. Replacing a motor might involve ripping up the deck, so this vital component should be in excellent shape.

 

[JulesMaximus]

Originally posted by: GuitarDaddy
I agree with a previous poster, no less than a 45 footer. I've spent quite a bit of time sailing a 36', and there is no way I would try it in one that size. Even a 45' would be scary, 55-60' would be more appropriate

This one would do nicely
2006 60ft Cape Fear

If money was of no concern this would be my choice
192ft schooner

My Mom was planning to sail her 43' sailboat across the Atlantic a few years ago. She has sailed it from FL up the coast of the US to NY and back down and sailed it all the way down to Brazil and back.

It depends more on how the boat is made and setup than on its size. Her boat was designed as an off shore cruising boat and she and her husband could easily handle it in rough seas. I was going to try to go on their transatlantic voyage but a back injury and botched back surgery suffered by my Mom prevented her from ever realizing that dream.

 

[cavemanmoron]

http://www.ussconstitution.navy.mil/ima...hotosGallery/Constitutionsail%2002.jpg

http://www.ussconstitution.navy.mil/OldIronsidesGallery.htm

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Old_Ironsides

 

[JulesMaximus]

This would do just fine.

 

[OutHouse]

anything smaller than the USS Ronald Regan is too small for me.

 

[Specop 007]

Originally posted by: WolverineGator
It's not the size of the boat that matters, but I would desire 36+ feet for comfort. You need an ocean going class sailboat. These boats aren't fast performers and are more expensive than regular cruise ships (like Hunter's etc.). You will need a large and heavy ballast (12,000+ pounds) and you can expect to pay $100k for a fairly nice 20 year old 40' boat.

Does it have a Bruce anchor? How good is the auto-helm? Of course there are a lot of other details to look over and one of the most important is the condition of the motor and how many hours it has. Replacing a motor might involve ripping up the deck, so this vital component should be in excellent shape.

Found a few Westsail 32 footers for pretty reasonable prices. Might look into those a bit more.

 

[LordMorpheus]

Originally posted by: K1052
This: Text

Holy crap, I'll take two!

 

[JulesMaximus]

Originally posted by: Specop 007

Originally posted by: WolverineGator
It's not the size of the boat that matters, but I would desire 36+ feet for comfort. You need an ocean going class sailboat. These boats aren't fast performers and are more expensive than regular cruise ships (like Hunter's etc.). You will need a large and heavy ballast (12,000+ pounds) and you can expect to pay $100k for a fairly nice 20 year old 40' boat.

Does it have a Bruce anchor? How good is the auto-helm? Of course there are a lot of other details to look over and one of the most important is the condition of the motor and how many hours it has. Replacing a motor might involve ripping up the deck, so this vital component should be in excellent shape.

Found a few Westsail 32 footers for pretty reasonable prices. Might look into those a bit more.

There was a guy selling a 35' Ericson for $8k on ebay about a week ago. He was in the process of restoring it and the hull was pretty much done but it needed an engine, rigging and it had no sails. I figured it would need another $10k at least to get it in the water.

Edit-I actually called some local yards and asked about costs to finish this boat. I have a couple friends who were interested in going in on a partnership on a sailboat but the costs of finishing this boat and berthing her would have been too much.

 

[IronWing]

I'd get a boat exactly the same size as the ocean then I could just drive across the deck and not have to deal with all that sailing crap. God, how I hated learning those stupid sailing knots.

 

[WildHorse]

Slightly off the point, but a fascinating read for anyone thinking of sailing the world:

This guy tells the whole story starting from learning how to sail, all the way through to circumnavigating the world singlehanded in a 31 foot sailboat:

Text

 

[Reckoner]

Sail away with me honey
I put my heart in your hands
Sail away with me honey now, now, now
Sail away with me
What will be will be
I wanna hold you now

Crazy skies all wild above me now
Winter howling at my face
And everything I held so dear
Disappeared without a trace
Oh all the times Ive tasted love
Never knew quite what I had
Little darling if you hear me now
Never needed you so bad
Spinning round inside my head

Sail away with me honey
I put my heart in your hands
Sail away with me honey now, now, now
Sail away with me
What will be will be
I wanna hold you now

Ive been talking drunken gibberish
Falling in and out of bars
Trying to find some explanation here
For the way some people are
How did it ever come so far

Sail away with me honey
I put my heart in your hands
Sail away with me honey now, now, now
Sail away with me
What will be will be
I wanna hold you now
Sail away with me honey
I put my heart in your hands
Sail away with me honey now, now, now
Sail away with me
What will be will be
I wanna hold you now

-David Gray