Bill:
One of the things I thought about on the way to City Island to buy the boat was that I would finally get to ask the owners "what in the world does "Honey-Trout" mean?"
Kathrin said "I have no idea. That's what the name was when we got her.
And I'll tell you, it hasn't exactly been a selling point."
Monday, April 27, 2009
Daria was a good boat, for starter sailors.
Theo:
Daria was a good boat, for starter sailors. Its small but its easy to get used to. She is sort of broken but is nice to sleep in at night. Daria can smell really moldy but the smell is easily gotten used too. the most its gone is about 8 knots. We are selling it so you might want to buy it, if you haven't sailed or are a bad sailor its a really good boat to buy.
Theo Moree
Age Ten
Daria was a good boat, for starter sailors. Its small but its easy to get used to. She is sort of broken but is nice to sleep in at night. Daria can smell really moldy but the smell is easily gotten used too. the most its gone is about 8 knots. We are selling it so you might want to buy it, if you haven't sailed or are a bad sailor its a really good boat to buy.
Theo Moree
Age Ten
What have we done?!?!?!?
Belinda:
We bought her. Yes, we are now the proud owners of "Honey Trout," a 1974 O'Day 32. Yes, yes, I know a 32' sounds small for a family of 3 to live aboard. She needs a lot of TLC and some engine work, but she's a solid boat with a ketch rig. I'm beginning to think Bill and I are a little crazy...
Yesterday was a beautiful day and we spent most of it showing "Daria" to prospective buyers (I think we have some interest). Then we got a call from "the guy" we've been trying to call for weeks. Our friend Jay introduced us to a 1974 O'Day 32' that has a center cockpit and two cabins for sleeping.
We bought her from a family of 3 who lived on her for 2-3 years until they moved up to a 41'. We're still looking for a 42-46' but I'm so relieved that we have a place to live when our lease expires July 1.
This morning, I was waking up in our sun drenched bedroom feeling a bit sad to be leaving our beautiful apartment. Then I thought, wait, in July you're going to wake up and have ocean front property. I'll be able to stick my head out of the hatch, smell the salt air and feel the warm sun on my skin. What could be better?
Now comes the fun part. We need to tinker with the engine, pull her out for a short haul, paint the bottom, and then start cleaning up the inside and making her our home.
And, where will we live? Well, I guess you can't figure everything out in one day...
Thursday, April 23, 2009
Wednesday, April 22, 2009
Finally listed Daria for sale
We made the decision to sell Daria a month ago. And then we did absolutely nothing about it, dragged my heels for several weeks. Changed my mine several times, and back again.
Well, we finally listed Daria up for sale, for sail:
-------------------------------
25' Sailboat, excellent condition, family fun - $2500 (College Point)
Date: 2009-04-22, 9:55AM EDT
Seidelmann S25 sailboat for sale
Its an excellent sailboat, fast, a nice cruiser/club racer, easy to sail.
Our family has sailed her these past three seasons, and we have spent almost every weekend on her, and several extended trips.
As a day sailer, we've taken up to eight people out.
We have done a lot of work on her, and she is great shape.
We have three foresails included with the boat:
a standard jib,
a larger jib about 120 or 130%,
and a really great, large, very fast genoa. This sail keeps us moving in the lightest of breezes, which is very typical on the Long Island Sound in July.
and also includes two mainsails.
Includes a Yamaha 9.9 4-stroke engine, lifting motor mount,
swim ladder, sail cover, bumpers, everything that you need. Even life jackets.
Brand new interior cushions (never used yet!), of new foam and new Sunbrella cloth.
Its on the hard in College Point, Queens, ready to go back in the water.
The annual costs to own this sailboat for us has been about $2000 per year. This covers summer mooring at our small yacht club here in New York City (or on a mooring in Oyster Bay) with easy access to Long Island Sound, and winter haulout. DMV registration and annual tuneup of the Yamaha for $150.
That's all it costs to own your own sailboat in New York City or Long Island Sound. If you want, we can help set you up with everything that you need to know.
We have spent more on renovating and improving her over the last three years than we are asking for her.
But we have decided to look for a much larger boat to live aboard, and so Daria will have to find a new home.
She is the perfect first boat for a beginner or intermediate sailor. Simple to understand and operate, but very capable and brisk sailing. Inexpensive to maintain, very manageable.
Asking $2500, negotiable.
Please let me know if you may be interested.
A mooring is also available for her.
* Location: College Point
Monday, April 20, 2009
The more we think about the O'Day...
...the more we think it could be workable.
Cheap.
We can live on it while we save money.
We can fix it up.
And we can practice the techniques of sailing a ketch.
We need something in order to be out on the water for the summer.
As much as I'm not looking forward to selling "Daria", she's finally almost at how we want her and the last three years with her have been the best for our family, the fact is she is just not big enough for our next step. There has been a lot of interest in her, and I think she'll sell soon. That will be a bitter sweet day.
Cheap.
We can live on it while we save money.
We can fix it up.
And we can practice the techniques of sailing a ketch.
We need something in order to be out on the water for the summer.
As much as I'm not looking forward to selling "Daria", she's finally almost at how we want her and the last three years with her have been the best for our family, the fact is she is just not big enough for our next step. There has been a lot of interest in her, and I think she'll sell soon. That will be a bitter sweet day.
Sunday, April 19, 2009
Is that the one?
Our friend Jay told us about this boat. He said his friend was asking very little money, but he didn't know how big it was or what kind it was. We have a very specific kind of sailboat in mind. We want it to be between 42-46', full keel, ketch rigged. Bill, Theo and I can't believe how cheap it is and we wondered if it still floats.
So today we went out to City Island to look at the boat. Our friend walked us to the marina and then started to walk through a yard with lots of boats. I kept thinking, "Is that the one?" as we passed each boat. But no, it must be on the water because we headed out onto the docks. We approached a wooden boat that needed a lot of work, and I thought, "Oh no, not a wooden boat. We'll never be able to cruise, we'll spend all of our time working on that one." Jay kept walking, and I thought, "Whew!" Each boat we passed, I had that same question in my mind, "Is that it?" or "Is it that next one?" Finally, we're almost running out of dock when we come upon an O'Day 32'. I think, "Oh no, an O'Day, no wonder it's so cheap." But then, we get on board. She's solid in the water, not tender like Daria. She's a center cockpit, so that means there are 2 cabins (bedrooms), a salon, a galley (a very small kitchen) and a head (a very small bathroom). She's not in bad shape, and her decks seem sound.
She seems like a good possibility for a temporary live aboard. Most of the work she needs is work that we've already learned how to do on Daria. Could our family of 3 live on such a small boat? Jay told us the couple selling the boat lived on it for 2-3 years with a son whose now 5 years older than Theo.
She's an interesting possibility, but not what we were looking for. Now we just have to wait to talk to the owner. Maybe Jay misunderstood how much they would be asking for the boat...
Looking at boats. A lot of boats.
Today we went to City Island to look at something that we knew nothing about, other than Jay said we should look at it, that it was going to be short-money. A Brotherhood hook-up.
As followed Jay out on the dock, we would approach a boat and Belinda and I would love at each other. "Is it that one?" and Jay would walk past it. "This one?" As we got close to the end of the dock and we were running out of boats, we approached a large wooden ketch with not a lick of paint still stuck to it, sagging deeply in the water. "Oh, God, not that one!" You could tell it once had beautiful lines, but I think the only thing that kept it afloat today is the fact that it is wood. At what point do you stop calling it a boat and start calling it driftwood? And still Jay walked on.
At then near the very end of the dock was a center-cockpit, a ketch. As we approached, it was in surprising good looking shape. Sail covers were bright and new. A roller furler jib.
And then the label right there on the side: "O'Day 32". My enthusiasm sank. I don't know much about O'Days, but I think of them in the same class as Hunters and Catalinas. Coastal cruisers for weekend sailors. We wouldn't be sailing this sailboat across the Atlantic. Not even across the Gulf Stream.
We looked and poked. Soft decks in front of the stays, both port and starboard. Delamination is a problem. Had that problem on Daria, a lot of work. There was more, but basically it comes down to this: It is a center-cockpit, but it is small. There is only the V-berth, the central main cabin and galley, the exterior cockpit, and the walk-over aft cabin. Can three people live on a 32 foot sailboat? I mean without killing each other?
Is there enough storage? Large enough water and fuel tanks? All of our questions will have to wait until we can track down Otto, who is out of town.
This is not the boat that I want. But it may be the only boat that we can afford for now.
As followed Jay out on the dock, we would approach a boat and Belinda and I would love at each other. "Is it that one?" and Jay would walk past it. "This one?" As we got close to the end of the dock and we were running out of boats, we approached a large wooden ketch with not a lick of paint still stuck to it, sagging deeply in the water. "Oh, God, not that one!" You could tell it once had beautiful lines, but I think the only thing that kept it afloat today is the fact that it is wood. At what point do you stop calling it a boat and start calling it driftwood? And still Jay walked on.
At then near the very end of the dock was a center-cockpit, a ketch. As we approached, it was in surprising good looking shape. Sail covers were bright and new. A roller furler jib.
And then the label right there on the side: "O'Day 32". My enthusiasm sank. I don't know much about O'Days, but I think of them in the same class as Hunters and Catalinas. Coastal cruisers for weekend sailors. We wouldn't be sailing this sailboat across the Atlantic. Not even across the Gulf Stream.
We looked and poked. Soft decks in front of the stays, both port and starboard. Delamination is a problem. Had that problem on Daria, a lot of work. There was more, but basically it comes down to this: It is a center-cockpit, but it is small. There is only the V-berth, the central main cabin and galley, the exterior cockpit, and the walk-over aft cabin. Can three people live on a 32 foot sailboat? I mean without killing each other?
Is there enough storage? Large enough water and fuel tanks? All of our questions will have to wait until we can track down Otto, who is out of town.
This is not the boat that I want. But it may be the only boat that we can afford for now.
Sunday, April 05, 2009
Looking at houseboats in Washington DC
My dear old friend Amy (meaning she's been my friend for a long time, not that she's old) came with me to look at a couple of houseboats that are for sale at Gangplank Marina in downtown Washington DC.
Belinda and I would never really want a houseboat. But the trick here is that legal liveaboards at Gangplank are limited, but you can buy a boat that has its legal status grandfathered in. And once you own a boat with liveaboard status, you can transfer that status to another boat. It seems that the boats that have the legal status are selling for a premium of at least $10,000 over what they would be worth without.
It feels like the old days of "fixture fees" and "key fees" on the lofts that I lived in in New York City back in the mid-1980's.
A Canadian woman is asking for $35,000 for a very small, shabby houseboat with one seized engine. She implied that she'd take $29,000. This thing, without the status, would be lucky to get $5000.
Joe at Gladys Marine has another houseboat, also a liveaboard, much larger and very comfortably laid out. Although a bit rough at the moment, he promises a long list of repairs that his crew will take care of as soon as someone buys it. His price is firm at $45,000. And I'm sure he'll get it.
I don't think that a houseboat is in our future. For our $45,000, we'd rather just buy a 40' project sailboat.
If we had $45,000.
While we are here, I'll mention that I was pleasantly surprised at how nice the facilities are at Gangplank Marina. The bathrooms and showers have been recently refinished, and have marble counters and nice fixtures. More like a yacht club than a marina. Add with parking, washers and dryers, and dogs allowed, and it would be a nice place to live. If you could get legal liveaboard status.
Belinda and I would never really want a houseboat. But the trick here is that legal liveaboards at Gangplank are limited, but you can buy a boat that has its legal status grandfathered in. And once you own a boat with liveaboard status, you can transfer that status to another boat. It seems that the boats that have the legal status are selling for a premium of at least $10,000 over what they would be worth without.
It feels like the old days of "fixture fees" and "key fees" on the lofts that I lived in in New York City back in the mid-1980's.
A Canadian woman is asking for $35,000 for a very small, shabby houseboat with one seized engine. She implied that she'd take $29,000. This thing, without the status, would be lucky to get $5000.
Joe at Gladys Marine has another houseboat, also a liveaboard, much larger and very comfortably laid out. Although a bit rough at the moment, he promises a long list of repairs that his crew will take care of as soon as someone buys it. His price is firm at $45,000. And I'm sure he'll get it.
I don't think that a houseboat is in our future. For our $45,000, we'd rather just buy a 40' project sailboat.
If we had $45,000.
While we are here, I'll mention that I was pleasantly surprised at how nice the facilities are at Gangplank Marina. The bathrooms and showers have been recently refinished, and have marble counters and nice fixtures. More like a yacht club than a marina. Add with parking, washers and dryers, and dogs allowed, and it would be a nice place to live. If you could get legal liveaboard status.
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