Considering a near-retirement challenge

[Cdnbond]

Newbie guy here ("Pocketship Probie"?);

I'm considering building a Pocketship as I transition into retirement. When I was a "wee lad", we had a 19' glass cabin day-sailor (no galley, head or electrical) that I still have fond memories of. If I can find pictures, I'll post them and I think you'll understand right away why I immediately liked the Pocketship.

But I'm not going to jump into what appears to be a $15K, 5-year (part time with the "reading assignments") effort without the research, so I've set myself four goals: First, to take the necessary Coast Guard boating safety and sailing courses (will definitely need to refresh my sailing memory after 30+ years), maybe even start the Captain's license path; Second, to read (will, skim at least) each of the topics in this Pocketship Forum, along with whatever side-trails lead to others' blogs; Third, to at least skim through the CLC shop notes blog to get a better understanding of stitch/glue specifically and boat-building generally, and; Fourth, if I'm still undecided (or have decided), I'm going to buy the Pocketship Build Manual for a cover-to-cover read before I even consider buying anything else.

In future post I'll be telling my sailing story, and I'm sure to have many questions which I'll drop under separate topics ("The only stupid question is the one that remains unasked -- until you've heard mine"-).

Stay tuned.

.

[JonLee]

Hi Cliff,

It is tremendous fun to build Pocketship, plus you get a great little boat in the end. One thing I'd suggest is ordering and reading the manual while you are in the early daydreaming/scoping stage. It will give you a far better sense of the scope of the project, plus give you solid info on stitch and glue boatbuilding. Plus it will do so in a far more thorough and organized fashion than you'll get from the forum or CLC's shop tips (both of which ARE excellent resources).

Aside from the manual, the sizable collection of Pocketship blogs is the other thing I'd recommend reading early. Reading Dave Curtis' blog totally sold me on building this boat. Search the forum form "blogs"...there is a post that lists almost all known Pocketship blogs.

[Cdnbond]

Thanks, Jon, for your words of encouragement. I'll be getting the manual soon (relatively -- still my "day job" to get to). I'll check out Dave Curtis' blog as soon as I can get to it.

Much to consider. But I've always said that if you don't have a hobby/passtime, what else would you be spending your money/time on? And what would you have at the end of your effort. With this, I'll have a great little sailboat (within my talents, or course).

You've probably guessed by now that I'll be using y'all as judge, jury and executioner for whether to proceed with this. If, after I've told of my experience you think I should save my money and seek out a good cruise company, well, let it ring out! I consider all inputs.

I'm going to hit the "Florida Tour 2013" this Saturday at Merrit Island. Nothing like seeing with one's own eyes.

Stay tuned.

-

[truenorth]

Garages all over the world are littered with part time boat builders and full time dreams. I can't speak for anyone but myself, but I'm not pursuing PocketShip because I want a boat. I want the pride of sailing something I built, the memories of building, and the catharsis/therapy of my garage. For half the price of the expected total cost of build, I can have a 24' Pearson. For a little less, a 30' Hunter. You get the idea.

I guess what I'm saying is, don't count on us to give you the green light. That can only come from you, your significant other (if relevant), and/or your Greater Power (if relevant). I think what you will find is the more internally driven you are in this, like anything, the more likely you will succeed. Having a cheering section can work wonders, but it still has to be you to start and - more importantly - finish.

I wish you the best of luck and look forward to hearing your report from Florida.