The Offshore Voyaging Reference Site

Is It a Need or a Want?

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For us offshore sailors who are trying to get out there voyaging, it’s really important to distinguish between our wants and our needs. Sounds simple, but is it?


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More Articles From Online Book: How To Buy a Cruising Boat:

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  18. Cockpits—Part 1, Safe and Seamanlike
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  36. US$30,000 Starter Cruiser—How It’s Working Out
  37. Q&A, What’s the Maximum Sailboat Size For a Couple?
  38. At What Age should You Stop Sailing And Buy a Motorboat?
  39. A Motorsailer For Offshore Voyaging?
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Dave Benjamin

I think there is an omission in the “Needs” category and that’s a set of properly constructed offshore cruising sails. With proper construction goes proper design and choice of materials, preferably executed with by a loft with proven experience in bluewater cruising sails. We’ve seen sails built by lofts who make terrific racing sails that simply don’t hold up to real world cruising.

We’ve seen many people load their boats with all manner of electronics and other toys, ignoring the need for proper sails. In many cases this results to trying to repair or replace sails in rather inconvenient locations.

Many cruisers lack proper light air sail inventory and motor incessantly. Often we’ll meet people with fantastic storm sails that will likely never find their way out of the sailbags, but nothing in the way of light air sails. Light air is much more of a frustration than heavy air for most cruisers.

Jim N

Where would put radar in this equation.

Ernest

I am extending the need for radar to AIS as well. And I mean a transceiver, not only a receiver – as soon as I transmit my own position I get noticed by the big boats a lot earlier than they might see me on their radar screens, if at all. I consider this way more important than for example an active radar reflector (which would be in the middle between want and need, on my list).

Marc Dacey

I concur fully on the need for proper sails, and I am outfitting a steel motorsailer, which I operate as if it’s a sailer-motor. That means attention to sail handling, trimming and a willingness to lay off hitting the start button if our SOG drops below 4 knots. It also means that I’ve just installed a four-bladed feathering prop to reduce drag…yes, even on a full-keeler.

We are always conscious that our boat should sail to its performance potential, and that means being conscious of hull trim (and in our case, being able to pump internal ballast to the high side), and having a varied enough selection of sails to make use of any and all wind we find. Because if we’re not sailing, even in a heavy displacement boat, there are far better ways to travel.

Lastly, carry the means and have the skills to *repair* your sails underway. Most sail damage starts as chafed bits or tiny rips. It’s cheaper and less disruptive to fix them underway than to wait for a major sailcloth failure.

Yanick Levasseur

100% agree with this comment. If I’m investing half a million dollars in a bluewater sailboat cruiser, it’s because I want to sail, not motor. I believe most sailors hate motoring altogether. We do it when we have no other choice. A decent Code 0 will work even at 3 knots True Wind, and provide a very quiet and pleasant sailing experience!

Paul van Oss

Hello John,

Do you need or do you want to sail?
If you want to sail then you need…

The needs and wants of a sailor are as diverse as the collection of sailors is. It is not possible to formulate a universal list of needs for sailors. Sailors are an opinionated group of people. You need that if you are on your own and you have to move on.

I want to sail, but for that I need the best configuration that works for me. In general it comes down to what is specified in the discussions about the “Adventure 40” with some minor but not unimportant adjustments.

I need an Alu or steel boat. My boat will be my home. I want to survive a bump with a reef or an UFO. It is cheaper and better then an insurance of the boat. Repairs are quicker done without the itch and poison too.
I will buy a second hand boat. I’ve more time than money and a schedule of working 6 months , sailing 6 months is what I’m used to.

Light-air sails are a need. I’m amazed that you say that it is cheaper to motor. Would love to see a calculation. Not to impose anything, but the nicest sails are with hardly a breeze of wind, gliding. Oppose that to going forward, noisy and with more heat then is comfortable. The need to motor is a last resort.

An iPad or Android-alike is going to be a very cheap and flexible tool. It can be watertight, a repeater for almost everything anywhere and a logbook. The good part, it almost doesn’t consume energy. Something to consider. Will give you my insight/solution in half a year.

I still have at least one battle to go on the needed/wanted level. My wife thinks we need a freezer and I try to argue that it will endanger our sailing adventures with the priorities for energy consumption, investments in frozen meat and all kind of costly repairs with global-warming gasses in poor countries. I still didn’t read of anybody that was successful with a freezer on a 40 ft. boat.
For sure it is my own fault. I gave her a very rosy view of the difference between a 32 and 40 foot cruiser. But we will have a shower, footpumps and a windvane that can act as a spare rudder.

Paul van Oss

Cool (hand) John,

Maybe it is just a matter of different cultures, that often leads to problematic communications. I’m Dutch. We are quite used to build one-off boats with a standard design (in metal, fiber or wood-laminate). This was for a very long time seen as the only possibility to sail around the world (and come back if you wanted).

Of course one should do a good research, don’t let emotions get in the way, don’t be dogmatic and hold up your decisions until you have researched it all. The AAC website helps enormously with that. It is a trove of knowledge for the curious sailor.

It seems you are a bit pessimistic about a Spi. Just looked at Atlantic Sail traiders (http://www.usedsails.com/). They offer a ‘very good’ Spi with Luff of 60′ for 2450$US, 1.5 ounce. (used them, never had a problem)
Hal Roth has a chapter ‘Sail Handling’ in his book ‘How to Sail Around the World…’. He states ‘…50% of the time, the wind strength is 15 knots or less.” He is also saying change your sailing-wardrobe every 20.000 to 30.000 miles.

You are very optimistic about your engine. I only did 4 knots with 3/4 gallon/hour with a Perkins4108. OK, admit, it was a Westsail-32.

I’m curious how you use your iPad (because you write you don’t need it).

George L

Hi Paul,

So how did the battle with your wife go? Did you “win”? If yes, is she still your wife 😉 ?

Considering that 80 to 90 % of the time it’s the guy’s idea to go cruising, that freezer with all the power consequences may very well be the very biggest need and the best investment. ‘cuz it may very well be the difference between single-handing and blissfully being out together.

Just sayin’ ..

Ben Eriksen

Interesting test. Enjoyed seeing the photo of Taonui. We met them in St. Anthony NFLD in 2011. Great folks indeed. Thanks for your insight.

C. Dan

As always, great content – especially in the comments!

I look forward to more analysis of the “true cost” of sailing.

I am a little surprised on the placement of “mainsail roller furling” as a possible need. Am I nuts to think that should be squarely in the “wants” category? I’ve sailing with an in-mast system before, and I can’t imagine spending my own money on something like.

Marc Dacey

Having seen in-mast furling in action in harsh conditions, I think it’s a split-decision. An electric winch and in-mast mainsail furling allow a cruising couple of non-Olympic physicality to run a bigger, more comfortable and (perhaps) safer boat. Yes, the downside is not-great sail shape, which is an issue on certain points of sail, but it can hold up to rough stuff and certainly is faster than reefing down, again a consideration on a short-handed boat.

I wouldn’t personally have it, because I need that sail shape, but if I got an otherwise perfect boat at a good price that had it and I wanted to voyage for a couple of years, I doubt I would tear it out. There are far worse compromises.

Marc Dacey

That’s pretty much how I feel. I did not mean to imply that a bigger boat was a good idea only if automated systems were required to run it, but rather that electrical assist and in-mast furling can make a properly sized “couples-crewed” boat of 40-45 feet, say, possible to single-hand on passage, even for the less physical or larger half of the couple.

An example would be the windlass. On our 33-footer, there is nothing but arm strength, but we just have five metres of chain at the anchor and 3/4 in. rode for the rest. Our 41 footer is all 3/8″ chain, and the windlass is manual and electric. If we are just hauling in in calm weather, I prefer the exercise of cranking, hopefully with someone able to clean and flake chain coming aboard. If we need to bug out in a hurry, we can break the anchor out with boat momentum after hauling up slack chain electrically. Some people, perhaps a little older, just go with all electric to save their backs. These days, I don’t see that as a dangerous compromise or a bad choice, even if windlasses do occassionally conk out.

My thoughts on “need” and “want” are tempered by a cruising plan that sees us leaving with a 40 year old wife and 12 year old son (good for vigour and strength), but both of whom are circa five feet tall. While the son will very likely get a fair bit larger over the course of the trip, our boat, at 41′ LOA, is sized to what my wife’s arms can reach and what she can reasonably handle solo watchkeeping up to circa 30 knots. Experience tells me that autopilots/self-steering can get overwhelmed beyond that and needless to say, I would prefer to be roused from the off-watch than round up or broach to.

Had my wife been the same age and strength, but, say, five-seven or eight, I would’ve preferred a 45 footer for stability and stowage. So I think crew size and strength enter into the “want/need” aspect of sail control, unless you are Ellen MacArthur, who is just five-two but can crush a coconut with her ring finger and thumb!

Wilson Fitt

I endorse your categorization of wants and needs, John. Our old fashioned but not-so-old boat has carried us in comfort and safety for many thousands of miles with pretty well everything on your “need” list but not much else. We steer with tiller and windvane, stumble around the deck to reef and furl, pump water manually and heat it in a kettle, and seem to spend a lot less time than most people trying to fix things. I admit that you would contest our version of a “well engineered anchoring system” (a manual windlass and enormous lump of steel in the shape of a CQR) but it works. A nice big second hand genoa does fine in light air. My purity has eroded and I am now fairly quick to start the engine, comforting myself with the knowledge that the batteries needed charging anyway.

I am tempted by “wants” but have managed to resist for the most part, although we now have an i-thingy with charts for a large portion of the western hemisphere.

The only need that I don’t see on your list is a good cabin heater that works reliably at sea. Our Dickenson is about 3/4 of the way there.