Well, Norcalsail, the Fish will definitely be lighter than the Laser when it comes time to transport it, move it around near the water's edge, etc., particularly when you're on your own. Back in Laser days, I usually had help in the form of willing crew, so loading (cartopping) & unloading weren't a big deal, especially with a (homemade) dolly for the boat. Quick flip from cartop or truck to dolly, wheel the boat to the water's edge, and "Voila!!!" When I didn't have help in the form of crew, I'd sandbag one or two of the Seal Team guys walking up to town from the nearby base... never had one turn me down when it came to flipping the boat on or off the vehicle, LOL. Perhaps my age had something to do with it, though I never failed to mention that I served in the Infantry, aye???
Of course, I'd have the dolly sitting next to the vehicle so it was evident what needed to be done, and the actual flip only took a matter of seconds. Once I had the boat on the dolly, it was easy enough to wheel it back & forth, though I had to drag the hull through soft sand for a short distance. Not a problem, the Minifish was even lighter so it made things easier, yeah? Now that I'm getting on in years, my cartopping days are done, but I may still buy a small sailboat on a trailer and get out on the water that way... I'm thinking a Lido 14 or something similar, be kinda cool to end up with a Lido after so many decades of sailing, since I began my "nautical career" aboard a Lido. Nothing wrong with those little boats, friends & I had heller fun aboard them back in the day.
HOPE YA HAVE FUN WITH YOUR NEW BOAT, THAT'S WHAT IT'S ALL ABOUT, AYE??? JUST KEEP MARINE SAFETY IN MIND, AND POST SOME PICS WHEN YA GET AROUND TO IT, LOL.
Well, Norcalsail, the Fish will definitely be lighter than the Laser when it comes time to transport it, move it around near the water's edge, etc., particularly when you're on your own. Back in Laser days, I usually had help in the form of willing crew, so loading (cartopping) & unloading weren't a big deal, especially with a (homemade) dolly for the boat. Quick flip from cartop or truck to dolly, wheel the boat to the water's edge, and "Voila!!!" When I didn't have help in the form of crew, I'd sandbag one or two of the Seal Team guys walking up to town from the nearby base... never had one turn me down when it came to flipping the boat on or off the vehicle, LOL. Perhaps my age had something to do with it, though I never failed to mention that I served in the Infantry, aye???
Of course, I'd have the dolly sitting next to the vehicle so it was evident what needed to be done, and the actual flip only took a matter of seconds. Once I had the boat on the dolly, it was easy enough to wheel it back & forth, though I had to drag the hull through soft sand for a short distance. Not a problem, the Minifish was even lighter so it made things easier, yeah? Now that I'm getting on in years, my cartopping days are done, but I may still buy a small sailboat on a trailer and get out on the water that way... I'm thinking a Lido 14 or something similar, be kinda cool to end up with a Lido after so many decades of sailing, since I began my "nautical career" aboard a Lido. Nothing wrong with those little boats, friends & I had heller fun aboard them back in the day.
HOPE YA HAVE FUN WITH YOUR NEW BOAT, THAT'S WHAT IT'S ALL ABOUT, AYE??? JUST KEEP MARINE SAFETY IN MIND, AND POST SOME PICS WHEN YA GET AROUND TO IT, LOL.
Hi Tag. I definitely will want some kind of dolly but am hoping to transport with my truck in some manner. If it seems too much, I may have to get a trailer. Originally, I had wanted to get a used Sunfish but did not see too many locally and after reading about some projects decided I have too much to do around the house already. So I got one new from a shop up in Portland and am waiting for them to get a shipment down this way. Hoping to hear something soon...Thanks for the welcome-Philwelcome and congrats on a brand new boat! I'm sure I'm not the only one on the forum that is jealous of that!
did you plan to get a trailer? that might make it a lot easier to transport and get it in/out of the water. a dolly to roll the boat around on the ground and down to the beach is also a nice addition - there are a few you can purchase, and this site has plenty of home-made versions that work really well, too.
cheers,
tag
Sure like the pictures and will keep the dollies in mind. I may take this boat to some more remote lakes like up in the Sierra so will need some reliable transport options. Thanks for the advice on breathable covers, I'll keep that in mind. PhilNorcalsail,
Protect that investment and your boat will last a long long time. We love dollies to move the boat around, and covers if the boat lives outdoors.
We get our covers from SLO Sail and Canvas in San Luis Obispo. Pacific Sunbrella Blue, spars on deck, with straps. Get the basic Sunbrella that breathes, not the waterproof or Top Gun. Nothing is waterproof, except for it holds moisture IN and mildew starts. The spars on deck cover gives us the option to leave all the gear with the boat on the road or on the beach. It also fits nice without the spars on deck. A good fitting cover is eesential to keep the cockpit and sail from becoming critter condos.
We like the Dynamic Dolly so much that we became e-dealers. Great customer service, shipped from the US, usually same day. They have held up great in our salt water environment of NW Florida. We do a lot of boat storage TETRIS with our restoration projects, and the dollies are back savers. If you are interested in a Dynamic Dolly, send me a PM and we can get one out with free shipping.
View attachment 27424
View attachment 27425
Cheers
Kent and Skipper
Thanks Breeze Bender, I feel like sailing will become a way to add to my two favorite things: camping and swimming. There are a lot of lakes in my area and I plan to explore places I can camp and access the water easily. I already know of a number of spots here in northern California. Also, it can be a focus for Saturday day trips locally. Told my wife it's gonna change my life! Thanks for the congrats, PhilYes, a brand new Sunfish! Your Dad taught you well. Congratulations and enjoy every minute!
Hi Kent, I was wondering about that. I had read they were sending the labor to China but this could be old stock LP. I sure hope they are keeping quality standards up to par. May send the company an e-mail about shipment as they were supposed to contact me yesterday-patience needed on my part. Oh yeah, I will post pictures showing details of a recent boat.While you're waiting you can get your camera ready to take some pictures, it will be nice to see some pictures of a newer boat. Is she a new LP from the China factory or a new old stock boat?
Cheers
Kent
Hey Chris, I ordered mine with a white hull and a red stripe lengthwise and the Colada sail. Hope the quality is there. Been thinking of sailing fresh water only but Tomales Bay is close, big and quite tempting. There is a private campground on the north side that we can access; an easy drive from home here in Santa Rosa! Thanks for the info...The latest boats they have imported - at least to the east coast - are UK built. It'll be interesting to see what you get. Did they tell you what color it'll be? The UK boats are 100% baby blue except for the splash rail which comes in colors. The Chinese ones have been all white with red or blue trim.
BTW, when my wife and I lived in San Francisco, we enjoyed sailing on Tomales Bay. You can get a permit to camp on Pt. Reyes, so you can launch on from the public launch in Marshall, pull up on the beach on Pt. Reyes and stay overnight. You can also just pull back out at the boat launch and have a great meal at the restaurant at Nick's Cove, right by the launch - you don't even need to drive!! We saw a few seals in the bay - lots of fun for us east-coasters!
. I have this idea there is a fresh water hose for boat rinsing by the fish cleaning station - but I may be completely misremembering.Been thinking of sailing fresh water only but Tomales Bay is close, big and quite tempting.
That crossed my mind, I sure would clean it pretty well after salt water...just got word it should get here later tomorrow.. I have this idea there is a fresh water hose for boat rinsing by the fish cleaning station - but I may be completely misremembering.
Thanks for that info-I hope the quality is there!They made a few test boats in the UK last year. They told the class those would not be coming to the US. But lo and behold, they are! The LP site and the APS site both show new boats being 100 percent baby blue, which is the color of the UK Lasers. And the UK boat at the NAs was baby blue, while the Chinese boats were white. So my guess is they are switching production to the UK.
What is even more interesting is the UK boats they made last year have no foam blocks. They claim they have reinforced the bottom so the blocks are not needed, and they’ve put cubitainers in for floatation. I don’t know if that is how the NAs boat was as it had no inspection ports. If they can make the boat durable without blocks that would be great, but I don’t know about LPs engineering prowess.
For NorCal Sailor, the red center stripe boat would be US production from a couple years back and that would be a good boat to have. I am surprised there are any left at this point.
Thanks for that info-I hope the quality is there!
LOL, Thanks Ghost Rider, it will be really cool when it arrives. Hope it's striped like I ordered, I'll see soon.Patience is a virtue, think positive thoughts...
"THE BOAT WILL ARRIVE TOMORROW... OM-M-M!!!"
And so it shall be, Grasshopper... LOL.
Reminds me of a cool Zen proverb:
IF YOU ARE FILLED WITH DESIRE, YOUR SORROWS SWELL LIKE THE GRASS AFTER THE RAIN... BUT IF YOU SUBDUE DESIRE, YOUR SORROWS FALL FROM YOU LIKE DROPS OF WATER FROM A LOTUS FLOWER.
[Chinese gong crashes here...]
Whatever ya do, don't beat up the 350-lb. truck driver who delivers your boat... LOL.
Hey Chris, The color choices were either white with a red stripe running lengthwise or white with a blue stripe running lengthwise, both stripes thick and centered in the middle. The choices were an icon. I really want the paint to be what was indicated on the site; I chose red stripe. It is supposed to be here within a couple of hours-we'll see. Colada sail delivered to my door, $4,520. Guess I got to pay a use tax on registration-PhilPlease let us know what shows up and where it was made. The word out of LP today is all new boats, whether made in China or the UK are baby blue. The early 2018 boats from china are definitely white.
It's from West Coast Sailing in Portland Oregon. If you check out their site you can see what I described...Hey Chris, The color choices were either white with a red stripe running lengthwise or white with a blue stripe running lengthwise, both stripes thick and centered in the middle. The choices were an icon. I really want the paint to be what was indicated on the site; I chose red stripe. It is supposed to be here within a couple of hours-we'll see. Colada sail delivered to my door, $4,520. Guess I got to pay a use tax on registration-Phil
Those are US made from 2015 or maybe 2016. They were well-made. Interested to see what arrives. You will enjoy it regardless!!It's from West Coast Sailing in Portland Oregon. If you check out their site you can see what I described...
My invoice indicates, Hull:red , I'm currently waiting for the driver's "heads up" call- He must be gettin close!Those are US made from 2015 or maybe 2016. They were well-made. Interested to see what arrives. You will enjoy it regardless!!
The boat arrived about 3:00 pm today. The driver, my son in law and myself carried it to the deck in my backyard. Really cool but no red center stripe. White hull with a red well and red splashguard. It seemed quite a bit lighter than our old family Sunfish in Wisconsin. Colada sail had the window which I was happy about-probably a good idea for me and makes up for the lack of stripe. No manual to tell me how to put in the self bailer, screw the rudder together,etc. I figured it out but will make sure all is good before I make anything permanent. White fiberglass rudder and daggerboard-the boat is really beautiful and I plan to use it till I'm done and hand it down to the kids.Those are US made from 2015 or maybe 2016. They were well-made. Interested to see what arrives. You will enjoy it regardless!!
I'd be tempted to locate a nice 50-year-old Sunfish and have Dad and the kids racing Sunfishes.The boat arrived about 3:00 pm today. The driver, my son in law and myself carried it to the deck in my backyard. Really cool but no red center stripe. White hull with a red well and red splashguard. It seemed quite a bit lighter than our old family Sunfish in Wisconsin. Colada sail had the window which I was happy about-probably a good idea for me and makes up for the lack of stripe. No manual to tell me how to put in the self bailer, screw the rudder together,etc. I figured it out but will make sure all is good before I make anything permanent.
White fiberglass rudder and daggerboard-the boat is really beautiful and I plan to use it till I'm done and hand it down to the kids.
One of my daughters and my son in law both are interested in learning to sail. It would be nice to build a family fleet!I'd be tempted to locate a nice 50-year-old Sunfish and have Dad and the kids racing Sunfishes.
.
Congratulations! Please post photos of the new boat in all its glory! Thanks, It is a beautiful boat and I will post pics when I get it all rigged. Phil
One of my daughters and my son in law both are interested in learning to sail. It would be nice to build a family fleet!