this blog is to help me remember the timeline and history of my 2 sailboats, the sailing trips that I take with them, and the repairs and upgrades that I work on to improve the boats.
I’m currently keeping busy as husband to one lovely wife, father to 3 young boys, and am hoping to start teaching them to sail in the next few years.
as I live in Michigan, my sailing season is rather short, so I will randomly post about other types of sailing or similar watersports. I’ll also occasionally post about other things that my family or I have been doing other than sailing, and maybe once in a while post about music and things of the like that catch my interest.
for questions, comments, suggestions, email me: my2fish – at – gmail.com
Hi There,
I saw on the site that you installed a mast cleat. Do you use special screws? Drill pilot holes and screw the cleat in? Simple as that?
Peter
Peter – I used #10 stainless steel sheet metal screws, and I did pre-drill the mast with small pilot holes. I also used the 3M 4200 sealant behind the cleat. See my post about the mast upgrades for reference and pictures.
thanks for visiting!
my2fish
I just joined your blog. I raced Sunfish in my teens and was a fleet champion at the Leland Yacht Club. Odds are you’ve been up that way once or twice. I even took a three day seminar with Derrick Fries. I haven’t sailed much since I had to get a real job, and that was 25 years ago. I just picked up an abused ’75 era sunfish and have been restoring it in central Illinois. Luckily, my parents still live in Leland and I get to go up an visit my old boat on occasion. Now I might be able to tow it home. One thing I’ve only done once is sail in Lake Michigan. Beautiful area if you can get up there. Here is my Dad’s site: http://www.lelandreport.com You might also be interested in some extreme videos by a friend of ours, Elijah Allen http://www.youtube.com/user/elijahallen/videos?view=0
jim, glad to have you! I’m not sure I’ve made it up to Leland, but I know that northwest area of Michigan pretty well – more familiar with the area a bit south of there near Frankfort and Arcadia, though.
thanks for the link to your dad’s site and the videos – I’ll be sure to check them out!
I enjoy your blog. I am a sunfish sailor in Lake County Ohio. Mostly sail Fairport Harbor Lake Erie. I am originally from Michigan and would like to find some good areas for sailing Lake Michigan. The most challenging part is easy access getting the boat in and out of the water from a trailer.
My present project is fixing up and painting a 1978 Minifish.
Dave, thanks for reading and commenting! I would agree the difficulty will be finding a place to launch with a trailer. Lake Michigan often has larger sandy beaches that stretch quite a ways. a dolly with fat tires would help, but if you don’t have that, I’d try to research if there are any boat ramps along the coastline.
I’ve only sailed on Lake Michigan near Arcadia, and we have had to carry my boat down to the water’s edge.
Thanks. I often sail alone because my kids are only 10 and 5 yo. I bought a Minifish because it is lighter, only 80 lbs. I plan to use a Rollaboat tote which fits in where the centerboard goes. Hopefully, I will be able to launch from most beaches that way. The trick is to do it all by myself and not kill my back. The sunfish is really made for beach launching. It is just hard to move it on a soft beach.
Dave, you might be alright with the lighter Minifish and that dolly.
Have you taken your kids sailing? I’ve taken all 3 of my boys out with me (not all at the same time!). It is a great father/child bonding experience!
my2fish hopefully you can help…after this winter my wife discovered quite a lot of water in the hull of her only 3 year old sunfish….can you reccommend the proper weith to get this out? She has not had issues with water in the hull after sailing….thanks….
doug – I sent you an email. let me know if you have any more questions!