I am a relatively new SJ21 sailor but have some prior limited sailing experience on larger racer/cruiser sailboats and owning a Sea Pearl 21. My previous racer/cruiser sailing was mostly as a grinder, packing chutes, or rail meat
but I was bitten by the sailing bug and aspired to own my own boat one day. I bought the Sea Pearl 21 think it would be a good gunk-hole boat and fun to sail in the shallow coastal waters of Florida. I quickly realized that it was a unique sailing experience and wanted something more traditional that would allow me to sail with my local club the Lake Monroe Sailing Association in Sanford, FL. They are a great group that has a bunch of active racers. Also in that group was a bunch of San Juan 21 owners who shared with me all of the great qualities of these boats. For me the ability to race competitively, trailer easily, retract the keel and pull up to the beach, and fit my family of four for overnight trips was perfect. I am enjoying this boat a lot. Being 25 years old I think I will always have some work to do to keep it in sailing condition but I am happy I am spending reasonable amounts of money on an affordable boat and not a fortune on something bigger.I renamed by boat Blackjack. Here is some pics. I look forward to plenty of discussions on this site!
