New (old) SJ21 Owner

[Missleedee]

Hi All,

I just purchased a '76 MK1 (SN 1546) last week in Dillon CO. I'm not sure of the sail number but will post up what we find this week. I've been sailing one time but my first mate (boyfriend, roommate, SO) and instructor has been sailing 40 years and has a few One Design Championships under his belt, plus a lot of blue water sailing. He claims I can learn more from racing in 3 months than just cruising around for 3 years. We will see. He is currently rebuilding the rudder since it was real ratty. We are studying this site and all other SJ21 sites to answer questions about the boat but probably will not find all of the answers, so hopefully you folks will entertain yourselves by answering some of our questions. Please check the forum the next couple of weeks because we do have questions.

We live in an RV full time and travel mostly in the Western US. We winter near Lake Havasu AZ so we can sail, kayak, bicycle, hike, fly, etc, through the winter. Anyone wanting to get out of the cold this winter come on down and teach us something about this boat. We hope to get to one of the SJ21 meccas next summer.

Lee and Rick

[Diarmuid]

Welcome to the class and to this forum. The SJ21 is a sweet boat to learn on. Tho it helps to remember it is an oversized dinghy & was designed primarily for the light summer winds of the PNW. It's a light-air killer, a really amazing boat in steady breezes under 12 kts. It will stand up to the savage, knock-down blows common to Western inland lakes, but if you are going to be sailing those places primarily, I recommend a 'jiffy reefing' setup. We've found the SJ21 will tolerate any winds on reefed main (no headsail) and even sail thru 55 kts quite ably ... IF you get the sailplan sorted out in time. If not, it is easily overpowered and can become unmanageable, fast.

Have you visited the Trailer Sailor Bulletin Board? It's a bit stodgy at times but an active list & a good place to ask general small-boat questions. A regular there named Sean Mulligan has started an annual Lake Havasu cruiser's rally, with socializing and a poker run near London Bridge.

http://www.sailhavasu.com/

If you find yourself near southern Wyoming, give me a shout & we can go sailing. We may not have much water around here, but there's wind like nothing outside the Columbia River Gorge!

[Missleedee]

Thanks Diarmuid. We have heard of that get together in Havasu but didn't have a boat. I think the fact that the SJ21 is an oversize dinghy is why Rick talked us into buying it. He used to import a B-14 (and others) from Australia in the late '80s. It was the forerunner to the Olympic Class 49er by the same designer, his friend Julian Bethwaite. If you have pictures of your reefing points and measurements it would be greatly appreciated. The main on this boat has no reef points. We have a sail making sewing machine and grommet equipment so we can add these as required.

We are in central Colorado until 15 Sep and could hook up somewhere between us. I'll have to get a map. What lake do you sail on most often there?

Thanks,

L and R

[Diarmuid]

Our home water is a little 1.5x3 mile thing called Lake Hattie, west of Laramie. Its closeness is about all it has to recommend it, besides free camping and lots of wind. A friend of mine here -- who keeps his Potter19 on Havasu for the winter -- is arranging a little Lake Hattie sail-in featuring a number of Colorado and Arizona folks on or around Sept. 9th. I can follow up with info as it evolves, if you wish.

No one is likely to mistake the SJ21 for a skiff, but it is a nice mix of lively and forgiving. Feels faster than it is. Dinghy sailors will appreciate its sensitivity to crew placement & heel angles and will enjoy playing the main in stronger winds. It is a boat that needs to be actively sailed, rather than a set-and-forget kind of beast. & there's lots of feedback thru your bottom and the tiller to help new sailors understand the forces at play. Great learning boat.

Our mainsail reef is roughly 32" up from the foot, just below the first batten, and removes ~28% of the mainsail area, leaving a stiff, flat board. We placed three spur grommets mid sail and a bit below the line between luff and clew reefing grommets; if time permits, we thread ball bungees thru these and tie off the loose sail material around the boom. Just housekeeping -- the corner reef points take all the strain.

Here's us bringing Diarmuid back to shore during a random wind event clocked at 42mph. Had to drop off my thoroughly soaked passengers. Main reefed, jib furled, boat's doing just fine.