Marine Holding Tanks Dept. Blog: Making Sailing Your Full Time Hobby

Teamwork - Lara Dallman-Weiss hikes it with the team. Photo by Stephen Cloutier.

Your Marine Holding Tanks Professionals Discuss Steps You Need to Take to Go Full-Time

Raritan Engineering your marine holding tanks specialists would like to share with you these topics we thought would be of interest to you this month regarding how to make sailing your full time hobby.

Your marine holding tanks manufacturers talk about how I was told four years ago that the only way to move up from being a “green” sailor is to race every single day. Dedicating many hours to the sport contributes to building the instincts that a well-rounded sailor possesses. Here are some of the lessons I learned and advice for other enthusiastic sailors wanting to take their sailing to the next level.

KNOW YOURSELF 

Know yourself well enough to play up your strengths and improve on your weaknesses. Are you introverted or extroverted? Understanding my personality type helped me determine which teams I would have a good rapport with, which I found necessary in creating effective communication on the boat.

Another important aspect of knowing yourself is to recognize what you have fun doing and how it contributes to the program. Is an early morning walk to clean the boat, rig, and sort sails fun? Or is your style staying late and checking off work list items? Even with a full-time boat captain, everyone on the team should pull their weight in ways they enjoy.

FIND A LOVE 

Determine what you love beyond the sport. Finding common interests will connect you to other like-minded athletes in the sport and provide you with a healthy outlet from the constant grind of racing and endless travel. For me, it’s caring for the environment. I relish helping with a beach clean-up, but others might choose to volunteer with youth programs, rig specific systems for handicapped boats, take a team leadership course, become a certified judge, or attend weather classes.

Browse through our holding tanks selection here at Raritan Engineering, where we always take care of your marine sanitation supply needs.

SKILLS 

Learn the language and develop a wide range of skills. Master the bow, repair sails, know how to fix a broken engine, service a winch, become versed in meteorology; but, never stop learning! These skills are helpful for both inshore and offshore sailing and add to your value as a professional sailor. 

SOCIAL

It is important to find a balance between pushing your limits and relaxation. Even if it’s not your style, force yourself to attend post-racing events or join in on the popular evening activities. Tent parties and joining others at the bar offer opportunities to network.

PHYSICAL 

Part of staying relevant in the field is by pulling your weight physically. It quickly gets old when others complain about sore backs and knees. Good nutrition and regular stretching are worth the investment. You should start both at as young of an age as possible. Balance and strength are important for high-level competition, and joint and nerve health are worth investing in. 

SUPPORT 

Develop a support system of both males and females in the industry with whom you can build trust. There will be times when you need to vent, and it’s healthy to have someone who will say, “Yes, I’ve been through that, too.” These friends will help you find teams that need crew, help set your expectations, and help share costs if you need to split a hotel or cab. My rule is to race only with teams that have at least one person who knows me as an athlete. 

TAKE NOTES 

It wasn’t until I returned to a specific sailing venue for the second time that I realized how important it is to keep a sailing record. Find a system that works for you and keep specific notes for boats sailed and venues raced. Keep track of specific boat setups for conditions that day and any discoveries the team made. The next time I return to that venue or boat, I will have an easy refresh before practice and can quickly email notes to new teammates. 

MONEY

If you don’t have a flexible full time job and if you’re either too green to ask for pay or plan to keep your amateur status, finding short-term ways to make money while still being available is critical.  Learn your worth by talking to peers in the industry about what they charge so you know you’re playing fair. Before you negotiate, have a sense for the number you feel good about making, so you aren’t left feeling overworked and underpaid. At the same time, be mindful not to overcharge and break the trust of the owner.

So don't forget these helpful pointers when considering if you can make sailing your full time hobby. 1) Understanding my personality type helped me determine which teams I would have a good rapport with;  2) determine what you love beyond the sport;  and 3) it is important to find a balance between pushing your limits and relaxation.

What Type of Boat is Right for You?

Cruiser, bowrider, freshwater fishing, runabout, sailboat, saltwater fishing, speed boat, trawler, pontoon, or watersports boats – which is right for you? We’ll help you make the best choice.

Whether you’re a beginner boater who’s still trying to figure out basic boat terminology or an old salt who stays in tune with the latest boat design trends, you probably know that choosing the ideal boat for you and your family is no simple endeavor. Different kinds of boats can be broken down into dozens and dozens of categories, but chances are that no matter what you enjoy doing out on the water, one of these top 10 choices is going to fit the bill:

Bowriders, cruisers, freshwater fishing boats, runabouts, or sailboats?

Bowriders are one of the most popular types of boats on the water. It’s no wonder—this versatile design can be used for everything from simple day-tripping to water skiing. And while in the past bowriders were limited in size and scope, recently we’ve seen a push towards larger and larger models, often with accommodations ranging from enclosed heads to full-blown cabins. The most extreme example is the Four Winns H440, a monstrous boat with a bow cockpit accessed by walking through a saloon with niceties like a full galley and a settee. Other large bowriders that have hit the market recently include the Sea Ray 350 SLX and the Cruisers Yachts 328 Bowrider.

The cruiser class encompasses a wide range of different styles and sizes. In its most basic form, a cruiser is any powerboat with overnight accommodations, a galley, and the range to take you to new and distant ports. They generally have relatively fast cruising speeds (or they’d likely fall into the trawler category) and they can range anywhere from 30’ or so on up into the 100’ mega-yacht sizes. Most are powered with inboards, stern drives, or pod drives, although there are also a few outboard-powered cruisers out there.

Whether you want to go casting for bass or trolling for lake trout, a freshwater fishing boat is a must-have. And while there are numerous sub-categories and specialized, species-specific boats out there, we’re going to break this category down into three main choices that encompass the range: bass boats, multi-species boats, and aluminum fishing boats.

Whether you’re on a lake in Arizona or a bay on the Atlantic Seaboard, you’re probably going to see plenty of pontoon boats. Instead of riding on a fiberglass hull, these boats have two or sometimes three aluminum “logs” they float upon. Once upon a time they were slow and pokey, rather ugly, and not very seaworthy, but these are all problems of the past. Today, pontoon boats can be fast, slick-looking, and shockingly comfortable to ride on.

True, they still aren’t the best pick for bodies of water that regularly experience large waves. But they’re extremely stable, they have gobs of deck space, and their modular nature means you can choose from endless seating arrangements and even add things like wet-bars, towing arches, and more. Check out the Premier Sunsation 270, for example, and you’ll discover a double-decker, triple-log pontoon with twin Yamaha F300 outboards and a water slide that shoots you into the lake from the second story.

The term “runabout” is really a catch-all that includes everything from bowriders to combination ski-and-fish boats to small speed boats. The thing these all share in common is that they’re small, open boats intended for day use in fair weather. And while their exposed nature will be considered a drawback by some boaters, it should be considered an advantage, too—you don’t buy a boat to get away from the sunshine and spray, do you?

Well, have you made up your mind? Have you culled through all these choices, and landed on a winner? If so, congratulations—now get busy, and start boat shopping. If not, we’re jealous. Because the only way to really know which boat’s best for you is to get out on the water, and try ‘em out. So again we say congratulations—your indecision means that now, you need to go out on as many different boats as possible, as often as possible, until you make up your mind. Good luck, dear boater, and have fun. Lots and lots of fun.

Purchase your marine items here and see how we provide you the best products in the marine sanitation industry today.

Be sure to watch our latest video on marine holding tanks below. 

via HOW TO MAKE SAILING MORE THAN JUST A HOBBY

via What Type of Boat is Right for You?