Come Sail Away

Per my last post, most of you know we have been looking into sailing. So today, we decided to check it out first hand!

Our plan? Drive to Lake Maumelle (about 30 minutes away), walk around the piers and hope to goodness we could shmooze our way onto someone's sailing adventure for the day.

And the plan WORKED! ha!

We saw a middle-aged man setting up his sails on next pier over, so Tyler and I made a dash over there-- you could say we were slightly stalking. :)

We slowly walked by him, casually said hi and started watching him get ready. Tyler started "sailing" talk with him and before we knew it we were on board! SCORE!

This man was the perfect guide-- he has been sailing since he was little, had several different sailboats in his lifetime (this one he has had for 20 years) and takes his boat out at least 3-4 times a week! (did I mention he was retired) Seriously, all this man does with his time is wood-work and sail... I think Tyler met future-Tyler in 45 years! ha!

We went sailing for about 3 hours. The entire time was filled with this man's sailing stories. We learned all the sailing lingo. And we got to heel, tack and jibe! (Eh? EH??? Come on, I was dying to show off a little :) )

The trip was perfect for some many reasons...
1)I had never even seen a real sailboat before, let alone sailed. I got to see if it was something I absolutely hated and never wanted to do again, or if it was something I loved! (I think I'm currently leaning more towards the latter)
2) Tyler hadn't been sailing in a long time, so it really solidified Tyler's love for sailing. Love may be an understatement-- more like obsessed! :)
3) If we decide to purchase a boat, we really learned what to look for
4) We made our first sailing friend! Jim even gave Tyler his number in case we wanted to tag along again sometime. And you bet your booty Tyler will use one of his Friday's off to do so! ha!

After sailing, Tyler and I walked up and down the piers to check out all the sailboats. We talked about what we liked and didn't like. It really helped us know what we want if/when we make a purchase.

Our favorite so far?

Catalina 22

This little beauty seems like it would be the best for us. On the smaller side, good quality boat, and a very popular "starter" boat for people.... so we think we could get a really good deal on an older one!

Even though the tops of my legs are burnt to a crisp and Tyler has permanent sunglasses burnt on his face, we really really had fun!

Oh goodness, now I'm just getting a little excited! ha! Who really knows what will happen, but hey, this was such a great day and fun adventure I just had to share with you all!

If we do end up with a boat, I promise you are all invited for a day of sailing! :)