For all their beauty and poise, classic boats can be heavy old pigs to sail. Their running rigging is often heavy, meaning metre for metre they need more crew than newer production line boats. Often classic boat skippers just can’t get the crew to go afloat. This is why classic boat skippers should choose Onboard Space to get the crew and get these swans of the seas in the elements where they belong!
The problems of sailing classic boats
Looking at a classic yacht such as a J-Class can be done as one would a famous piece of artwork. Those in the know of sailing and those who are not will both appreciate their poise and beauty, where art and naval architecture embrace in passion. The lines from bow to keel are often redolent of Picasso’s favourite sweeping S-curve.
That said, classic boats were mostly built before shorthanded sailing was a big thing. Their canvas sails weigh a lot more than modern materials, and shifting a gaff up the mainmast can take a lot of manpower. Getting a gaff with a canvass sail to full stretch is no mean feat! Winches aboard classic boats are often the same as the days of old when they were a novel feature if they are aboard at all.
Sailing a classic yacht is an incredibly physical activity and is manpower intensive as a result. Put together this means that classic boat skippers would be lucky not to need less than double the crew of an equivalent sized yacht of the modern day. This is why sadly, so many of these stunning machines sit at the dock and don’t get out to sea so often.
There’s another limitation: many of those who have the vast sums of money required to restore and keep classic boats are older themselves. This limits their own ability to get their swans to sea.
Could a classic boat skipper get more crew?
Crewing is one of the biggest issues for classic boat skippers. Not everyone has the network and pool of sailors to get their classics out on the water. Many sailing clubs have a shortage of crew who would come sailing on boats like these, and often there isn’t the experienced sailing pool in a locality to get these boats to sail.
This is why classic boat skippers should sign up with Onboard Space, a crewing agency with a difference. Both skippers and crew pay a small fee to meet one another – €5 each, typically. That’s hardly an expense where running a classic yacht is concerned!
We have a pool of crew around Europe who seek skippers. Classic boat skippers can choose from this pool. Just sign up here and see about getting your beautiful swan to sea!
