New Youtube Vid- Sailing the Mac 26x

[markdartist]

A video about sailing my 1998 Mac 26x, ‘Meet My Boat 3’, is finally finished. The first few minutes are about sailing in light air with an asymmetric spinnaker and show rigging, trim, raising and dousing. The video concludes with sailing under main and jib in winds around 15 knots, running, reaching and tacking.

Although there are plenty of web rants about the Mac’s sailing ability, I have found that the boat sails reasonably well, comparable to other pocket cruisers. I think a major reason for Mac rants is that many are owned as first boats and consequently, are skippered by those figuring it out as they go along. That’s exactly how I got started. It wasn’t a pretty sight!

One thing is for sure. Tiny differences in sail trim and steering make big differences in boat speed. The best way to learn this stuff is from someone who races. In almost any marina, there are people who race. Strike up a conversation and you might be surprised to learn how often race boat owners need crew. You might also be surprised to learn how many racers began sailing on a MacGregor!

As for my video, it’s more about what the boat can do than how to do it. Hope you all enjoy the video and even find something useful.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3OxykDlvc1M

[Doug W]

Enjoyed the video!

Doug
http://starsloop.blogspot.com

[Finn]

Hello!

Very nice video, well done and informative. Thank you for spending your time to share your experiences with others.
Finn

[c130king]

Definitely a nice video. Well done.

If I see one more great video showing how much fun and how easy (relatively speaking) it is to fly a Spinnaker I might just have to bite the bullet and ask Santa for one. My only experience with one was with Matt (aka "Bastonjock") in the UK on his and I didn't think it was very easy or very fun...neither did he that day which was his first experience using it...lots of interesting Scottish oaths that day...

It's got to be proven to me that it is single-handed capable before I will pull that trigger.

Cheers,
Jim
Sailing on König

[tchariya]

Great video!
You have a really nice narrating voice to boot!

[jschrade]

Outstanding Video! A real joy to watch as all your videos are.

Jim

[markdartist]

Thanks for the nice comments. It’s great to get a boost with yesterday being the worst day of the year; take out for the winter day.

As for flying an a-sail solo, it is pretty easy. Anyone comfortable with single handed sailing and who doesn’t mid clambering around on the cabin top should be fine. Like learning any other sailing skill, make the first few attempts in very light air and everything should work out. Bringing along a sailing friend can’t hurt either!

[StUrrock]

Fantastic videos.

Surely a 'must see' for any Mac fan.

Thanks for sharing your experiences.

[Mac26Mpaul]

Very nice vid, you should be making docos for a living, or maybe you should be working for Roger giving him some tips on how to make sales vids