Little bit about me: My name is Jay and I live in Lowell, MA. I have spent 7 years in the Army (I know there are more than a few vets here) and have had the great opportunity to “study abroad” in Iraq and Afghanistan. I grew up spending the summers in johnboats fishing with sporadic bouts on the water in a sunfish whenever I could get a hold of one. I am anxious to expand my sailing knowledge but mostly interested in increasing my time on the water.
My sailing experience is limited and extends over about ten years. Most of my time has been in the small cockpit of my Tasar. Not racing but trying to go as fast as possible while ultimately ending up in the water, shiny side up. I had a blast but somehow couldn’t get any of my family or friends out on the water with me. I decided it was time for an upgrade and wanted to sacrifice speed for stability and comfort. I spent a long time looking at trailerables until I target locked on the Macgregor’s.
At first I was mostly interested in the 26D because of design, availability and current used prices but really decided on the
after I checked them out in person. I was fortunate enough to take a few short sails on all the Macgregor models through friends of friends. Although I retained very little rigging or practical sailing knowledge from these trips as I was so fascinated with how this ‘Big’ boat was moving through the water under sail. About three weeks ago I purchased a 2000 Macgregor
‘Hydro Cut’ with a 2001 50HP Tohatsu. This past weekend I was able to launch, spend two days and moor the boat at a small (4.5 x 3 mile) childhood lake in Maine. The boat was in excellent condition other than being stored under a pine tree. The trailer was a different story.Prior to launch:
-Washed all lines that looked like they needed it
-Wet sanded and newglass 2’d the hull except textured deck
-Repaired leaking through hull antenna and mast light plug with 3M 4200
-Removed countless sap puddles
-Cut to form and installed teak interlocking floor tiles in cabin
-Flushed and ran engine
-Replaced dry rotted trailer tire
-Repaired trailer lighting
-Had a more experienced sailor inspect the rigging with no problems found
The 3 hour ride to Maine was taken at a slow pace due to the condition of the trailer (rusted, brakes gone) a 2010 GMC Sierra made me forget the boat was there for much of the way. Launch was easy as could be, raising the mast, lowering the mast, attaching windex, re-raising the mast and launching with the help of a line and a friend on the dock. Engine had been sitting for the better part of a year and took a bit of initial work to keep running, as expected. Ballast filled under supervision and without any problems.
The first day motored out in about 5mph winds, anchored, rigged and raised the main and the wind immediately went to 0. That afternoon while napping on the mooring (with two M26 neighbors) winds crept up to about 15mph. I watched as one M26 headed out but it was a tad too much for round two. An hour later and about two hours til sunset wind came to 10mph and I motored out to the middle of the lake. By the time the main went up wind had come down to about 7mph, enough to effectively push me sideways. On the Tasar in 7mph winds I would be losing my hat but in the X I need to learn some techniques to get me going. I tried every angle and sail trim. Ultimately having most success by getting the engine going long enough for the rudders to become usable. I know the missing variable in this attempt was the jib or genoa but it was still a great rush to pull the sail up. As the sun set, the nav lights came on and I slowly motored back to the mooring.
Second day I motored out to a cove to try to anchor. Wind was at 18mph and the boat wouldn’t hold in the sandy bottom. I decided to spend the day enjoying land attractions instead. On the return winds increased to 25mph. The same continued into the evening with weather underground reporting 25mph average with 33mph gusts. I think I made the right decision not to raise the sail that day. The boat was left on the mooring and I headed home.
First impressions; I feel like I am in a much more costly boat than purchase price reflects. Sleeping in the cabin V was much better than expected and I was able to cook up some decent meals on the single butane burner. The cabin kept out several overnight downpours and the dodger/bimi kept the sun out when I didn’t want it. The 50hp did a great job of pushing but if I had to repower I expect I would go a little bit bigger. The main was easy to rig, it came with improved slugs (probably about 8-10 plastic slugs that brought the main up and down from the cockpit with ease. I’m very happy with the boat and expect to be out on it most spring/summer/fall weekends for many years to come.
The future: If my knots hold and the boat is still on the mooring next weekend I hope to do a couple improvements. First, I had been experimenting with a 40w solar panel from Harbor Freight tools on the roof of my garage and hope to transfer this to the boat this coming weekend. The intent is to keep the dual batteries fresh throughout the week. Second is to figure out the intermittent functioning of my chart plotter (not needed on the lake but hopefully in future adventures). Third is to buy or maybe even build a dedicated tender dinghy so I don’t have to rely on the clubs. Throughout the summer the trailer will either be refurbished or I will be shopping for a new one.
I also need to figure out how to rig the jib on my CDI furler. All indications are that it will be easy but I can’t seem to wrap my head around the one line operation (Tasar furler has one line for in and one line for out) and although I have watched someone use a CDI before I still can’t remember how it functioned.
Heeling is fun to me but I am pretty afraid of putting the boat completely on its side, not because I dont want to get wet but beacuse I'm trying to convince family and friends that the X is a family friendly way to spend time on the water. I really need to experiment and see what sail configuration is best in which winds.
So that’s it in a nutshell, I’m sure I will have many questions in the future. I know we all love pictures so I’ll get those up as soon as I can.
Just take a leap of faith with that cdi furler , I , like You tried to question it also. Forget the single line and remember the other two that unfurl it .... afterall...it is called a cdi furler for a reason...LOL. Ron. 
Dauntless. BTW.... I studied abroad in Southeast asia in the 70's in the Army....and in some other desert regions during the 80's in the Navy. Welcome Home.
