Welcome,
and have a great time. This post helped with my first outing (posted by Matt)
Re: I did it!! I bought the Mac 26X!
Postby mastreb ยป Sun Apr 15, 2012 8:44 pm
Please do read through the experiences of other first-time launchers on this board! Your first launch and retrieval will take more time than you expect, and so will the retrieval.
Here's the typical progression:
1st time into the water: 2 hours to rig and launch, 2 hours to un-rig. Post here regarding desperation and disappointed admiral.
2nd time into the water: 1 hour to rig and launch, 1 hour out. No post.
3rd time into the water: 30 minutes to rig and launch, 45 minutes out. Post here as to newly discovered methods for making rigging and launching easy.
4th time into the water: 30 minutes to rig and launch, 45 minutes out. Post here claiming 15 minutes in and out.
I recommend doing your first outing with the motor only. It'll take you two hours to get the mast up and the boat rigged correctly and launched. Just take it out, motor around, and pay a LOT of attention to how the helm handles to port and starboard, motor up, motor down, and boards up, board down. You really need to test out the motor anyway--put it through it's paces. Do some low speed maneuvers in a safe place. Your first time out should be learning about how to get the boat on and off the trailer, and less about getting sails up. Raise and lower the mast, but don't bother will sails yet.
I also recommend avoiding powering onto the trailer for retrieval. Pick a ramp with a dock, tie off to the dock when you come in, and line-handle the boat onto the trailer. Everyone who attempts to motor onto the trailer on their first outing invariably puts a nasty gouge in their gel-kote, breaks off a goalpost, or worse bends a prop and looks like an idiot (I did all three on my first outing). These are THE BIGGEST boats at the ramp with the highest windage, and therefore the hardest to handle onto and off of a trailer. Line handling the boat on and off the trailer makes you look like a seasoned pro, and because it's a sailboat, it's kind of expected.
Search these forums and put the PVC rollers on the trailer goal posts before your first trip out. See above.
WORRY about the ballast tank. I leave my ballast tank vent and gate open when I'm out of the water. Better to forget to close it than to forget to open it. People worry about bugs or rodents in the tank, but every dunk takes care of that problem. Post a warning to close the ballast tank vent and gate on the helm so you don't forget.
On your second outing, it's time to raise the sails and go main only. If everything goes really well, rig the jib, otherwise don't worry about it. Get the Admiral used to the heeling--the boat will go WAY over very fast and this usually terrifies people. It's normal, the boat won't capsize if the ballast tank is handled correctly.
Learn how to search this board, and do search it a lot. It's kind of "clubby" here, but all the regulars are really good guys who have their opinions but respect those of others. Because there's a lot of safety related topics, people do get passionate about things they consider to be risk of life. That's a good thing, so be slow to take offense and presume that people mean well--everyone here does. It's a great place to air out ideas and to learn best practices. Participating actively on this board improved my Mac sailing immeasurably very quickly.
Fair winds, following seas, and good luck!
Matt
You will learn as you go. 
style mast raising system....it helps immensly. BTW I too am a Jeff T. on this forumn....good thing they're spelled different 
