The Miami Herald from Miami, Florida (2024)

February 20, 1986

Publication:

The Miami Heraldi

Location:

Miami, Florida

Issue Date:

Thursday, February 20, 1986

Page:

85

Extracted Article Text (OCR)

The Miami Herald Thursday February 20 1986 (SBsMirag Area fisa Discayno Day 9F in the wind Onc-Boclgn Blngbios Optimist Length 7-9 beam 3-8 weight 77 pounds sail area 35 square feet crew one Designed by Clark Mills in 1947 as a seagoing version of soapbox derby racer for kids Good for children up to about 115 pounds In addition to racing most people are better off picking a class that doubles as a good day sailor If racing a factor then there are hundreds of small trailerable or car-toppable sailboats on the market both new and used that will suit a needs As a rule of thumb 14-footers can handle up to two adults Boats in the 16-18 foot range are fine for two adults and a couple of children If you plan to sail with four adults most 18-footers will have the comfort and performance needed to make sailing fun Even small boat sailors can find plenty to do on Biscayne Bay Jim Lethwell sails a 12-foot Puffer and one of his favorite trips is to launch at Matheson Hammock County Park in South Dade and sail eight miles across the bay to Elliott Key pick a day with a good weather forecast I go if the weatherman predicts more than 10 knots of wind I always carry food for a couple of meals a six pack each of sodas and beer and gallon jug of he says can really feel all alone out there in a little boat kind of like the guys on Kon Tiki or something never been stuck overnight at Elliott but I have had to sit out squalls a couple of times and get back until after dark why I carry plenty of food and Elliott Key offers good offshore anchorages and a small marina and visitors can spend the night on the boats or camping on the island Closer to Miami is Key Biscayne with No Name Harbor near the southern tip on the bayside providing a great anchorage for little boats Another challenging trip for new sailors is to leave Dinner Key or the Rickenbacker Causeway sail out the channel around the southern tip of Key Biscayne and sail on the open ocean for a couple of hours before returning to the bay by the Key Biscayne channel about them consciously while people who learn by cruising are still dithering and dragging out the rule books to reach the same answers Sid Doren one of the more experienced racers on Biscayne Bay thinks that an ideal learning boat is something like a Catalina 22 or Ensign 23-footer "because a lot more stable than most of the one-designs The problem with the little wet boats is that a novice is going to flip it for sure and that could be enough to put him off sailing like an Ensign is ideal to start fun and yet it scare the heck out of them But once they learn to sail then the best way to become proficient is one-design Peggy Seeley of Miami bought one of the first Force 5 dinghies to come to Miami when that boat was introduced 15 years ago and she believes that "a lot easier to take your dinghy skills up to a cruising boat than take cruising boat skills down to a Her 14-footer is wet and sometimes physically demanding part of the fun a grandmother and if an old granny like me can sail one anybody Before buying keep in mind the resale value of the boat If you select from a popular class have less trouble selling it Size is another consideration Big people need big boats although there have been notable exceptions But a 220-pound man in a Sunfish will bog it down until it develops all the excitement of a racing baby buggy And a 120-pounder who decides to sail a Finn will spend as much time under it as on it Then the question of crew A single-handed boat requires only its skipper but most people prefer a crewed boat Finding a good crewman is difficult Finding two to four for some of the bigger boats can be impossible DINGHIES rom IF best starter boat and an ideal vessel for exploring and enjoying Biscayne Bay taught sailing at the University of South Florida for two years and we used Sunfish I like a dinghy because the students learn how to sail a boat not just sit in it In a single-handed dinghy like that they did everything rigged it flipped it righted it and sailed it Pretty soon they felt they could do everything by he says Dinghies come in two basic forms monohulls and catamarans The latter are twin-hulled streakers that offer tremendous excitement and speed But the monohulls are much more maneuverable and because tactics tends to be more important and complex in monohull racing the novice sailor is better off starting out in a traditional dinghy and switching to a cat later No one knows how many different types of sailing dinghies have been built in the United States since World War II but the number must certainly be several hundred If you decide on the one-design racing class the trick is to pick a class that will provide a lot of competition in the local area and allow you to travel to compete against fleets in other areas and in regional and national championships The Albacore a 15-footer is very popular in parts of the United States and Canada for example but is rarely seen in Florida Anyone who sails an Albacore here will have to travel long distances to compete or sail in handicap racing against dissimilar boats Fleet racing brings sailors into constant contact with the rules of sailing and requires them to make a dozen decisions about right-of-way and tactics every time out After a few races newcomers find themselves making the right decisions without thinking Sunflsll Length 13-10 beam 4-1 weight 129 pounds sail area 75 square feet crew one One of biggest one-design classes with competitive fleets everywhere in the United States and Europe A bit pokey in light air but fun in a breeze Excellent daysai-lor for two Force 5 Length 13-10 beam 4-10 weight 145 sail area 91 square fee crew one Many people believe that if this boat had been announced a year before the Laser would never have made it A hot performer that requires a strong skilled sailor in heavy air a fun daysailor for two because the extra weight makes it easier to handle Laser Length 13-10 beam 4-6 weight 130 sail area 76 square feet crew one The hot one-design of the 70s faltered a bit in the 80s but there are still more than 100000 of them out there A real performer in any conditions and in anything over 10 knots requires a well-conditioned skipper preferably one above 160 pounds fun to race but essentially a one-person boat PETE CROSS Miami Herald Staff Jan Maizler often takes sons Dameon (left) and Sean on trips in their 16-foot Challenger skiff Small skiffs offer versatility Snipe Length 15-6 beam 5 weight 381 sail area 18 sq ft main and jib crew two One of biggest classes and highly competitive Growing steadily in Biscayne Bay where one of the major national regattas is held each winter Good used boats are available at reasonable prices It's a fun daysailor for two Lightning Length 19 beam 6-6 weight 700 pounds sail area 177 square feet main and jib 300 square feet spinnaker crew three One of the most competitive classes on Biscayne Bay This 48-year-old design attracts some of the finest sailmakers which keep the class lively National mid-winter championships held in Miami In addition to being a fun racing class the Lightning is a great daysailor for four to six people ing things about it is the quality of fishing It is surprising to me that the fishing is so good in a metropolitan area like Miami think all the fish had been caught or polluted to death But that is not true The bay seems to be in better shape today than it was 15 years ago thanks to good management by the county" Maizler cautions that newcomers to powerboating on the bay must be ever alert for other traffic get some pretty zany drivers on the bay especially on he said at night you have to be doubly cautious because you can encounter some individuals who are running high speed boats flat-out with no The bay is also unique in that it provides such a variety of fish that are fun to catch and many of them are good to eat Dade County has seen to it that small boaters have ample fishing opportunity by placing productive artificial reefs in south central and north bay Joe Free of South Miami is retired and fishes Biscayne Bay regularly but his 20-foot Sea Craft with 175 horsepower outboard needs close to 20 inches of water for safe operation so he avoids the shallow-water flats "Most of my fishing is for snook during the season snapper trout and Free said do some fishing and shrimping in the bay at boat is adequate for fish- ing the patch reefs outside the bay and in the open ocean when weather and water conditions permit But for the bay it is ideal feel safe and comfortable in the he said boat can safely take most of the water conditions the bay can present I have a radio I carry two batteries and all the necessary safety equipment For the kind of fishing I do I want any other The fleet of center-console boats in the 18-to 25-foot range like is one of the largest groups of a particular style to be found on Biscayne Bay or at the boat show In fact the center-console design is a South Florida product which has found national acceptance George Poveromo director of the Miami Billfish Tournament is I SKIFFS from IF company him on fishing trips a lot of area residents I usually go to the Miami International boat show and look at all of the Maizler said not that I am in the market for a new boat but I like to keep up with new And if some boat really grabbed me not saying I buy it" Maizler says Biscayne Bay and small powerboats make a great combination whether you are a waterskier beachcomber sun worshiper fisherman or simply someone who enjoys an afternoon cruise my case the small boat is strictly a fishing platform I make inquiries to find out hitting and I do a lot of looking around in the bay to see where the baitfish are and to learn what fish are hitting he said the snook season is open I have some favorite spots around the bridges where I cast for snook To save time and as a matter of convenience trailer my boat to a ramp close to where I want to fish This is another unique feature of the bay there are so many places to launch a small power- The term refers to a boat designed to be fished in water which is no more than 10- to 20-inches deep There are any number of these specialty boats which will be displayed at the boat show Friday through Wednesday In addition to the small Boston Whaler and Bob line of skiffs there will be the new Maverick that draws only nine to 10 inches of water the Dolphin Back Country Performance Flats Fisher the Stu Apte Flatsmaster II Seasquirt and others you have a boat and take some time to learn the bay like I have you realize that something is going on fishwise somewhere in the bay every day of the Maizler said of the real joys of owning your first powerboat in the Greater Miami area is venturing out into the bay and learning something about its nooks and crannies It is a fascinating body of water ever-changing think one of the most amaz- Ensign Length 22-6 beam 7 weight 3000 sail area 201 square feet in main and jib 111 sq feet spinnaker crew two-three All-round day sailor and overnighter and one of best boats of its size ever built Room for six to eight in the huge co*ckpit Nice little cuddy cabin with two berths Simple and fun to sail Star Length 22-8 beam 5-8 weight 1480 sail area 318 square feet crew two Arguably the toughest racing class this Olympic keel dinghy has been around at its present length since 1911 It has one of the most complex rigging systems of any small boat This is not the boattobuy if you want something that will double as a family daysailor running a Mako 25 in which he has $42000 invested not counting the $15000 vehicle he has to tow it and the $15000 he has invested in rods reels and other fishing tackle of my boating time in the bay is running to and from the offshore fishing grounds" Poveromo said I do hunt for live bait in the bay and I am a frequent user of the boat ramps in the He is also a regular at the boat show and his approach to boatshopping is somewhat different than that of a newcomer to boating and fishing current boat is a 1984 model so it is time for me to be considering a new he explained believe in buying the best boat for the type of fishing I do I outfit it with the top-of-the-line outboard engines electronic equipment and related accessories I keep everything in A-l condition so that I get top dollar for my rig when I sell it" Because of the safety roominess and stability plus ease of handling of center-consoles like those used by Free and Poveromo you will see as many of them on Biscayne Bay as any £ther type craft Based on designs in A Field Guido to Sailboats A.

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