Eclipse in the West

[Brent65]

Eclipse Owners,

I'm warming up on the idea of ordering a new Eclipse, but really need to sit in one with my wife to get a feel for the overall size.  Might there be an owner anywhere in the West that could allow me to come see and touch an Eclipse sailboats?  Washington, Oregon, California, Colorado, New Mexico, etc...

Please let me know.  Have Campervan, willing to travel.

Brent

[captronr]

Hi Brent,

Not really west, but midwest--I'm in Wichita.  I have a 2012 Eclipse that you are welcome to come view.  Unfortunately, this is year TWO of our local sailing lake being flooded. We've had such massive rains upstream, our lake was about 9ft above flood stage, it's SLOWLY dropped to only 6 ft above flood, which means I can get to our sail club storage lot where the boat is, but you can't drive to the boat ramps, and even if you could launch the boat, you'd have to wade through chest deep water to get to the floating slips.....................  They are barely releasing any water from the dam, so even though the massive rains ended in late May/early June, best guess is it will be mid July or later when the lake/slips are useable and that assumes no more big rains.

We bought this used Eclipse end of 2016 and haven't gotten to use it as much as we'd hoped.  We downsized from a Macgregor 26X.  This boat sails much better, but the cabin is much smaller.  I'm 6'1", and sitting on a cabin sofa, my head touches the ceiling.  We used to overnite on the Mac, but the Eclipse is too small for us to do that.

Gas is getting cheaper now, so a road trip to KS wouldn't cost as much.  Just let me know.

In a week or two, there is a sail outting at Clear Lake, IL, and I'm pretty sure there will be ONE Eclipse there.  You can find info on the meeting on this site, but that's even further for you.
Ron

[alsantini]

The outing is in Carlyle Lake.  South Central Illinois.  Starts a week from today and runs for 5 days.  I will have my 2007 Eclipse in the water and you are welcome to come sail with me.  Or, come anytime during the rest of the summer to Pistakee Lake, part of the chain of lakes in northern Illinois.
When I saw how big Ron was a few years ago I commented to him that the Eclipse is not a huge boat.  It is a great sailing boat, but the cabin is tight for 2 adults.  Any additional information, yell....  Sail On  Al

[Brent65]

Many thanks to Al for taking me and my father sailing at the Carlyle lake get together.  We had a great time on the Eclipse.  Al's got a storm story to share as well.

Best,
Brent

[alsantini]

What happens in Carlyle stays in Carlyle....  LOL   My wife does not need to hear about the storm.  But let it suffice to say the Eclipse is a hell of a boat.  Takes a licking and keeps on ticking.  Sail On,  Al