New Compac 16 Sailor

[Mark F.]

Warm greetings from North Carolina!  My fiancee and I purchased a 1991 Compac 16 (hull number 02766) in November 2010.  We named her "Shmily", which stands for See How Much I Love You. 

I began learning to sail on Nautiraid folding sea kayaks with Balogh Sail Designs Batwing sails in 1997.  My late wife and I sailed those kayaks while stationed in Germany.  We sold the sailing kayaks and transitioned to a Sunfish in 2003.  My fiancee likes the thrill of sailing the Sunfish in high winds, so we decided to keep it after purchasing "Shmily". 

The posts on this forum have been incredibly helpful as we've customized our boat and learned to sail her.  We've launched her nine times to date.  It snowed on our maiden voyage in December :-)  We've sailed her in very light winds all the way through winds at 15 gusting to 25 and found the Compac 16 to be an awesome sailboat.  We knew we were past the limit of our current capabilities as the winds were gusting to 30 mph earlier this week when were moving her from the dock toward the marina to take her out of the the water to do some more work on her.  We wisely motored her in that day.  I'll post pictures of some of our modifications once my profile is completely approved...

[Bob23]

Let me be the first to welcome you to a source of all knowledge, wisdom, wit and humor. Here you're likely to find answers to your questions, questions to your answers, comments about everything and one of the friendliest and wackyest group of skippers anywhere! Looking forward to hearing of your sailing adventures!
Bob23 in NJ

[curtisv]

Mark,

Welcome.  Sailing in the snow in December.  Sounds like a couple of sailors I'd like to meet.  You are lucky to have a hardy first mate.

We are also sunfish and Com-pac owners.  A few years back the Chatham Yacht Club sunfish regatta was cancelled due to 25 knot winds but three hardy individuals headed out anyway.  Or maybe it was two hardy and one fool-hardy.  Of the two that could handle this, it was just amazing.  Roll tacking a sunfish in 25 knots is something a rare sailor can do.

Here's a CP23 perspective of chasing down my son on the sunfish in farily light air.



Another in some more brisk conditions.



Evidence that three teenages can fit on a sunfish and actually go somewhere.



And evidence that six teenagers can't fit on a sunfish (and don't go very fast with almost no wind and three people hanging on from in the water).



Note that there are nine kids most of them in the water or having been in the water.  This was June on Lake Waramug in Connecticut and the water couldn't have been much over 50 degrees.  The park people let us get away with this even though it was outside the designated swimming area (which had no swimmers most of the day because the water hadn't warmed up much yet).

When we are on Cap Cod we often go out in both the CP23 and the sunfish and our kids and their friends switch off sailing the sunfish and hanging out on the mother ship.

Anyway - welcome Mark.  Enjoy your new (to you) CP16 and don't get rid of that sunfish - they can be fun too.

Curtis

[Glenn Basore]

Mark,

Welcome.

I think you have sailing in December confused with "ice sailing"

Glenn

[Mark F.]

Curtis:

I love those Sunfish pictures.  You managed to get your kids to discover the joys of that sweet little boat that has introduced so many to sailing.  My daughter learned to sail it a bit, but none of my three kids ever really took to it.  Maybe I will have better luck with grandkids in the future!  I broached my Sunfish with my fiancee two winters ago with my fiancee in Jacksonville, Fl.  Thankfully we were dressed for the swim since we knew that over 25 mph winds was pushing the limits just a bit.  My fiancee is one tough, but forgiving woman!  I was experimenting with jibing last winter in strong winds to try to determine what I did wrong the previous winter and I was literally propelled through the air during the vilolent manuever.  The winds were gusting over 25 mph when I "flew" and shortly afterwards swam...I think I understand better now how to sail downwind in strong winds :-)

My kids and I did enjoy a nice day sailing the Compac 16 this spring.  The large cockpit easily holds four adults on a modest wind day. 

Curtis and Glenn:

Our maiden sail in December was aimed at rigging the boat (I realized afterwards that the foot of the mainsail is a bolt rope and is slid into the track on top of the boom.  That made much more sense than a loose-footed mainsail...oops!), trying out the new outboard, sailing a bit in very light winds, "stretching the anchor line" and trying out the new sleeping bags in the cabin...I love this boat!