I think I have bought a boat…

After many years of thinking about sailing to Hawaii, I think I have bought a Hawaii boat. This past weekend I drove down to San Diego to look at a Hobie 33 that is for sale. I met the owners and crawled around the boat for a couple hours. It is all done up ready for a Transpac but due to crew issues the owners are selling it. It is a bit more money than I was planning to spend but it is that way because all the off-shore type modifications have been done. I would have spent that money anyway over time doing the same things. The people who have worked on this boat are a who’s who of the Transpac and Hobie 33 world so I wouldn’t have done better by myself. So after driving home and sleeping on the idea I called the owner back and told them I would take it. Now begins several steep learning curves.

1) How do I actually buy a boat? I am talking about the paperwork. This one is owned in Arizona and will now be owned in California.

2) Where am I going to put a 33ft. Sailboat that sits over 11ft. high on a trailer and weighs over 4,000lbs.?

3) How do I sail a 33ft. sailboat to Hawaii?

4) How do I convince some people (talking to you kids) to join me on this adventure?

5) How long will it take to get ready to do this and thus which race to Hawaii should I do (Pacific Cup or TransPac)?

6) What are all those ropes for? Okay, I know they are called lines and I know what to do with most of them but this boat is new to me and I will need to learn all the tweaky bits and when to use them.

7) Which yacht club in the Bay Area is going to be the best one for me to join? I think my options are limited as it needs to have dry storage, at least a 3-ton lift and hopefully other Hobie 33s there. I think there is only one or two answers to this question.

8) Do I get t-shirts made?

9) Am I out of my mind?

10) If I have the presence of mind to ask if I am out of my mind is that my clear signal that I am or I am not actually out of my mind?