North Texas?

[Jim Rester]

I have a small (16 ft) wooden gaffer sailboat and would like meet and to sail with like minded folks.

We live in Fort Worth.

[DGentry]

I went to grad school in Denton - U of North Texas - and I sailed there, a LOT. But . . . only on fiberglass keelboats and racing dinghies. If I was still there now, I'd gladly join you. There is an extraordinary amount of sailing (mostly racing) in the Dallas - Fort Worth area, so I suspect you can find some closet woodenboat fans there!

Good luck! Dave

Hmm, maybe you should just move - there are lots of wooden boats, and the view, if not the weather (for all but the summer), is much nicer up here . . . .

[RodB]

I too have mostly raced in local lakes in Dallas, racing Thistles, Snipes, J24's...etc. I once owned a Highlander and sailed her at Lake Ray Hubbard out of Chandler's Landing. Having long been a woodenboat enthusiast I don't really think you will find a concentration of like minded folks... all you can do is sail where there are plenty of sailors... or advertise in Craig's list under boats.

I recommend you check out Lake Texoma, which will be one of the largest and most interesting lakes to sail and camp and meet many sailors. With several Marinas, I would say the Cedar Mills Marina on Lake Texoma would have the largest amount of sailors and it is a really nice facility. CMM is where Valiant Yachts are manufactured. You can also check with Grandpappys Marina and Loes HighPort to find out about sailing regattas etc. Several lakes within 45 min of Dallas have marinas with plenty of sailboats...

Good luck,

RodB
Plano

[CGrant]

Dear Jim,

A hundred (or so) years ago I sailed a racing dinghy on Grapevine Lake - it's not a bad place to sail. If you have a small racing dinghy, White Rock Lake, which is truly a Dallas lake, is a great place to sail. Lake Ray Hubbard has probably the best racing legacy in the metroplex. That info is based on a hundred years ago, or so!

Don't let the Bellingham, WA guy color your view (altho I've been to Bellingham several times and will tell you it is a beautiful place to sail in!!! AND he is so darned lucky to be there - ;)). There's a great wooden boat building group down around Waco - you should check into that. And, the Canyon Lake area has some wooden boats (down towards Austin -- where those shorthorns seem to think they are king of the world...hehehe).

If you want more info, woodenboatforum email me!

Cgrant

[CGrant]

ps Jim, have you looked at Lake Granbury? It might be closer to you?

[Jim Rester]

Thanks for the suggestions. I am fairly familiar with sailing and racing in the DFW area and Texoma but I have never been to White Rock Lake.

Rush Creek and the Fort Worth Boat Club have been represented in many National World Championships.

There is a wooden boat group in Dallas but they focus mostly on mahogany runabouts.

There is a TSCA chapter in the Houston area but that's 5-6 hours away.

Thanks again for your input.

I'll try the Craigslist. What category would I run that under?

Antiquated Sailors seeks Woodie in North Texas?

[DGentry]

Rush Creek and the Fort Worth Boat Club have been represented in many National World Championships.


Yes, indeed. For one thing, Paul Foerster sails out of Rush Creek and he's got a gold, and a couple of silver medals, from 3 different Olympic games. And he's certainly not the only great racer in DFW. There are definitely some amazing sailors down there!

It was mostly Flying Scotts racing on White Rock Lake, when I was there, but there did seem to be a substantial fleet of Butterflys on the docks. In any case, it was all dinghy racing. SMU sails out of there, too.

CGrant - I raced on Grapevine Lake a lot, too. They have a nice club there and put on some fun races.

I do sometimes miss all the hardcore racing I was doing back then - but my knees sure don't miss all the hardcore hiking!

Jim - there are yahoo discussion groups for both Phil Bolger and Jim Michalak designed wooden boats . . . I bet a few of those folks live in your area.

[Thorne]

Lots of Texas folks on the Duckworks Yahoo group -
Subscribe: dwforum-subscribe@yahoogroups.com

And try contacting the TSCA group, as you might find some members nearby.