Back when we had our Mac, we actually hit a power line on the WATER! When we lived in Texas, we kept our boat on Lake Buchanan, which is up the chain a bit from Lake Travis, near Austin. Wonderful lake for sailing - big, wide, and not too crowded (unlike the zoo that Lake Travis can be). One afterno...

LEDs are the way to go. We have 2 in our cabin and will add more. So easy to convert. Just takes money. It's a boat, pour money into the hole in the water. I'm grateful it's so easy now to retrofit old fixtures. --Russ I'm in the process of replacing all the incandescent bulbs in the Second Wind wi...

Ive always found space on the East part of the GSP in about 5 feet of water...too shallow for the big boys and the stinkpots. That is the sweet spot for the Macs. You'll have a good stretch of water all to yourself and the easiest access to cross over to the beach - http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&...

Back when we had our 26X, I bought a modified danforth-style anchor from Seattle's Blue Water Yachts. As I recall, the standard 14lb danforth wouldn't fit in the anchor locker, so they modified the shank, which allowed it to fit perfectly. We weathered many thunderstorms on central Texas lakes with ...

Dean - I race with a friend out of the Roundhouse on Jamestown - cant be too far from you (we just hauled for the season of course) Must be nice having that keel when those 8 footers kick up.... :o I think you are on the Newport side of Conanicut Island - we are on the other side in the West Passag...

Question on the Beneteau: I'm considering the Beneteau 37 vs. the Catalina 37/387. The Bene seems to be a much nicer looking boat, but I do have one concern. The ballast in the Bene, not just this one but seems like all models is around 29% vs. Catalina which is over 40% several thousand pounds mor...

Over Labor Day weekend, we sailed Second Wind over to Block Island for a four-day vacation. With our 5ft draft, we were anchored with the rest of the keel boats in New Harbor, hoping no one anchored on top of us (in vain, as it turned out). As we dinghy'd over to the beach to reach Crescent Beach, w...

Congrats on the Beneteau!!! We made a similar move in January of last year to a 2001 Beneteau 361 and have loved every minute of it! And I do recommend continuing to hang around here - you won't find a more resourceful lot than a bunch of Mac sailors! While browsing the boat shows, I long-ago pegge...

Congrats on the Beneteau!!! We made a similar move in January of last year to a 2001 Beneteau 361 and have loved every minute of it! And I do recommend continuing to hang around here - you won't find a more resourceful lot than a bunch of Mac sailors! Dean Thomas Dutch Harbor Boat Yard, Jamestown, R...

I very much second the advice on the pick up stick! We kept our Mac26X on a mooring for a summer and snagging that ball right off the water with a boat hook is a pain in the neck! By the way, something you may consider is wrapping colorful reflective tape around the mast portion of the pick up stick...

You buried the rail on a 26X on your first outing?!? You are amazing! My First Mate about had a heart attack when we leaned 10deg the first time! She learned to like heeling, but it took a while! And getting the boat on and off the trailer was always our most stressful situation - somebody has to ba...

Hello Dean - Ive got the ultimate solution to that problem - get your kids best friends' father to buy a J35, put it on a mooring at the Round House at Jamestown, and then be the only one he calls for doublehanded crew... (Look for us in Jamestown on Bravo Zulu ) Nice!!!! When we get dusted by some...

Yah, that is a long sail over open water to reach a little bitty island. It is just my opinion, but that journey seems well outside the design parameters of the MacGregor-series of trailer sailors. It would probably take 3+ days of hard sailing to get there and then you've arrived at a little spec i...

When we had our MacX, we contemplated doing a similar run many times (Barn Island boat ramp in CT, instead of Newport). We never got around to it in the MacX, but we've gone from our mooring in Jamestown over to Block several times now with our Beneteau 361. I would definitely keep an eye on the wea...

We have a Baltik dinghy from Affordable Inflatables too, and have been very pleased with it. One thing - this seems like a no-brainer, but makes a big difference - make sure it is fully inflated! I was overly careful when I was inflating mine and wasn't getting good performance (hull flexing, poor s...