Hello and Happy New Year from Florida

Greetings from Sewalls Point, Florida. I have been an admirer of the Mirror for some time. I've watched some great Mirror video's on YouTube and wished that Mirror's were more available in the US. I've been sailing for over 50 years, starting on a wooden Penguin. I currently own a 1974 Sunfish which I sail out of US Sailing Center, Martin County, Florida www.usscmc.org, and a 2007 Trinka 12, www.trinka.com which I keep at home and trailer. Solo cruising small boats? I'm ready.

jim

If you would like to purchase a Mirror Dinghy kit there is a vendor in Canada. http://www.mirrorsailing.ca/msd/index.html

Pete

PuffinInTegel's picture

Glad you like the forum. We're stil trying to encourage the US Mirror Association to resurrect their site - we could put it up on a subdomain here, but someone else would have to do the work and accept responsibility for content, updating etc.

Happy sailing and good health in 2015 ! I have sailed a sunfish once or twice - great fun in warm waters.

Cheers,
Gernot H.

sail_and_oar's picture

I've sailed the Solent in the UK with a bunch of dinghy cruisers for about 10 years now. Several of us sail 11 foot boats (2 of them Mirrors). The guys who sail Mirrors don't seem much happier than the rest of them. You learn to adapt to whatever boat you get used to. It's a state of mind.
I understand you would like a Mirror but if what you really want is to go off solo cruising the Trinka may do. Probably in order of importance I would choose a boat for this kind of use with the following criteria

Sail reefable on the water down to half its original area in at least 2 stages
Ability to be rowed
Good stability downwind
Comfortable side benches
Potential for sleeping aboard. Think boat tent, sleeping boards, anchors
Centreboard not daggerboard
Fibreglass construction

The first three are near essentials and you will have noticed the Mirror doesn't tick all the boxes. They are suitable and have a lovely balence between good manners and performance. Crew weight is a factor here. I weigh 13 stone (180lb). Most boats this size have inadequate reefing gear and you may have to get a bit creative. Sailmakers are usually happy to assist but some sailing rigs can't be easily converted in which case you need a different rig which probably means a different boat.

Getting a bigger boat (say a 16 footer) is for a singlehander probably a mistake unless you are thinking of a very heavy boat (say half a ton) for stability. I have a Wayfarer and sometimes sail it alone. It's much better with an extra body on the side deck and the weight for launching makes it hard work.

The videos you saw may have been David who I sail with occasionally. He's a great guy and his enthusiasm is humbling and a bit infectious but It's not the Mirror which makes his sailing possible. Any similar boat would have done as well. David's a great sailor.

If you can get a copy "The Dinghy Cruising Companion" by Roger Barnes I think you will find it very useful. Roger is a friend of mine (sort of) and I apologise for putting an ad in here. It's simply the best book of it's type I have read.

Let us know how you get on. If you get a Mirror that's great. We can talk you through the adaptations we fitted to make our boats efficient cruisers. If you do some wonderful cruising in something else that's also great. The main thing is to do it.

Cliff

TrinkaDink's picture

Thank you for the detailed insight. For the time being, I will be sailing the Trinka 12, and it does fit almost all of the criteria for a minimal cruising platform. Since it built to be "self-bailing" I am not too sure if trying to sleep might not be a damp night. Chesapeake Light Craft, www.clcboats.com does make a kit boat that appears very similar to a Mirror, and one can schedule a class to build one's own boat. Great idea. David's videos certainly are what inspired my interest, and I will try and locate a copy of Roger Barnes' book to fuel the fire. Thanks again, and you Mirror sailors will forever have my admiration. jkc