Maiden Voyage on a Clipper Marine 21 results!

So... I went out Twice this week,.. the maiden voyage on my CM21, and two afternoons later the first time out with my wife on "Tiny Dancer"!! People had said so many bad things about the Clipper Marine brand that I was somewhat apprehensive when I dropped her in for the first time sunday. We motored from the ramp to the slip enjoying the incredible scenery of the snow covered mountain tops for about 10 minutes, fighting the worry about the possibility of taking on water. It didn't happen! Not a drop! Well, we left it in the slip all snug and tied up tight,.. decided to go get something to eat, and come back in a couple hrs to see if it had taken on any water. It didn't! Two days later, tuesday evening, I went down to check on her and go out with the sails in the wind for the first time and was nearly Shocked at how well it sailed!!! I was out with a crew member from my J-24 race team, and we were both pleased and surprised at how ell the CM21 sailed! Wind was enough for light whitecaps and I was enjoying myself completely!
Two evenings later I took my wife out to show off the little CM21 and though I had told her that it sailed really well,.. she was still surprised at how well the boat behaved in the 10knots of wind that we had! One thing that she said that was worth mentioning was: "We are Never selling this boat, I don't care if we get rid of the J-24, but I don't Ever want to sell this one!" We had maybe 15 drops of water spray up through where the cable goes through but no other water at all! It handled gusts very well, we sailed with neutral helm, and it was surprisingly quick for a boat with such a slow PHRF! I believe we will do quite well against the fleet in PHRF! I want to make it clear, as a racer in a very active J-24 fleet for the past 4 years, and owning a Newport 28 which we have raced in PHRF events a total of 3 additional years,.... I Love the little Clipper! I have to believe that those who speak ill of the Clipper marine 21s have either never sailed one,.. or are not very good sailors!

http://sphotos-b.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-prn1/15113_564585270231272_103048927_n.jpg

My wife enjoying the scenery aboard "Tiny Dancer"!

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=564878896868576&set=a.100942669928870.1925.100000394135514&type=1&relevant_count=1

It was SO easy to launch!!

http://sphotos-a.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ash3/525387_563870590302740_1911188877_n.jpg

Just to give everyone an idea of what we experience here when we sail!

Your view is incredible.

Gary,.. you have an open invitation to come sail our lake with over 150 miles of shoreline,.. come up,.. I'll loan ya my 21 if ya want to come and explore the Great N.W. by sailboat! Take it for a couple days, or a week,.. doesn't matter,.. I will have my J-24 in the water and the Newport 28 as well! Come out and play!

https://www.facebook.com/dan.lawrence.165/posts/565257736830692

I have too many irons in the fire for vacations. Wish I could. Sounds wonderful!

My CM30 is kept in the water. Unfortunately, the marina is a good 35 miles from where I live and work, so sometimes 2 months go by without seeing her. My auto bilge pump selector switch went out and I pretty much relied on the marina attendant to let me know if she was taking on any water. I live in Florida where it doesn't rain - it pours. The boat was always bone dry. Blige is usually empty.

Welcome SailorGuy! Great to have you on! Some day we may move back to Fla. and if we do,... we will take our CM21 and sell the other ones!

Update on results from sailing CM21.... I have been out 7 times now,.. and love the little boat!

Seven times is a lucky number! Keep going, 144,000 is a good number also!

Very impressed with the boat,... not fancy,.. but sails nice, and has good lines! Lots of room (for a 21' sailboat) we love the sound that the keel makes,. it was no mistake to buy her when we found her!
We will shoot for 144,000... but we do have a short sailing season here Gary!

The 21 is sounding better and better. I took my 26 out by myself on Friday. She is a lot of boat to rig and launch by myself!

LOL! The 21 is SIMPLE! Never been on a CM26 before. Do you guys have the rolling boom on the 26? The 21 is designed for the boom to spin,... and the main sail rolls up around the boom! Brilliant!!! Love the little boat!

Tiny Dancer,

Great to hear good reviews on the CM21.  I've had mine for 6 years now and have really enjoyed it.  It's my first boat and I can't think of a reason to buy anything else.  For the first time this year I had trouble when I put it in the water.  The keel cable snapped last year and the keel damaged the front of the trunk, so I've been doing some fiberglass repair.  That is the second keel cable I've had break in my time, so be sure to check the attachment on occasion, especially if you leave it in the water like I do.  Keep sailing!

Rich.

You can see the main in the cover on my photo.  I have to fold it up and then wrap it up and do the clips.  Not bad but nothing as simple as rolling it up.

Hi , first time on forum.
Had myCM21 ( monica rose) for about a year and learning how to sail. love the boat and have a fantastic area to sail in . Only problem is I have a heavy tiller when sailing any help would be good.

Welcome to this forum! Being a new guy myself, I can tell you there's a bunch of 'old-timers' (sailing related - not age wise) on here that will help you out!
terry s.

martin, not sure if this is what you are talking about or not.....is your rudder hard at stearing?  mine only does this when the rudder starts popping up.  a swing rudder, or whatever its called.  gets super easy to steer when its all the way down.  if not, could you please explain a little more?

I think its called tiller tug .When sailing and I start to lean to 15 degrees or more the pressure on the tiller increases to the point where I need 2 hands on the tiller to keep a straight track , if not she wants to round up to wind.  I was thinking of making a slightly narrow but longer rudder . I always make sure that the tiller is down and not swinging up. The tiller is the original one and a slight triangle  shape to it..
Apart from that the boat is fantastic and easy to sail. I have only done short trips with her but with more practice I hope to get her on the Barrier Reef ( as I live in Cairns in North Queensland)

That is called weather helm. It is a result of an unbalanced rig, but on swing keels, it can be the position of the keel while you are sailing. Run a google search on weather helm and there are sure to be tons of solutions.

Been on Google and it looks like it is " Weather helm". will Keep all posted on trying to correct it. Thanks for the information 10:00:49