why do you rarely see sailing boats on the sea in Hua Hin?

[huahinsailing]

I noticed the same thing. Last year I bought myself a second hand Laser from Varuna in Pattaya and an Optimist for my son from a company in Bangkok. I entered the Hua Hin Regatta last August and again this May. Fabulous organisation by the Royal Thai Navy and the Yacht Racing Association of Thailand.

Anyway as I saw 150 dinghies, all from the East Coast near Pattaya and Sattahip, I began thinking we should have a Hua Hin Sailing Club. I have found a piece of beach front land near The Regent Hotel (opp Thai Watsadu) and I hope to start building the boat house within two or three weeks. I have ordered 10 brand new Optimists for the kids and I will be able to source Lasers if required. This will be a professional set up with bi-lingual instructors. We have also ordered a 4.8 mts RIB for security and state of the art life jackets. There will be a beach bar and restaurant, shower, toilets etc. Members will be able to rent the boats or store their own.

I hope to be open for business by early October. Sailing off Hua Hin can be challenging but there is usually plenty of wind in the afternoon in the dry season and calm conditions in the morning. In the rainy season there is less wind unless a rain storm is approaching but it can be cyclonic (rapid changes of direction) which isn't great for dinghies.

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[Korkenzieher]

Good luck! I will certainly be down when you are up and running. Are you likely to be able to be in a position to store private craft (if you are I might well resurrect my interest in buyinig a 2nd hand Hobie!).

[huahinsailing]

...and would repeat the comment that Thai wives are not drawn to bobbing about getting sunburnt.

Show them this picture of HM the King sailing a Finn dinghy in the 1960's.

Actually the King is sailing an International OK that he built himself.

[Frank La Rue]

.........because Thais did not need sailing boats in the past to trade with other countries and they did not need them for gerilia warfare.
In my country a man has a boat because it's part of being a man.

Admitteldy I don't have one, but I live in my country like on a transit from UK to retirement in Thailand
You see boats with local fishermen for local consumption in Thailand but not enough for sailing boats to be ubitiquous and boating is not part of the national psyche.

[huahinsailing]

Good luck! I will certainly be down when you are up and running. Are you likely to be able to be in a position to store private craft (if you are I might well resurrect my interest in buyinig a 2nd hand Hobie!).

I am trying to contact the owner of the plot behind mine as it is derelict and I could do with a bit more space for parking. If I can get that as well then yes I would be able to store a Hobie or two but right now I am concentrating on Oppys and Lasers as these are the most popular classes here in LOS. In the HH Regatta there were 36 Lasers 120 Oppys and 6 Hobies. When I am up and running we'll have a bit of an opening bash and you can be sure you'll hear about it.

[STEVE G]

I haven't sailed a Laser since the 1980's and to be honest I thought I was beyond that kind of thing bit I would give it a try for the memories.

[huahinsailing]

I'm 61 yrs and hadn't sailed a Laser for 35 years but after a few capsizes it soon came back. Came 9th in the Thai National Championships last month!

[RODERICK]

In the process of coming over to Thailand to retire completely..( 70 ) this month.. First came to Thailand in January 1965... nearly 50 years ago, as a young Special Forces soldier.. Beautiful Thai wife of 45 years.. 3 beautiful successful daughters. I'm a lifelong " Sailor " owned many sailboats .. big and small... lived in the Seattle, Wa area for a long time and sailed " Star Class " keelboats for many years.. Don't see much sailing stuff here on the forum.. We are looking strongly to reside in the Hua Hin area.. Pattaya.. Phuket.. are way to honky tonky for us... Are there any " beached " sailors out there with any advice ?? See you all when I get there... 30 days or ...

Rod

[RODERICK]

That's great news.... I'll be down to see you as soon as I get there. At 6'2 and 220, the Laser is a little " tender " for me. I know the water is shallow, but any possibility of storing a Star class keelboat... It draws about 36 38 inches..

[layman]

The marina at Paknampran would be the best (and probably only) option. About a 30 minute drive south of Hua Hin.
I've got some work coming up in Europe, but I'll be back on August 4th. If you get in touch when you arrive I'd be happy to show you the marina. It's a bit old and run down now and well used by fishing and charter boats, but there's a launching ramp and pontoon moorings for long or short term.

[huahinsailing]

That's great news.... I'll be down to see you as soon as I get there. At 6'2 and 220, the Laser is a little " tender " for me. I know the water is shallow, but any possibility of storing a Star class keelboat... It draws about 36 38 inches..

Hi Roderick

I was intending to buy a small cruiser but on reflection, as Paknam Pran is the only marina, I decided I would rapidly be bored sailing out of there. Hence my return to dinghies. I'm a little lighter than you at 83 kgs and I need to plan my tacks a little more carefully to ensure I'm ready to go low under the boom, but otherwise the Laser is fine. The only other class of dinghy out here that's relatively competitive is the International OK. The boom is quite low however and you may find that an issue although your weight would be less so. But I suspect that you'd be happier on board a Phuket 8 which is a growing class here in Thailand. Or the Farr Platu 25 which is a lovely little boat and is also well catered for. But apart from Pranburi Marina there's no where to keep it here in Hua Hin.

If sailing is a requirement for you in your life in Thailand then I would have to advise against Hua Hin. Phuket now has several marinas which could handle small keel boats. The north east part of the island is still relatively civilised and that is where one of the best marinas is located.

But if dinghies aren't for you then I would urge you to respect the late great Jimmy Goldsmith's advice - If it flies, floats or f**ks - Rent It!! There are dozens of places you can rent a decent sail boat in Thailand. When the urge takes you charter for a week or 10 days and when you're finished throw back the keys. Much cheaper and less hassle in the long run. You can charter almost any of these boats for the two main Thai Regattas - Kings Cup (Phuket December) & Top of the Gulf ( Pattaya May).

Hope that helps

[Homer]

That's great news.... I'll be down to see you as soon as I get there. At 6'2 and 220, the Laser is a little " tender " for me. I know the water is shallow, but any possibility of storing a Star class keelboat... It draws about 36 38 inches..

You sail a Star for recreation? Back when I was racing dinghies in the 60s and 70s, the 15 or so Stars at our yacht club came off their trailers for racing, tuning and breaking in a new crew. Word was they were terrible day sailers - too wet, a low boom and required a lot of attention to sail. Photos of modern boats look the same as the old ones, except they're not wood and have hiking straps. What am I missing?

[RODERICK]

It's true.. they were a real handful to sail.. especially to sail single handed which I did with my old wooden Star for nearly 10 years.. I was sailing at the time off Seattle in the Puget Sound Star Fleet with such notables as Bill Buchan... Olympic Gold Medal winner and twice World Champion, his son Carl Buchan, also a Star Class world champion and some of the finest keelboat sailors in the world.. with modern state of the art $50,000 ++ Stars and my old wooden ( Carl Eichenlaub) designed Star was never really in the game with that crowd,.... But I loved to sail.. and I loved Frostbite.. Heavy weather sailing in the middle of the winter on Puget Sound with water temperatures just a few degrees above freezing.. Why ?? at the time I was a young Army officer Green Beret and Army Ranger... The Ranger motto.... Danger is never a Stranger to a Ranger.. and I'm sure that I was trying to push the envelope. Wet and a low boom ?? without question, and an accidental gybe in a strong breeze would knock your ass completely out of the boat which in my case in the dead of winter with no one much out on the water.. would probably have been a death sentence... So the trick... to be a good enough sailor to not gybe accidentally.. proper use of the Vang... The boat, without question, was over canvassed, and was really designed as a racing yacht.. and not as a day sailer... but for me necessity was the mother of invention.. The payoff ... she was almost like a Stradivarius.. in a strong breeze she would buck and yaw but when she was going to weather.. close hauled.. and you had her trimmed properly .. with a bone in her teeth.. to me it was "pure heaven " she would sing to you and she " flew " through the water.. What a joy... plan to be in the Hua Hin area in a couple of weeks... Let's all meet up for a beer and some sea stories.

Rod Burgess
North Carolina

[Homer]

The payoff ... she was almost like a Stradivarius..

I hear ya.

[huahinsailing]

Good luck! I will certainly be down when you are up and running. Are you likely to be able to be in a position to store private craft (if you are I might well resurrect my interest in buyinig a 2nd hand Hobie!).

I have just returned from the beach sailing my Laser and met an Ozzie gent interested in meeting anyone who would be interested in going 50:50 on a Hobie.

I should hear this week if I'm going to be allowed to build a deck out from my land. If so then yes I think we could probably store a Hobie or two under the deck but they would have to be dismasted each time. In January they would probably have to come up on dry land to be 100% safe.

If you're interested let me know and I'll put you two in touch.