Learn the basics on a dingy but dont' turn it into a meal. Larger boats are very different to dingy sailing. e.g. you'll find yourself purely working a grinder or being ballast on the weather rail. Dingy racing is short, real-time and the moving parts are a little different. e.g. no spinnaker poles on small boats, most big boats don't have dagger boards, big boats have spinnaker, gennaker, several jib's, often with roller-furling etc - so quite different.
Distance skippers (deliveries or racing) look for guys with a strong stomach who don't mind packing sails in the forward sail locker during a shitstorm or cleaning the galley or unblocking the toilet. People like that with a great attitude who come back asking for more and get along well with others are hard to find. There are some specific skills that help like knowing your way around a diesel engine, strong on navigation or knowing how to cook (well). Cruising in particular, most people who haven't spent time cruising have no idea how much time you spend repairing diesel engines. You'll get very used to the awesome smell of fresh diesel or diesel exhaust washing around the bilge.
I'm going to reiterate this: A strong stomach is important. My bro has found himself in 21 ft swells with a crew of four experienced sailors and 2 of them ended up lying in their bunks puking their guts out - completely debilitated and unable to help. Him and a 16 year old were left to get the boat out of the shit.
Personally I'm good for cruising trade-wind conditions but forget southern ocean deliveries/races. I don't have the sea legs for that. So know your limitations and crew accordingly.
If you're going to race, you'd beter get very very fit if you're going to work a grinder. I crewed an afternoon race around the cans once on a boat called America's Cup Challenge - it was a whitbread 60 - and worked the grinder with a friend. It's insanely hard work and my friend took pity on me after a few minutes and sent me back to the weather rail.
I would start by hitting ft lauderdale or another big sailing town and start networking like crazy - check the bulletin boards, grab beers with other crew, try to get on an afternoon race. There are a ton of guys, many of them non US citizens, who just show up in sailing towns each year and stay in a local crew youth hostel getting odd jobs until they line up a gig. Many of them have very little experience. If you're serious about racing you'll want to start working towards your skippers ticket. Good luck.
Distance skippers (deliveries or racing) look for guys with a strong stomach who don't mind packing sails in the forward sail locker during a shitstorm or cleaning the galley or unblocking the toilet. People like that with a great attitude who come back asking for more and get along well with others are hard to find. There are some specific skills that help like knowing your way around a diesel engine, strong on navigation or knowing how to cook (well). Cruising in particular, most people who haven't spent time cruising have no idea how much time you spend repairing diesel engines. You'll get very used to the awesome smell of fresh diesel or diesel exhaust washing around the bilge.
I'm going to reiterate this: A strong stomach is important. My bro has found himself in 21 ft swells with a crew of four experienced sailors and 2 of them ended up lying in their bunks puking their guts out - completely debilitated and unable to help. Him and a 16 year old were left to get the boat out of the shit.
Personally I'm good for cruising trade-wind conditions but forget southern ocean deliveries/races. I don't have the sea legs for that. So know your limitations and crew accordingly.
If you're going to race, you'd beter get very very fit if you're going to work a grinder. I crewed an afternoon race around the cans once on a boat called America's Cup Challenge - it was a whitbread 60 - and worked the grinder with a friend. It's insanely hard work and my friend took pity on me after a few minutes and sent me back to the weather rail.
I would start by hitting ft lauderdale or another big sailing town and start networking like crazy - check the bulletin boards, grab beers with other crew, try to get on an afternoon race. There are a ton of guys, many of them non US citizens, who just show up in sailing towns each year and stay in a local crew youth hostel getting odd jobs until they line up a gig. Many of them have very little experience. If you're serious about racing you'll want to start working towards your skippers ticket. Good luck.