Trailer sailer

A trailer sailer is a type of sailboat that has been designed to be easily transported using a boat trailer towed by an automobile. They are generally larger than a sailing dinghy.^[1][2] Trailer sailers include day sailers and small cabin cruisers, suitable for living on.

Trailer sailers are used for both racing and recreation and are popular with small families and retirees. They occupy a space between smaller trailerable sailing dinghies which are intended for day use and larger boats which can only be removed from the water with specialised equipment such as boat lifting cranes.^[3]

Unlike dinghies, many feature enclosed cabins which allow for overnight sleeping and dry storage. Most trailer sailers also feature ballast, either fixed or in a swinging centreboard or dagger board to make them easier to launch and retrieve. This makes these boats more stable than a dinghy, as well as less prone to capsize and more capable of self-righting. Sails on trailer sailers can also be lowered easily on water unlike dinghies which are often rigged fully on the shore.^[3]

Trailer sailers offer a number of advantages over larger boats that are impractical to tow on a trailer. Because they can be towed and stored at home, owners can avoid the mooring fees and maintenance costs of boats that remain in the water. Towing is also a relatively fast and efficient way of reaching new destinations from which to sail.^[1][2] However, they generally have less living space. All but the biggest do not have standing room in their cabins. Moreover, trailer sailers are generally more lightly-built and ballasted, making them incapable of tackling open oceans, confining them to coastal and protected waters.^[3]

Due to the limitations of trailer capacity, towing vehicle size and weight, as well as highway width limitations, most trailer sailboats are limited in size to about 22 to 26 ft (6.7 to 7.9 m) in length and beams of 8 ft (2.4 m).^[2][3]