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Subject: [world-cruising] The right boat (was: Xapic's Virgin Island Adventure)
From: Rick Bradshaw (rbradsh2@XXX.XXX)
Date: Wed Jan 15 2003 - 10:12:14 EST
Louis,
Congratulations on making the decision to go and not wait for the
"perfect" time, etc. I'm glad that you both can live and be
comfortable in the space. Wish we believed we could. Go for it while
you can. You don't want to someday ask yourself "I wonder what would
have happened if only I/we had...." We find that with the economy
downturn, we are approaching that question and will hopefully stave
it off until we have had the opportunity to go, if only for a little
while. I don't begrudge anyone being able to do it now. I am a little
envious though.
My thought is that you picked a very good design for the purpose.
Should be stable and relatively comfortable. It certainly won't be as
"skittish" as the chartered Catalina. I've seen Westsails in this
area from about $89K down to about $35K. Certainly in a good price
range. Those fin keels and spade rudder jobs might be a bit faster
but they are also, as a group, more "twitchy" and the full keel a
little more stable. If it is a choice for a little extra speed and
still not be able to out run the weather (I think usually) or being
more comfortable riding out that weather, I'll take stability over
speed. Congratulations on your choice. Now, why didn't Westsail
produce a nice 36-38 footer and not just jump into the 40 foot range?
Enjoy your sail and the cruising life.
Rick
>I guess I'll throw in my two cents. My wife and I have already initiated
>the process to start living our dream of cruising the Caribbean. Our home
>is for sale, we've sold or stored most of our possessions, and we've spent
>the past six months researching to find the 'perfect' cruising boat for us.
>Now, we don't have a huge amount of money saved away, but we have
>enough to buy what we feel is the perfect boat. And that's what
>prompted my response.
>After fighting with the Pacific Northwest winds in chartered Catalina 38s,
>we decided that smaller was smarter. And to our surprise, the right design
>can do a lot to mitigate the shortage of space. Not surprisingly, our
>search led us to the Westsail 32. It's the only boat we found in our price
>range that offers reputation, style, durability and comfort. She represents
>a size we can handle in any weather, a reputation we can trust (we're bound
>to make some mistakes) and offers surprisingly ample space down below. The
>fact that her length is the same as my age is merely coincidence, but it
>makes it that much more gratifying to leave the office politics at the dock.
> Rick,
>
> Yes, that's true. The view is the same. However, when someone has
> agreed to give up their nice dry, spacious (relatively, especially
> when comparing to most sailboats) land based home, they would like to
> have a bit of comfort.50 years ago, cruisers had to endure a lot in
> their small, narrow hulls if they wanted to go. Today, we can do that
> or we (we in a general sense not me) can get all the bells and
> whistles to make life easier.
>
> While a 25 or 32 footer is less expensive, sometimes considerably so,
> another 4-6 feet in length to 36-38 feet can make a big difference in
> comfort. That difference, along with choosing a good cruising design
> as opposed to a coastal design, can make the cruise instead of break
> it on a smaller boat. (Plus, you young people at 50 can withstand
> more punishment than those of us who are an ancient 56 or older. :-)
> ) Getting there in a degree of comfort on a slightly larger vessel vs
> "beaten up" a bit on a smaller one has a lot to say for itself.
<snip>
> No, we're thinking more along the lines of a Union Polaris 36, Hans
> Christian 38 (or 36) Traditional, Tayanna 37, or maybe something like
> the Baba 35. All older of course. Something in the late 70's that has
> had the problems found and repaired and is now going at a
> _reasonable_ price. If the house keeps on appreciating, we may be
> closer than we think to a small house/condo to rent out and retire to
> if necessary and a good boat to cruise in the meantime. Gotta
> consider both possibilities at our "advanced" ages. :-) (I think
> we'd both be happier and in better health if we were "out there"
> rather than here on land in the office politics, commuter traffic,
> and smog. I know I was when I lived aboard a coastal boat before.)
>
> Rick
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