Jim Carter wrote:

wrote in message
nk.net...


I forgot to say that the MacGregor is a sailboat :-)

It may not perform well crossing an ocean and may take twice
as long as a good sailboat but since it cannot sink or capsize
you won't have to worry about getting eaten by sharks.



No, the MacGregor is a "pretend" sailboat. It is a compromise between a
power boat and a sail boat and it does neither of the two very well. There
is no way it should be considered to be a blue water boat.

Jim Carter
"The Boat"
Bayfield



I'm not sure whether Popeye is a troll or not, but I think the truth is
somewhere between his suggestion that the Mac could sail the Atlantic
and your characteristic of the Mac as a "pretend" sailboat. I personally
would never attempt an Atlantic crossing in a MacGregor, partially
because of the lack of space for provisions, fuel, etc. On the other
hand, MacGregor owners in California, where the boats are built, often
sail and/or motor offshore to Catalina Island for a weekend. They may
use the motor to get there in a few hours so that they can spend the
rest of the weekend sailing around the island, and then sail or motor
back, permitting them to get in some enjoyable sailing at the island
even when limited to a weekend cruise. The difference between a Mac
and a larger, fixed keel boat is that the owner of the conventional
vessel doesn't have the choice. - He is limited to motoring or sailing
at hull speed both ways and doesn't get much time to explore sailing
around the island as does the Mac owner. In other localities, the
ability to motor out to a desired sailing area quickly, at planing
speed, and/or to return at similar speeds, permits one to get where you
want to go quickly and to spend more time sailing, rather than motoring
out and motoring in at slow hull-limited speed. In other words, on a
typical weekend outing, the Mac provides more choices, more schedule
flexibility, and more time sailing or relaxing.

As to whether the Mac is "unsinkable," probably not, but it's pretty
darned hard to sink one. - The skipper of the one reported in the news
that capsized was drunk, and the boat was overloaded and didn't have the
water ballast. (Note that his attorney didn't succeed in his lawsuit
against MacGregor. ) On the other hand, if the hull is compromised on a
conventional keel boat, or if it experiences a severe knockdown, the
keel can pull it to the bottom fairly quickly. Obviously, a keel boat
with longer waterline may have better sailing characteristics than a
Mac, but that doesn't mean that sailing a Mac isn't fun or that the Mac
is a "pretend" sailboat suited only for pond sailing. (It's interesting
that few of the Mac-bashers seem to have much actual experience sailing
one of the current models.) I have had experience on the Mac 26M, but I
have more experience on larger boats such as the O'Day 37, Valiant 40,
Endeavor, etc. - They are different, but they're all fun to sail.

In any event, regarding safety, it's obviously true that the weighted
keel on a conventional boat can pull it to the bottom in a few minutes
if the hull is compromised or the boat is rolled.

Jim