Well, I've seen them out on the bay, and they sure don't look like they're
being "conservative" in the conditions. Several times we've sailed by,
watching what appeared to be inexperienced people desperately coping with an
environment beyond their or their boat. I've also seen some docking
maneuvers that frankly scared me. I'm not saying I've only observed the
latter with Macs, but I have observed a higher percentage with Macs.

--
"j" ganz @@
www.sailnow.com

"JimC" wrote in message
...


Capt. JG wrote:

Far be it from me to agree with Neal, but he does have a point. Depending
on where you sail, how much a Mac owner relies on brochure information
(given that the vast majority of Mac owners have little experience, you
excepted of course), it could be dangerous. I wouldn't agree that they're
unconcerned about their own safety, but I could claim that they're
unaware of the safety issues.


As mentioned, I follow other discussion groups specifically relating to
various series of Mac boats. Safety, reefing, and control of the boats in
heavy weather are major discussion topics on those groups, and my
impression is that many Mac owners are somewhat more conservative than
owners of larger boats such as those on this ng. Although some Mac owners
take their boats offshore routinely (often sailing to Catalina, the keys,
etc.), many seem to prefer not to take their boats out in severe weather
conditions. And those who aren't competent in navigation and blue water
sailing seem to be aware of their limitations and limit their sailing
accordingly. At least that's my impression from following the Mac
discussions.

Jim