rhys wrote:
..... one more sailboat,
even a Macgregor, instead of one more jetski, has *got* to be the
lesser of two evils, wouldn't you agree?

Oh yes, most definitely.


I try not to sneer at trimarans and cats, either, because they provide
a *different*, but equally valid and perfectly enjoyable alternative
to my preferred monohull. Where I tend to get snotty is on the issue
of seaworthiness: if you accept that a cat with a big flat sliding
glass door on its bridge is going to have issues in a following sea,
then you understand my objections are not to catamarans, but to
catamarans that want to be patio sunrooms. South Africa builds some
apparently incredibly tough blue-water cats (they'd have to, given the
conditions there), and while I'd personally have to learn to sail 'em,
I'd let the brother buy one.

Over a Macgregor, even.

Oh c'mon, we all know in our heart of hearts that *no* multihull can
ever be really seaworthy, right

Anyway, there are more than one or two monohulls better suited to be
dockside tiki bars than sailing vessels, so it doesn't bother me that
some multihulls have the same issues. The basic point, as I see it, is
to understand the capabilities of your vessel and to know how to make
her perform. A Mac26X owner who is convinced that his boat is as stable
as a deep keel boat, and has the same windward performance as a J-24,
can plane under sail, and 'round Cape Horn with ease, falls short of
this IMHO. BTW my friends who have owned these boats did not generally
fall into this category.

Fresh Breezes- Doug King