Capt. Rob wrote:
being the end all element of a boat's pointing ability.


Then you haven't talked to sailors.


Read Thom's post, Jeff. He's far older and wiser than you.

He may be wiser but he's not that much older.

If there's
any definition of a sailor that remotely holds fast, it's a person who
earns money on the water. I'm one of the few people here doing that.

No you don't. I made money on the water, for longer than you've been
sailing. You sell a few tired boats and scrap gear.

Folks who race are also sailors.

I raced for a number of years, even have some silver.

My good friend races J-Boats and also
does Atlantic crossings at least once a year. He's very impressed by
boats that can point racing or not. He's also pretty impressed with the
handling of my 35s5 and even more so with the 36.7 he races on.

What's his name, JaxAshby? You sound like a complete idiot, ranting
that you have a friend that likes your boat. What a Doophus!! So
what's your point, he's a racer who happens to like your club racer.
If you actually raced it, it might have some meaning.

Like
most serious sailors, he has no interest in Cats.

So? I have a friend who has no interest in Beneteaus. He thinks they
really suck. (Really, and he's one of the most respected surveyors on
the East Coast. He calls them "bend-in-twos.")


They have no
traditional appeal, no romance and truly little fun factor in most
situations.

That's why they're the fastest growing segment of the boating industry.


Jeff, you were the kid who watched others play and thought they were
"doing it wrong." I know your type quite well. If you were at peace
with your boat, you'd be able to accept how happy with are with her.
But the fact is that my boat upsets you.

I point out that pinching is not the same as VMG and you claim its all
because of jealously. I never said anything about your boat at all, I
just think its pretty lame to criticize a boat because its a quarter
knot slower when pinched 10 degrees past its optimal VMG. Especially
when its a faster boat even upwind. This seems to have sent you into
a Temper Tantrum. Suzy will have her hands full with two babies going
through the terrible twos at the same time.


You KNOW she's fast and fun.

Yes, I'm sure it is. However, when I want fast and fun I'd rather
take a 470.

You KNOW we don't need a dinghy for that "sailing feel" that you must
hunt for elsewhere.

Must I? You must know I keep a sailing dinghy hanging in davits and a
kayak on the rail. I just like to use them in neat spots like
Penobscot Bay. I can have my cake and eat it too, all you get are
Ding-Dongs.

You KNOW your boat is essentially a very well built
practical cruising platform

that's true. Yup, that what I wanted, the perfect cruising boat. And
that's what we got. You wanted the perfect light air, flat water day
sailor with a 7 foot bunk that you'll take on two overnights a year,
and maybe thats what you got.

that is virtually souless.

I didn't know you were so religious.

But it was your choice, Jeff. Just as it was Doug's choice to buy a
powerboat. There's really nothing left for you to be critical of
outside of your own mistakes. If we've made any we're simply having too
much fun to notice.

Our cat has taken us from the Great Lakes to Maine to the Florida Keys
and back, in comfort and safety. Now we're only doing about 7-8 weeks
a summer on board, but in a few years we'll head out again. You're
right, that doesn't sound like fun.

What's going on here is that you can't stand the fact that someone
else in the group has a bigger, faster, prettier, more comfortable,
and just plain better boat than you. And it actually gets used to go
cruising, something that seems to scare the crap out of of you.
Frankly, I think that Scotty, DSK, and all the others have more fun on
their boats than you can ever understand, and it shows in the raw
jealousy that drips out of everyone of your posts.


And I truly hope you actually get some enjoyment out of the PDQ, Jeff,
of some sort or another.

You can only dream about cruising, everyone else here actually does it.


Live with it, Jeff. Move on.

Yup. In a few days we're moving on about 150 miles to the Vineyard.
Maybe Cuttyhunk. Maybe over to Block or Narragansett. Wherever the
wind takes us.