Jeff wrote:

Capt. JG wrote:

"Jeff" wrote in message
. ..

I don't get it. Why does the Mac "need" an engine 3 times as
powerful as all of its competition. And why is that a safety feature?


Because the "sailor" driving it is either insecure about himself or
not experienced enough to deal with the conditions, including "getting
to the sailing area" under sail. The engine should be a last resort.


Yes, this one has had me thinking some. I understand Jim's point that
the high freeboard can cause a bit of a problem. However, the small
sail area on the boat only generates a limited amount of power. I
can't find my reference (Gere's book) but I think all he could count on
from his sails in 14 kts would be around 6 HP. Even doubling the wind
only brings it up to 24 HP. Certainly others of his size, such as
Neal's banana boat, can get up to hull speed with an engine under 10 hp.


The small sail area generates limited power, but the freeboard is rather
large, and under heavy winds, it can also generate "power".
Additionally, the boat is lightweight, has no weighted keel, etc.



So claiming that 50 hp is required to power the boat is essentially
claiming that the boat would be unmanageable under sail. In other
words, the big engine would allow to get offshore fast, but then you're
in deep **** if it died, because the sails do not generate enough power
to get you back.

First, I'm not saying that you "need 50 hp to power the boat." You could
probably get by with 15 - 25. I do think that you need something larger
than the typical 5 - 10 hp often used on boats of this size, and that
having a large motor provides reserve power and additional control that
is nice to have in severe conditions. The 50 hp is needed if you want to
plane with full load, but I think 20 hp would probably be enough for
getting through most heavy weather conditions.

As to getting back if the motor failed, I think the boat would get back
safely with reduced sail under most conditions. - In the Mac discussion
groups, other Mac owners speak of their boats performing well (though
not comfortably) in some pretty wild conditions, and I don't recall
hearing about any who couldn't get back to shore. On the other hand, I
personally don't want to head out in known severe or threatening conditions.

Jim