2017 Domestic Boat of the Year

[Simon Sexton]

Hey Guys,

Good morning everyone! I just wanted to share the award-winning domestic boat of the year for 2017, as it's wrapping up quickly! For those who don't know about it yet, the winner is the 2017 Catalina 426!

Designed by Gerry Douglas, this boat came out this year in late June; it's the second version of the Catalina 42 ever to be produced as the company manufactured 1,000 42s from 1984-1989. It was wildly popular and sold in high demand for as long as it was produced. Thus, when the new model of the 42 came into view, Douglas wanted it to be not only as good, but BETTER than the original model. "Boy, I felt this wasn't like you were aboard a production boat, frankly." Judge Tim Murphey says. "It has a very warm-feeling interior, and the fit and finish was emphatically good." With a sticker price of $262,900, Tim claims that a customer gets so much more than their money's worth in comfort and style, as well as performance. Twin helms in the extremely spacious cockpit allow easy and accessible comfortable compensation for healing over on either tack; this also allows the helmsman to see around the top of the cabin, which has an astounding 6.2 feet of head room. Douglas also managed to shave a whopping 2,000 pounds off the weight by incorporating a carbon deck core and nearly an inch of balsa core just above the waterline. This also makes her a bit faster, along with the new furling sail layout and options for a modified wing shoal keel at 5 ft. of draft, or a fin keel at 6.8 ft. of draft. With such modifications and good ole' American quality, this Catalina is sure to keep up and compete with the high-rated French and European designs of today, and set new standards of the sailing experience tomorrow.

God Bless,
S.S.

 

[Jackdaw]

domestic boat of the year.

Hollow victory.. no other US builder was even nominated for an award.

What is that about? Who's left, Hunter and Catalina? Why split them out from the other builders? Its just a way to sell more ads in the magazine.

 

[Simon Sexton]

domestic boat of the year.

What is that about? Who's left, Hunter and Catalina? Why split them out from the other bulders? Its just a way to sell more ads in the magazine.

I'm not sure :/ but I was excited to see that Catalina beat Hunter, considering how much competition they've had going against each other! There are a few more domestic companies left, too, but not near as many as foreign companies. It's sad, really I wish I could go back in time and live in the days when not one boat was the same as the other!

 

[capta]

I'm not too enamored with the anchor set up, but I guess if one wants a plumb bow one must pay the price. Could be a bit costly if one hit that roller/anchor on something.

 

[Don S/V ILLusion]

I think the primary consideration by whoever selects the winner each year is which manufacturer promises the biggest ad budget commitment.

There are too many American boatbuilders making far more outstanding boats. But it is a good marketing ploy.

 

[cb32863]

 

[Justin_NSA]

I'm not too enamored with the anchor set up, but I guess if one wants a plumb bow one must pay the price. Could be a bit costly if one hit that roller/anchor on something.

That does look goofy. Had to add a support to extend it.
Not that it would fit in our docks, but a setup like that means you have to tie up that much further back so as not to hang over the walkway. Won't be appreciated if they do it to smaller boats too.

 

[Jackdaw]

Not that it would fit in our docks, but a setup like that means you have to tie up that much further back so as not to hang over the walkway. Won't be appreciated if they do it to smaller boats too.

You have to look at this in terms of overall volumemetric efficiency of the hull, and how that's gotten SO much better over the last several generation of boats. Look at a Bermuda 40, then a c&c 40, then this generation. 2x as much room. You could go down and 5 feet in LOA and still come out way ahead space-wise compared to your boat.

 

[shemandr]

BOTY awards don't do much for me. As a matter of fact I don't take boat reviews seriously either. They are part of the boating industry. I'm not offended. I just understand what it is. Actually I'd like the job of writing them. Send me to Florida, Newport or Chessey, and take me out on a boat and I'll say whatever you want. "... in 12 -15 knots the boat really came alive and made a steady 5 knots..."

 

[jwing]

The wide starboard cockpit bench is brilliant. The swim deck looks too short.

 

[TomY]

It's amazing to see a new 42' sailboat for $250k. In a time when labor and materials have skyrocketed, Catalina really trimmed their costs.

Production and semi production sailboat building has all but come to a halt in New England. Builders like Hinckley, Sabre, Morris, Pearson, etc..., rode the wave for decades.

Boats got beamier, freeboards rose and rose above the water. Side decks narrowed -disappeared altogether in some cases - as living volume was created below. Cockpits on 40'er's are now a second story over cabins below.

Then the wave broke.

Is the Catalina 425 the future of production boat building in the US? Or is Catalina just the last man standing?

 

[LakeOntario270]

"Is the Catalina 425 the future of production boat building in the US? Or is Catalina just the last man standing?"
Interesting question. What is going to happen when Jerry Douglas is no longer the designer? Will the next designer break new ground or will Catalina keep making more or less the same boats? Catalina's philosophy always has been the "Most boat for the money". Will the market evolve to 80ft mega yachts with gold plating that only 6 people can afford?

 

[capta]

Will the market evolve to 80ft mega yachts with gold plating that only 6 people can afford?

With the disappearing middle class and less and less disposable income for the average family, that is probably the direction any boat builder who wants to survive will have to go.

 

[Justin_NSA]

Or they can use (stay with) the other business model and go for volume. More boats at a cheaper price. Manufacturing costs become the main concern then.

 

[Jackdaw]

Or they can use (stay with) the other business model and go for volume. More boats at a cheaper price. Manufacturing costs become the main concern then.

The trick is there has to be a market. A perfect boat at a great price will not sell if there is no market. Its the first thing a product person looks for, the TAM (Total Addressable Market) for a product.

 

[capta]

More boats at a cheaper price.

What an exciting thought for those wishing to purchase a boat for offshore sailing!

 

[Justin_NSA]

Quality doesn't have to be expensive. We build fuselages for Boeing and we're always driven to cut cost so we can deliver more units at a lower price.

 

[nat55]

domestic boat of the year.

Who's left, Hunter and Catalina? Why split them out from the other builders? Its just a way to sell more ads in the magazine.

Well, Tartan still makes some nice boats, as does Island Packet. C&C/US Watercraft are made in RI. While not production companies, there are plenty of smaller builders here in Maine and elsewhere. J/Boats licenses CCF composites in RI for a number of their models.
The BOTY awards that Sail and Cruising World produce are no different than any other industry, I love looking at the reviews to see where systems, rigging etc. are going. I don't know about you but if the builders can get ads into the consumer magazines great!
The marine trades in this country are not dead, sailboat production has slowed way down for sure for a variety of reasons but lets do what we can and support it, not by buying a new boat but by participating, buy a Sail magazine once in while, subscribe to Cruising World, or Good Old Boat......

 

[Kings Gambit]

Is the Catalina 425 the future of production boat building in the US? Or is Catalina just the last man standing?

From the look of things in that Cruising World report, multihulls appear to be "the future" of production boat building generally. How long before the domestics (monohulls) are out sold by those beasties? One of the important things that may be keeping them down is that recent marina rebuilds do not have many slips wide enough for 'em. Also, as JD mentioned, there's not too much to hoot about with only one US model in the competition for domestic boat of the year. It's like finishing 1st in a one-boat race.

 

[Kermit]

Or they can use (stay with) the other business model and go for volume. More boats at a cheaper price. Manufacturing costs become the main concern then.

Quality doesn't have to be expensive. We build fuselages for Boeing and we're always driven to cut cost so we can deliver more units at a lower price.

My favorite quote from Alan Shepard, the first American in space. “It's a very sobering feeling to be up in space and realize that one's safety factor was determined by the lowest bidder on a government contract.”