JUST ORDERED ONE
Unless the deal falls through (always a possibility until the ink is dry), we ordered a new 400 at the Annapolis Sailboat Show a couple weeks ago. Looked at 34-42' lengths and decided we liked the 400 best. Couple of thoughts: 1. Aft cabin, while not ideal (next time you are docked w/ the wind off the stern and waves slapping under the counter you'll know), is HUGE and even has relatively good headroom. The 380, also had good space there, but the headroom left a lot to be desired. 2. The second head, while something else to break, does allow any guests to have a bit of privacy. Most of the time that head will be unused or put into place as an extra hanging locker. 3. EVERYONE I've talked to that has used the double wheel configuration on the 400 and 470 LOVE it. Really opens up the cockpit, raises the deck to allow that extra aft cabin headroom, provides additonal seating options,and best of all, allows shorter armed sailors (like my wife) to sit on the side and still reach the wheel. After we take delivery (sometime late this winter we think), I'll try to keep track of our initial impressions and compare them to personal experience. We'll report them here. Good luck in your search. As you are probably well aware, many of us feel that Catalinas offer the most boat for the money on the market today. Tim L. (hopefully soon-to-be former owner of S/V "TIDE")
