Catalina `?

[Gisle]

Dear Catalina owners.I am a Norwegian sailor who are in the market for a sailboat to sail the big blue with. When I" surf" the American sailboat market i find a lot of catalina boats for sale.I have not seen any of these boats in Norway so I really dont know much about them!I am thinking about a boat from 30-35 ft and I see that Catalina have several models.How fit are these boats for going around the world with. Do anybody have any experience? The crew will be 3 people? Best regards Gisle tomgisle@frisurf.no

 

[Ron]

Offshore Use

GisleThe mid-size and larger Catalinas all have an international offshore rating, and might be OK for an occasional offshore trip, but I wouldn't buy one for that purpose. Most I've seen are very well designed and built for coastal cruising.Your best approach would be to read about & speak to serious offshore sailors to determine the features desireable in such a boat. Remembering, of course, that any boat represents compromises between conflicting requirements. Then prioritize those goals and features and search for a boat that comes close to meeting them.Good luck--Ron