I am new to sailing, having begun just this past July(01). However, I would greatly appreciate input from experienced sailors. Here is my delimma: am seeking a boat with six ft. headroom, marine head, sink, stove, roller furling, wheel steering, under thirty feet, that will plane. Want to GO when the wind blows! Our winds here are mostly in the 5-15mph range, but occasionally up to 25 mph, and would like to be sailing in that wind. What are the best boats that will fit these criteria? Speed/handling is important, must point well, and be easily handled. Thanks for the responses, JPS
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Ed Schenck
Planing 30 foot keel boat!?
Sounds like great fun but I'm betting that's a short expensive list. Maybe the Colgate 26, the boat used for training by the Naval Academy? Or you could always call your favorite yacht designer for a 30 foot version of an Open 60. Have you seen the ESPN coverage of those boats doing over 20 knots?! The wake behind the boat is amazing at that speed.
Sounds like great fun but I'm betting that's a short expensive list. Maybe the Colgate 26, the boat used for training by the Naval Academy? Or you could always call your favorite yacht designer for a 30 foot version of an Open 60. Have you seen the ESPN coverage of those boats doing over 20 knots?! The wake behind the boat is amazing at that speed.
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Steve O.
good luck
What you are describing is a comfortable cruiser with the speed of a racing scow. You didn't mention auxillary power--outboard or inboard? Diesel or gas? Add an IB diesel to the mix, and there's no way the boat will get up on plane. Probably the closest design would be a water ballast model made by Hunter or Catalina, but neither is a planing hull design. You might get them to surf down a wave on a run.
What you are describing is a comfortable cruiser with the speed of a racing scow. You didn't mention auxillary power--outboard or inboard? Diesel or gas? Add an IB diesel to the mix, and there's no way the boat will get up on plane. Probably the closest design would be a water ballast model made by Hunter or Catalina, but neither is a planing hull design. You might get them to surf down a wave on a run.
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Andy Howard
Round hole, square peg
God with his infinite, yet often misunderstood, wisdom and mercy, has given us a set of physical laws which simply do not allow what you describe to exist. But that's a good think, for it allows me to justify to my wife the absolute necessity of owning three boats instead of one. Our compromise is the head, galley, and berths are on our "big" sailboat, the speed is on our center console runabout, and for go go fun in 20k winds we have a small laser type sailboat. I think the key word here is compromise, when a designer tries to make a truly all purpose boat they have to compromise performance and utility and you end up with a vessel that does many things badly.
God with his infinite, yet often misunderstood, wisdom and mercy, has given us a set of physical laws which simply do not allow what you describe to exist. But that's a good think, for it allows me to justify to my wife the absolute necessity of owning three boats instead of one. Our compromise is the head, galley, and berths are on our "big" sailboat, the speed is on our center console runabout, and for go go fun in 20k winds we have a small laser type sailboat. I think the key word here is compromise, when a designer tries to make a truly all purpose boat they have to compromise performance and utility and you end up with a vessel that does many things badly.
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Ray Bowles
This is a question solved by bankroll rather than
experence. I have never heard of, or about, such a boat. But with enough money I'm sure many models would appear. Ray S/V Speedy
experence. I have never heard of, or about, such a boat. But with enough money I'm sure many models would appear. Ray S/V Speedy
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Mike
What a combo!
If you separate the requirement that the boat be able to plane from the rest of your criteria, you will have many different models to choose from. There are lots of boats available under 30 feet that have comfortable accomodations, and lots of boats under 30 ft. that can get up on a plane, but I don't know of any that can do both. The best advice I ever got before choosing my boat was to be brutally honest with myself about what use I would make of the boat. We all have dreams of long distance cruising or match racing or something, but will we really do it? Despite my life-long dreams, I realized my commitments to work and family (not to mention my wife's preferences) meant that I would not be taking long cruises any time soon. Knowing and accepting that I would be daysailing with the (very) occasional overnighter made my boat selection much easier. What do you really want to do? Race, cruise, just go fast? If you are like most of us, you cannot afford to commission a one-off design that will attempt to accomodate all of your needs. Think hard about what is most important to you about sailing and choose your boat accordingly. That being said, it is really easy and cheap to buy a small sailboat that planes. You can buy a used Sunfish for about $500. If you've never been on one, try it. Those babies fly.
If you separate the requirement that the boat be able to plane from the rest of your criteria, you will have many different models to choose from. There are lots of boats available under 30 feet that have comfortable accomodations, and lots of boats under 30 ft. that can get up on a plane, but I don't know of any that can do both. The best advice I ever got before choosing my boat was to be brutally honest with myself about what use I would make of the boat. We all have dreams of long distance cruising or match racing or something, but will we really do it? Despite my life-long dreams, I realized my commitments to work and family (not to mention my wife's preferences) meant that I would not be taking long cruises any time soon. Knowing and accepting that I would be daysailing with the (very) occasional overnighter made my boat selection much easier. What do you really want to do? Race, cruise, just go fast? If you are like most of us, you cannot afford to commission a one-off design that will attempt to accomodate all of your needs. Think hard about what is most important to you about sailing and choose your boat accordingly. That being said, it is really easy and cheap to buy a small sailboat that planes. You can buy a used Sunfish for about $500. If you've never been on one, try it. Those babies fly.
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Frank
Are you Roger Mac ??
Not to be crass, but your question sounds like something posted by Roger MacGregor. Go with a portapotti and your Nirvana is the same as Roger's 26x design. I bought my first boat, a new 26x, two years ago. After adding some extra sail controls the Mac 26x gives a thrilling ride under sail. I've had half-hour tacks in 20 knots upwind at 8 mph (by GPS). I needed to add adjustable backstay, outhaul, 12:1 vang, jiffy reefing, and tune the mast rake to get good control - the same controls found on most keelboats. On SF Bay, we have a four-mile channel transit before reaching the Central Bay where winds are consistently 15 to 20 knots. A Hunter 24 owner took me to the boat show and described the issues HE saw in choosing a trailer boat for a novice. In order to avoid 90 minutes tacking the channel to the real sailing, he suggested taking a demo ride on the Mac. The new Mac with sails, tax, trailer and outboard was $28,000. We reach the Central Bay in 20 minutes, 16 mph @ 3800 rpms. You can even have a conversation because the 4-stroke motors are so quiet. The outboard even makes it feasible to go out for only a half-day sail after work, just not practical in a traditional sailboat. Finally, if you really want a glimpse of the real value of the 26x, read some of the owners' cruise stories in attached link ... Keys to Bahamas in one week ... Bellingham to Juneau and back in six weeks ... Catalina over a Saturday Sunday, the Channel Islands in a long weekend ... or Dry Tortugas, or Desolation Sound, or Princess Louisa Inlet. It may not be the best pointing sailboat, but it's probably the most practical cruiser for real destination sailing. Roger has sold 5,000 of this single design in six years - he's obviously doing something right.
Not to be crass, but your question sounds like something posted by Roger MacGregor. Go with a portapotti and your Nirvana is the same as Roger's 26x design. I bought my first boat, a new 26x, two years ago. After adding some extra sail controls the Mac 26x gives a thrilling ride under sail. I've had half-hour tacks in 20 knots upwind at 8 mph (by GPS). I needed to add adjustable backstay, outhaul, 12:1 vang, jiffy reefing, and tune the mast rake to get good control - the same controls found on most keelboats. On SF Bay, we have a four-mile channel transit before reaching the Central Bay where winds are consistently 15 to 20 knots. A Hunter 24 owner took me to the boat show and described the issues HE saw in choosing a trailer boat for a novice. In order to avoid 90 minutes tacking the channel to the real sailing, he suggested taking a demo ride on the Mac. The new Mac with sails, tax, trailer and outboard was $28,000. We reach the Central Bay in 20 minutes, 16 mph @ 3800 rpms. You can even have a conversation because the 4-stroke motors are so quiet. The outboard even makes it feasible to go out for only a half-day sail after work, just not practical in a traditional sailboat. Finally, if you really want a glimpse of the real value of the 26x, read some of the owners' cruise stories in attached link ... Keys to Bahamas in one week ... Bellingham to Juneau and back in six weeks ... Catalina over a Saturday Sunday, the Channel Islands in a long weekend ... or Dry Tortugas, or Desolation Sound, or Princess Louisa Inlet. It may not be the best pointing sailboat, but it's probably the most practical cruiser for real destination sailing. Roger has sold 5,000 of this single design in six years - he's obviously doing something right.
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Don Evans
Consider the F-31
The closest boat I can think of that would meet your demands is a tri. One of the best is the Corsair marine built, Ian Ferrier designed F-31. It will blow the doors off a comparitive monohull, with "near" planning capabilities. It is trailerable also. They are expensive though. But maybe money is no object? See link below for a review. There are other tri's out there too. The Dragonfly comes to mind. Don
The closest boat I can think of that would meet your demands is a tri. One of the best is the Corsair marine built, Ian Ferrier designed F-31. It will blow the doors off a comparitive monohull, with "near" planning capabilities. It is trailerable also. They are expensive though. But maybe money is no object? See link below for a review. There are other tri's out there too. The Dragonfly comes to mind. Don
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