[johnwalsh]

Jeff, I truely appreciate your candid response and would not want anything less. I guess I didn''t make myself totally clear about my sailing experience. I have sailed on smaller boats (14-18ft) since I was 8 yrs old....I''m 38 now. I guess I should of said I''m new to the "crusing" world. I do understand that the Catalina and Beneteau are designed for differnet types of sailing. I think that Beneteau has always built sailboats with racing in their minds...combining comfort and performance. Where as Catalina dosen''t measure up in the performance category.(That''s just a personal opinion) But thanks very much for your information on the quality of both boats. Cordially,John