If it''s the boat I''m thinking of, they''re pretty nice, but perhaps bit tight down below. The midships bunks have footholes in the bulkhead to make them long enough to sleep in. Though these footholes are a good place to store bedding or pillows while underway, the resulting
seats aren''t too long if you want the whole crew (I''d want 6 or so to race) to sit for dinner. The interior makes me think "airplane", which is ok if it appeals to you. On deck, the layout seemed pretty normal. A comment I overheard was that they seem to sail a bit slower than their PHRF rating. If you''re looking to cruise, this shouldn''t make any difference. If you want to race, perhaps the speaker I overheard was someone who doesn''t sail well, and you should ask around some more.
IMHO, if you are looking into a partnership, the most important thing is to have partners you like and who share the same goals as you for the boat. If two partners want to race a Colin Archer yawl, or want to cruise in a Melges 24, they''ll be able to work together to make it happen, even if the boats aren''t particularly well suited to the endeavors. The Olson 34 is set up so you can race pretty well or cruise pretty well. Whether the partnership works depends upon your working together. If your goals are too different, there will be too many diverging issues to have it last long. We''ve shared our boat (and costs) for the past five years with people who like to race some, cruise a little, and daysail. We all like to do these things, so when we need new sails, we get racing sails. When we need new cushions, we get ones that should last a good while. We keep safety as a top priority, but let cosmetic issues slide to the bottom of the list. We''ve been together long enough now that we''re awlgripping the topsides and looking forward to another five years of sailing fun. Keep both eyes open and, like boarding any boat, get on one foot at a time.
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