Seeking Performance Oriented, Offshore Capable...

[tarmand]

... 42-ish footer in the $200 - 250K range. I''m thinking J-42, Hanse 41, Dufour 40, Sabre 42 or Tartan 41. In my price range only the Hanse would be new, all others would used (not that that''s a problem), and I may have to wait for them to become available.... I mostly sail on the Chesapeake Bay with wife and two small kids in the summer, but have aspirations for Bermuda, New England and/or Caribbean. I don''t race, per se, but I''ll admit it; I prefer going faster than others! My timing is next spring at the earliest, so I have time. My "family driven" requirements are for a relatively new boat with three cabins (only one need be "real") and at least one "real" head (preferably with separate shower). I realize that I may not be able to meet all of the family requirements, but hey, I''ll deal with that! My questions are: What other boats should I consider? Thoughts to help me decide between my choices (pros, cons, etc.)? Other things to consider?

[paulk]

I''ve sailed with my family and found that 36'' is plenty of boat to handle. If you have to go bigger to get the cabins & separate spaces you want, be sure the sail handlin systems are in place for when you''re shorthanded, or you may spend a lot of time wishing you had bigger crew or a smaller boat. Also, draft on a 42'' J isn''t an issue for cruising (fast) in Chesapeake Bay? It would be in our harbor on Long Island Sound, where there''s less of a reputation for shallow water.

[tarmand]

Paul-
Thanks for the advice... we''ve got a 36 footer now, and space isn''t so much a problem. It''s more the ever present "move up" bug manifested as the family''s desire to be more comfortable and my desire to go faster. Also your point about short-handed sailing is well-taken... I am essentially single-handing while my wife watches the kids. So we''ll add this to the lever-growing list of stated criteria along with a maximum 6 foot draft. Godd thing we''re in no real hurry, this may take a while.

[JIO]

tarmand: I purchased a Hanse 371 last fall. Very pleased with the purchase so far. Looking forward for winter to end so I can start using the boat again. I too am Chesapeake based, I keep the boat in Galesville. I think the Hanse 411 is a great value as compared to its competition. As to your situation where you single hand while the wife watches the kids, same deal for me. As you probably know, Hanse comes standard with a self tacking jib. It has made single handling with the family so very easy, even in some very strong winds. My boat also has a large genoa that is used without the self tailing track, so you have all kinds of options with this rig. Happy to give you more info on Hanse if you like. You can email me at jopert@krooth.com if you have any questions.

Jon

[doubleplay]

You can also take a look at Dehler 39...
She is a very well made boat with two or three cabin options.You can cruise comfortable and fast... and with adding an optional electric winch you can single hand with the help of a good auto pilot like Raytheon 6001+...
Good Luck

[Silmaril]

Ever concider a Hinckley Bermuda 40 Yawl? There seem to be a number of nice examples on the market in your price rance. Workmanship on these is second-to-none, and owners of them usually take fanatical care of them. The split of the sail plan into two makes for much more managable sail handling for one person, as far as effort goes, just more of ''em! And the B-40 has a centerboard for gunk hole inquisitiveness! Blue water capable, although not as roomy by today''s standards. But hey, when you have the prettiest boat in the ancorage, who cares?

[OCJoe]

I was going to mention a Hinck B40. They are smallish below, but the feel of her underway is incredible. Of course mine is for sale. Email in interested: asking $119K homeportoc@aol.com You can see a few pics on my personal page. We are going bigger in size and amount of hulls. Heading back to a cruising catamaran. Long story....

[tarmand]

I actually considered getting something along the lines of a used Hinckley. They are gorgeous... but are they "performance oriented"? Having only admired them from afar, I have no idea. I also really like the Little Harbor 38, but it doesn''t meet my accomodation needs. It''s the accomodation needs that are probably going to kill the "classic beauty" dream. I''m not shelving it yet though...

[Jeff_H]

With all due respect, I would not consider the Hinckley Bermuda 40 Yawls to be performance boats. They were considered slow even in thier day doing well in races because of a very favorable rating in a long dead rating system. While I know that they have been used successfully for offshore cruising, I am also not sure that I would consider them to be very good offshore boats as well. In my experience they are quite wet and tend to have an uncomfortable motion especially in a short seas, where they they tend to pitch and roll more than more modern designs that have been designed for offshore cruising such as a Valiant 40.

In terms of performance, the Valiant, while no rocketship, is roughly 40 seconds a mile faster. 40 seconds a mile is very significant especially in longer passages. More modern 40 footers are several minutes a mile faster than the Hinckley Bermuda 40 Yawls.

While the Bermuda 40 Yawls are beautiful to look at and are neat to sail as a piece of history, a lot of positive things have happened in the yacht design world in the nearly 50 years since she was designed. She was designed in a period when traditional design principles were abandoned to create vessels that were contorted to meet an aberation in the racing rules. She was designed in a period when modern seakeeping design principles were yet to be understood. They are neat boats if speed and comfort are not an issue but that does not seem to be the case with this request.

Respectfully,
Jeff

[tarmand]

Jeff- Thanks for your perspective on the Hinckley. I was pretty sure that an older "upscale" boat would not meet my accomodation/performance requirements, which is why it wasn''t on the original list (and why I posted the question). Do you have any thoughts on the boats on my original list?