CAL vs. Pearson,,

[onojmai]

i grew up loving pearson''s boats. but what are they compared to a Cal? my dad own''s a Cal 35 mkII from the 80''s that i am going to live on this summer in a marina... but seaworthiness? is a Cal more so than a pearson?
people say pearson''s are coastal cruisers. but it seems people have taken them places bluewater- over time. they''re like a jeep, in my humble opinion. they can go anywhere. am i mistaken?

are Cal''s any better than pearsons in qualtity and design? i know the two are closely related... so i need experienced skippers to tell me whats up.

[SailorMitch]

I''d rate them both as coastal cruisers. yes, people have circumnavigated in Pearsons, even a Catalina 27 and a Cal 25 -- not that I would. So just because someone took a chance in a bluewater cruise in a boat doesn''t make it a bluewater boat.

I can speak more specifically on Pearsons (I own a 1988 P-33 and have a long list of Pearson connections I''ll spare you), but all Pearsons were meant as coastal cruisers when they left the factory. By that I mean that knowledgable skippers could retrofit some models to make them bluewater capable, but all the boats left the factory designed and built for coastal cruising.

There really are only a handful of manufacturers who build bluewater boats (in my mind.) Vast majority of boats you run across are coastal cruisers, and that more than meets the needs of most sailors. Nothing wrong with that.

Probably didn''t answer your question, but that''s my 2 cents.