This should be an interesting discussion on Cruising Worlds Top 40 boats every made.
Butter popcorn and beer/rum is ready.
Butter popcorn and beer/rum is ready.
This should be an interesting discussion on Cruising Worlds Top 40 boats every made.
Butter popcorn and beer/rum is ready.
That's a good choice, certainly a landmark design... Still, I think it's original influence was as more of a race boat, so I've got to give the nod to Bob's iconic Valiant, which was an equivalent breakthrough in the realm of cruising boats...Cal 40 got my vote...
That was the one that baffled me, as well... Then, it dawned on me, that regular CW contributor Webb Chiles's latest boat is a Moore 24...The Moore 24 is a super little race boat, and a very cool design. I love these boats. But again, how did it show up on this list?
yeah, but you're overlooking one very important thing...The polling at this point shows the Island Packet 38 as leading as the number 1 best of all time. To me this boat fails on the sailing ability characteristics being lousy in light air, corky in a rough stuff, and not great heavy air boats. They are good live aboards, they have benefitted from aggressive advertising, but are these really the best cruising boat of all times? If that is what the readers of Cruising World believe to be true, then I seriously question the criteria of these readers.
Jeff - given your criteria, what boats would you recommend for a couple starting out in the PNW and eventually venturing forth. No plans to cross oceans but wanting to keep options open.My wife's account will allow me to double down on my Valiant 40 vote, but in truth it would be a tough call for me personally between a Peterson 44 and the Valiant 40, each for thier own reasons.
Of course if it was up to me, my list would be very different. I would probably have the original Esprit 37 before putting the Pacific Seacraft 37 on the list.
I would probably have something like the Morris 45 RS on the list as well.
I would definitely have the Morris Justine 36 rather than the pin-up girl Morris 36.
As I would expect there are almost no IOR era boats, and yet I would think that the Tartan 41 might be a reasonable candidate for this list.
I would think that the Hallberg Rassey 40 would be a better choice than the Hallberg 43 on the list.
I would think that the Hylas 46 would be a much better choice than the Hylas 49.
While popular and ubiquitous, roomy and a decent sailer for its day, and certainly a good value, I would never think of a Catalina 30 as being one of the top 40 cruising boats of all times.
I would think in the top 40 that there should be some performance cruisers as well. I might have something like a J-44 or Farr 47 on the list.
In the end these kinds of contests are a bit of a beauty contest perhaps rigged by the limited number of choices on the list.
Jeff
You may not like they way they sail, but I know you love the way those CCA-inspired designs look Jeff!from that perspective I would agree about the Triton or Cat 30 for that matter.
Jeff
Definitely a consideration. However, I believe their are Rolls Royces out there that are absolute lemons and there are probably some Yugos that still run perfectly. Breeding counts but I think individual care and maintenance trumps.When are people going to consider how well a boat holds up and what they take to fix when something goes wrong.
I many shoe horns do you need to get in places just to do an oil change or repair other systems.