[guitarguy56]

I know we have many reasons for buying the particular boat you have now be it size, handling, seaworthiness, style, motor-sailor/sail only, cabin interior vs sparse cabin layouts, tiller vs wheel, etc.

As myself, Medsailor, and others are going through this process whether used boat or new... we all tend to be looking for a particular boat that will suit our needs. I'm 57 yrs old (does it matter... this will make sense soon) my wife is 50 yrs old (I know cradle robber... ... we met when I was 28 and she was 21... ), so you can see that supposedly if the boat is delivered to me by Summer of 2015 or so I'll be 58 by then... we have a window of sailing in our more 'vigorous' years before we slow down some.

My spouse has medical problems that may inhibit some of our cruising and this is where I think choosing a particular boat comes into play... I'm more inclined to get a sailboat with small draft (centerboard type) of the style of the Southerly's as this will allow me to beach the boat ASAP should I need to get my wife to an hospital emergency unit if required. Barring this sort of emergencies it's really accessible areas in the cabin that are easy for my wife to move around in, she gets dizzy because of her medications so edges need to be rounded and no sharp corners, etc.

Looking for boats that hit the target may not be easy... finding the right one is worth the money I put into it... so that in mind what made you choose the particular boat you have and why?

 

[killarney_sailor]

For your wife, have a really good look at where handholds are for someone with her reach (no idea how tall she is, but sometimes what works well for a 6 footer is terrible for a 5 footer).

We were looking for a boat around 40 feet to replace our Niagara 35 when my wife was head-hunted for a job in Jersey City. She did not want to do a NYC commute and rentals downtown were ridiculous even in JC so we started looking for a boat a bit bigger. Above all else she wanted a large comfy bed and a good galley. We looked at lots of boats from Maine to the Chesapeake and the Bristol was the one we liked best. At that time we were not considering extended sailing beyond the Caribbean but one thing leads to another.

 

[mad_machine]

I bought my seasprite 23 when I thought I was looking to eventually get an Alberg 37. Being designed by the same person, I thought they would sail alike, but on a smaller scale.

I also really loved the looks of a small traditional sloop.

 

[Runshari]

We bought our Beneteau 352 for a number of reasons. I'm 55 and my husband is 60 and this is our first (and likely last) boat. We wanted to be sure that we would be happy with it for many years, even as we grow older. It has an in-mast furling main which is great for older sailors. Greg also wanted a boat that he could sail single-handed (if ever he throws me overboard) and all the sheets run back to the cockpit.

For me, I love the layout of the cabin. It's bright and comfortable. The galley is functional with reasonable storage for our purposes. The ONLY thing I want to change is the salon table because it's too big for the space and too big for our needs.

Currently we will sail as time permits and then explore further when we retire and have more time. Hopefully not too far in the future.

 

[FSMike]

It was the only thing I could find that suited me (multihull, good sailing performance) that I could afford.

 

[luv4sailin]

The devil made me do it!

 

[Stumble]

My whole family are a bit of boat nuts, and we tend to go they a lot of different ones... Last time I counted as a collective we own 12 boats currently, and I don't really want to count how many we have owned over the years.

The most important thing to figure out is what are you going to use it for. Not what you might want to do, or what may come up, but exactly what this boat will be used for over the next five years.

If you get this question right, everything flows very naturally from it. If you get it wrong, then you wind up with an Oyster being used for coastal cruising, or a big Bertram that never leaves the dock.

The great temptation is to buy way more boat than you need.

 

[guitarguy56]

The particular model I'm looking for would of course need to have as many handholds as it possibly can be designed to have. It would have to be such that during heavy surf or waves and my wife is in the galley she can brace herself against a wall, the berth would need to have easy access (no tight spaces), the head would need to be easily accessible as well as the shower with sit down access. She is not handicapped by any means but she has blood clotting problems and is taking medication for bleeding (Coumadin) along with epilepsy (no episodes yet) so there cannot be edges that would cause her to get cut, etc.

It won't be easy but I've lived with her long enough to know her limitations and our home is addressed to be sure we don't get into these horrific situations. I almost lost her in the last auto accident she was in and thankfully she is with us today. So I would like our remaining time left to enjoy living some of our wishes. We're using the boat as a platform to entertain our kids and friends at various towns and cities we have friends living in Florida and other Caribbean islands but we have to get there and this is where we have to have as safe a boat as we can much as our home... tough I know... I have been looking silently for months. I narrowed it down to 3-5 boats but know there are more out there.

Raised salons such as the Southerly has me concerned since it means going up and down stairs and platforms but what the heck she has to get down through the hatch right? The Cat 445 seems to be a great boat but not sure of beaching it should I need to. My spouse had no problem on the boat we have now (we sailed the Puget Sound area) but that was weekends only and several days is not the same as 6-9 months. I also don't want to see her overboard one day... that would be the thought I'd never ever want to see as well as any of my kids or guests so the lifelines need special attention as well, but accidents happen and we'll have to be prepared right?

 

[benesailor]

My story is all strange.

I was looking at a C&C 29 and was offered up my current boat; a Beneteau 400 on a gold platter. Two totally different boats. The indivdual needed cash and the market at the time sucked for sellers in Florida. The deal was struck in 3 minutes. No song, no dance, no survey. In my defense i'd been on the boat once (18 mon prior); well, kind of. I was reeaallly trashed. Yup, i was that guy pukeing in the trash can while you were eating breakfast on the beachfront in Palm Beach.

Yea, I was a Benehuntercatalina hater. Since i've owned this boat i have been converted. I am totally impressed with the engineering at Beneteau. It's nothing that i expected; in a good way. Great boat; don't know if it will be my last, but, wouldn't feel bad if it was.

My wife was a little bit upset when i told her; to put it mildly..........the very first weekend sitting on the back of the boat drinking a cocktail fixed that. She's loved it ever since.

So.....the short of the story. The boat picked me; rather than i picking the boat.

 

[Stumble]

It sounds like for health reasons a large catamaran would be the way to go.

The following are in no particular order:
1) I wouldn't worry about being able to beach her, since a medivac by a powerboat or helicopter is a much faster option than finding a beach near a hospital.

2) assuming she is reasonably physically capable a raised saloon or a hatch I can't see making much of a difference other than where on the boat they are.

3) a large multihull is going to be much more stable underway than a comperably sized mono in all conditions. With a bleeding is this stability translates directly into a health advantage

4) while cooking underway a belly band to lean on, or even a harness for support is commonly used. A small gally can help make up for this, but causes other compromises. The best is both.

5) almost all boats regardless of type will have rounded edges on everything. In the event the one you are looking at doesn't, a few hundred bucks on a router and cove bit can solve that problem.

6) extra high lifelines are always an option, and aren't that expensive. Figure $125 per stantion, and you will need to add an extra wire (dyneema would be prefered).

7) extra hand holds are easy additions. I wouldn't get too worried about how many the boat starts with. Figure a thousand bucks will get them added everywhere you can imagine.

8) I don't mean to harp, but my mother is in a similar situation. She had a bad car accident twenty years or so ago and had both of her legs shattered leaving her with no balance at all, and thanks to replacement femurs (both titanium) her platelet count is approaching zero. Both of her boats now are multihulls, and the added stability of them is like night and day compared to her old mono.

 

[PaulinVictoria]

I liked the colour.

 

[Osprey 26]

Had nice boat, yacht and sold it.
Now bought dinghy to learn to sail properly.

 

[Rhapsody-NS27]

I wanted a good boat to learn on and that could take me anywhere I wanted. It was also the best and biggest I could afford. It is still small enough to tow with my truck, and big enough to go anywhere in the world. It's a great boat for my local lake and will be great when my skills improve and take it out on the ocean. I love my boat and it's the perfect fit for me.

 

[Squidd]

I was drunk the day my mom got out of prison...(sorry that was a differen day)

lets just say you shouldn't drink and bid on boats on e-bay late at night...

(just saying....)

 

[TQA]

I am big 6' 3" my 44 ft mono has the biggest shower I have seen on a boat of this size.

There is no risk of me banging my elbows or the elbows of the friend showering with me.

Yup it really is that big.

Anyway dat was one BIG reason.

 

[Shockwave]

Guitar, not to be a smart ass but maybe you need to rent condos where you would like to visit and fly there? Given your wife's conditions, small boats aren't comfy or easy....

We have our current boat because my wife wanted it.

 

[azguy]

A C22 seemed like a good place to start since I was a newbie and was going to be singlehanded 99% of the time. It's plenty of boat for me, for now...

 

[CharlzO]

Well, the price was right, for one. But two, it was a relatively unique boat, should be suited well for what I'll be doing in the short-term, and will give me a great platform to learn many new things on, maintenance, refitting, sailing in general, and more. It's definitely going to be a stepping stone in preparation of a few years down the road.

As far as design goes though, there really isn't anything that I sit here and go "I like this about this one over other options, so that's why I chose it." Because there's nothing outrageous about it (unless you count that wacky keel). It satisfies my itch for a boat, gives me a project to learn on, and that's all I was after

 

[blutoyz]

I bought my US27 because it was stupid cheap, had a diesel, a wheel, roller furling and was pretty much launch ready. I handles like a dinghy but has room for friends.

I do want to move into the 35-40 range in a few years just to be able to keep up with my armada...I am the smallest boat in the fleet and don't have enough waterline for consistent 7-8kn runs like the bigger boats.:hothead

 

[outbound]

I've had multiple boats so have run into multiple problems through the years. I have never owned a new until now. I'm retiring this year and wife in 2. I'm 6' - she's 4'10". I've had:
Keel bolt problems- want encapsulated keel.
Like to go fast- want efficient bulbed keel.
Had pedants break and center boards jam- want fixed keel of reasonable draft.
Broken fingers going forward to reef and need boat set up to single- want lines brought aft.
Had very scary time when an in mast furled jammed- Dutchman with single line for first two double for third reef.
Scared of main halyard breaking with huge amount of sail on deck with leisure furl- ditto.
Have been caught out even with weather routing - baby stay for storm jib
Been on other rigs but Solent best for mom and pop
Winches powered but boat set up so everything works with no power.
Interior customized for multiple hand holds that fit both of us.exterior customized so she can reach everything
7 berths- 5 true sea berths behind mast.
All the comforts of a home as we are living on it.
Solid hull- no delamination worries easy to fix back to original strength .good design with multiple 200+ m days.
No wood no varnish
Synthetic core in deck- no water migration
Fully glassed in bulkheads- no creaks& groans
Watertight bulkhead forward- boat safer than raft
Traditional teak and pleasing colors inside- lowers stress
Views from inside- nice and light
Centerized tankage with multiple integral tanks- no maintenance, have water/ fuel if one bad, improved gyradius
Hate cold/ wet- hard dodger
Hate engine noise- 2 d400 and solar panels on hard Bimini for juice, parasailor for light air
As Nate says white or the wrong color
Beautiful

Yes I love my boat- spend a lot of time thinking it through and listening to others. More important wife loves it too.