Suncat vs the other CPs

[hitchhiker]

I love SunCat very much but the desire for bigger boat comes to me every now and then. The size of the boat has to be under 25 feet because of the marina. Shoud I buy CP-23 in the future?

[mrb]

Ahoy Hitchhicker

You are suffering from a common malady that affects most sailors.  Landsmen call it the grass is greener over there, sailors call it the 2ft idis.  Doctors have found no cure that works for all cases and so recommend each affected person has to find own cure.

I can sympathise as I have same malady and can only say best of luck in your search for help.

Good sailing

melvin

[Bob23]

Hitch:
   I am the proud owner of a 1985 23/2 "Koinonia" but I must say sometimes I experience the urge to go smaller. Yes, this disease is a mutation of the malady Melvin describes. I was toying with the idea of owning a 16 for a while but have come to this conclusion: we are a basically discontented lot; It's good to be able to define your sailing needs and wants and get the boat that fulfills them, right? Well, if you are ever able to define as above, let me know- I'd love to know how!
   The 23 is not a trailer-sailor boat. She's heavy at 3000 lbs and mine would not enjoy being rolled on and off a trailer many times a season.
   I had the pleasure of sailing on a friends 19 once and truely enjoyed it! Very well behaved, didn't have the same amount of initial heel that my 23 has, and has plenty of room for overnights and weekends.
   That being said, if I ever sold my 23, I mean if she ever left me for another owner, I'd go smaller-possibly a Welsford Pathfinder. I'm quite content with my 23. I've often said that the 23 is a boat with an identity crisis- Is it a small big boat, or a big small boat? Or just a very strong, beautiful boat. Yep, that's it.
Bob23...with my side of the story.

[Joseph]

My vote is for keeping the Sun Cat.

In my humble opinion, unless with a very large budget, most sailors have an option: to sail or to own a boat. Both scenarios are not necessarily the same and in some cases not even compatible (a Canadian instructor and captain with whom I sailed extensively in the past used to say: "why get married to a boat when there are so many there just waiting for you; you want to sail, sail!, don't own a boat..."). A sailor should also be reminded that, for no other activity than sailing may the words uttered in the movie "Disappearances" sound more true and relevant: "we are dispossessed by our possessions"...  it is a fact of sailing that, on average, the larger the boat a sailor owns, the less time he/she sails... Small boats are to be owned (particularly if they can be trailered) but larger boats are best sailed, crewed or skippered, as most of us enjoy flying (or breathing...): without the burden of ownership. IMHO, do keep the SunCat (arguably the handiest trailerable coastal mini-cruiser) and plan to satisfy your dreams of the blue yonder by chartering or doing passages in the most beautiful waters of the World and many of the most beautiful and larger (35 - 55 ft and beyond) boats ever designed and built!. There are zillion opportunities awaiting out there...

J.

[jdonaldson]

I wish I could agree with you.  We now have had a Suncat since the Spring of 2006.  We sail it much less than our 1986 Compac 27 that we owned for 11 years.  We used to jump on the 27 and get underway in less than 10 minutes.  Now I have to pull off the tarp, raise the mast, check and pump the tires just to go down the ways at my marina.  If I want to go anywhere else, it is a trip for an hour or several hours.  And here in MD, except for one county on the Eastern Shore, no public launch ramp will allow you to stay overnight.  If you try it, you will find your boat on its trailer hauled away to a county impoundment center sharing space with cars.
So I disagree.  We could put our 27 to bed in 10 minutes in its watered berth.  The Suncat takes me, at best, at least 45 minutes.  It is, in fact, a pain in the @$$.

My vote is for keeping the Sun Cat.

In my humble opinion, unless with a very large budget, most sailors have an option: to sail or to own a boat. Both scenarios are not necessarily the same and in some cases not even compatible (a Canadian instructor and captain with whom I sailed extensively in the past used to say: "why get married to a boat when there are so many there just waiting for you; you want to sail, sail!, don't own a boat..."). A sailor should also be reminded that, for no other activity than sailing may the words uttered in the movie "Disappearances" sound more true and relevant: "we are dispossessed by our possessions"...  it is a fact of sailing that, on average, the larger the boat a sailor owns, the less time he/she sails... Small boats are to be owned (particularly if they can be trailered) but larger boats are best sailed, crewed or skippered, as most of us enjoy flying (or breathing...): without the burden of ownership. IMHO, do keep the SunCat (arguably the handiest trailerable coastal mini-cruiser) and plan to satisfy your dreams of the blue yonder by chartering or doing passages in the most beautiful waters of the World and many of the most beautiful and larger (35 - 55 ft and beyond) boats ever designed and built!. There are zillion opportunities awaiting out there...

J.

[kickingbug1]

    i have owned a cp16 for two years now. the reasons for my choice are simple. the cp is stable, easily trailered behind my s-10 , fits in my garage, rigs in 25 minutes (without help) and sails well given its design. last week i drove to springfield illinois to help two friends rig their boats (a san juan 23 and a catalina 22). compared to rigging a cp16 this amounted to a large pain in the butt. the owner of the catalina who bought a new cp16 years before (and who was afflicted by foot i tis) said he wished he had it back. the owner of the san juan who owns an 82 cp16 said that if he had to sell one boat he would sell the san juan and keep the compac. being a generally lazy bloke, if i had a more complicated rigg i wouldnt be sailing. from an economic standpoint i have spent less money on my 16 than i would have to spend just mooring another larger craft. sailboats are designed to sail although many have them as expensive party barges. if i want to sail on a larger craft i can always get a crew job on the many 25 to 30 footers tied up at three local marinas. seems like a lot of large boat owners find them a pain to singlehand sail.

[mrb]

jdonaldson

Have you thought about getting  dock space for your Suncat.

I to have down sized, 27 to 16, and what I miss is not going to the boat on a rainy day and being comfortably able to make a pot of coffee and reading a book or whatever. Oh well seems like ever thing is a compromise and we do what we can with what we have.

Good winds to you

melvin

[tmorgan]

We love our Suncat because we can trailer it.  However, we keep it on its trailer at our sail club on Smith Mt lake, VA.  Since it is rigged and ready to go, it takes 10 minutes to put it in the water and get under way. Like any trailerable boat, it takes more time to pack it up to trail to another destination but it still beats most boats in the time it take to accomplish that task. I have to admit, I would not want to keep any boat at home and have to trail it to the lake every time I wanted to sail.  It would be too cumbersome and definitely cut down on sailing time!