Sun Cat- Open Cockpit or Cabin

[Ken]

Hi Everyone-

I am interested in getting a Sun Cat to use for sailing the coastal waters of the Great Lakes and various inland lakes.  I have been a sailer for years and have owned many different boats, from a Catalina 30 to a Laser.  In all the time I have sailed, I have never used the cabin for anything other than storing "stuff."  I typically sail for 2-3 hours and come back to the dock.  I now want to sell my Seaward 23 and purchase a trailer-able boat.  In  my research I have been intrigued by the Sun Cat, particularly with the open cockpit version.  I have always thought it would be fun to sail a open cockpit, full keel boat- but that would take out the trailer-able aspect.  The open Sun Cat looks like a good compromise.  Any thoughts from the Forum?  Thank you in advance for any responses-

Ken.

[Craig Weis]

Hi, first I thought that all Sun Cats had a nice cuddy cabin with head and two births so the 'open' cockpit is ....what maybe the Picnic Cat?

A CP-Picnic Cat sails around Sturgeon Bay and I saw this boat out in some very stiff south/southwest wind. We sailed at about 4.6 knots for a while before a course change. I have not seen this green hulled Picnic Cat again. I saw my first CP-Gaff rigged Picnic Cat on display at Yacht Works in Sister Bay and I liked it a lot. What with the Mast-Tender System and built in cooler/storage. I climbed all around in side of it...like a kid. Anyway we were about two miles off the stone quarry just outside of the 'cut' in Green Bay.

Hey...If anyone is curious about this Stone Quarry and the NEW harbor for refuge-in-a-storm and boat launch area with parking for trailers and on land potty constructed by the Democratic State of over taxation, opps I mean Wisconsin, pictures can be seen at the USPS site posted by our web master Mark Ritter and pickable on my USPS 'sign board' in every post of mine. skip.

[Ken]

Hi Skip, 
I guess I should have called the boat what Com-Pac calls it in their literature- The Sun Cat Daysailer.  It is an open cockpit version with a huge cockpit area.  Since I never use a cabin, I thought it would be an interesting possibility.  It is a very cool looking boat, just not a lot sold since most people prefer the cabin in that size boat.  I was just wondering if there are any sailors of that version out there on the forum who could give some feed back on it-  Ken.

[Craig Weis]

Well Ken I never knew that configuration existed...my very first thought was

OMG !! What if you get pooped by a wave.
She'll wallow till the scuppers catch-up and drain the pooped-a-board water.

So I'll be looking for this boat in picture to see what she looks like. Probably a launch type boat designed to carry people to and from dock to dock on the way to and from work...skip.

[Ken]

Quite a bit of freeboard on the boat Skip but your point is well taken and I have thought about that very same dilema.  It is an important enough point to possibly change my mind and go to the cabin version- even though- I don't need a cabin!  But it will be easier to find a used Sun Cat with a cabin than a daysailer.  Thanks for your comments.  Does the Sun Cat sail well?-

Ken.

[Jack]

I've owned a SunCat daysailer (open boat) for two year now. It is a great boat, very stable and does have a self draining cockpit - with a bulge pump that I've never had to use. - I really feel that the boat could go anywhere. It was sailed by the previous owner on the Maryland bay.