T&T: cat vs mono, sail vs power, bayliner vs grand banks...

[Scott Bulger]

I was reflecting on the question of cat vs mono and had a thought to share.
While asking for feedback in a forum like this is valuable, the response can
be overwhelming.  As was noted, we all bring our collective thoughts to the
table, make a decision, then find ourselves rehashing them over and over in
the form of rendering opinions about everything when asked, or not.  

 

What's important in this topic is that you identify the things that matter
to you and DO SOMETHING.  Don't let analysis paralysis stop you from
enjoying another day on the water.   The plane and simple fact is if you buy
the right boat, take care of it, use it and enjoy it, you will have been
successful.  If money is a critical factor than making a choice about buying
something you can resell successfully will have more importance than if
money isn't a big deal.  If you have access to an end tie at a marina, or if
you like to anchor out all the time the size of a cat's beam won't be an
issue.  

 

My point is this:  Between now and January read everything you can on
boating in your area.  If your blessed to live in one of our nations premier
cruising grounds (PNW, FL, Great Lakes, NE.) get out to the big marinas on
the weekends and find the guys and gals that are down at their boats working
on them, because these are the people that USE their boats.  Their advice
will be more valuable to you than the opinions of those that put 25 or 50
hours a year on a boat.  

 

 

TAKE THE ADMIRAL WITH YOU!  If you can't get her to come to a marina on a
weekend day or two, or to a boat show, this is going to be a challenging
endeavor to embark upon.  Try to figure out how you will use the boat, I
know this sounds crazy, because if you don't have one, how do you know how
you will use it.  

 

Here are some facts (IMHO)

 

1.        Work get's in the way of all this.  If you have a job and if that
job requires you to limit your vacation or time off to specific two week
intervals or clumps of time, you need to realize this will impact your use
more than any other factor.  If this is the case, get a FAST trawler.  Speed
will help extend your use of the boat by giving you longer legs in a shorter
amount of time.  A Camano able to make 13 knots can go from Seattle to the
San Juan islands in a single day of cruising.  A Nordhavn can't.  A cat
might?

2.       Money is a big deal to most people.  You know how to make a small
fortune in boating?  Start with a large one.  You know what BOAT stands for?
Break Out Another Thousand.  New boats should cost less to maintain than
used ones.  However, depreciation on a new boat can buy a lot of parts for
an old one.  

3.       Quote from a Moorings Sales representative (tan, handsome silver
haired man about 60) at the Seattle  boat show years ago:  You know the rule
of three "F's" right?  If it Floats, Fly's or Fornicates (substitute verb
for P.C.) Rent It!  In all seriousness, while it may seem that renting
(chartering) a boat is expensive, it may be the best money saving  technique
you will ever use.  You can rent a boat in the San Juan's for 5 to 10 grand
for a week or two.  While that sounds like a lot of money, if your working,
it probably represents the same amount of time you would get to use the boat
if you owned it, and the costs are certainly the same.  If you buy a boat,
your going to pay depreciation, moorage and a brokers commission to sell it.
Here are the numbers for a 31' Camano kept in Seattle:  Boat price:  $200k
new, moorage $3,600/yr, insurance $800, bits n pieces $1,000.  Depreciation
if you sell the boat a year or two later: 10 to 20 grand at a minimum,
probably more like 30 to 40.  You can lease that boat (not as nice) for
$2,500/wk.

 

In summary, be sure your asking the right questions first.  While this may
seem like an intellectual exercise in multi hull versus mono hull advantages
and disadvantages, it's really not the right set of questions to be asking
first.  If you have already thought through the issues above and your
intrigued because you have heard cats can punch through seas that a thick
mono hull can't then make sure to qualify the question as such.  It may be
the reason your asking this is because you live in Pt. Angeles and will have
to transit the straits every time you want to use the boat.  You have
noticed that the most common forecast for the straits includes a small craft
advisory and you want to be able to go anyway.  You feel a cat can punch
through that better than a mono hull.  The reality is the things that will
dictate your enjoyment of that boat have less to do with it's planform and
more to do with how much it takes to maintain, how much it costs, and how
easy it is to get out of if you decide a year or two from now you made a
mistake (which I certainly hope isn't the case).

 

Best of luck, oh, also, ask everyone you know with a boat for a  ride, I
gave demo rides to at least a dozen people a year.  I loved every excuse to
go on my boat I could get.  Often these were in the winter, when you needed
an excuse to tell the wife:  I have to meet Steve at the marina for a demo
ride, I'll rake those leaves next weekend.  With any luck they blow into the
neighbors yard and you get another day on the water!

 

Just musings of a guy tied up in Santa Barbara, one of the most beautiful
waterfront cities in the U.S.

 

Scott Bulger, Alanui, N40II, Seattle WA