T&T: 2001 Mainship 39 versus 1988 Grand Banks 42...thanks

[Faure, Marin]

>Many of you suggested expanding beyond these 2 boats which we will. We
are 1.5 to 2 years away from a purchase so lots of time left.


Remember that there are a LOT of boats out there on the market in every
possible condition, configuration, quality, and age that you can
imagine.  The only pressure that you will have as you progress toward a
purchase is the pressure you impose upon yourselves.  The experience a
boater has comes in large part by how well the boat they acquire fits
their expectations.  I've seen people who were having a not-so-great
boating experience with a newer boat and people having the time of their
lives with a very old boat.  The difference was not the boat's age but
how well the boat fit the owner's expectations, abilities, boating
lifestyle, and so on.

There is another piece of advice you may have seen quoted here in the
past.  It has several different wordings--- the phrase I read back in
the 1960s in a story in Boy's Life is "Buy the smallest boat you can
afford."   Which is a way of saying that for a given amount of money, a
smaller boat will get you a newer boat or a boat in better condition
than a larger boat.  Obviously you need the boat to be large enough to
accommodate what you want to get out of boating.  So this isn't a
suggestion to buy a boat that's too small for your intended purpose.
Rather it's a recommendation to not succumb to "foot disease" and get
one that's bigger than you need because it will most often be older or
need more work (which often amounts to the same thing) than a smaller
boat for the same price.

______________________________
C. Marin Faure
GB36-403 "La Perouse"
Bellingham, Washington