gcutter

BJ - that's pretty harsh for a boat you have never sailed on; "lightly built" doesn't describe the Andrews 28 at all. Indeed, Ivan overbuilt them, which didn't help him stay in business in the 2008-2010 recession. She does great in steep chop in a breeze, which when it blows in the Chesapeake Bay are best described as square waves. The CB is very shallow and the chop is much much worse than that in SF Bay. FYI, I sailed for over 20 years in SF Bay and have sailed on an Antrim 27 (aka Ultimate 27) with Jim. So, I know this boat too. They are apples and oranges. You may not like the freeboard and cabin, but they don't affect her sailing abilities at all, just docking in a breeze (see, honesty). After years of fast but wet on an Elliott 770 my wife wanted a fast, but dry, boat with headroom that we could easily shorthand, or sail with full crew and go distances either under sail or at 60mph on the trailer. We have sailed offshore and in the CB in all kinds of conditions and for up to 10 days. Turns out we have a video from November that show's beating in 20-25 kts with 2-3' of square wave chop. It's a "fun" race so just white sails, but the part that should address your question is after rounding the lighthouse and we tuck a reef. You can't see the speedo but we're doing 5.7-6.1 kts to weather with the cruising sails. You asked and you got it. The Andrews 28 handles it all just fine, 1100 lbs 7 ft down helps as does a deep rudder; Alan knows what he's doing. Admittedly, we got Diablo because she's wickedly fast in light air, but she goes to weather when it's blowing too. This is SA after all, but I'm not getting into a pissing match, the Andrews 28 can go to weather in a blow and chop. Cheers, Greg

He's right. Mine used to be in Connecticut so I know it fits. Here's a funny video of us doublehanding her in a fun race against fully crewed Melges 32, etc., we took 3rd: Trouble is finding one for sale out of the four in existence. Cheers, Greg

ATN. Simple, well tested, reasonable price, and Etienne designed it for 50 footers. I'd still go with a top-down for the A3/5. Cheers, Greg

Don't get hung up on the west coast situation, you'll get transferred again back here before you know it! In the meantime, let's do the Pac Cup next year doublehanded on Barcanova; I'm not going on any major expeditions for another 2 years. Robert had great advice and as a former Mini owner, he knows what it's like to have one in the US. And based on my direct observations, I agree the Fig 3 sucks in light air, way too much wetted surface. Not an issue in the Bay of Biscaye, but relevant for the US. Cheers, Greg

Score!

In response to the comments about Oceanside, I have only a four words that work for all their "well-designed" harbors in California - Army Corps of Engineers. Gulp. My $0.02 US, Greg

If Lloyd is too busy, then Peter Eaves (HYC member). Cheers, Greg

Andrews 28 is this and more. Greg

Nice Elliott 770 for sale in the Classifieds. Not mine, but used to be - I put her together and successfully raced a lot. Cheers, Greg

Wow, I'm impressed! Will use it when we sail on other boats, or if our nav goes down (shit happens). Merci beaucoup, Greg

With respect to the Euro vs. US 3300, and it's PHRF rating, the US model has a much larger fixed sprit, I'd guess about 1.5x longer. And yes, the main's foot is much longer but I'm also wondering if the carbon rig is a bit taller. As far as the J-99 compared to the 3300, I haven't sailed either, but at the Naptown boat show, we were totally underwhelmed by the design, finish, and equipment on the J-99...yawn. My $0.02 US worth, Greg

I don't think they've got us more senior citizens in mind for the Olympic qualification, but could be a fun race. Looking at the Oakcliff one in Oyster Bay/Long Island Sound in July too. Cheers, Greg

66 for W/L, 54 for point to points on the Chesapeake Bay. Greg

They are a bit dated now, so not sure how they'd do against the newest designs. There are several owners or past owners on SA so let's see what they say. The one in our area has not done well in part because it's way slow in light air due to lots of wetted surface and tough PHRF rating. I looked at them long ago when they were new and just too pricey then, and have mixed feelings about Holby's build quality based on personal experience with a previous boat. Cheers, Greg

The previous boat Current one But typically double-handing with my lovely and talented wife on previous and current boats Cheers, Greg

We couldn't fit it in our schedule this year, maybe next. cheers, Greg

No bareboats to rent there and not that good for sailing. As Alctel said, go to La Paz for chartering and nice sailing area too. cheers, Greg

If memory serves me (did mine early this year), you remove the side plate and the problem is that since it is bolted down, the plate is essentially impossible to remove. So, I think not. Sorry, Greg

4 years ago I got an ACR AIS connected to our Garmin Chartplotter via nmea 2000 and notebook running Time Zero and we are so happy we made that investment, both sailing in the Chesapeake Bay where it's invaluable and offshore where it makes us visible to the container ships zipping by. Just having a receiver is silly, I want them to see ME. Ours draws very little power as it is a dedicated transponder, and then as noted above you can use or not use the more power-hungry plotters or computers. The other consideration is convenience, for example having your same brand VHF, AIS, and plotter all networked such that you can click on an AIS target and then the system calls them on the VHF - cool but expensive. Cheers, Greg

Welcome to a very small club Alan! But, that's why there is handicap racing. And, you can always cruise too; we do. Cheers, Greg

I'm a S. Chesapeake Bay sailor but I have to agree that Lake Lanier rocks - good club(s), interesting sailing (it is a lake after all, but deep), and close enough to Atlanta to take care of your city needs/jobs (bit far to commute in my opinion, but...). Done a couple of Elliott 770 Nationals there and we always had a great time. cheers, Greg

The Annapolis YC double handed in September will have two classes, 105 and then mixed ORC boats, one of which is a Figaro 3. I'm busy teaching now and can't get Diablo up to participate, maybe next year with more warning...and a ORC certificate. Cheers, Greg

Doesn't include the cost of shipping to the US either. Just as expensive as his C&C 30. Greg

Exactly on top/hidden by the sling...as noted above. Cheers, Greg

Hampton Yacht Club on Wed evenings (first start at 1830). Come with a good 6 pack of adult beverages and you'll find lots of rides, including on our Diablo. As noted above, traffic here is terrible, especially in the summer, so if you're working in VA Beach, live there too. No suggestions though, we live in Norfolk. Cheers, Greg