Pav and I have been discussing upgrading our sailboat. We have had our 1984 32ft Cooper 316 Wahine X for just over two years, and although we love it and it has been a great introduction for sailing, we are ready for the next boat to take us further with the potential for more friends and family to join us on our adventures.

With the many engine projects we (Pav) had to do this winter on our original 1983 18hp Volvo Penta Engine, and our small vberth starting to feel a little cramped for Pavels 6ft4 body, we started looking at what is out there for an upgrade, sooner than later. When we first bought Wahine X, we were thinking we would wait until kids and then upgrade for more space. However, we are now thinking, it would be great to have our dream boat even before kids, so we can have it to ourselves for a while and do some long voyages just the two of us, and with friends.

Lo and behold, we came across a boat online and fell in LOVE with it. We couldn’t stop talking about the boat, and we began to discuss how we would purchase it. It was about 5 hours from where we live, so we couldn’t check it out for a month or so.

We had hope that with the current market, maybe the boat would sit long enough for us to go take a look, we could make an offer, and it could be ours! We even began to talk about how we would get it back home, and how fun the journey would be.

When we reached out to the broker to confirm our travels plans to check out the boat, he informed us that it was pending sale and no longer available. Although we did prepare ourselves for this possibility, it was still a let down.

The boat was a 42ft 2005 Catalina Mk II, It had been extremely well taken care of, with a hard dodger, 50hp Yanmar engine, sugar scoop, water maker, Star Link, and lots of other bells and whistles. It was a 2 cabin, 2 head layout with a U-shaped kitchen, and extremely spacious. It was the perfect family boat and exactly the boat we were looking for.

Although we didn’t get our dream boat on this occasion, there were still many positive outcomes for the situation:

1. It allowed us to open up the conversation about exactly what we want and don’t want in our family boat. The non-negotiables and the features that are not deal breakers. U-shaped galley? Yes please. Enclosed cockpit? Definitely. This boat really made us think about what we would LOVE.
2. It started the dialogue about how much we were willing to pay for our next boat. We even went to a few banks to discuss marine mortgages, and what we may qualify for. We crunched the numbers on monthly payments for what would be doable for us considering our investment goals and other expenses. It was a really beneficial experience.
3. It made us realized we are on the right path, as we had so much excitement and that YES factor feeling when we talked about buying the boat.
4. It made us appreciate our current boat. Although we were not able to get our dream boat this time, we know other amazing boats will come on the market in time. With our dream boat being sold, we can shift our focus back to the beautiful boat we do have and the incredibly exciting trips we have planned this summer!

-Keel

5knotstofreedom