> > What other power catamarans did you consider? Why > did you decide on > the Endeavour? > > --Georgs > Hi George, I know that there are as many different opinions on boats as there are different boats and that each opinion is valid in the context of what works for the individual. I don't own an asbestos suit so I hope no one takes my views and opinions as denigrating their boat of choice. That said, I will try to cover the other boats I considered and the reasons why I choose the Endeavour TrawlerCat 38. I wanted a power catamaran that was large enough to be comfortable living in for three or more months at a time and also seaworthy enough to be capable of island hopping to the Caribbean. To me, this meant the boat had to be sized in the mid thirty foot range or larger. I often singlehand so didn't want a boat that was to big to handle and I needed a boat layout that supported singlehanded use. The boats that I seriously considered were the Endeavour TrawlerCats 36, 38, and 44, The Fountaine Pajot Greenland 34, Maryland 37, and Cumberland 44, The PDQ34, the Venturer 38 and 44, the Glacier Bay 34, and the new Manta 44. My Intent was to buy a new boat or a used boat no more than two or three years old. My general feeling was that the 44 ft and larger boats were pushing the envelope of what I was comfortable with for size, and that those less than 35 feet long didn't offer comfortable enough accommodations. So I focused mainly on 35 to 40 foot boats. I liked the PDQ34, particularly the fuel economy, but in the end decided that I just wanted a bigger boat. The Greenland 34 didn't seem big enough but the Maryland 37 was one I seriously considered. The inside helm was nice and the boat has a nice stylish look but the salon didn't seem really comfortable to me. When I looked at access to the engines and the batteries I felt it was too restricted. The Cumberland 44 sounded promising but wasn't yet available and looked to be a bit pricey (and large). Another issue with buying a new foreign boat is that I would be doing so with weak US dollars so I would have to pay a premium because of the currency exchange rate I liked the Seawind Venturer 38, an Australian boat. I know that the Seawind sailing catamarans are well thought of so I thought that their power catamarans would also be good boats. Then I heard that Seawind got the power catamaran line by buying out a company that had run into financial problems. Since Seawind didn't design the boats and the power cats were a relatively new addition to their product line, I felt less comfortable buying a Venturer boat. Perhaps now, a year or two later, I would make a different choice or at least those reasons would seem less compelling. I have always admired the Manta sailing catamarans and so was predisposed favorably towards the new Manta 44 power catamaran. I decided against it because of the size and the fact that the first one has not yet been delivered so I would have a long wait, and because it is a new design I felt that it best to not be that much of a pioneer. The Endeavour 44 felt a little too big for my comfort range and the 36 salon did not appeal to me. I also had concerns about the bridgedeck clearance on the 36. Endeavour displayed the new TrawlerCat 38 at the 2004 Miami boat show and I like it the moment I saw it. Visibility is great all around, it is quick and easy to get from the helm to the side to grab a dock line, the solon is large and comfortable and with the teak interior looks like the inside of a trawler type boat. Accessibility to engines, batteries, etc. while never great in a catamaran, is better than I have seen in boats from other manufacturers. It struck me as a solid well built boat and the manufacturer was located only 100 miles north of me in Clearwater Florida. The 38 was a new design but really seemed to be just a smaller version of the 44 and looked like it was built with a lot of the same components as the 44, so I was not as concerned as I normally would be about buying into a brand new design. I choose the Endeavour TrawlerCat 38 and brought her back to my slip last December. Would I make the same choice again? Sure, but with the explosive changes happening in the power catamaran industry who knows what choices will be available in another two years? Some of my reasoning is probably flawed and some of the information I think of as facts are probably wrong. I made the best choice for me with the information I had at hand. Others looking for a larger or smaller boat or who weigh the feature set with a different value system will reach a different conclusion. Diversity makes life interesting. Larry Larsen Endeavour TrawlerCat 38 Sitara __________________________________ Celebrate Yahoo!'s 10th Birthday! Yahoo! Netrospective: 100 Moments of the Web http://birthday.yahoo.com/netrospective/

>I know that there are as many different opinions on >boats as there are different boats and that each >opinion is valid in the context of what works for the >individual. I don't own an asbestos suit so I hope no >one takes my views and opinions as denigrating their >boat of choice. That said, I will try to cover the >other boats I considered and the reasons why I choose >the Endeavour TrawlerCat 38. Thanks very much, Larry, for taking the time to prepare such a thorough posting. --Georgs