Laurence:
You said that you're concerned the Macgregor 26X wouldn't sail as well
as a true dispacement hull..... Gee! No kidding!
The Mac26 (either X or no bloody X) is a LIGHT boat that is MASS
produced that is a way to get people onto the water fairly
inexpensively... and the idea that they can market it as either a sail
OR power boat simply increases their market.
The Mac 26X will be a lot of fun for someone who doesn't know
diddly-squat about sailboats (or power boats either, for that matter),
but if you want to SAIL - get a SAILBOAT!!!  A quasi-planing hull will
not, under ANY circumstances (water ballasted or not), perform like a
displacement hull.... and you're quite right about those little rudders
not having the same effect as one large, centred rudder; correct, too,
are you in your assessment of the VERY high freeboard and condominium
structure on-deck giving a wind resistance that would make slow
movements (such as....docking?) difficult - might just as well leave
your main and jib up and HARDEN 'em both!
 * S2S Toronto, Ontario  (416) 975-1547
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