Test Sail: Beneteau 323

Kris and I are going to take this little beauty out on Saturday. She's not the world cruiser we expect to head for blue water in, but we are thinking a couple of years of river sailing in something like this, might be the best next step as we build our skills.

I think that future boat is going to be an Island Packet. Those boats really speak to me.

Anyway, this one is affordable for now, in great shape, and possesses the important things that Kris looks for in a boat: built-in wine racks.

Junior Returns to Seattle! And so do we.

Kris and I are off to Seattle for the weekend. We are going for fun, but also planning on looking at boats while we are up there. Our strongest desire was to check out catamarans, but apparently any catamarans that get purchased in Seattle end up sailing off for warmer latitudes in short order. So, not many to see.

There are, however, some pretty great deals on some sweet cruising monohulls, including a Tayana 55 and an IP 45.

Meanwhile the sailing (and drifting) skills continue to build over here.

Aloha!

Nostradamus and the New Boat

A glimpse into the future.

I like it.

:)

Still Boat Hunting

... doesn't look like the Bene 423 is going to work out. We aren't in a hurry, however, so not a worry. We are still on our planned course, hitting the milestones, meeting deadlines (can you tell I married a slave-driving account manager?). We hope to sell the current house some time in the next 6-8 months and will move into the downtown condo after that. The condo is looking even more attractive since they built a Safeway up the street and we can walk for groceries instead of driving across the river.

Backup, My Friend

We are the 'backup offer' for the Beneteau. The broker here sounds really disgusted with this whole process and especially the guys he's dealing with in Seattle. Apparently, boats are selling up there at the same pace as they are down here, which is something like a very slow walk on a treadmill to nowhere.

He said I could throw some more money on the table and see what happens. I think I'll let the offer expire tomorrow and see if anybody calls me back about this thing.

Who knew that buying a big boat was a process so similar to buying a house except there's more people involved and they all make you a little nervous?

Benny and the Fiddles

Not looking too good for that Beneteau 423. It turns out it's a repo and caught between Portland and Seattle right now.

Kris really likes it; especially for the nice touches the Groupe Finot do in their design. It's a sleek looking boat from the outside, and very liveable on the inside. Definitely a model on our list of what we'd like to have.

This one was on the market here in Portland and just got foreclosed on recently. Apparently, there is a broker in Seattle who handles these sorts of deals and he's got his hooks into it. I don't think the guys who handle repos are the best to get into a deal with. We may just let this one lapse; wrote an offer void date of Nov. 21. We'll keep looking.

Clarity?

I got a lead on a potential boat for us. A 40+-footer on the auction block that we might be able to get for a song. A really, really short song. Some may call it a ditty.

Keep your virtual fingers crossed for us.