One in a Million

Not having been on many sailboats in my lifetime, I embarked on our search for the perfect boat utterly blind. I was about to be introduced to a whole new world which at first glance appeared to be defined by narrow, dark, confined spaces, intricate, foreign hardware and towering masts. I soon realized in addition to learning how to sail I also needed to learn an entirely new language; the bathroom is now called the “head” and I can no longer refer to left as “left” nor right as “right”?  Up until the time we actually began looking for a boat I had the naive assumption that there could not be such a substantial difference between power boating and sailing; nothing could be farther from the truth.

I learned a lot visiting the many boats we boarded on our search. We looked at  Masons, Pearsons, Hudsons, a C&C Landfall, a Peterson, a Valiant, many Westsails; the list goes on. Each boat was unique in it’s own way but they all seemed extremely similar in that they either had a strange layout, were not well cared for, or were overall  inconducive to living aboard for a long period of time . The most challenging constraint we needed to address was Matthew’s 6′ 4″ frame along with all of the other necessities vital for an offshore, blue water cruising boat. We became most intrigued by the Westsails as they were built to circumnavigate but also because Matthew could stand up in the 32′! We began looking at 42’s but did not like the layout of the center cockpit model and the tiny passageway it called for down below. We found only one Westsail 43′ with an aft cockpit on the market and she just happened to be in Southern California. She was the last boat we looked at and blew all other potential interests out of the water. I was shocked to board and see how clean and spacious she was inside; no old smelly cushions and built for the open sea! It was love at first sight.

Compared to the C&C 48′ Landfall, the only other boat we put in an offer for months prior (a total lemon), She surveyed like a dream. Done deal, we can’t wait for her to make her way up to the Bay Area. Let the preparation leg of the journey begin!