Mac 26 Missing from SAIL Magazine article on Pocket Cruisers

[Tomfoolery]

What were the 11 boats??

Precision 23
Beneteau First 25S
Harbor 25
Harbor 30
Catalina 250
Com-Pac 27
Corsair Sprint 750 (trimaran)
Seaward 26RK
Hunter 27
Sage 17
Maine Cat 30 (catamaran)

[BOAT]

Divercoz is right - most of those sailboat companies clamor all over the magazine publishers to get their boats into stories one way or another to get the free press. Patrick and Gary were in the NASA sail club for mostly Aquarius owners because Whitney (the owner of the manufacturing company that made the boats) gave them free lifetime membership and practically GAVE them their boats just so he could get the POSSIBILITY that they would write stories about the A23 in their magazines.

I think Whit got ONE story in sail magazine for his investment - and it was not even about the A23 - it was more of a travelog about Patrick taking his family all over "the Sea of Cortez in a small sailboat" - the A23 was mentioned a few times. Even then, those guys NEVER considered 'trailer boats' as a pocket cruiser and NEVER EVER as a Pac Cruiser, (yet they both sailed the Aquarius boats deep into the Pacific all the time!!)

Who knows - those writers are a funny lot.

I finally saw the list of boats in the SAIL magazine - they MUST be talking about new production boats only?? The voyager 26 is the most seaworthy trailerable boat built and it is a true PAC cruiser -

hull, I could have just stayed with my A23 if I wanted super seaworthiness - but I want to see places - lakes, rivers, coves and outlets - there is a LOT more to life than just bobbing up and down in 10 foot seas for weeks at a time with a bunch of naked people. Been there, done that - and by the time you get to Hawaii all you want is a hotel room. Should'a just flown in for all your trouble. And now you still gotta SAIL BACK! (what a drag).

[RobertB]

Practical Sailor Magazine featured the Macgregors in 1995 and 2000. Nothing other than a mention in the letters section since.

[BOAT]

I remember back in 1998 I was working in San Diego quoting Electrical Distribution Equipment to Contractors and many of my customers had boats in the bay. My kid was only 4 years old back then and the wife still was at home and money was tight, I just mentioned to a couple of my customers that I might consider buying the MAC26 and you would not BELIEVE the howls and scoldings I got:
"I see those stupid things racing around in the Bay with those big motors!" "Those are STUPID!" "I walked on one and it felt like the deck would fall through!" "The hull is as thin as cardboard and not even as strong!" I actually got the feeling they now had a lower opinion of me because I had even 'considered' buying a MAC!! I was amazed - even friends of my dad whom I sailed with for YEARS! Guys twice my age whom I had beaten on a regular basis in regattas over and over and over again scowled and scoffed when I told them I was considering a MAC! They had some choice comments too: "I thought you were a sailor!" "You are giving up racing sailboats?" (Like AS IF the Aquarius 21,23 or the Balboa26 was a "RACING" sailboat???? And I had BEATEN all of those boats MANY TIMES in a stupid dingy!!) For YEARS I had been regularly beating all these guys in regattas from Newport to Catalina, Point Loma to Los Angeles and when i was a kid these guys used to fight over who would get ME to crew on THEIR boat!! I have the trophy's to show for it! And now all of a sudden I'm an idiot???

I just did not get it. So, I did indeed put off buying the MACx boat I was looking at. I decided to do more homework. Then life got in the way and I think I changed careers or something it's all hard to remember now. Anyway - I did YEARS of homework - and I can tell you these guys are all WRONG - just as wrong as they were when i would race them and they would try to point their boats too high or make STUPID tacks in the middle of a regatta or stupidly think that the straightest course was the fastest course (a ROOKIE mistake). I walked all over these guys on a regular basis out on the water, why am I listening to them now??? I realized soon that part of the problem with the MAC is the "powerboat" component - that itself creates animosity and hatred from a lot of other sailors because the old stink-boat rivalry is a built in thing - especially amongst the older gents - So half of the community will hate you right from the start. The other half feel that the people that sail MAC's are not "real Sailors" - I figured that out pretty quick - they think MAC sailors are on the motor all the time and can't sail.

I have already opened the eyes of a lot of big boat owners over here where I am - they get real big eyes when they see me pull up from behind their big 35 footers and pass them by - (I always make it a point to put the wife behind the helm just as I get within eyesight of the skipper on the other boat just to rub it in). You see, in light winds like 6 to 8 knots you CAN pretty much beat all those heavy keel boats out there real easy! The MAC is a GREAT light wind boat! I'm 5 knots in 8 to 10 knots of wind and those fat keel boats can't make 3 knots in that stuff if there is any swell at all - some of them have come up to me in the harbor at the end of the day to see 'boat'. The thin mast and light rigging is also something that makes other sailors laugh at the MAC - I can spot a MAC in an entire marina of sailboats by just looking at the masts - the MAC is the boat with the thin mast - ALL the other boats have thick masts with big duck heads on the top. When I explain to them my mast only needs to push 2200 pounds through the water they totally get it. The MAC is a VERY misunderstood boat - SAIL magazine will NEVER "get it". They are too dense - they only know what their advertisers tell them. Their writers are nothing to be impressed with in my opinion, I beat Gary and Patrick ALL THE TIME, in a fair class regatta I can beat the pants off those guys. Don't listen to them.

[Ixneigh]

Its possible Sail Mag classifies a cruiser as something more for deep waters. The four boats from that list that I am familiar with, are solid, keelboats. The compaqs a bit big to be a pocket cruiser,and the 17 footers don't belong on the list either.
the seaward obviously is their nod to the trailer cruisers. Is it a better boat? Sure if all you want to do is go into deep or rough waters. Don't know about the 17 footers. They might be deemed more "seaworthy" as well. 17 is a bit small but I would take something like a Cape Cutter 19 any day over a mac in bad weather. Or a Skipper 20. I fancy myself a fairly salty dog, yet I still choose a mac. Why? Because its right for the type of use I put it to. Spending weeks in water shallow enough to stand up in probably doesn't count as cruising in Sail Mags world. Certainly not doing it in pretty good comfort.
being able to recover the boat easily or or marginal ramps is for non cruisers too. Or something.
Ix

[Ixneigh]

On yea and being able to run away from waterspouts with that huge engine is also not for real cruisers. Real cruisers sit around so they test their super seaworthy boats...
Ix

[Default User]

Actually the MAC26 was mentioned in the article as "too big to trailer" by one of the boat owners. I guess my 6 cylinder Xterra performs some kind of miracle on all those trips we go on.

Dave

[eimaj]

Just wanted to say thanks for some of the informative posts on this topic. I'm right now reviewing and researching the Mac as a possibility in my choices. It seems ideal for what I need in a boat, but I too have grown up around sailing folks that keep telling me no, it's not a real sailboat. But with 4 small kids and temperamental winds near where I live it seems to fit best. I would say that you guys are unfortunately right on them not getting mentioned, advertising does play a big part in a lot of magazines.

[Whipsyjac]

Jamie, what's your general area. There are a lot of MacGregor get togethers in many parts of the country throughout the summer. It could be as easy as showing up in Toronto, or wherever and going for a wee sail to see if its right for you. In the Pacific Northwest there are still 3 cruises with the Macgregor Yacht club of BC this season. Shouldn't be too hard to get a little hands on experience to see if its a fit for your family.

Willy

[Catigale]

The BC group is really active , check it out in the DESTINATIONS forum

[rwmiller56]

Thanks everyone for the inputs. Yes, I agree that much of the content in SAIL magazine is advertisement driven. As I flip through the pages, I have seen ads for most of the 11 boats listed. One comment on the Hake Seaward 26, though. It is touted as having shallow draft capability, as the keel and rudders can be retracted up, same as the Mac. It is not water ballasted. The keel has a 1200 lb bulb at the bottom for ballast. There is an electric motor for raising the keel. And, it is supposed to be trailerable. However, the 8' 4" beam makes it marginal without a permit in some states.

Roger

[Tomfoolery]

And, it is supposed to be trailerable. However, the 8' 4" beam makes it marginal without a permit in some states.

8'-6" (102") is legal without permits in all of the contiguous States on the interstate highway system, and depending on the state, for some distance from entrance/exit ramps. That distance is defined by each State, and it's supposed to be a reasonable distance (whatever that means - each State defines it). The rules were written for commercial motor vehicles (trucks and busses, specifically), and apply to the Interstate Highway System and the National Network (which I assume includes US Routes), but is widely believed to apply to non-commercial vehicles like boat trailers pulled by private autos.

The AAA/CAA digest of motor laws shows max trailer width being 102" for most states with the caveat being on 'certain roads', which would be the Interstate Highway System, presumably.

But don't take that argument to court, as I'm not a lawyer, and I'm spewing this gibberish gratis.

[Catigale]

I think its worthy to write a polite letter to Sail asking them why they excluded the Mac, and also giving Tatoo some free boost too.

Any takers?

[rwmiller56]

From the CA VC sec 35100:

GENERAL RULE

35100. (a) The total outside width of any vehicle or its load shall not exceed 102 inches.

MEASUREMENT

35100.1. (a) The metric equivalent of 102 inches is 2.6 meters.

(b) The width measurement of any vehicle with side walls shall be made from the outside wall of the two opposite sides of the vehicle.

CITIES & COUNTIES

35100. (c) A city or county may prohibit a width in excess of 96 inches upon highways under its jurisdiction.

35105. Any city organized under a freeholders' charter may permit a width in excess of these limits when used within the city.

The Hake Seaward 26 exceeds 96 inches, so it seems that you would have to check the rules for each city & county that you transit.
A moot point for me, though, since I keep my 26M slipped mast up. I don't trailer much, only for annual maintenance. And even for that, I sometimes access from the water.

[BOAT]

I think its worthy to write a polite letter to Sail asking them why they excluded the Mac, and also giving Tatoo some free boost too.

Any takers?

Waste of time.
SAIL is populated with all "Old School" people, they think all the MAC people are 'cute', but not serious members of the community. Who pays the wages of the people at SAIL Magazine? Think about it.

Are YOU gonna advertize your ten thousand dollar fresh water system or 4 thousand dollar marine water heater in a magazine that is read by people who sail 20 thousand dollar boats?? I don't think so.

SAIL Magazine readers would be more interested in stories about the PEOPLE who sail MACs than the boat - guys like The Highlander and Summer and others would be FASCINATING to those "Old School" folks that read that rag. Let's face it, some of the folks here on this blog could make a trash dumpster sail as good as any Beneteau. It's not the boat - it's the sailor.

SAIL advertisers are not going to increase the sales of Sperry Topsiders or Annapolis sailing gloves by diving into the MAC market. If you do write them a letter make sure you brush up on your Nantucket accent.