I have worked several years as a catsailing instructor and we did many batchlor parties and company outings. I have often sailed Nacras, Prindles and Hobie with several adults and also kids on board. Did you ?

Each year when do a promo day at our sailing club for the local high school pupils, last year I took several people along on my F16 (a pure race boat as you know). Loaded her up to over 200 kg in crew weight and these 16-17 year olds are still trim. I sail in the North sea which is a shallow seas with often high winds lead to short steep waves.

Basically, it is my experience that nearly every beach cat design will take several adults and still be sailing about. You don't need some special design like a Getaway for that. It is also my experience that people tire of taken catamaran rides relatively quickly. Ohh, they love it the first time around and want to go for hours, but with each return visit they get less inpired and quickly other parts of life take precedence. After a few weeks or some 95% of the cat sailors will be singlehanding or doublehanding with maybe ones or twice a year (on a perfect summer day) taking a 3rd person along. Often the wives are the first to say "no, thank you". Any father is lucky when 1 of his kids takes to it at all.

For such a rare occurance of having 3+ people on board it makes no sense to by a special boat especially when the common beach cats will all handle 3 adults on the boat pretty well. 3 Adults = 2 adults + 2 kids ?

Since the future for this guy is most likely to be regulary singlehanding or sailing with a friend or 1 of his kid I really do think the Getaway is not his best option even by a long shot. What does he do on it ? Pass the beer can to his 10 year old and get drunk together ? Or play the game of who can bury the bows of the getaway the deepest into the dock ?

When I was still a cat sailing instructor, ramming the peer, the dock or other boats was not part of the curriculum. We never broke a glass boat that way and we sure had some dummies coming through the course.

Wouter