Hi Steve, I was in exactly your position last year, no sailing experience but wanting to sail cats. I bought a getaway ($10000 Canadian with wings) and have been extremely happy with it. It was a friendly boat to learn on and within a short period of time I was able to sail it in 20knt winds without capsizing it. It rigs up very easily within 30 minutes. The whole family can fit on the tramps. It is very durable; I knocked the hulls a few times trying to launch between narrow piers with no damage. As far as speed goes I realize that it is not the fastest cat out there (Portsmouth rating .83 compared to H16 .76) but to a novice it sure seems fast enough. With a 500lb crew I had it doing 15kts on a reach as measured by GPS. With the same crew we sailed side by side with a H16 (no jib) being single handed by a 170lb crew. He did pass us but did so quite gradually. All round it is a great boat if you buy it for the right reasons and I certainly have no regrets with mine. I do want a more high performance boat now and am looking an Inter 20 but I certainly will keep the Getaway. It'll be a great family cruiser for many years to come.
Best Wishes
Randy