Steve-
<br>I have both an "A" and Taipan so perhaps I can answer-
<br>You can certainly take your child (I wouldn't try to take both!) with you on "nice" days and have fun on either one. I have pleasure sailed my "A" with my wife on my boat (I know I'm about your weight, she might be too but I can't tell you that ;-), or either of my kids one at a time and done fine. Having a "uni" when sailing with little kids is a blessing I find since they are designed with only one person in mind to "pull on" things. I have also sailed my Taipan uni in the same way but the Taipan has the added "luxury" of being able to put the jib on (with roller furler if desired) and having 2 trapezes so I can take my wife AND one child OR both kids (and they can BOTH "trap out" at the same time) while I sail the boat. They can then be "given" the jib sheet IF they want to do something and they can even race with me if desired. I have gone to several regattas where one of them "promised" to "race with you Dad" and then when we got there they backed out for various reasons and I just removed the jib and raced without them. They didn't have to feel "guilty" about my not being able to race and I wasn't disappointed they "backed out" or forced them into doing it (these were my only options before when I raced sloops).
<br>Just some of my own personal experiences and why I got my Taipan-
<br>Disclaimer- I am technically an agent for Taipan but I would encourage you to speak to other owners if you consider this opinion biased and I would be happy to put you in touch with them if desired.
<br>If you are considering the Taipan I would recommend you also potentially consider any of the other F16 HP compliant boats like the BIM 16, Stealth, etc. as they are quite comparable in general features.
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<br>Kirt<br><br>Kirt Simmons
<br>Taipan #159, "A" cat US 48