First and foremost, see what the local fleet is sailing. Ask them the same question that you are asking here. See if someone will take you out on the boats that seem to fit your needs.
Great advice Sparky. I also liked your bit on Portsmouth numbers - what that shows is the actual difference in speed between those boats is less than 10% (in theory). So what really matters is how the boat feels to you and how well it matchs your personal priorities.
PearlBeer,
Your local fleet is right on your back door in Austin - you can find contact details on the
Division 6 website. Your local commodore is Jim Casto - Nacra 5.5 fanatic and all round good guy.
Division 6 is an association of catamaran fleets in Texas and Louisiana. The division website has a calender of the regional regattas. The first one of the season is next weekend - "Ides of March" in Lake Somerville - just down the road from Austin. There will be a good variety of boats there and you can get some (less) biased advice. All our events are open to all makes of boat.
The division website also has a mailing list to keep up with regional news - I'd encourage you to sign up (its free). There is also a link to the 2004 division results (2005 results should be up within the week) which is useful data as to which boats make the largest classes.
Your local catamaran dealer is the
Austin Sailboat Shop. They sell new and a few used boats. You can also find local used stuff at
http://texascitydike.com as well as the usual suspects (this site, thebeachcats, ebay, craigslist) and your local paper.
Chris Green,
Chair, Division 6.
