Our Privilege 39
catamaran became progressively heavier during our eleven year
circumnavigation. In spite of the weight, we found that we sailed the same distance each day. We averaged 150 to 180 miles a day using conservative amounts of sail. If we wanted to push the boat hard around the clock with two people on watch flying a
spinnaker in the
trade winds, we could have done 200+ miles a day. But it was never worth the effort or risk to us.
Offshore world cruising is a marathon and making it into a sprint was too much
work and involved too much risk for a
family sailing around the world. We could sail downwind at six or seven knots without any white knuckles, without getting thrown about, without any worries, with the
autopilot doing all the work and with the crew checking around the horizon every ten minutes.
The thing that determined our miles sailed and speed sailed each day, was not the weight of our
catamaran. The speed was there if we needed it, but we were kind to our boat and crew, and we arrived safely at our
destination without any worries. If we had pushed harder, we might have arrived a day or two earlier, but we would have enjoyed the trip less.
For us it was all about having an enjoyable sail. Everything that we had on our boat made for a more enjoyable and safer voyage.