Now I understand how poor i am.

[alansmith]

Just returned from South Florida and the Bahamas. Went there with my sweet wife to look at a couple of boats and explore south Florida a little bit. We had a wonderful time there and in Freeport Bahama. I had forgotten how hard it can rain in tropical areas. When I was young guy we lived in Subic P.I., Agana, Guam, and Hawaii. Can you guess what my daddy's job was?

I was in shock when we took down a phone number of a small house in Lauderdale and it was 1.3 million with a dock. Nothing much to speak of from the outside. We took boat tours in Lauderdale harbor and Miami's swankest houses canals. Holy Crap Batman...It really was a spectacle.

Saw a sexy cat I was wondering if the crew on here recognizes it as an architect's one design or a manufacturer's maxi cruiser cat.

The very nice 34 foot tri designed by C. White berthed in Stuart was as beautiful as I had hoped she would be. Very very nice boat but she had a couple of things that didn't sit well with us. I will post a picture of the interior so you can understand it better. The boat is much more robust than a F31. Cleanest and nicest engine compartment I have ever seen on multihull. Everything easy to reach and service. Immaculate in my imagination. In the main cabin galley was full standing head room. But once you step forward you loose all standing headroom due to center pivot board trunk. They designed water tankage there and you have to bend over to go forward. Single bunk in the fore of the boat with a toilet. All in stooped over condition. The aft cabin is spacious for two people. My wife, I swear, could smell a sparrow's fart at forty paces, immediately noticed diesel fumes which I could barely detect. Don't know if that could be remedied.

The strangest thing though was the tiller arrangement. Due to the aft cabin...which I love on trimarans had two quadrants set up. Which meant one on the stern rudder post and one just aft of the diesel compartment. Which left a tiller arm that you move on a vertical axis versus a horizontal axis. When I moved the tiller arm it was quite heavy. Never felt a tiller like that before. I was lucky to have the owner and the previous owner on site to post questions to. Both knowledgeable about the boat and it's sailing characteristics. They said it is nothing to worry about and once underway that heavy feeling disappears. Any thoughts on this ?( much appreciated). will try and post some pics of that also.

So we got seriously polluted at Mangos in South Beach...and we aren't the drinking type, had a great dinner at Shooter's in Lauderdale, wretched ride on Baleria's cat ferry to Freeport, and kissed by a dolphin in Freeport. Never seen friendlier people or sweeter water and sand than the Bahamas. We fell in love. Since I am born under the Chinese sign of the Hare my wife calls me Rabbit. So..I did my best rabbit imitation for her. Look at the quality of the water...swam every day as much as I could. Came back to California and it was raining, cool, and breezy. Back to work life....yuck.