Gozzard 36'

[jrmjrmjrm]

Hi All, I am considering the purchase of a late 80's Gozzard 36', does anyone have knowledge of performance for this cutter rig, the good and bad of this model? thanks-john

[SkiprJohn]

Aloha John,
Welcome aboard! I know there are some Gozzard owners here so will let them reply. I think the size you have chosen is ideal. You can check old threads concerning cutter rigs and get some opinions. I like them. Some others don't.
Kind Regards,
JohnL

[Boko~maru]

They are great boats!!! Very well put together and solid. Not the fastest in the fleet, they are just a great crusier.

[TaoJones]

Welcome, jrm(cubed). If you want a really informed opinion on the Gozzard, get in touch with Paul Blais (if he doesn't post to this thread). He has a wealth of sailing experience, and he owns a Gozzard 36.

Good luck, and again, welcome.

TaoJones

[slomotion]

Welcome. Paul is probably working on his 3 page response right now.

We spent two days sailing on a Bayfield 36 which is essentially the same boat. Definitely a strong, heavy, and beautiful boat. Not a very good light wind performer, but they handle stronger winds very well. And they just plain look good:

[henryk]

I have seen one last year at the Seattle boat show. If cruising for two, that would be a dream boat . She was the most beautiful boat there .

[ronbo1]

Let me jump in before pblais...he's probably still at the Annapolis Show.
I had a 36' Gozzard before upsizing to the 44', obviously being well pleased with the 36. It takes a bit of wind to move this overbuilt boat but once all sails are pulling it moves well. Over the years Gozzard has reduced weight, redesigned the underbody and increased the rig's height so newer models are surprisingly good performers. Remember with it's 6' bowsprit the 36 has the sail platform of a 42 footer. Get an asymmetrical spinnaker and you have the bases covered. Glad to answer any questions John.

ronbo

[Pblais]

Didn't go to the show this year. We went sailing instead. John has the short story pretty well. We have had our 1991 over a year and we still love it. They are quite fast in 35 knots of breeze when sane people won't even come to dock with that much wind. There are no early 80's Gozzards as those would be Bayfields. It appears the original poster never came back.

[Fishspearit]

The one Gozzard that I went aboard was a beautiful, solid boat. But it had a very untraditional layout where the owners had to convert a forward setee to a bunk every evening before going to bed, which seemed a bit of a headache and maybe better suited to weekend sailing than full time live aboard. I'd be curious to hear some opinions on how that non-traditional layout has worked for those of you that have sailed them. Or maybe that was just one layout option and not the norm?

[Pblais]

The open forward area is common to all 36, 37, and 41 ft designs. Some of the 44 ft and 47 ft floor plans allow an enclosed private forward stateroom instead but some 44 ft plans do use the same design.

Personally we like the open plan. I would say it was a serious reason we liked the boat in the first place. The convertible nature of the panels and doors allow a wide open or a totally enclosed floor plan. It's not obvious but the forward area can be closed off as well as the aft area if you need to do that. It does not take that long to convert it. Less than two minutes is what I estimate.

The few times you have guests aboard should not require you to have the interior blocked off into tiny spaces. On any 36 ft boat the spaces would always be tiny. With the open plan we can seat 8 people in the saloon. Most 36 ft boats can't seat more than 4 people comfortably below fewer yet can seat 8. The built in features of the interior allow a lot of flexibility and more standard features only found on much larger boats.

[ronbo1]

Most of the Gozzard owners I know bed in the aft cabin leaving the forward berth for guests, or those times when an open hatch overhead is desired.


Indeed, some 44' Gozzards are built with a traditional forward cabin with en-suite head whereas the open interior design of the 41' and 36' gives one the feeling of being in a larger boat.

[jrmjrmjrm]

Do the 36's handle well under power, docking, good field of vision, comfortable cockpit?
How well is boat able to be singlehanded?
thanks
john

[JohnnyC]

Is there headroom enough for a 6'1" crewmember?

[ronbo1]

Gozzards have large engines for their size so do well to weather when that's the direction to go. This is where the cutter rig can come into play, when the genoa is no longer effective the main and staysail will point higher than boats using overlapping genoas.

Though not full keeled Gozzards can't be steered very well in reverse and prop walk moves the stern to port. But using that knowledge makes docking a non event.

The cockpit is one of the largest you'll find...you can sit a dozen close friends. Though large, pooping isn't a serious problem as the helm/folding-table pod consumes a large volume, and any water is quickly flushed out through the transom flap door.

The fixed windshield provides good protection and vision. Since the cockpit is large the winches are a stretch unless you're lucky to have an autopilot.

Headroom is probably 6'6" throughout, even doorways are over 6'.

[conrad]

So the early Gozzards's are Bayfields.........so I should expect the same attributes of solid well built vessels..........When did the Bayfields become Gozzards????????? Thank YOU