MacGregor 65

[Albro359]

Years ago I was seriously interested in these boats.
I even went to Costa Mesa when they were still building them and sailed n the demonstrator...it was fast, easy to handle and compare to the 28ft boat I had at the time, it seemed big.
I didnt buy one. Instead I bought a 40ft IOR boat and sailed that around the Pacific for 10 years - fantastic...and in that time i only saw one Mac 65.
When I looked at it with new eyes , it was a 65 ft version of my boat...ie same beam, draft but 50% longer...the owner told me it was pretty good downwind, but upwind it was wet and it slammed a lot.
They are really tiny inside...and looking at aged ones, they wear quickly...Roger claimed they were the best built boats in the US, but they're a bit thin in areas where it counts...very light, not very strong...
If you want to be a hero in your local harbour racing a stripped out Mac 65 would probably beat just about anything, but put any weight in it and all the parameters change.
So, for a cruiser, forget it......

IMHO