The Contessa 32 ?

[Lady Captin]

Could I get all the good bad and ugly please ? They have a bit of a cult following, given their past history. Would love to hear , for those have experience. Sailing good bad and ugly, safety etc , thanks

[SVTatia]

Originally Posted by Lady Captin

Could I get all the good bad and ugly please ? They have a bit of a cult following, given their past history. Would love to hear , for those have experience. Sailing good bad and ugly, safety etc , thanks

I don't have the experience, but after reading John Kretschmer's Cape Horn to Starboard I was sold on this great go anywhere boat. John K has thousands of sailing miles under his belt on several boats, he is very fond of this boat and he mentions the Contessa 32 on all of his books.
It was on top of my list when I was looking, but the hard part is finding one on my side of the world.

[boatman61]

https://bluewaterboats.org/contessa-32
https://sailingsamourai.com/1074-2/
https://www.co32.org/

[thomm225]

Originally Posted by SVTatia

I don't have the experience, but after reading John Kretschmer's Cape Horn to Starboard I was sold on this great go anywhere boat. John K has thousands of sailing miles under his belt on several boats, he is very fond of this boat and he mentions the Contessa 32 on all of his books.
It was on top of my list when I was looking, but the hard part is finding one on my side of the world.

He also called the boat a submarine as it was so wet

[SVTatia]

Originally Posted by thomm225

He also called the boat a submarine as it was so wet

Thats correct, perhaps due to low profile, which does not impact its seaworthyness. If you wacth the excellent NBJS videos of the 35 you can tell what kind of boat these are.

I believe that some of them were built in Canada, the 26 were, but not sure about the 32.

[El Pinguino]

Originally Posted by thomm225

He also called the boat a submarine as it was so wet

Which - while not affecting seaworthiness - can have quite an effect on the crew's comfort.

[boatman61]

Originally Posted by SVTatia

Thats correct, perhaps due to low profile, which does not impact its seaworthyness. If you wacth the excellent NBJS videos of the 35 you can tell what kind of boat these are.

I believe that some of them were built in Canada, the 26 were, but not sure about the 32.

The UK 32's have solid glass decks whereas the Canadian 32's are Balsa cored decks..

[AiniA]

Very solid boats, much better than a Bayfield 32, but smaller than a B36. Some of thee Canadian boats were sold hull and deck so it depends on the build quality of the original owner. How tall are you, headroom could be a problem.

[AiniA]

Originally Posted by SVTatia

Thats correct, perhaps due to low profile, which does not impact its seaworthyness. If you wacth the excellent NBJS videos of the 35 you can tell what kind of boat these are.

I believe that some of them were built in Canada, the 26 were, but not sure about the 32.

The 26s built in Canada had taller rigs than the British ones. Better in light air, which you get a lot more often than storms but you need to reef very early. Don't know about the 32s.

Have you considered a Cabot 36? Not that well-known. These were well-built in Nova Scotia in the 1970s. Ted Brewer design so conservative rather than old-fashioned.

https://sailingmagazine.net/article-2341-cabot-36.html

[Ziggy]

Originally Posted by boatman61

The UK 32's have solid glass decks whereas the Canadian 32's are Balsa cored decks..

There is no balsa in the Canadian-built 32s.

[Jim Cate]

Originally Posted by El Pinguino

Which - while not affecting seaworthiness - can have quite an effect on the crew's comfort.

Ping, IMO taking good care of the crew is an important part of seaworthiness. The very best boat with an exhausted and beat-up crew ain't all that safe!

To say nothing of enduring the nasty looks from said crew as they wring the salt water from their socks and jocks... does little for morale of skipper or crew!

Jim

[El Pinguino]

Originally Posted by Jim Cate

Ping, IMO taking good care of the crew is an important part of seaworthiness. The very best boat with an exhausted and beat-up crew ain't all that safe!

To say nothing of enduring the nasty looks from said crew as they wring the salt water from their socks and jocks... does little for morale of skipper or crew!

Jim

Is this the voice of experience I am hearing here?

[Jim Cate]

Originally Posted by El Pinguino

Is this the voice of experience I am hearing here?

Our first Insatiable* was a very wet boat... overloaded, flush deck, fine entry etc. A hard dodger helped a lot, but when we moved onto I-2 the fatigue factor was improved a lot, and we were much more rested as a rule than with our former ride... and no water below (so far after some 65000 miles) which made a big difference.

The Contessa looks like a nice boat to me, a slightly enlarged version of our S&S 30 with similar lines and numbers.

Jim

* retired IOR one tonner by Franz Maas.

[boatman61]

Originally Posted by Ziggy

There is no balsa in the Canadian-built 32s.

Then I suggest you inform these folk they're talking outa their ass...
https://bluewaterboats.org/contessa-32
Cananadian 32's also have moulded liners as opposed to the UK which is teak finished.

[thomm225]

Originally Posted by Lady Captin

Could I get all the good bad and ugly please ? They have a bit of a cult following, given their past history. Would love to hear , for those have experience. Sailing good bad and ugly, safety etc , thanks

They are very good boats and totally at the other end of the extreme from those Pearson's you were investigating earlier.

For one thing, they are only 9.5' wide and are build to the old school ideas of seaworthiness.

Many have tiller steering. They are a lot like my Bristol 27, but better with a higher Bal/Disp ratio which is over 47%

They have an AVS of close to 156% and that is pretty amazing. During the Fastnet 79 race a Contessa 32 was knocked down 2-3 times. The skipper that day was the son of the owner.

Article from Cape Horn Rounding ....
https://www.59-north.com/blog/2014/9...e-horn-snorter

Later in life at 85 years old, the owner would have the boat roll the entire 360 degrees during a storm and hold together