Best for singlehanding

It would have to be a boat I had ultimate confidence in - easy to handle both under sail and mooring up, tracks true with hands off the helm and has a homely feel down below.

Vancouver 34 for me - Classic rather than Pilot. A boat which as a racer at the time really surprised me and I really enjoyed sailing. Cutter rig provides versality when it starts to blow without having to go fwd. A 28 would be fine also although is a little tender (in comparison) unless loaded for long distance voyages.
 
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that will be me and my Contessa 26 then, attributes, well I cant stand up in her, but thats okay because I sleep laying down, shes quite fast, and very low to the water so I can reach out to pick up moorings, but then again waves can splash up at me too.
Shes more than just a boat, shes my best friend too, and gets me through all sorts of weather.
 
Lady Campanula said:
No teams of 'outlaws', no rugger club outings, no hordes of hangers-on....

.....just you and your book-at-bedtime. And very occasionally, one of your mates.

What kind of boat, and what attributes....?
Click to expand...

Easy - the one I've got :D:D Long keel steel cutter rig,not too big. (not too big cos if you are sailing solo then you are painting solo as well:) ) Roller reefing headsail.

For offshore anyway. Never had a problem with lines at the mast. Some sort of reliable autopilot essential, long keel helps there. Radar & ais reciever, don't really believe in transponders, don't trust anyone else.

Coastal dunno, maybe roller main would be nice. But never going to happen, coastal's too scarey and takes forever to get anywhere ;) Gimme offshore solo every time. :)
 
My Nic 32. If I do my bit and balance her sails she almost steers herself.
We've had a few hammerings and I'm 100% confident in her. Bullet proof.
I'm with Conachair, offshore solo..always. Rock dodging is unhealthy.:D
 
Singlehanded for more years than I care to think about in a long keel modified Eventide 26.

Attributes - steady, predictable, easy sail handling now all led back to cockpit. Small cockpit with everything to hand without leaping about. Uncomfortable so difficult to fall asleep at the helm! Marina berth with mooring lines exactly where they should be.

On the other hand, also reasonably happy singlehanding my Bavaria 37 in light conditions. Hoping to try it now in more testing conditions. Attributes - Roller furling, all lines in cockpit, good autopilot and powerful engine. Goes where you want it to under power - particularly backwards. Bit scary if 7 tons get out of control in restricted situations!
 
For me, the 'one I have' and I think that anyone who sails single handed will probably say the same.
What I like:
Center cockpit - so I feel snug and safe
Ketch - so I can mix and match sails for different conditions
Fairly heavy - for comfort in upperty seas
Encapsulated Bilge Keels - so I can nose up creeks and find free peaceful anchorages
Skeg hung Encapsulated Rudder - Less chance of it dropping off
Pilot House Saloon - so I can sit inside and keep watch when it's cold and wet
Wide Side Decks - easier to walk round
Workshop - for all those little jobs!
Aft Double Cabin - and
Two Heads - just in case I have a guest :)

I'm sure there are some down sides, but they pale into insignificance when compared to the good bits :D
 
Heavenly Twin 26ft catamaran.

Easy to handle, steady and safe, upright! lots of space, centre cockpit with weather proof hard top cover, two double cabins.

Unbelievably nicer than the very nice monos that my father, then I, had before.
 
Like everyone else - the one I have got. A New Bombay Trading Company Explorer 44.

A fast old lady, on a recent passage we saw 8s for about 16 miles, lots of forward opening hatches which is essential out here in the Caribbean and a boat that I like looking at as I dinghy back to her after a day ashore unlike my last boat which caused visual pollution where ever we were.
 
junk rig - when demonstrating boats with this rig I have literally sailed them single handed - ie one hand in my pocket - this includes close quarter sailing, picking up moorings, reefing etc. This is not related to skill - just a knowledge of the rig and the rig itself. All of this is just not as possible with bermudan.

And they are fast nowadays as well - see the results of the 2010 RTI race.
 
Chrissie said:
that will be me and my Contessa 26 then, attributes, well I cant stand up in her, but thats okay because I sleep laying down, shes quite fast, and very low to the water so I can reach out to pick up moorings, but then again waves can splash up at me too.
Shes more than just a boat, shes my best friend too, and gets me through all sorts of weather.
Click to expand...

agree - the perfect yacht for singlehanding
 
It depends where you want to go and how fast you want to get there. For coastal sailing something around 25 ft. The most important aspects being a roller foresail and single-line reefing for the main with lines run to the cockpit.

For ocean crossing I would go back to the boat I built for the purpose in 1975 - a 40 ft tri, 3.5 tonnes. I'd want to replace the hanked-on sails with a roller, ideally cutter rigged. That boat really flew - reaching at 14 knots. I'd also want to replace the outboard I used in favour of a small diesel but apart from that it was the dog's B's
 
Chrissie said:
that will be me and my Contessa 26 then, attributes, well I cant stand up in her, but thats okay because I sleep laying down, shes quite fast, and very low to the water so I can reach out to pick up moorings, but then again waves can splash up at me too.
Shes more than just a boat, shes my best friend too, and gets me through all sorts of weather.
Click to expand...

And that'll be me and my Anderson 22 then, responsive but never twitchy, everything to hand and still able to embarass much more expensive boats, always willing to go further and offering a place to crash out when I get there, my best friend indeed.

Not singlehanding, but I remember a painting in Redcliffe YC on the River Frome up to Wareham.

It was of the She 36 'Lorelei' in the 1979 Fastnet, with an inscription by her owner / skipper, on the lines of ' I'd trust her in anything, she'll never let me down '...

I know what he means; does anyone know if the painting is still there ?
 
Something a bit different

Like every one else - mine!

We do coastal weekends, occasional NL, BEL & FR 7-10 day cruises. We don't race anymore, but I still want fast, responsive and manageable for coastal single-handed daysails in (almost) any conditions. I want reasonable draft, but no loss of weatherliness.

So mine has these electric winch/clutch setups either side of wheel.

The starboard clutches handle mainsheet, main halyard, jib furler and jibsheet

The port ones handle single-line reefs 1 & 2 and jibsheet

This setup allows me to reef late by surging the mainsheet out in gusts, tack the 110% blade jib without recourse to the autopilot, and reef sat-sitting or stood-standing behind the wheel.

The wheel/binnacle setup is also unusual. The spokes curve around from the front of the binnacle, so engine control (starboard side) is handy.

Finally, a wing keel has reduced draft from 2 metres to 1.5 - OK for a 35 footer on the East Coast.

Picture below (taken against a slight foul tide) shows performance is good.

Only problem - SWMBO now thinks the bunks are too hard for her poor old back. :( but I've no intention of changing - I'm in my mid-60's, but find them quite comfortable :)
 
LadyInBed said:
For me, the 'one I have' and I think that anyone who sails single handed will probably say the same.
What I like:
Center cockpit - so I feel snug and safe
Ketch - so I can mix and match sails for different conditions
Fairly heavy - for comfort in upperty seas
Encapsulated Bilge Keels - so I can nose up creeks and find free peaceful anchorages
Skeg hung Encapsulated Rudder - Less chance of it dropping off
Pilot House Saloon - so I can sit inside and keep watch when it's cold and wet
Wide Side Decks - easier to walk round
Workshop - for all those little jobs!
Aft Double Cabin - and
Two Heads - just in case I have a guest :)

I'm sure there are some down sides, but they pale into insignificance when compared to the good bits :D
Click to expand...

As the caterpillar sitting on the mushroom smoking his hookah said to Alice...

"Exactically so!".
 
Chrissie said:
that will be me and my Contessa 26 then, attributes, well I cant stand up in her, but thats okay because I sleep laying down, shes quite fast, and very low to the water so I can reach out to pick up moorings, but then again waves can splash up at me too.
Shes more than just a boat, shes my best friend too, and gets me through all sorts of weather.
Click to expand...

Yes - a good boat. But you can stand up in a Twister, yet she still has low freeboard so not difficult to pick up moorings from the cockpit! The inability to be steered astern can make singlehanded manouvering in marinas a bit tricky but there are ways to get round that!
 
And then there's my Nicholson 26. Another long-keeler not quite so long as a Twister, roomier than a Contessa and with similar handling characteristics to both (a bitch in astern).

The Nic 26 I have is the single cabin variant with the accommodation optimised for two to go cruising in 'reasonable' comfort. She inspires confidence when the wind pipes up and has a seakindly motion. Okay, a modern fin and spade rudder job may get you there quicker, but what's the point if you're enjoying the sail?

She works for me.:)
 
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