You're funny Stuart!! Indeed, to each their own. My husband recently bought a catamaran and it's his "baby". He's the type of person who really loves a challenge and his way of thinking is that anyone, in general, can operate a boat with a motor.......but a sailboat takes a bit more skill. Unfortunatley, fishing is not his type of challenge. That's where the sailboat and I have a problem.....if I can't fish off of it, I can live without it!! But, like I said, it's his thing and I'll just have to suck it up and fish from shore!!!!
I've been around boats and had my own a good part of my life. I do all my own boat maintenance. Over the years, many folks have asked me - "I want to buy a boat - which one would you recommend?" My standard answer? The one that best fits the way you intend to use it. Why? There is no "perfect" boat. That is, one in which you can do everything you might want to do on a boat. So, the most important decisions to make are before you ever open the classified ads, buy boating magazines and drool over the pictures, or god forbid, go to a dealer and tell him you want to buy a boat.
If you decide that you want to buy a boat to go to the lake and waterski or wakeboard, there's plenty to choose from. Just don't expect that boat to be a good fishing boat in saltwater. If your desire is to be carried wherever the winds take you, there's your sailboat. And when it comes to fishing, the choices get even more application, if not almost fish species, specific. Boats for fishing the shallow water flats, boats for cruising far off shore, bass boats for the lakes, boats with extravagant creature comforts to those that are spartan by comparison, with prices that match. Once you've made that important "how I intend to use it" decision, then start shopping, keeping in mind that there will be compromises you'll need to make when you attempt to use the boat for other purposes -- as you said, fishing from hubby's catamaran.
For me, I want a few hundred horsepower behind me, I want to be able to reliably go long distances and get there quickly, and I demand something that won't make me fear for my life if the weather should suddenly go beserk while I'm far from port. I also want some level of creature comfort -- a bathroom and somewhere to get out of the sun at a minimum. I also expect whatever boat I own to be able to fish in multiple ways - trolling for big game, dropping at the deep reefs, or even casting in the shallows just off the beach with enough room for a few folks to fish without stepping all over each other. I want the best electronics so I know exactly where I am (to within a couple of feet) and exactly what the bottom looks like below me. I also need somewhere to keep live bait alive and somewhere to keep dead fish cold. Everything beyond those requirements is secondary. Just an example of prethinking "intended use" before shopping. Obviously, somebody's else's priorities would be different than mine.
If you really want to fish from his sail cat, go out with him and just use a sabiki rig with about a 6 oz. weight at the bottom. You can drop it when he's going slow or just let it stream out behind the boat for trolling. You'll be surprised at what you catch! I have the honor of saying I actually caught a nice size pinto bass on a sabiki rig one trip while making bait.
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