Maine Sailing, Fishing Community Rocked By Catalina Yacht and Powerboat Company Going Out Of Business
Posted by LittleSoapy@reddit | sailing | View on Reddit | 34 comments
This sux. My introduction into sailing was a sweet 1989 Cat 22.
CrosslinkR@reddit
I cant think of anyone part that would need to be supplied by a production yacht builder. I would doubt any of them keep any molds past production. The best warrantee would be publically available cad files but none do this to my knowledge. I
Glenbard@reddit
This really sucks. Less than a month ago I toured the new Catalinas at the Annapolis Boat Show. I was really impressed with the 42-footer and (more importantly) so was my wife. It was (and probably still will be) our retirement upgrade.
The deeper issue is this shows a further shift away from companies who support the middle class to those who support the wealthy. Catalina was founded with the idea of malign sailing accessible to more people. Their boats have always been solid coastal cruisers affordable by the middle class. Sad to see them fade away.
As far as the concern over the ability to be able to get replacement parts…. I believe there are so many Catalinas on the water today there will be several companies willing to step up and produce/sell replacement parts…. Just because it would be profitable to do so.
duggatron@reddit
Middle class sailors aren't buying new boats from anyone. They went to where the money was out of necessity.
jbouit494hg@reddit
I've heard it said on here that a new Catalina 22 in the early '80s cost the equivalent of $30,000 today when you account for inflation.
As someone looking at buying a $2,000 Catalina 22 from the early '80s, I would at least consider buying new at that price to be sure I was starting out with something solid that works instead of jumping in the deep end with old-boat problems.
But there are a whole lot of reasons why they can't make money selling brand new $30,000 boats today.
Tellesio@reddit
I bought a new “New Design” Catalina 22’ swing keel in 1986. I paid $12,900 + $1,500 for an EZ load trailer.
I was a kid, 21 y/o who accidentally discovered sailing and needed my own boat. The owner of the boat dealer connected my to a lender and with 10% down on a 10 year note I owned a sailboat.
FWIW, Sailed it all over Southern California and over to Catalina. Sold it in 1995 w/trailer for $9,000 when I bought my 2nd boat. UofA professor and his gf who lived in Tucson bought it. They told me they’d been looking for several years and my boat was in as pristine a condition as any boat of its vintage or newer they had seen, and they had traveled wide and far looking at Catalina 22’s.
TangoLimaGolf@reddit
New Catalina 22’s approach 80k which is bananas. A new Catalina 356 is 400k!
Those are nowhere near middle class prices.
Here’s the problem, once you get to that price point then going up to a higher quality boat like Island Packet, Pacific Seacraft, or even Hallberg Rassy starts to make more sense.
They deviated dramatically from their core customer base and tried to get in a shootout with much higher quality builders. That 356 needs to be 200k to be competitive in today’s market.
No-Sentence-5208@reddit
I saw a new Catalina 22 sport for sale for $60,000. Outrageous!
Glenbard@reddit
I think you are mostly right, especially amongst middle class in certain countries. There’s a huge stratification within the middle class though… as well as people within the middle class being in very different situations.
Case-in-point: I am solidly middle class. I make a decent income which allows me to own my home and am able to do quite a bit of traveling due to the nature of my work. I’ve also been sailing for several decades now, but on a small, cheap, older boat that’s easy for me to travel with (or pay to leave on the hard for years at a time when I’m working abroad).
I can afford a new boat but it would come at the expense of doing things for our children my wife and I are doing and planning to do. So, at the moment, I will not buy a new boat… and just resign myself to sailing the old Hunter. Right now I solidly fall into the category of middle class you’re referring to.
Once the kids are out of the house and I’m getting ready for retirement in just a few years I’ll still middle class. I won’t magically become wealthy. I will, however, buy a new boat. My wife and I have been talking about it and planning for it for years. We’ve just had this little disagreement as to which boat we’d buy. She’s more into comfort at anchor and I’m more interested in stability and comfort at sea. She will 100% ultimately win this disagreement as she’s won every single disagreement we’ve had in the nearly 20 years we’ve been married… at this point I only argue for the sheer enjoyment of playing the devil’s advocate. The honest truth is, even when we are cruising around the Caribbean or chartering in the Mediterranean we spend WAY more time at anchor than actually sailing…. So she’s right…. But I’ll only admit it after she’s firmly won and we have the cruiser she wants… That’s off topic… I’m just saying I think a lot of middle class people can afford and are buying new boats. Especially older middle class folks who want to stave off major repairs and maintenance for a few years…
ppitm@reddit
Yeah, most Americans think they are middle class. Especially the ones with objectively upper class or lower class income levels.
Glenbard@reddit
Good God… I know it has happened; but I’m still upset when I see it in real time. The upper class has done an excellent job at continuing to refine and redefine what it means to be middle class to the point it is no longer recognizable from what it was even 25 years ago.
Middle class (to me - and historically) isn’t tied to an income, per se, as cost of living varies greatly location to location. It is tied to what a person or couple can do in a lifetime.
Own a means of transportation. It might be an older car but you own it. Or you can easily afford a lease or a monthly train pass/ticket if you commute via public transport (as I’ve done much of my life working in Germany).
Provide for children. Not 12 children… but one to three… maybe four if you love being tortured. This includes allowing them to do activities outside of school.
Retire at a reasonable age…. Not work until you die. Working until you die has always been a hallmark of the lower class. It sucks. It’s highly unfortunate and it makes me sad… it’s also the truth.
Have hobbies outside of work. It might be as simple as hiking or playing the guitar or as expensive as sailing or playing golf. You should be able to get some enjoyment out of your life prior to your retirement.
If you can’t do the above I’d argue you are not middle class.
I’ve never made more than $150k (USD) per year in my life. I started adulthood in the U.S. military and did that for 20 years (those who know will absolutely know this will NEVER make you wealthy). Since then I’ve worked for a U.S. company in both Germany and the U.S. and split a lot of my time between both. I’m solidly middle class. But I’ve also had a good pension plan and savings since I was a Private making around $375 USD after taxes twice a month (back in the dark ages before cell phones).
It’s upsetting how the middle class has been shrunk and deteriorated to the point where it’s unrecognizable to most people.
This is a sailing subreddit. I apologize for putting these opinions in here. I felt they were reasonable due to the nature of where this thread was going.
vanatteveldt@reddit
When are you objectively upper class?
DryInternet1895@reddit
As someone in the commercial industry, who grew up in and still has strong ties to the recreational side of the industry, I can assure you that a lot of middle class people aren’t buying new boats. Especially large ones. Smaller center consoles? Pontoons? Jet skis? Certainly. They are not buying new large cruising sailboats though and the people that are, are certainly not what anyone calls middle class despite what they tell themselves.
barthrh@reddit
I wonder if it's so much of a middle class issue but building boats that are snapped up by the charter business. Seems like you see a lot of European boats are used, not sure I've seen many or any Catalinas. Speaking to an owner of an older Hanse that does well in distance races, he said that the newer ones don't perform anywhere as well because the changed the design to accommodate chartering. Friend recently got one and I see the point. In-mast furling, auto-tacking small jib, no traveler, etc. Very limited ability to tune, which is maybe what people want now.
Glenbard@reddit
You make a very good point and I’ve noticed the same when I’ve chartered in the Med… without really thinking about until now…. Also charter companies buy new boats… a lot of new boats.
DysClaimer@reddit
I think this is right too. The money is in selling boats to charter companies. Which is also the reason that so many new boats aren't really very good quality. (Other than the truly top end stuff.) You can rent them out for just as much if they are cheaply made, and they are all going to get trashed by renters anyway, so the incentive is to just churn them out.
Even if I was in a position to drop a few hundred thousand on a boat, I wouldn't buy a new boat. I'd buy an old boat and spend the money restoring it.
jawisi@reddit
OT, but as someone who has sailed my whole 50-year life, most of it in Southern California, I will say the article abbreviating Catalina to “Cat” rubs me the wrong way. I’ve literally never heard anyone abbreviate the word Catalina that way, EXCEPT for Cat Harbor, at Catalina Island.
I’m sure I’ll be downvoted into oblivion and/or the replies will be brutal, but I’m not kidding. Cat is short for catamaran, not Catalina (again, except for Cat Harbor).
Mysterious-Safety-65@reddit
Hmm...in New England "cat" is a catboat. "a sailboat with a single mast mounted very far forward and a single large sail typically gaff-rigged mainsail".
jawisi@reddit
Fair! But it’s also not short for Catalina, is it?
gerbilshower@reddit
no downvote from me. completely same reaction from me.
jimboTRON261@reddit
Billionaires destroying every literal thing the middle class has.
rwoooshed@reddit
Never had a good feeling about Reardon's grandiose schemes, so I can't say I'm very surprised about the outcome.
brufleth@reddit
But look at the poorly done renders of "all composite" boats!!!!
vicarem@reddit
Sadly, this is the new norm. People are more interested in sailing games than the real thing. Catalina made some great dependable sailing boats.
Pofygist@reddit
People can't afford the real thing.
n0exit@reddit
People think they can't afford the real thing. What they can't afford is a new 40' boat. A lot more can afford a $6,000 26' er.
TheAmicableSnowman@reddit
It's not the boat.
It's the cost of ownership.
n0exit@reddit
The cost of ownership doesn't have to be that bad either. My slip is $325 a month, and that's the most expensive part. I bought a new main a couple of years ago from a reputable local sail maker who used to own and race in my class. That was $2000. That was the second most expensive thing. On a simple boat, anything that needs work is also pretty simple. The auxiliary is an 8hp outboard. I have a single 100ah battery and an 8 switch breaker panel for nav lights and two instrument displays, interior lights and a tiller pilot. The boat is pretty bare bones, but with all the cushions in, is comfortable enough for a week of cruising, and that's all I need.
gerbilshower@reddit
show me a $6k 26 foot boat and ill go talk to the owner about giving it away for free, and then i MIGHT take it.
because its a 1975 S2 8.0 that hasnt been touched in 8 years. leaks. engine doesnt start. they left the headsail on the furler so its ruined. electrical probably doesnt work either. we're lucky the bilge still comes on otherwise it would have sunk by now.
n0exit@reddit
https://seattle.craigslist.org/see/boa/d/gig-harbor-thunderbird-sailboat/7887951799.html
I know that boat specifically, and it is in very nice shape. I've raced against it several times. There are a couple that come up for sale every year, almost never more than $6,000. They are still actively raced in the Puget Sound and Boston and probably a few other areas.
worktogethernow@reddit
The middle class is being destroyed by billionaire greed.
People playing video games are not the ones preventing people from sailing.
diggida@reddit
Are they fully gone? I thought they were just pausing.
wezworldwide@reddit
I started racing a Catalina 38 on Lake St. Clair in the 80/90's. Such a great boat.
ppitm@reddit
What does this have to do with Maine? They quoted one lawyer from Old Orchard Beach and somehow the "community is rocked?"
roadpupp@reddit
Bill Tripp was working on a 48 footer that i think would have been great