They Built This Boat Too Well

Learn what makes a great offshore boat, Chapter 2 of my book breaks this down in detail: 📘 Be The Captain — A Field Manual for Offshore Sailing https://bethecaptain.com This boat didn’t disappear because it was flawed. It disappeared because it was built too well. Boats like this were designed around seamanship, margin, and what actually matters offshore—long after the spreadsheets stop making sense. In this video, I break down the design and manufacturing philosophy behind some of the best offshore sailboats ever built, why that philosophy eventually priced them out of the market, and what was quietly lost when the industry moved on. This isn’t a tour or a buyer’s guide. It’s a conversation about fatigue, motion, load paths, and why “better” doesn’t always survive in a market optimized for something else. Understanding why boats like this disappeared matters because it changes how you evaluate every modern boat that came after. Chapters: 00:00 They Built This Boat Too Well 01:24 Why This Matters Now 02:20 Are These Boats Brilliant—or a Liability? 03:25 The Design Philosophy Behind Boats Like This 03:52 The Spreadsheet Trap 04:48 Why the Numbers Look Wrong 05:50 Mass, Motion, and Real Stability 06:57 Where the Weight Actually Lives 08:33 Why These Boats Feel Easy Offshore 10:18 The Uncomfortable Truth: Cost 11:58 Victims of Their Own Excellence 13:38 Age, Financing, and Modern Reality 15:08 What This Teaches Us About Modern Boats 16:28 Final Thoughts