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Buzzards Bay 34 PC
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A fast, soft-riding, all-weather cat designed to make cruising easy.
By Peter A. Janssen
Looking back, I could barely see a wake as our brand-new Buzzards Bay 34 Performance Cruiser (PC) headed across Vineyard Sound, between Cape Cod and Martha's Vineyard, Massachusetts, at an easy 25 knots. The ride was so soft and effortless on this brilliant late fall day that I was lulled into thinking we were barely moving or that we were cruising along at trawler speed on a heavy displacement boat. With four of us on board, the cat seemed to just slide through the water. Before I realized how fast we were going, we reached the entrance to Oak Bluffs on the Vineyard and it was time to turn around.
Even though the outside air was starting to chill, we were warm inside the pilothouse. In fact, we were totally protected and comfortable in the large house, sitting on two Stidd helm chairs and relaxing on the L-shaped settee along the starboard side. One advantage of a cat is generally a larger salon area; the extra advantage of the Buzzards Bay cat is the fully enclosed pilothouse, meaning you will be comfortable no matter what happens outside. All of this plus the catamaran's fuel-efficient hulls translates into a longer and easier cruising life for all on board. "Our owners want to go faster and farther," says Russell Hunt, president of the company. "With this boat, they can go cruising for a week or longer, or just go out for a picnic. And when they're done, they lock the door, hose down the boat and walk away."
The Buzzards Bay 34 PC has lots of room — in the cockpit (with two large lazarettes), the salon, the forward cabin (with queen-size berth), the head and shower and the big foredeck. It all adds up to a boat that feels larger than its 34-foot length would indicate. In addition, its shallow draft (1 foot 6 inches), 300-mile range, soft ride and 30-knot cruising speed make it appealing to cruising couples who can relax in the pilothouse whether they're heading north or south.
Buzzards Bay Catamarans; www.mdcats.com  | GOOD VIEW. Lots of space and windows. |
Other Sea Trials featured this month:
- More Electronics from past issues.
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