Julie and crewed on a friend's Catalina 22 yesterday evening. We got to fly a
symmetrical and an asymmetrical spinnaker for the first time with his help -
it was pretty cool and we're going to try Raven's asymmetrical on our own
this weekend, weather permitting.
During our sail I was struck by several things and was glad for the
opportunity to revisit some of reasons we chose to buy our Rhodes22 (and
give ourselves a pat on the back for our decision).
- The difference that made the largest impression on me was that the cockpit
seemed crowded with a crew of three. We've really been spoiled rotten .
- A couple of times our friend had to search for things in the torpedo
tubes (a.k.a. quarter berths) under the cockpit seats. I really do much
prefer the open space under Raven's cockpit seats for legroom and easy stowage.
- Julie got conked by the boom (she's okay - just a bit of a lump) - it's
just enough lower than Raven's that we had to pay attention to it.
- Boy, there were a lot of lines on that boat. Spinnaker sheets, halyards,
down-hauls, coils, loops, tangles, etc. all in that small cockpit. Sometimes
I think I'd like to have more toys to play with, but then I get reminded
about how simple, pleasant, and relaxing it is to sail Raven.
- I was at the helm most of the evening and was struck by how stiff it was -
much more resistance that on Raven, especially as the wind kicked up. I
found myself looking down to see if the rudder had kicked up a bit. I
realize this probably has more to do with the way everything on the boat is
tuned, but I didn't much care for the idea of sailing that boat for any
extended period of time.
- A gust hit us while we had the asymmetric up and Julie was a bit late
releasing the sheet - we shipped a little water over the gunwale. Perhaps it
was inexperience on this boat, perhaps it's personal taste, perhaps it was
the feel of the tiller, but I feel much more solid, safe, and in control
when Raven buries a gunwale.
Mark Kaynor
15 Aug 2003
I have had my used Rhodes 22 for a year now and am very happy with the boat.
I moved from a Catalina 22, seduced by the many design features of the
Rhodes which make it easy to sail, particularly the inner mast furling.
The boat is relatively easy to trail and set up. One nice feature is that
the jib furler and boom can be tied to the mast so that the lines associated
with the IMF are already in place and the sails are ready to be unfurled
when the standing rigging is attached. A consequence is that the mast
assembly is rather heavy and you will need the mast raising package.
I have a version circa 1989, which uses an aluminum A frame and a mainsheet
type block which allows the mast to be raised by one person. I think my
system is at least two generations behind the current design, but it works
quite well. Boat setup takes about an hour.
Ron Lipton
23 Dec 2002
