Is this boat nuts, or am I?

44' Redpath - Kasten Marine Design http://www.kastenmarine.com/redpath.htm

Visually I am enamored of this schooner. But there are some design choices that are baffling me.

There’s no cockpit, just what I guess I would call a quarterdeck. I suppose this is meant to give water breaking over the deck no place to go but right back where it came from. However, the helm position doesn’t look very secure or comfortable. There is no door in the aft bulkhead of the engine room, meaning there is no belowdecks transit between the two cabins. So when the watchstander needs to go below into the forward cabin where the head and galley are, he can’t get there from the aft companionway by the helm position. He must go forward to the forward companionway—seemingly an unnecessary (albeit minor) risk in a seaway that the layout is forcing on him.


Similarly, if you are sleeping off a hangover in the aft cabin, perhaps in a crowded anchorage or a marina, and you feel the call of nature, in order to relieve yourself you’ve got to get yourself halfway decent in the eyes of your neighbors, not to mention protected for the weather, climb up the companionway, go forward on deck, then climb down another companionway. This seems … ill-considered.


What do you think of this boat? Am I missing something?

 

Nice dreamboat.
Practical??? Lo dudo.

 

I think it would be a fine ocean roaming boat, but a very crappy harbor yacht. Its schooner rig pretty much condemns it to lack luster windward ability, all by itself.

Combined with its full keel, it would be even more so. The long keel severely limits close quarters maneuvering on top of that.

As a harbor yacht, it would likely spend much of its time either tied up to a dock, or motoring.

I've seen a ketch, in waters I sail in, usually out on the weekend, but motoring with its sails furled.

As an ocean roaming boat, just about all of these drawbacks become advantages.

Since ocean voyages are seldom sailed to windward, windward ability is not a major concern, providing it is adequate.

Having the sail plan divided up into smaller areas is a big help. This allows various sail combinations to suit various courses and wind conditions.

The long keel grants better course keeping abilities, all by itself. The boat may well be able to be sailed on long passages without a steering vane or autopilot.