Choate 40 IOR

[Garrett C]

Hey All,

I am looking at a Choate 40 and wondering if anyone has experience with them. It is a 1979 IOR boat which is the only thing that gives me hesitation. How will this boat handle seas of any real size?

[Weyalan]

Originally Posted by Garrett C

Hey All,

I am looking at a Choate 40 and wondering if anyone has experience with them. It is a 1979 IOR boat which is the only thing that gives me hesitation. How will this boat handle seas of any real size?

I don't know the Choate 40 per se, but I have sailed on afew IOR 40 footers and own a Vandestadt IOR 40. The perception that IOR designed boats cannot handle big seas is, I think, a fallacy. Sure, the hull shape was not particularly great by more modern standards, but these boats were, in general, strong and reasonably well built. The whole thing about them being a handful in big seas (particularly downwind) was based around racing, with every scrap of canvas up to try to eke out the last 10th of a knot of boat speed - remember these boats had a hull speed around 7.5 - 8 knots that didn't plene easily. So they used to carry emormous amounts of sail, and sure, they were a handful.

It has been my exerience that if you are sensible with your sail options, these are great offshore boats and no slowcoaches either - we have hit 18 knots in ours with a double reefed main and no headsail, running deep downwind with a large sea... for offshore sailing I'd pick a well-built IOR "leadmine" over some of the modern plastic fantastics I see today.

[NormanMartin]

I spent six months sailing a 1984 45 foot IOR design on the ocean in some pretty wild conditions. Don't press them, as the earlier poster says, and they sail fine. Plus... they are so pretty!