I have read a lot of posts by self proclaimed experts who have nothing but bad things to say about the Mac 26s, based mainly on their envy of the ability of that boat to plane away when the owner wants to go fast. However, there are a lot of so-called Classic, Mac 26D and 26S model boats that are very good sailboats. I say very good sailboats when compared to other trailerable sailboats int the 26 foot range. And my opinion is based on performance fact of observation from the tiller. By that, I mean that I sail a Mac 26D against a lot of other boats and other boats do not measure up to the classic Mac. I actively sail the boat in all weather and I am able to trailer this boat easily over thousands of miles to reach inland lake destinations like Lake Powell, Yellowstone Lake, Lake Pend O'reille, Priest Lake and a lot of smaller high altitude lakes in the Pacific Northwest.

I won't even get into an arguement of the merits of water ballast. 1400 lbs of water weighs 1400 lbs and combined with the very low freeboard of these boats, a very fast and high pointing craft is the result. Add to that the fact that the boats make comfortable campers for a small family and you can see that this form of Macgregor design is quite a good inland boat to access otherwise unreachable waters.

OK, I work on a lot of other boats. I work on O'days, Catalinas, Chryslers, Buccaneers, Balboas- you get the picture. None of these boats are as responsive as a Classic Mac. I make tillers and I install aftermarket rudders and daggerboards and centerboards, and I rewire boat electrical systems. I live in an area where there are a lot of classic Macs, and there are enough actively sailing in the Southern Idaho Sailing Association to make it very competitive. These are good boats and they sail well. I have never seen an X or an M model on the water in this area, however.

My point is that the concept of a water ballast boat has already proven to be a great concept in a trailerable sailboat in the mid 20 foot range. Just because Macgregor followed a design that "traditional" sailors cannot accept, does not mean that the basic concepts are faulty. At $5-8K they are a great way to sail, and they promote sailing to those who will go on to have other larger boats. John S