Used Kelsall Suncat 40 Catamaran
SONGBIRD

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MANUFACTURER'S COMMENTS:
This is a well proven model with many happy owners, including Round the World cruisers. Light weight and simple lay-out and equipment, preferably with twin 9.9 O/Bs has been the typical. Performance has always been a feature of this design. Regular 200 mile days was reported on one of the Round the World cruises. The original design goes back to pre-cad days. The flaired hull was chosen to give good in hull width for in hull berths, which is the simplest fit out. We have put the design onto CAD and have added to our standard range. An ideal candidate for the Freewing twins rig.

CURRENT OWNER'S COMMENTS:
Songbird’s present owners have cruised her approximately 12,000 miles along the US East Coast and to the Bahamas several times, living aboard her for extended periods since 2002. They have refitted her along the way, equipping her for extended cruising. She is in ready-to-go condition, but as their children have grown older, larger, and need more gear and privacy, they have taken an opportunity to move to a larger boat. Songbird is truly a high-performance cruiser. She routinely exceeds wind speed in lighter air, and will sail when most other boats are powering. Average speeds upwards of 8 knots are normal, and speeds of 10-14 knots are common. With her new daggerboards down, she will frequently tack upwind with a better VMG than many monohulls that are motoring. At the same time, she is a comfortable cruising boat- while winning the Stocking Island Race at the 2004 Georgetown Regatta, a birthday cake was baking in the oven!

PREVIOUS OWNER'S COMMENTS:
The hull is of GRP/divinycell vacuum bagged foam sandwich. All structural bulkheads are of GRP foam sandwich. The furniture and saloon cabinets are of GRP and Brazilian cedar with Brazilian cedar trim throughout. Floors are beautifully finished Brazilian cedar and holly. The boat was engineered for ocean cruising and is very strong and lightweight with flared hulls. Song Bird sails well and is easily handled by two. Her windward ability is very good. After launching in Southern Brazil (September 1995) she has had many 240 plus mile days on the journey to Trinidad. Under motor she makes 6 plus knots and with individual motor controls maneuvers well and turns sharply when required.

Songbird was built in southern Brazil (the state of Santa Caterina) and launched in September of 1995. We sailed her in Brazilian waters for several months, testing her systems and learning the ropes of sailing such a fast vessel.

She got a real test right away as we sailed from southern Brazil to Rio de Janiero against wind and current. She managed very well indeed and tacked beautifully up the coast. Once we turned the corner at Recife the wind and current became much more favorable and we sailed on a lovely reach, calling in at numerous ports.

We departed from our last stop at Fortaleza, Brazil on February 1, 1996 heading for Trinidad (just off the coast of Venezuela) a distance of over 2300 miles. Not wanting to have to adjust sails during this journey and unsure of the weather, we proceeded with a single reef in the main, but the foresail fully out. We screamed along – 240+ mile days were the usual. We shot past the mouth of the Amazon, through the doldrums and in and out of several squalls arriving at Chaguaramus, Trinidad on February 9th in good shape and happy to see land.

Songbird sailed up and down the island chain from the Virgin Islands to Trinidad. On numerous occasions we made 16+ knots. But one of the real plusses to Songbird is her ability to sail in light airs. While everyone else is sitting about, Songbird is making progress.

Songbird rides nicely at anchor and her large cockpit makes entertaining a pleasure.

Someone wishing a fast, comfortable ride will find Songbird just the right boat.

FULL SPECIFICATIONS: