My last post was about the difficulty of finding a junk-rigged boat when you wnat one. This one is about the fact that there is a beautiful little Contessa 26 looking for a home. She has been owned for short periods of time by several people in the recent past. One decided that buying a boat in the UK when he lived in NZ was perhaps not the wisest of decisions. The second one did heaps of good work on the boat, having found some structural defects; she is now apparently in great shape and probably better than new. He was about ready to do the finishing touches when he was offered work now in China. The most recent owner finished off all the little jobs needed to get the boat sailing and then realised that his money wasn't going to go as far as he hoped and that getting work in Europe was easier said than done, so had to go back home to Oz to earn some more money. Poor wee boat - aspirational and competent owners, but no-one to take her sailing.
Of course, at 26ft, she isn't even considered 'entry level', for most people, and without an inboard engine, she is dismissed out of hand by nearly everyone. But I keep hearing about young, adventurous people desperate for an opportunity to Achieve Something. For £5,500 someone can buy an adventure ready to go: put some food on board, fill up the water, pull up the sail and there you are. Come on - there must be somebody out there who will grab this opportunity!