Is Pandora a Yacht or a boat? Hmm…

As Brenda and I have progressed over the years from our humble beginnings sailing a 20′ Cape Cod catboat to larger vessels  I have often wondered when or should I say IF, we have made the transition from boating to the blue blazer yachting set.

Some say that the definition of a yacht is “any boat that is bigger than yours?”  That rings true for me but I expect that there are other, perhaps better definitions.

Webster’s Dictionary has a wholly unsatisfying one….  “A large boat used for racing or pleasure.”  Sorry Webster but that’s just not doing it for me.

Perhaps a better, more descriptive definition, such as it is, comes from  a recent article at www.boat.com  The author offers several categories that a boat must fit into in order to even be considered for “yachtiness”.

They include:

“Size and Price:”  As far as size is concerned, in an informal poll of those who should know the answer to such things, the minimum size that will qualify as a yacht is 33′.  I don’t know where that particular size comes from but have seen that referenced before.  Well, Pandora is 47′ so “Check” on the S&P scale.

“Yacht Attitude:”  Well, I’d say that Pandora, with her muscular profile and hard dodger, qualifies on that score.    She certainly turns heads based on the number of questions I get about her.

Next is “Time and Money:”  This question assumes that you are willing to spend the considerable time and money required to keep your yacht from slipping into the obscurity and decayed state of “boatiness”.  Well, I sure qualify on those scores. However, he goes on to suggest that for the owner to do the work themselves will lead to a large discount on the yacht quotient.

Oh well, I’ll have to think about that a bit.  But wait, all is not lost. I could sell Pandora and trade down to a 33 footer and hire someone to work on her with the money I save but that’s a real non-starter for Brenda so I guess the problem remains.

Finally, a key in all of this is about the attitude of the owner.  He says, “If you are more Grey Poupon than French’s mustard, more monogrammed than markdown, and more Topsider than sneaker…” This means that you are a yachtsman.

Well, I own several jars of Grey Poupon, use them up regularly so I have to buy more and have many mogrammed shirts, bags etc .  However, I can not tell a lie and I do LOVE getting stuff on sale.  I also have Topsiders. but they are a bit shabby.

So, how does all this add up for Pandora? Is she a yacht of a lowly boat?   Such are the pressing questions of the universe.

Still confused?  All is not lost and to sum this up in a more scientific way, he offers five questions to confirm, or not, your status.

Of course, not to put too fine a point on it,  but all yachts are indeed boats but not all boats are yachts.

So, is Pandora a yacht?    According to the author, “If any more than three of the following five items are true, you pass the test:”

“1. You refer to your boat as “she” rather than “it”. ”  I pass on this one.  Note that “she” is repeated often in my posts and several times in this one.
“2. Maintenance and upgrades are done by someone else.”  Oops?  I pay for those things that I can’t or won’t do.  If I had more $$ I’d hire EVERYTHING out. Promise…  However, I am not willing to trade down to be able to afford to have someone else do the work for me.  Besides, when I am cruising I have to be able to fix stuff as there isn’t anyone else there to do it for me. boat or yacht.  And, I hate being aboard a broken boat er: yacht.
“3. You deduct the loan payments by considering the boat as a second home.”  Hmm… That seems like a very materialistic way to look at it and in direct conflict with the “if you have to ask how much it costs, you can’t afford it” set.   However, we spend half of the year aboard, so she’s a yacht on that point, deduction or not.

“4. Etiquette and clean feet are more important to you on board than on dry land.” Yahoo!!! A big win for me on this!!!  How may “yachties” do you know who have been dubbed “the nicest anal retentive person I have ever met”?  That would be me.

“5. Gawkers from the dock often say “Nice yacht,” with a straight face”   Hmm…  I guess you’ll have to stand on the dock and listen.

So, there you have it, I think.   Is Pandora a yacht?  Hmm… Well she seems pretty yachty to me and besides, when I am close to a dock, she seems HUGE too.

I guess that yachty, like beauty, is in the eyes of he beholder so I’ll have to ask you, dear reader, what you think.

Is Pandora a boat or yacht?

Before you blurt out your answer, this is Pandora, lest your memory is short. Still unsure?  Want more information?  You can go right to the source and read the full article.

I rest my case.