WHY BUY A MEGA 30?

     Because, for its price, it offers more of everything than any other sailboat on the market. More performance, more accommodation, more versatility, more convenience, most of all more fun.

     From the point of view of a day sailor and week-end cruiser:

     (1)   Sailing pleasure   MEGA 30 was designed and tested (sailing trials from June thru October) to provide pure sailing pleasure to her crew. Translated, pure sailing pleasure means:

(a) light but responsive helm. . . proper balance of sailplan to lateral resistance; proper balance on the rudder; solid but low friction rudder and tiller fittings; tiller of the right length.

(b) correct sail area to stability ratio. Enough sail area to be fast and responsive in light air, enough stability to stand up and go to weather in a breeze. MEGA 30 requires changing from the 150% genoa to the working jib in 12-14 knots of true wind, an ideal consequence of the correct sail area/stability ratio.

(c) directional stability plus helm sensitivity. MEGA 30's long waterline provides exceptional directional stability... during one prototype sail, Wes Dalby and Peter Barrett left the helm untended for 15 minutes, during which time they went forward and changed from the genoa to the working jib as the breeze increased... during all this time, MEGA 30 sailed herself upwind with the headsail telltales flying properly. Her light weight and long distance between keel and rudder result in an extremely sensitive helm, making her, fun to steer upwind in varying conditions.

(d) easy sail trimming and handling. The large main, 7/8 rig and her unique roller-furling and self-tacking jib mean that MEGA 30 can be handled more easily in varying wind conditions and in heavy air than any other boat her size. Sailing in light air with the genny when a sudden squall hits? . . . just furl the genoa to the size of a storm jib, luff the main and sail through it. If the squall lasts longer, quick-reef the main...MEGA 30 comes with two quick reefs as standard equipment. Facing a long, heavy air beat to windward?? ... set the self-tacking jib and reefed main, and sail her hour after hour, through a hundred tacks, without touching main or jib sheet:

(e) speed. With a 27' waterline, 4500 lb. displacement (half of which is in the keel, the most of that is in the bulb, resulting in unmatched stability for her displacement), and ample sail area, it is no wonder MEGA 30 can outperform an IOR 3/4 tonner upwind and IOR 2-tonners downwind (these are 34' and 42' custom racing boats). During one sailing trial MEGA 30 spinnaker, reached through an entire class of 1-tonners who had been nearly a half mile ahead starting the leg. On another. occasion she outsailed a C&C 29, a J-24 (which is a very fast little boat),, and a third 33 footer to weather.

No other boat can give,,,you as much sailing pleasure for under $20,000, complete with main and jib.

(2) Accommodation MEGA 30 has an interior designed to be cruised in and sailed in, not just for dockside cocktail parties: The four 6'6" bunks are always ready for use, as is the galley area and cooler. Owners have the option of installing a small Sea-Swing stove for more serious chefs, or a stove with oven for the ultimate culinary enjoyment.

Over 6' of headroom in the main cabin area eliminates a stooped back and bumps on the head.

The roomy head, forward of the main cabin, insures complete privacy.

Two additional V-berths could easily be installed in the forward cabin, for the family of 5 or 6.

Plenty of window areas; light, cheerful woodwork and upholstery; and lovely natural wood slatted floorboards keep the interior pleasant and dry.

Ample storage is provided under all the bunks, in the two counter areas, along the topsides and in the large bow and stern areas.

Standard 12-volt electrical system, with battery, circuit panel, three dome lights, running lights and a master switch is convenient and easy to use.

The stainless sink has portable fresh and used water containers, so that the owner can handle water supplies even if dockside facilities are not available.

The standard Igloo cooler offers the same. convenience for refrigeration, allowing the mate to pack fresh foods, cold drinks, etc. at nome in her kitchen... and to do much of the weekend clean-up there also.

The forward hatch and main hatch ventilator assure ample fresh air.

(3) Versatilty Trailering the MEGA 30 is simple and easy...a full-size car, van, or pickup with a trailer towing package can do the job. The very first production MEGA was completed in early December, immediately loaded on her trailer, and towed to New Orleans for sailing trials by a standard Chewy van. . .they left Toronto at 10 AM, and were . in New Orleans by 4 PM the next afternoon ...despite a midwest blizzard which forced several highway delays of up to 2 or 3 hours!

MEGA can be launched by two people from any ramp with 2' of water. Think what this does for extending your cruising range and lowering your storage costs! You and your wife can depart your home after work on Friday, and be moored in a snug harbor 200 miles away, enjoying cock tails while dinner cooks, by 9 PM: Haul out by 4PM Sunday, and you're back home enjoying the same amenities by 9 PM, ready for a good start Monday.

Or, take MEGA south during your 2 week vacation in January. Enjoy cruising Florida, the Bahamas or the Texas coast. . . or maybe even Baja California in Mexico. Less adventurous?? ... then take your vacation at a warmer time, and cruise the New England coast, Chesapeake Bay, the great western lakes like Mead and Powell, or Puget Sound and Vancouver Island..all from your home anywhere in the U.S. or Canada, and without the need of a permit, special hauling rig, or yard facilities at either end of your trip.

North Europeans will be able to enjoy winter vacations -on the French or Italian Riviera, the Italian or Spanish coasts, or the Greek Islands... all with the same personal convenience.

MEGA 30's easy ramp launching and trailer storage also means you can keep her at home during the winter, where it's convenient to install those little added touches you put on the list last summer. Winter storage bills and haulout bills will be a thing of the past!

Because MEGA 30 can also be sailed with her keel pinned half way up, many shallow cruising areas are opened up that would otherwise be unaccessible...the Bahama banks, parts of Chesapeake Bay or the Inland Waterway system.

You can also run your MECA up on a beach for a picnic or exploring ashore, eliminating the need of the transfer to a dinghy, or merely wondering what it would be like.

Truly, no other sailboat even approaching Mega 30's performance and accommodation can begin to offer her versatility (some sailboats claim to be trailerable, even though they have fixed keels or are over 8' in beam . . . remember, few launching ramps can handle fixed keels, and anything over 8' wide requires costly, sometimes difficult-to-obtain permits in every state, often prohibiting travel during darkness or weekends).

(4) Convenient auxiliary power The outboard arrangement: on MEGA is a major improvement on previous systems. To retract the motor, merely ,tilt up. . .just like you would on .a small outboard boat. No more hanging over the transom; trying to fit the motor onto that bolted-on bracket or get it to tip up.

As an added bonus, the powerhead is hidden inside the line of the transom, adding attractiveness to the appearance of the stern.

Several motors offer 12 volt alternators, so you can be charging your 12 volt system whenever you are powering. . . you can also enjoy the convenience of electric starting and remote gearshift and throttle controls.

If you prefer inboard power, MEGA 30 is available with a Sail-drive option.

     Simplicity   Notice how clean the deck and cockpit of MEGA 30 are. Because the jib is self-tacking, one jib sheet leads to one conveniently located winch and cam cleat. All halyards lead to a second easily reached winch on the cabintop, with lock-offs for all three halyards (the third halyard is standard to provide a back-up for safety at sea, and to eliminate the complicated process of running a third halyard if you add a genoa or spinnaker to your sail inventory).

     With roller furling and slugs on the tuff of your mainsail, hoisting or lowering sail on your MEGA, is really fast. Your headsail never needs to be lowered and folded, then put into a sailbag...when you approach the dock or mooring, just pull the roller furling line (conveniently led to the cockpit) and watch the sail disappear like a windowshade! Later, before leaving, snap on and hoist your roller furling headsail cover to protect the sail from the weather and sunlight.

     After tieing up, drop the main halyard... the sail stays attached to the mast, thanks to the slugs (standard), so all you have to do is furl it on the boom and snap on the mainsail cover at your pleasure. All finished . . .and your MEGA is ready to go sailing again with only a couple minutes spent in preparation!

     We've described earlier how easy the self-tacking jib makes sailing upwind, even in heavy air. Once the sheet is trimmed properly by the winch, you never have to touch it again, no matter how many times the skipper tacks.

     Having discussed why MEGA fills the needs of a cruising sailor, let's take a look from a racing skipperts viewpoint.

     Sailboat racing is fun any time, but it's especially fun when you have a chance to win!

     The handicap rules under which most cruising boat racing is done (IOR; MORC, PHRF, etc.), have evolved to the point where a normal, comfortable cruising boat or even a custom racing boat over 2 or 3 years old has very little chance of winning.

     The obvious answer, - for the man who enjoys owning a yacht capable of comfortable cruistng but also enjoys racing in equal competition, is one-design cruiser. racing. Recemt proliferation of many one-design cruising boats illustrates the need, and the wide recognition of that need with correspondtng efforts to fill it. Examples are the New York 40 and the North American 40 (large cruisers), the C&C 29 and Elvstrom 101 (medium sized cruisers), and the J-24, Santana 22, and Ranger 22 (small cruisers).

     All these are good sailboats, and will provide many owners with a great deal of pleasure. Why is MEGA 30 better, especially for those interested in a medium size cruiser?

(1) All. of the unique advantages already discussed.

(2) Only MEGA 30 offers one-design sails. While hull and rig have much to do with relative boat speed, the ultimate final determinant of how fast your yacht can sail is the quality of her sails.

It is no accident that the most popular racing classes in the world are the Sunfish and Laser... both offer ore-design sails.

One-design sails insure that.every skipper has an equal opportunity of winning.

North Sails is uniquely qualified to supply absolutely one-design sails for all MEGA 30's. North has 16 lofts located throughout the world, and has built its reputation as the finest racing sailmaker in the business by developing the fastest designs and then insuring that every customer, no matter where he is or which loft he chooses to buy his sails from, receives that identical fastest design.

Further details on the cloth testing and controls, the computerized design techniques and worldwide communication, of designs and other information through G.E. terminals in each loft, the constant interchange of information, and the quality controls that make it all work are available at any North loft.