Changing Course in The Bahamas with the former owners

This is the beginning of our big adventure...

In 1991, we purchased a 1980 Tartan 33 sailboat and had a wonderful number of years learning more about boating, sailing and cruising.  When we purchased her, we had an 18 month old daughter and were hoping for more children.  In 1992 our second daughter was born and after a long wait, our son came along in 2000.  By this time things were getting crowded but we still enjoyed taking "Tippy" through Long Island and southern New England waters with our kids, exploring new territory and making friends.  When we found out baby #4 was coming along, we realized we really did need a bigger boat.  We found our 1997 Catalina 42 MkII in Florida in the fall of 2002 and purchased her just before our 4th child was born.  For the last 26 years, we've had many more adventures sailing and as the kids have gotten bigger and we've gotten older, we started thinking that someday maybe we would get a trawler.  In the fall of 2014, we went to the Newport Boat Show and figured we'd begin to take a look at some trawlers, getting an idea of what brands were out there and getting an education in a boat style that we knew nothing about.  We went on a couple of trawlers and got some ideas but then we saw the Kadey Krogen booth and met Jodi Jamiolkowski, who showed us around the Kadey Krogen 52.  After looking at it for just a few minutes, Ann said 6 magic words that Bob clung to for years afterwards:  "I could live on this thing!"  That did it - our love for Kadey Krogens was born!  

"I could live on this thing!"

While it was not time for us to make a move both financially and personally, we began to do research and look at Kadey Krogens online and in person.  We went to the Annapolis Boat Show and went over to the brokerage and saw more boats and yet each time we saw a boat that was not a KK, we compared her to our dream boat and every one fell short.  Jodi continued to be in contact with us and tell us about boats coming on the market and answering many questions that the "wanna-bees" had.  

In the summer of 2018, we went on our summer cruise for the first time ever with no children.  All of the kids had work or camp or commitments so we went as a couple and while the sailboat seemed to get bigger with no one else on board, we still dreamed of the day that we could get our own Kadey Krogen and cruise on her.  "Could you imagine sitting on a KK right now having dinner?"  "I'll bet this rain would be way less miserable sitting inside a KK!"  Since we were by ourselves, and didn't need to consider bringing 4 children on a boat (and thus needing more room and a bigger boat), we realized that maybe the time was near for us to look into a Kadey Krogen.  While the 52 was our dream boat, we could totally do a 48 without all of the kids traveling with us!  So Bob continued to look at the brokerage boats and found one that was in a price range we thought we could do.  It was an older boat and we had been in contact with someone who had the same vintage boat (just one hull number away) and we asked about what sort of issues are there in a boat of that age.  He gave us a really good rundown of things to look for (nothing that would turn us away from it) and then he said that for a little bit more, there was another 48 that he would highly recommend we look at if we could swing it.  He gave us the contact info on it since it was a private sale and not a brokerage so we weren't aware of it and Bob contacted the owner.  One thing led to another and off we went to Maine to take a first look at her.  You know that it just takes one look to fall in love sometimes and that is just what happened!  Changing Course is a 2004 KK 48 North Sea Widebody and she was in amazing condition with so many upgrades!  The owner had been in the aviation business and he treated Changing Course like an aircraft with top quality upgrades and meticulous maintenance.  We had a few moments of panic thinking about taking this step - a BIG one from a 42 foot sailboat with basic systems to a trawler with all sorts of major systems!  But when we woke up the next day after seeing her, we knew she was for us.  We made an offer, had a survey done and in just a month, we signed the paperwork to make her ours!  The now previous owner stayed with us for a few weeks to help Bob learn all of the many systems and maintenance practices he used and to teach us how to even drive it!  It was an invaluable asset to us and we continue to be in touch with him for questions and guidance.  Many boat buyers talk negatively about the previous owners of their boat but I just really hope that we can continue the careful care that our previous owner practiced with this great boat.

So now we begin our adventure.  We want to share the things that we learn, the adventures we take and the amazing lifestyle there is in being a Kadey Krogen owner.  Come along with us on the journey!

See our progress on Facebook at facebook.com/icouldliveonthisthing and Like Us for updates. We hope to see you out on the water!  Let's really see how great it will be to "Live on this thing!"