<style type="text/css">p.p1 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px 'Helvetica Neue'; color: #454545}p.p2 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px 'Helvetica Neue'; color: #454545; min-height: 14.0px}</style>I only sailed on Long Island Sound once, about 60 years ago, and it was my first sailboat experience. Things have probably changed since then, so I won’t venture a direct opinion. But here on Puget Sound, my E34 does just fine as a club racer. My rating (with spinnaker) is 144, so I am rarely first-to-finish, but it is possible to win on occasion. Compared with other boats in its class, the E34 points, turns and accelerates well.
I have configured my Talpa as a cruiser (windlass, heater, fridge, extra batteries, etc.) and I normally carry all sorts of gear such as folding chairs. When I race, I do it for fun, so I don’t even pump out the water tanks. But, given a few knots of wind, the boat performs well and is competitive. Plus, as everyone here will attest, any Ericson has a sweet disposition.
I do most of my racing as crew on a fast Raven centerboard dinghy. That’s a very different kind of sailing!