Hi, I have just arrived in Mobile on my 35 foot Island Packet sailboat. We had a great time down the rivers and I made stops about every 250 miles for fuel. We use about 10 miles per gallon and have a 50 gallon tank. Hoppies to Green Turtle on 25 gallons. Stability - On a sailboat you are closer to the center of gravity and center of flotation so that the motion at the helm is less. This is on top of the stability of the keel and sails. We anchor out a great deal and the wind resistance of a sailboat is much less than the high cabins of those big trawlers. We live in comfort with great storage - compare a Hunter with an Island Packet and you will see that all sailboats like all powerboats are not equal. Draft I draw 4'3 and have a 50 foot mast - I can go most but not all places Finally - the big reason to choose power over sail. Motoring a boat is like driving a car - not much to do with the electronics and autopilots on today's boats. Sailing can give you a very active experience of trimming and planning how to use the wind rather than sitting and listening to the engine pound away. Finally the question of safety. A sailboat is slow and can't run to the marina in bad weather. I am on a boat built to handle weather, I don't have to fear it, just learn the techniques of heavy weather sailing and know that I can ride it out. Near me at this marina are several damaged boats from Ivan. In many cases the Island Packets would have been better off at sea than tied ashore. Hope this helps the discussion. Jim Wooll on Reverie at Dog River,AL