cwh-32-saildrive
Excuse the pun, but electrical alternatives for sailboat auxiliaries continue to trickle down (we said we were sorry!) through the industry, and the latest company to take a swing at the option is CW Hood with their handsome 32-foot one-design daysailer. When company founder Chris Hood fielded a special request to look into adding an auxiliary to the boat, he ultimately went with Mastervolt’s first “PODMaster 2.0” External Electric Propulsion Drive system.
Installation space, obviously, was one issue to overcome. He didn’t want to detract from the comfort and ergonomics of the design. Detracting from performance was another potential pitfall. One of the joys of the boat is its fine sailing qualities, things he didn’t want sacrificed by weight or a cumbersome fixed prop.
“The discovery of the PODMaster presented the perfect solution,” he said. The self-contained “pod” unit that houses the system addressed the former item, and the nifty folding prop aft of the keel the latter. The new auxiliary delivers about 5.4 knots of boat speed for an hour of running time, ideal for getting on and off the mooring in light air or before the sun sets.
It’s what you might call a win-win situation.
