Wow, thanks for the thorough response! Really good advice there. Our boat is rigged with a solent stay so it's really easy to change gears, roll up the genoa and pull up the reefable heavy wx sail. All of a sudden we have a lot of options. I think you really hit the nail on the head about crew. Singlehanding when things are shitty is hard enough but adding a wife and cat adds another level of pressure. Add to that a boat I'm still learning how to handle efficiently and I got worn out fast on the way down to SoCal. Thanks for the wise words.

Rob