The reason we go boating is to get outdoors and enjoy the fresh air. The 29z Downeast Model accomplishes this in spades by having large StrataGlass pilothouse side windows that roll up and are strapped in place. One additional benefit of this configuration is the ability to lean out from the wheel to loop a midships dockline over a cleat on the dock to secure the boat.  You can also use the Maine lobsterman's technique for picking up a mooring buoy in rough conditions:  Keep a dock line running outside the bowrail stanchions from the bow cleat to the midships cleat; approach the wand on the pickup buoy on the starboard side; lift up the buoy and work down to the eyesplice in the mooring pennant; put the end of the line (running from the bowcleat) through the eyesplice  and secure the end of the line back onto the midships cleat; back the boat down, letting the mooring eye run forward to the bow; shut the engine down; walk forward to secure the mooring - a maneuver difficult at best on other powerboats.

The 29z is a powerboat designed to be comfortable for harbor cruising, fun and easy to drive, exceptionally seaworthy and dry, fast, and fuel-efficient. The reason we go boating is to get outdoors and enjoy the fresh air. The 29z accomplishes this by having StrataGlass pilothouse side windows that roll up and are strapped in place.  Additionally, as with all MJM Yachts, the front windshields hinge up parallel with the water for optimum ventilation as well as unobstructed visibility in fog or at night. Notice that MJM's spotlights are mounted on the bow rail so that there's no reflection off the deck or stainless to blind the helmsman.

A length to waterline beam ratio greater than 3:1 allows a better transition from modified V-shaped hull with knife-like entry to an 9-foot long planning surface with 17-degree deadrise, producing a softer entry into waves than is not possible with wider powerboats.  29z’s bow flare, apart from directing airflow and spray out and away from the pilothouse and cockpit to keep guests dry, works its magic with waves. Reserve buoyancy of the Carolina bow flare keeps the bow up when running fast down into the backside of waves, eliminating severe yaw (bow steer) to one side or the other … solving the problem of many downeast or deep-V designs which have deep fore-foots that tend to bury and/or a keel or shape that cause too much directional control of the hull, resulting in delayed helm response. 29z steers with the secure, predictable touch of a sportscar, properly leaning into turns and handling large seas. An owner, on the notoriously rough Buzzard's Bay, likes his 29z far better than his prior boat, a recent model 38 foot downeast-style boat.

A solid swim platform suppresses exhaust and prop noise as well as being an important safety feature. If one falls overboard with nobody near to help, a 37” telescoping swim ladder with transom handle makes reboarding easy. One major benefit of a sterndrive is that after several years of operation in lobster pot congested waterways in Maine, there is no record of a 29z snaring a pot when underway. On the outside chance you back into one inadvertently, the drive can be raised to clear the warps or a fouled prop by kneeling on the swim platform rather than having to go swimming in 50 degree water.  Furthermore, a sterndrive will usually pop-up if hitting an underwater obstruction, then bounce back down again and continue to function.

The aft seat hinges up on counter-balanced pistons to provide excellent engine access. Notice also the absence of uncovered wood on deck and the midship deck drains to keep topsides from streaking. A built-in  freshwater anchor & rode washdown system that works from the helm is a unique MJM feature on this size powerboat.