30 people can be somewhat tight, but its not that bad if you can cast or reset alot to stay out of the tangles. And I worked on the boat for a few seasons, along with many others and the BC outfished them all. If you want the comfort of a galley and all that stuff then the B.C probally isn't for you, but catching wise, 30 people or 6 people, it's tops. It was definatley harder to be a deckhand than an angler, as I have done both for twenty something years. Absurd?? Not even close.