< Will power catamarans gain in popularity from the America's Cup being
raced in 72-foot sailing cats? >

While the AC will focus attention on multihulls, cats in particular, and make
the terms more widely known, thus generating more interest, the issues with
motion and living space geometry will remain.  If all I wanted was an
efficient means of transport on the water it would be a catamaran, as light
and low drag as is possible to build, and there will be incredible advances in
design, building techniques and material usage coming out of the AC.

However, I wouldn't live on a cat or tri because of the quick motion and oddly
shaped spaces, neither of which is likely to benefit from AC technological
advances.  Lighter, more efficient, cats will exacerbate what I find to be an
uncomfortably quick motion while decreasing cost of operation and it will take
quite an increase in fuel cost before my preference will change from an
efficient Wind Horse type vessel to a cat.

Keep in mind that I have started a boat building company producing very light,
very efficient 29' power cats, www.cat-tech-bvi.com, for use as water taxis
and dive / snorkel boats.  These boats, while weighing 2600 lbs with full
tanks and twin 50 hp outboards, 29' x 12', still plane with 5000 lb of
payload, as we proved in sea trials last week.  We were certified yesterday
for twelve passengers and three crew under the MCA Yellow Code and will
certify for twenty under the Caribbean Code.  I like cats like this for
running around and even going from A to B, so long as the distance is less
than a days travel.

I did an overnight race back in the early 80's from Sarnia to Rogers City, on
Lake Huron, on a Stiletto 30 catamaran, doing upper teens and low twenties
speed wise most of the night.  I tried to sleep at one point in the windward
hull, but the noise and motion, probably a lot like being in the cab of a
locomotive at high speed, kept the adrenaline meter fully in the red.  No way
to relax.  Yet I have tens of thousands of miles ocean racing in monohulls,
some of it at sustained speeds in the teens, where I was always able to sleep

I like the slow easy motion of my 60' trawler, into which went all of our
household furniture and appliances, and doubt that will change, regardless of
what comes out of the AC.

Robert Phillips, Managing Director
Doyle Sailmakers BVI, Ltd
Tel: +284-494-2569
Mobile: +284-541-2206
VOIP US Tel: 423-285-8752
Skype: doylebvi

RQ, you are letting your performance racing background cloud your vision. You
know I have spent a lot of time on monohulls as well as multihulls and have no
particular axe to grind , but for the kind of cruising most people do, a well
designed catamaran is hard to beat.  Experienced cruisers know that most of
your time is spent at anchor, and there is no way a monohull can compete
there. Monohulls will roll your guts out comparatively.  Couple that with the
shoal draft and total prop protection afforded by the displacement cat design
and the advantages start to stack up. Modern canoe stern displacement hull
forms can offer performance/ fuel consumption numbers, equivalent sized
monohulls can only dream of. Cruising cats may have a hard time providing
center walk around berths, but they offer true split accommodations, with
tremendous cockpit and deck space, you would need a much larger monohull to
even compare. Now if you are talking about circumnavigating the globe in any
weather, a Dashew 60 might be the ticket, but that is not how most people want
to cruise.
P.S. the advantages for cruising sailing cats are even more compelling. No way
if I were a live aboard or full time cruiser, would I even consider a monohull
given the option.
----- Original Message -----
From: Robert Phillipsmailto:bob@doylecaribbean.com
To:
power-catamaran@lists.samurai.commailto:power-catamaran@lists.samurai.com
Sent: Friday, September 17, 2010 10:11 AM
Subject: Re: [PCW] Will power catamarans gain from the America's Cup?

< Will power catamarans gain in popularity from the America's Cup being
raced in 72-foot sailing cats? >

While the AC will focus attention on multihulls, cats in particular, and
make
the terms more widely known, thus generating more interest, the issues with
motion and living space geometry will remain.  If all I wanted was an
efficient means of transport on the water it would be a catamaran, as light
and low drag as is possible to build, and there will be incredible advances
in
design, building techniques and material usage coming out of the AC.

However, I wouldn't live on a cat or tri because of the quick motion and
oddly
shaped spaces, neither of which is likely to benefit from AC technological
advances.  Lighter, more efficient, cats will exacerbate what I find to be
an
uncomfortably quick motion while decreasing cost of operation and it will
take
quite an increase in fuel cost before my preference will change from an
efficient Wind Horse type vessel to a cat.

Keep in mind that I have started a boat building company producing very
light,
very efficient 29' power cats,
www.cat-tech-bvi.comhttp://www.cat-tech-bvi.com/, for use as water taxis
and dive / snorkel boats.  These boats, while weighing 2600 lbs with full
tanks and twin 50 hp outboards, 29' x 12', still plane with 5000 lb of
payload, as we proved in sea trials last week.  We were certified yesterday
for twelve passengers and three crew under the MCA Yellow Code and will
certify for twenty under the Caribbean Code.  I like cats like this for
running around and even going from A to B, so long as the distance is less
than a days travel.

I did an overnight race back in the early 80's from Sarnia to Rogers City,
on
Lake Huron, on a Stiletto 30 catamaran, doing upper teens and low twenties
speed wise most of the night.  I tried to sleep at one point in the
windward
hull, but the noise and motion, probably a lot like being in the cab of a
locomotive at high speed, kept the adrenaline meter fully in the red.  No
way
to relax.  Yet I have tens of thousands of miles ocean racing in monohulls,
some of it at sustained speeds in the teens, where I was always able to
sleep

I like the slow easy motion of my 60' trawler, into which went all of our
household furniture and appliances, and doubt that will change, regardless
of
what comes out of the AC.

Robert Phillips, Managing Director
Doyle Sailmakers BVI, Ltd
Tel: +284-494-2569
Mobile: +284-541-2206
VOIP US Tel: 423-285-8752
Skype: doylebvi

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