I agree wholeheartedly with Dennis. To simply designate an arbitrary figure -- whether 3' or any other number -- as being the "right" clearance figure is....well, just arbitrary. My company represents several different models of power cats, from builders and designers located in a few different countries. The fact is, some simply ride better than others....yet I've been unable to get a precise consensus (whether querying designers or builders) as to why this is so. I agree with Dennis, too, that Roger Hill's designs seem to be very good at delivering that "noticeably good ride" over a wide range of lengths, no matter the clearance figure. Also curious to me, some builders will have a GREAT model.....then introduce a larger or smaller follow-up model (vouchsafed as simply a scaling-up-or-down of the original successful model....so that you'd expect the new model to perform similar to its predecessor), and yet the resulting model offers BAD performance or handling or comfort. What's THAT about? I haven't a clue. Why is Fountaine Pajot's Cumberland 44 nearly 30% faster than its predecessor, the Maryland 37, when the power-to-weight ratio remains approximately the same? Just added waterline length doesn't readily account for that. Obviously there are combinations -- bridgedeck clearance, hull shape, with a nacelle in one case yet without a nacelle in another, "pickle-fork" bow vs. "rounded-shoe" bow -- that sometimes result in magic, yet other times don't. I know that successful designs aren't simply serendipituous....but it's also more than just a use-the-right-numbers-and-get-the-right-boat science, too. There seems no denying that other components (including an artistic eye....and yes, luck, too) that figure into the final equation. So what's the would-be buyer to do in order not to spend a buncha bucks on a "not so good" design? (a) I counsel my clients to consider waiting until at least the first couple of hulls have been launched before ordering a new model, even if it's from an established manufacturer. That gives my client time to try the first one and see how good it REALLY is. (That's why new models for which a prototype exists, specifically for the benefit of would-be buyers to test ride, is such a good idea. Our financial advisors insisted on that in the case of the new BearCat 46 power cat.) (b) If you're determined to order the first of a new line, or to order a custom one-off model, consider including in the contract whatever performance bench-marks are important to you. If a builder makes claims for a specific top speed, or specific MPG, or promises a dry flybridge in up to 5-foot seas (and any of those are important to you), then don't hesitate to ask for an inclusion of those perameters in your purchase contract. One thing's for sure: if the builder or designer makes certain claims, but then won't agree to meet or exceed those bench marks in the contract, they must not be as sure about those claims as they first professed. Not to be overlooked are the buyers who sabotage their own boating pleasure. I refer to those who get a great cat....but then put too much #$%* "stuff" onboard....or who buy a lovely little 30' or 35' flybridge model, then wonder why it handles so poorly when "just a dozen or so friends" are all crammed onto the flybridge.....or those owners who try to use a cat, one that's designed for a particular type of use, in a totally different capacity. And so on and so on. Then again, as a noted designer once opined to me: "I don't know of ANY cat that's idiot proof....but that doesn't deter that category from buying a cat.". Regards, Rod Gibbons founder: Cruising Cats USA >Message: 1 >Date: Thu, 29 Sep 2005 07:57:59 -0400 >From: "Pat Reischmann" <preischmann@msn.com> >Subject: [PCW] Manta bridgedeck clearance >To: "power-catamaran" <power-catamaran@lists.samurai.com> >Message-ID: <BAY103-DAV10DBEE2A0C03B38B0506AEBF8D0@phx.gbl> >Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" > >We measure the clearance from the water to the top of the bridgedeck on either side of the nacelle at the low point, of course the clearance is greater in the forward area under the trampoline. Measuring from the narrow anti-slam nacelle to the water would not provide an accurate comparison. >