"Quint" wrote in message
oups.com...
Speed potential this time. A lot of the talk about how cats are faster
than monos seems like hyperbole. However, here are some intersting
stats from the 2005 ARC. In the rally, 18% of cats finished the course
in less than 8 days, versus 5 % of monos. 29% of cats finished in
between 8 and 9 days, compared to 8% for monos. And 12% of cats
finished between 9 and 10 days versus 16% for monos. So, 59% of the
cats that entered finished in less than 10 days against 29% of monos.
These are not corrected for engine usage, because in the cruising world
what matters is how long it takes to get there, whether you motor or
sail. Anyway, there isnt much difference on that score; there also
wasnt much difference in LOA. Interesting and seems to point out that
cats do make faster passages.

There's a huge amount of hyperbole about the speed of cats. Most of these
speed claims are nothing more than claims and have nothing to do with
reality. I've found that cats are typically about the same as similarly
sized monos close to the wind. Off the wind, they're significantly faster.
Thus, a particular journey on a cat covers a longer course than a mono, but
you get there a bit faster, and probably you get there in better shape,
since you're not so fatigued by the heel over a long period.

--
"j" ganz @@
www.sailnow.com