* Wilbur Hubbard wrote, On 8/6/2007 11:01 AM:


Therein lies the problem. Today's designers, in order to attempt to get
some speed out of a loaded cruising catamaran, design the bows with too
little reserve buoyancy.

Actually, the problem is two much buoyancy in the sterns, a function
of trying to increase load carrying, reduce hobby-horsing, and support
larger engines.

They dig in and pitchpole going downwind even
when running under bare poles.

And yet, its almost impossible to find a case where this happened on a
cruising cat. Virtually all cruising cat capsizes involve carrying
sail. As always, you're confusing cruising boats with racing boats.

Going upwind they just submarine through
the waves and do take quite a beating.

Unlike monohulls, which can go upwind under bare poles.

The best survival tactic for a
catamaran seems to be a very small hank-on storm jib and steering so as
to quarter the waves and in the trough trying to run a little less free.
But it takes a steady hand and a helmsman who isn't tired or inattentive.

Or use a drouge to reduce speed.

But
people will continue to attempt to voyage using catamarans and their
bodies and broken, capsized craft will continue to come up missing or be
found washed up on beaches. That's a fantasy that I have since I've
never actually sailed out of sight of land.