"rgnmstr" wrote...
The only thing that video shows is the inability of the cat to point.

Some cats can point. It looked to me like the Gunboat was not trimmed in
hard either.

The RP80 driver had to bear off about 20 degrees to avoid being t-boned
by the show off cat driver. I suspect that if a destination were
upwind the RP80 might just beat the Gunboat to the pier.


Seems quite possible under many conditions. But the cat still has some
advantages: less heeling, shallow draft, etc etc

Bart Senior wrote:
The RP can be indeed faster. I read in Latitude 38
the RP-80 beat the GB-62 in another race. I don't
recall the circumstances or point of sail. I'd guess the
RP would be faster directly downwind and as you
said, closehauled, while the GB-62 would perform
better on a reach.


Probably so, the ad for the Gunboat touts a screecher over an asymmetric
spinnaker... don't see why you couldn't fly an A-sail anyway.

The Gunboat does offer advantages in comfort over
the sleds that make it a clear winner for passagemaking.


One advatnage of a cat that appeals to me after our recent trip is that
they are usually easier to steer straight in a following sea. But the
jerky motion might be less comfortable than the mono's corkscrew roll.
Every boat has it's plusses & minusses.

Fresh Breezes- Doug King