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Why do people buy cruising catamarans ?
"sherwindu" wrote in message
... Ian George wrote: The first rule of multihull sailing is 'If you cannot reef quickly and easily, don't go to sea'. I think that is true for any sailboat. The question is not always having the knowledge of how to reef, but having the opportunity to do so. I can think of several scenarios where the crew is distracted by something and doesn't reef down in time. The same bad things can happen on a mono if you don't do what's required to be safe. Your comments don't really add much to why or why not a multihull is or isn't safe. I think you are trying to give some credit to multi-hull sailors over mono hull sailors where it doesn't exist. What you describe is just plain good sailing technique, for any boat. However, as I stated earlier, a boat heeling over is a much more positive feedback than an increase of speed. A monohull will usually do a gradual heeling or at least it is obvious that you may be in trouble if your rail is in the water. A multihull, Gradual heeling? Not in high wind gusts. These are common where I sail. You're doing a nice steady 6/7 kts in 20 kts air, then you get a 32 kts gust. Even reefed, the boat will heel quite quickly, and I've seen people dumped into the bottom of the cockpit. And, this is in protected water! on the other hand, will probably stay flat until the tipping force overcomes the moment arm of the upwind pontoon, and the multi will go over rather quickly. I'm curious what criteria a multi sailor uses to relate boat speed to the amount of reefing required. Speed is not that easy to judge, and a dangerous speed may be dependent on the particular construction of the multi. Probably? It'll happen very quickly. I reef by wind speed or expected wind speed. That's very easy to judge. Ah, that is my point. All of the issues you have raised in this thread - bad design, poor seamanship, inappropriate precaution, poor construction - all apply equally to both types of craft. They can't possibly be used to argue a case for one type over the other. My issue is not so much preventing the initial roll over, but what happens to the boat once that happens. Not that it is exactly pertinent to multihulls, but the news today talked about two women rowing their boat across the Atlantic and having it flip over. Luckily, they had an EPIRB, called for help, and luckily their was a Tall Ship in the vicinity that picked them up rather quickly as they clung to their overturned hull. I think that if you're a prudent sailor (mono or multi), you'd want to do all you can on the prevention side. Taking the position that a mono *will* survive a roll with rigging intact is not a smart move. Further, the broken mast has a propensity to punch holes in the boat. You would need to get up on deck and cut it free immediately. This is extemely hazardous duty. Offshore to me is 200miles. I don't know if that is enough of a cushion if the seaworthyness of any boat is in question. Offshore out here is beyond the demarcation line, the dividing point between domestic rules-of-the-road (Inland Navigating Rules) and the international rules-of-the-road. Out here, that is definitely offshore in every sense of the word, including not being within sight of land. |
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