Moving Aboard Your Boat

So I clicked on one of my advertisers links and found a good site. The site owner has a we book on 7 secrets to Moving Aboard Your Boat. One of the Authors quotes really made an impact. This is because it sounds exactly like how I feel right now. Here is the quote.

“I was living a life most dirt dwellers would be jealous of. I had a high paying career and a big house. I had lots of expensive big boy toys. Supposedly, I had it all. Why then wasn’t I happy? I felt my enthusiasm and life’s energy being sucked right out of me. I wasn’t sure what I wanted, but I knew I wanted to do something amazing with my life, today. Why shouldn’t we be able to live life in the present and stop deferring living life until we retire?”

I have also joined the Yahoo Group that is listed on this site where others apparently share the dream of a live aboard cruising lifestyle. After going through the svbellarose site I will have to watch the Captain Ron movie as well. It appears to be right up my alley. The internet is a great place for sharing knowledge. It appears to be never-ending. I am not the 1st person to write about a dream nor will I be the last.

I am not the only one that is or has pursued his dreams. One of the big issues that will impact my ability to pursue this dream is to ensure financial success. My theory is that I wouldn’t need as much income to survive on a boat, however the expense required to keep up these Cats seems high. I don’t want to eat up what little retirement I have saved so far just to replace the sails.

Some folks write books, some will run charters, some sell photo’s and write articles for magazines, but is all of this enough to support you and still have money left over to help out the kids with college? I have much to learn. Catamarans don’t go up in value like a home right? At some point I might want to upgrade right? If all I can do is break even or worse, then it may not be the right time to buy the Cat.

Language Translation for a French Catamaran Site

I came across a catamaran web site that was only available in what appears to be the French Language. It is the NG Yacht Design company. I searched for translation software so that I could read the specifications on the HIVA’OA 45. As a result I found a website that is worth sharing. It is the http://babelfish.altavista.com/ This site will allow you to enter a web page URL and it will translate the entire web page to the language you prefer to view it in. Although it is not a perfect translation it does the trick. For example, this “113.8 m² GV 72.6 Solent 41.2 m² Code 0 83.5 Spi 139.8” was translated into this “113.8 m² Steam Generators 72.6 Solent 41.2 m²”. Not sure where the “Steam Generator” came from. I theorized that the Solent is similar to a Jib. Someone correct me if I am wrong. The translation site is easy to use. You simply enter the url and the from and to language and click go. Pretty cool. By the way, the HIVA’OA 45 ranks in the top two on Cat Stats Performance Ranking. This is assuming I translated the specifications properly.

I have had visitors to my site from Brisbane, Melbourne, Brazil, Argentina, South Africa, New Zealand, France, Europe, Germany, Switzerland and of course The US and Canada and the list keeps growing. Surprisingly none from Mexico. Most of these locations are well known for sailing and manufacturing of sailing catamarans. There is a high probability that the catamaran I end up desiring will not be anywhere near my home county in the US. More likely I will find it in the UK, Australia or Africa.

Speaking of buying a Catamaran in another country. Here is an update on my comparison of the US $ to the Euro. Imagine buying a catamaran for 500,0000 Euro. As of February 14^th, 2008 you would have had to pay $731,903.10 US. If you bought the same cat priced at 500k Euro today, March 26^th, 2008, it would cost you $792,225.51. That is a difference of $60,322.41 US. At that rate Catamarans purchased in the UK from the US are going up in price $1,471.28 per day. The good news is, there is a hint that things are going to level off soon, however only time will tell. The US economy is looking bad. Is there a country with a booming economy? Maybe I should sail there and take up residence.

Beaufort Wind Force Scale Terminology

For the newbie sailor he has a lot of homework to complete in order to learn the vast amount of sailing terms. There are tons of new words in my vocabulary now, like apparent wind, broad reach, healing, Jib, Genoa, etc, the list is long. If you are new to sailing and you are reading any sailing stories where there is some technical information you would have to use your imagination on a lot of these terms.

I currently read Cruising World and Multihulls World and I am also reading the book Catamarans, The Complete Guide for Cruising Sailors. In this book I am reading a section on sail trimming for increasing performance and there is repeated mention of wind conditions expressed like F1, F2, F3, etc. I suppose, had I taken sailing lessons I would know what they refer to, however this has not yet happened. The book doesn’t appear to explain what these mean either (At least I haven’t found it). The book appears to be geared toward the intermediate and up sailor. I am getting a lot out of it even though I am a newbie, however I will need to go back later to re-read things as they will make more sense now then they did when I read them as my knowledge and experience has increased.

I did some searching and finally found what I was looking for. I found a scale called the Beaufort Wind Force Scale that provides a chart of the various levels of force. Force 0 or F0 is Calm, and F1 is light air, just enough to give steerage way, etc. The complete table is shown below. Now I can read the book and get a lot more out of the section.

I may be going about this backwards. I suppose I should take sailing lessons and then start researching. I plan to take a serious look into sailing lessons at the Strictly Sail Boat show at Jack London Square in Oakland, Ca in April. Perhaps I will find a bargain there. Family obligations, camping and my own hobbies like playing in an adult soccer league on Sundays and fishing take up most of free time. At some point I will have to give up something to pursue my dream.

Catamaran Statistics and Power Generation

The Catamaran Statistics table just got a lot longer. I have added 42 cats the list thanks to Cruising World Magazine. As a result several stats were updated along with the 42 new ones. Most of the prices appear to be about 2 years old on their data so I will be updating those over time as I come across new information. I also need to add links and fill in some blanks.

The latest edition of Cruising World has some very useful information regarding matching battery charging with power demand. They have listed the Amps of various appliances which will be useful in determining how many batteries, solar panels, wind generators or other. In the case of the Lagoon 420, the propellers will charge the batteries while sailing. As I get closer to my purchase this information and more may be important. I hope to have the information posted in the form of another table. Just depends on how ambitious I am.

My ultimate catamaran will be power hungry and my goal is to do have the modern conveniences of home (TV, computer, internet, microwave, navigation, radar, refrigerator, watermaker, etc. Not necessarily all at once) without having to run a generator. This will require a full complement of Solar, wind and other power generation sources. According to the Cruising World article most of your power is used while underway. The autopilot is ranked high on the list for Power consumption, so perhaps a windvane self steering system is an option.

I still have a lot to learn about the type of appliances and how they are normally powered. For example in an RV, the water heater, heater/furnace, fridge and stove all use propane. It would be nice if you didn't have to use propane, or cut back a little on it's use to make your boat more self sufficient. As I research new technologies I will be sure to update the blog.

Sailing Trip Planned and Fishing in the Ca Delta

I have been invited to help crew on a day trip on a 40 foot Cheoy Lee yawl. Yeah, I know, it is not a catamaran, but based on the complexity of the sail plan the experience will be rewarding. The captain also has 18 years of experience as a sailing instructor. All he asks is that I am enthusiastic, and can help crew and bring food for potluck lunch. Sounds like a plan. I am eagerly awaiting his sailing schedule in hopes that I will be able to join him.

I did some fishing this weekend on my SeaRay 180 Dual Console with my dad. It didn't start out well though. It was the 1st time in the water for my boat since last year. The batteries appeared to have a good charge the night before, but when I cranked her over she sounded week and failed to start even after using battery cables to connect both batteries. Although the motor would barely turn over my dad suspected a fuel problem. He has a Mercury 150 Optimax on his boat. Mine is a 130 Optimax, so he has experience. He also recalls that I have been plagued in the past with fuel delivery problems. There is a Squeeze bulb that SeaRay mounted horizontally so that if needed the fuel can be pumped to the engine. In some trips in the past I was forced to squeeze the bulb to prevent the engine from stalling. It was usually no big deal. My dad was advised by a mercury engine mechanic, that the bulb should be mounted vertically so the ball inside can do it's work. SeaRay should have known better. I had two batteries. One for the engine and one for the trolling motor. I ended up swapping batteries for a couple reasons. One is that it made it easier to remove the screws that held the Fuel line bulb horizontally, and the other is because I still suspected there were battery issues. Once the batteries were switched and the fuel line was prepositioned so that when squeezing the bulb, it could do it's job, the motor started up 1st time without issues and ran perfectly all day. Additionally both batteries worked perfectly all day, so it must have been a fuel issue.

I have learned some lessons. I need better tools on the boat. I should start the boat up at home after it has been sitting for so long to make sure all is well.

We were on our way after an hour delay. We fished the south delta for Stripers and did about as good as can be expected. It is a little early for peak Striper season, but I just had to get out. It was a little windy, but we survived. It was good practice for our upcoming trip to La Paz. We will be fly fishing, so I need all the practice I can get. I was looking like a rookie at 1^st, but by the end of the day I was much improved. Trouble is I have a weak back and fly fishing took a lot out of me. I hope I can survive 5 days in a row of fly fishing for big game in la paz. I will manage I am sure. :)

My dad got lucky and picked up an 8lb striper on a fly early during our trip. It was his biggest striper on a fly. I had one fish try to hit a topwater bomber. He made a few passes, but missed everytime. The water temp was only 56, so it is a bit cold still. I suspect I will have had better luck in the coming months as things warm up. I did pick up a 3 or 4lb bass trolling with a Yo-Zuri shallow diving rebel with a small grub trailer. We both caught several smaller Stripers and released all but the 8lber. We cooked the striper up tempura style with French fries and coleslaw. Mmmmmmm. Good stuff. Nothing beats fresh caught fish especially when you are the one that caught it.

We almost were run over by the biggest idiot on the water. We were trolling at 2.5 mph near the left side of the slue near the levy. To the right of us there was 150 yards of wide open space between us and the other side of the channel. I saw him in the distance moving fast towards us. I made sure he knew where I was going by turning closer towards the embankment signaling my intended path. Seconds later a fish grabbed on to my dads line on the left side of the boat. My dad had a fish on and picked up his rod and began to attempt to reel in. As we were both distracted by the fish hitting his line, we had no time to react as the idiot went flying by on our left side between us and the rocks. He was flying full speed on a 21 foot runabout with a full load of small kids and family members. I believe some of the spray from his boat hit us. He was that close. By the time I saw him all I could do is stand up with my arms outstretched as if to say what the F@ck are you doing? The driver was looking right at me as he passed by. I estimate he was moving 45 mph. He had to turn to his left as he passed to avoid hitting the rocks. As he did that he crossed behind us and sliced my dads line with the fish attached and in an instant the line from his real was gone as well as his $7.00 lure and fish that was attached to it.

I can only imagine how fearful the family must be and what they must be thinking. I know I wanted to rip his head off. My dad and I both yelled out and I expressed my opinion with my two middle fingers. I wanted to chase him down but my line was still in the water. At his speed it would have taken me a while to catch him. My 18 foot sea ray will go 48phm (Speed confirmed by GPS earlier that day) wide open which is pretty fast on the water. My dad and I are pretty easy going and a have calm personalities but we were both angry.

This was not the 1^st idiot I have seen on the delta. There are many. You have to watch out. Many have died, mostly alcohol related. This was definitely my closest call with death on the water. Part of me wished he would have hit the rocks; however I wouldn’t wish that on his poor family. I thought if I were paying attention I would throw something at him as he went by. I thought if I could catch him I could call in his Cf #’s. I also thought about jumping into his boat and taking him out along with his keys. I do hope that the line he now has wrapped around his prop will somehow do some damage, or at the very lease be an indication to him that he F’d up when he pulls the boat out of the water. To bad it wasn’t braided line instead of monofilament.

New Catamaran Video's Cruising World Magazine

Just took a look on Cruising worlds website and noticed they have some new videos on 2008 model catamarans. After watching the Seawind Video I can see I need to take a second look at the Seawind 1160 mainly for its innovative features and performance minded sail plan. According to my CatStats, the 1160 is in the mid range for performance, but perhaps there are other performance related factors that deserve consideration. The draft is deeper then I would prefer and I may need to stick with a dagger board cat. What I like is that the boat was designed more for owner rather then a charter boat.

I ran across the Cats By The Numbers spreadsheet on the Cruising world web site. According to this list updated on Jun 19, 2006, the price per lb is $25.26 This is average compared to the rest of the Cats that are listed. The information is old. Price per lb is most likely higher now on all Cats.

Sorry so short, but I have to hit the road. Going fishing tomorrow. I will add more to this soon.

CountryWide Sub Prime Mortgage Foreclosure

Although this may seem off topic, this is a step that needs to be completed in order to achieve my dream. I hope the information below will help others.

I emailed KCRA Call3 to see if they could assist me in working with CountryWide Home Loans so that I can avoid foreclosure on my property. I have an adjustable rate mortgage on a rental property that I had planned on selling a year ago. Trouble is I am upside down now due to the terrible housing market. KCRA was helpful and gave me the some information that is listed below, but before you follow their advice I may be able to provide some more up to date information. Don’t get me wrong, I appreciate KCRA’s response, but the end result was to do something different.

After calling in and being disconnected 3 or 4 times and transferred, I was then asked to call a different # that then asked me to dial a different #. I was finally advised that I needed to speak with someone in the Hardship modification department. The # is 1-866-921-4765. I spoke with a gentleman named Donny who was helpful. He asked me a series of questions to update my file so that he could resubmit my request for a modification. I hope I didn’t screw myself though. The answers to the questions will show that we now make more money. I am not sure telling Donny we make more money now will actually help us. We will see what they come up with. Donny advised us to wait 2 weeks and then check in to see what the result is. So we will do that. I will update the blog when I receive new information.

We were denied twice in 2007 for a modification and were told that we make enough money and can afford afford the $3,700+ per month payment, along with our main house payment of just over 3000. They calculated that we should have 150.00 left over every month. Just makes you want to strangle someone. I was advised to stop making my payment to see if they will try to work with us. So I did that. It's been two months now without making the $3,700.00 payment.

This property is a rental property and is not saving us any money in taxes. Bottom line is the house is a loosing proposition. It doesn't make financial sense at this point to keep throwing money out the window. I have to do what is right for my family and our sanity. If our credit is ruined for 7 years, at least we will have money in the bank. We are now able to put 10% of our salaries into 401k. For the 1st time in 2.5 years our net worth is going up rather then down. We have a 30 year fixed in our main home now so we are paying down our mortgage. We will survive with a roof over our heads until our credit improves.

This is the information that KCRA gave us, but I believe this to be old info. KCRA also suggested if all else fails to call the California Association for Mortgage Brokers Help Line at (866) 999-5508. I have not done this yet.

KCRA where the news comes first.

"COUNTRYWIDE LOAN WORKOUT NUMBER"

• Countrywide has a special number consumers can call to connect with their loss mitigation department. 800-262-4218
• Callers must AFFIRMATIVELY demand to be connected to the "SPECIAL WORKOUT PROGRAM"
• They may be connected to other departments but must be persistent and insist on connection to the "Special Workout Program".

When you call the # above you will be asked to enter your Loan #. Then you will need to press 0 three or 4 times to finally speak with a representative. You will be asked to verify last 4 of your social and then you will be asked to enter your zip code. Once connected to a live person you will again be asked for the information you already provided above. Most likely you will end up speaking to someone in India that has an American name and a thick accent.

Here are a couple other #’s that I found out about however they were not what I needed.

Refinance 1-800-635-5215
Hope Department 1-888-219-7773 – They didn’t give me much hope here.

Strictly Sail Show, Money and Garmin BlueChart

I just purchased my tickets to the Strictly Sail boat show in Oakland. When you order online you get to choose one of 4 free magazine subscriptions. I am looking forward to seeing the Catamarans and hopefully taking advantage of the free sail. I will be spending a lot of time at all the vendors learning what I can. I plan to go during the week in hopes of avoiding some of the crowds.

My wife just received a hefty raise and a new position that will allow her to work from home. The fuel savings alone will be around 400 a month. Additionally our 11 year old will no longer need day care as she can come home after school now. With the raise, daycare and the fuel savings we will be that much closer to achieving our dreams. I should receive my raise in June or around there as I recall.

I received the new 2008 Garmin BlueChart Update CD yesterday in the mail. I am attempting to install it on a new laptop that I have so that I can transfer the charts to my Garmin handheld GPS. Slight problem; I only have an update cd. I can’t find the original install CD. I have the version 5 update, but that too is only an update CD. I do have my 25 digit unlock code, but no installation media. Moral of the story is, don’t throw away your old cd’s.

I will have to use my old laptop to update my Garmin, however this is only a temporary workaround. I need to fix this. I will be submitting a ticket with Garmin to see if they have any advice for me. I did try just copying files from the old laptop to the new, but that didn’t work. Must be some registry entries that I am missing. Why doesn’t Garmin include the install media on the update CD’s? Makes sense to me! Don’t get me wrong, I love Garmin products, but their installation media and unlock code scheme is for the birds. I have submitted an issue to Garmin see if they can help me out.

Very interesting trick and potentially a waste of money. Garmin sent me the 2008 BlueChart Update CD but after installing it, it says that I have to unlock it and that none of my units are eligible for an update. Turns out I have to buy the unlock code so I can use the new CD. They send out a Free CD, but then you find out later you can’t use it unless you pay for it. This seems like a way to trick people into buying the software. It just might work, but not for me. At least not now. They want 75.00 to unlock the 2008 BlueChart CD. I am more likely to upgrade my GPS unit before I will pay 75.00 to upgrade the charts.

Cat Stats & Hybrid's are Heavier

I have added several new Catamarans and related stats to the CatStats table located at the bottom of the page. I noticed a disappointing fact when reading the specifications on the Lagoon 420. The Lagoon 420 is 2668lb’s heavier when equipped as a Hybrid then with two diesels. I am surprised and disappointed. I figured it would be the opposite. After all, you are getting rid of two diesels. Instead of two diesels and a generator you have just one generator, two electric motors and some batteries. The difference in weight is from 26,835lbs 2 X40 diesels and 29503lbs for 2 X 10 KW electrics motors. Wow. I have heard there are some newer technologies they are researching where the batteries are lighter and more efficient. This is very interesting stuff.

2668lb’s can make a significant difference on a long journey I am sure. Using the #’s for the Hybrid or twin diesels, the performance of the Lagoon is predicted to be low compared to the other cats on the CatStats table.

I have ranked and sorted the cats by ranking the SA/D and D/L #’s, adding their ranks together and then dividing by 2. The lower the average ranking the better however, keep in mind, from what I have read, having a higher SA/D is slightly more important then having a low D/L. I expected the Gunboat to rank higher then it did. Makes me want to go back and double check some #’s to make sure I am being fair.

I also noticed an error in my SA/D formula which has been corrected. Displacements will vary too. I will typically post the dry weight when available, however sometimes there is no indication as to weather this is the dry weight or not, so keep this in mind. Performance of the craft will decrease as weight is added and will do so much faster on some cats then others.

Internet Access Options for Sailors

I wonder if the technology is good enough at the moment to work from the Catamaran. My biggest concern is whether or not the speed is fast enough and offered at a reasonable price. I work from home more then 3 days a week. I could work 5 days if I want. It wouldn’t make a difference. Most of the people I work with are from other states or countries. I would need a fast and reliable internet connection from the boat. If I am parked at home there is no problem. Just run a phone line or cable for internet access and power as well to the dock. But what if I wanted to take off and park it somewhere. Could I still work from the boat?

Mobilsat is advertising the SeaTel product with 768kbps download and 128 upload. I am not sure this is fast enough to get by. This is apparently there least expensive offer. They charge 309.00 per month for the service.

KVH offers a product that deserves some research. $2,395.00 to start, but only 89.99 a month and that includes MSN TV. They do say there may be other fees imposed by the cellular service provider. They also claim high-speed data connections provided by EVDO service with upload/download speeds ranging from 400-700 Kbps and capable of reaching up to 2 Mbps. Need to check your city as this is only reported to be available in 180 cities and counting.
KVH also has a Satellite TV, Internet and VOIP Phone option as well. Data rates as fast as 512 Kbps for ship-to-shore transmissions and as fast as 2 Mbps for shore-to-ship downloads as well as crystal-clear VOIP telephone service. Pricing was not available on their web site. I wonder how reliable the satellite connection is while in motion.

Some of them charge by the bit or minute used. This wouldn’t work for me unless I had no plans to work from the boat. Having to pay as you go is never fun. It feels like when you go over your minutes on your cell phone. You have to pay for every minute. It adds up and some people cut back as a result. I don’t want to feel like I have to cut back. I would be downloading a lot of data for my job.

What about power consumption? The KVH TracPhone FB250 claims the following. Power (max), incl. antenna: 150 W @ 10-32V. The laptop doesn’t take much energy. I am sure there is a Receiver and perhaps a wireless router that you need to consider. Add it all up and you might have to run the generator before long. If I have to run my generator the whole time then I am not sure I will be doing this very often. Some of these systems are going to require 50 to 100lbs of equipment.

I would hope that there are some other options and will continue to keep an eye out. It would be great if you had Internet access, TV and a phone along with all the other amenities. Why would you ever go home? There would be no excuse not to go sailing. I have a feeling you would soon find many other things to do other then watching TV. This is just another selling point or excuse to go big when buying a sailing Catamaran.

The Wait is Killing Me

Home and work life volume is picking up. Hard to find time to play and relax. I can only imagine what life on the ocean would be like. Although I am sure there are stresses, they can’t be as bad as my life at the moment. Not that I can’t handle it, but it isn’t easy to balance it all and remain sane. How will my dream come true under these circumstances though? Is there a way? I am growing impatient.

Our 11 year old daughter is in division 1 competitive soccer, so this takes up a lot of time. It is so rewarding for her though and that makes us happy. When will I find time to sail and take lessons? We have a three and a half year old to raise as well. I have seen some families sail with their kids. If we move to a house on the water will the schools be as good? This is not an opportune time to pursue a dream for me, yet the desire is so strong I can’t deny it. Writing this blog, reading and researching catamarans seems to help me cope.

I think every day about how I can live my dream and still support my family and have money left over when we retire. I won’t be foolish and put all my money in a boat that will not appreciate in value. I think about finding a way to capitalize on the housing market. I think about selling photo’s or videos from sailing adventures. I think about running some charters, mostly day or weekend stuff for now. I keep looking for ways to supplement my income to help justify the expenditure. I have read about the huge tax advantages of putting your boat in a charter; however I don’t know how much I would benefit yet.

Ideally I want to owe little to none on our property, and finance the cat. Our incomes are going up so we should be able to live comfortably with that plan. Finances are improving; however we are still stuck until we get through this terrible housing market. When the conditions are right I plan to buy some land on water, most likely the least expensive lot around. Then the question is, do we buy the Cat and live in it, or do we live on land in a large RV, or buy a trailer home or prefab home. It just needs to be functional for me, for now. Time will tell. It is eating at me though. Very similar to when I purchased my 1^st truck and then our Camper. The wait seems to last forever and the wait for this Cat will be even longer... much longer.

Captains Log - Man Overboard and Nude Models

I was invited to sail on a Catamaran this past Saturday and it was a huge learning experience. The weather was great; wind was from 5 in the morning to 20 in the afternoon. There was hardly a cloud in the sky. The sail began at 10AM and lasted until about 3PM. We met Cliff Shaw (Captain) at the Emery Cove Yacht Harbor and boarded his 35.8 foot Catamaran. His Cat is a custom built catamaran named Rainbow. I suspect she was built in the 90’s. The rear had recently been extended from 33 feet to 35.8. She was equipped with dagger boards, Twin diesels and appeared to have all the necessary equipment for a safe sail on the bay.

The captain asked us to put on our life vests and we complied. As it turned out, this wasn’t a bad idea. We motored away from the marina with almost no wind to speak of. One our way out I was examining and familiarizing myself as much as possible visually with the craft. We cleared the end of the last channel markers and continued a safe distance further before turning off the engines. The captain and his crew examined the wind conditions. There wasn’t much wind at all, but we proceeded to bring up the main. We then unpacked the spinnaker and set initially in reverse. I don’t think this mattered much with such light wind, but we soon corrected the issue and continued on.

I guess you never know what you will run into while sailing. Generally it is the wild life that can be amazing. Well, we hadn’t been sailing long as we slowly passed by a rather large and weathered yacht in the 70 foot or so class that had some wild life on it. I had a good view from the front of the Cat, I was the 1^st to notice that some of the passengers didn’t appear to be wearing any clothing. As we approached it was obvious that a photo shoot was in progress. There were at least three almost nude to fully nude women in various positions on the boat. The trip was starting out on a good note. Unfortunately I was nowhere near a camera or pair of binoculars. It appears that our cat could potential be in the background of a few of the photos, although I doubt viewers will be interested in the picturesque background.

We continued on. The wind began to increase and before long we were moving around 5 mph. As we were nearing the point where we wanted to tack the captain suggested we take down the spinnaker and put up the jib. Rainbow is an older cat as is the rigging. It is in great shape, but requires more manual effort then newer vessels. This is a great way for a new sailor to learn and to learn what I will want or not want on my future catamaran.

One of the crew and myself were front balancing on the on the trampoline in still very mild conditions packing the spinnaker,. We were nearing completion when one of the crew, not me, stepped back perhaps to gain better balance and fell back and to the side as he tripped over the low support wire on the very front of the craft. By the time I noticed what was about to happen there was nothing I could do but watch in shock as he was went over the front of the crossbeam and into the cold San Francisco bay waters. A moment later after the shock wore off and a large splash could be heard yelled “Man Overboard”. At this point my assumption is that he would end up floating to the rear of the boat, so I immediately ran to the back of the cat in hopes of catching an arm as he floated by. This didn’t happen. He had managed to reach up and grab onto the cargo net from below. I ran back to the front joined with Captain Cliff. By this time he was making his way to the front of the cat hanging from the net and dragging through the water. I noticed that his self inflating PFD had inflated and it appeared to be choking him or at least very uncomfortable. Never the less it did it’s job and deployed when it contacted the water.

He was a large man, but both the captain and I grabbed an arm and pulled him up as far as we could onto the front cross beam, but it was clear to me that we wouldn’t be able to pull him in this way without help. The captain handed him a rope initially and was asked to float back under the bridge deck to the rear where we could bring him in. He wasn’t going for that and suggested instead that he move to the outside of the cat instead. He must have been concerned as there wasn’t very much bridge deck clearance on this Cat. A small wave could cause him to hit his head I am sure. By this time the cat wasn’t moving too fast and he was drug around the right front of the cat and then down the right side to the rear where he could access the ladder. I was waiting there for him just in case he needed help. I had no idea how cold the water was or if he had lost any strength in the struggle. Never the less he was fine and didn’t need any help. He put a dry pair of clothes on and we continued our sail only to laugh about the ordeal later. We are pretty sure his blackberry has seen its last day though.

This was a learning lesson for all. I asked the captain, “so does this happen often?”. He said it was a 1^st on his boat. After this experience I will be seriously considering the purchase of a PFD, preferable the self inflating variety due to their small size. The vest I was using was for waterskiing and was bulky and uncomfortable. The Captain advised me to pick one up at a boat show as they are usually marked down in price. Sounds like a plan.

We had to maneuver around a couple races and finally came to a stop behind a large island that was blocking the wind. We decided it was a good time for lunch, and relaxed for about an hour taking in the sights and talking about sailing experiences. Soon we were on our way and sailed back towards home. On the way there, the winds had picked up to around 20. The cat hit its max speed for the day at just over 10MPH after a some tuning adjustments were made to the sails.

Watching him park the boat at the dock was fun. I was a little concerned due to the cross wind and with a cat that is so wide there isn’t room for mistakes. He made it seem so easy. As if he had done it 100’s of times. With a combination of forward thrust on the port side and reverse thrust on the starboard side the cat turned on a dime and came to rest just next to the doc allowing an easy exit to secure the lines on the dock.

So what did I learn?

• I learned the basics of sailing a big cat to the point where if needed I could have sailed her home.
• I confirmed my suspicion that I would need a fast cat.
• I confirmed my suspicion that two hulls are better then one as the ride was comfortable.
• I learned of some things that are a must for me when purchasing a cat. The cat has to have a comfortable roomy and protected cockpit area. In SF Bay the wind can be cold so I will require a cockpit that can be somewhat sheltered for the guests to stay outside without the cold wind in their face.
• The same goes for the salon. It must be comfortable and spacious and tall enough to walk from one end to the other without bending over.
• Passengers need to have room to roam or socialize and be protected from the weather if desired and still see out to enjoy the views.
• I also felt that rainbow required two much manpower. Although single handing her was possible it wouldn’t be two much fun after a while. It is a great way to keep the crew involved and to learn though so I really appreciated the experience.
• I confirmed the need to wear shoes with non marking soles. My wife left some marks while climbing up the incline to move from the back to the front.
• Gloves are a must. I had some that did the trick. I brought them not really know why I would need them. Now I know why. We were constantly handling the ropes on this cat.
• I need a hat with a stronger rim to keep the sun off the face and still maintain it’s shape in the strong winds.
• I require a cat that minimizes the possibility of being hit with the boom when coming about (ouch!).

I envision sailing in the bay to be faster, less work, maybe with some music, food and beverages for the guests and maybe some fishing depending on the crew. I am sure there will be some racing where the crew will need to be more serious, but the bulk of my sailing I image will be for fun. I really appreciated Cliff taking us out and look forward to my next sailing adventure.

Cat Stats for the Performance Minded

I have added a Cat Stats table that contains a list of Catamarans and various stats that I have gleamed from the Internet. There is a shortcut url listed in the Links section of this blog. The goal is to use formulas to indicate how the Catamaran will perform in comparison to other cats. I still have work to do on the formulas and I will add more Cats as time goes by. I am leaning towards the Performance side when it comes to a future Catamaran purchase, so this information will be useful to me and hopefully others as well.

The higher SA/D (Sail Area / Displacement) and the lower the D/L (Displacement / Length at Water Level) the better the cat is likely to perform.

Typically you would use BCL (Beam at the hull centerlines). For catamarans, The Ratio of (Bcl) to the waterline length (LWL) should be 40% or greater to avoid wave interference between the hulls and subsequent drag rise at speeds approaching hull speed. Since most Cats do not post the BCL I am using BOA (Beam Overall) for now. I suspect a ratio of 50% or more for the BOA/LWL is recommended.

The formulas I am using came from the book Catamarans: The Complete Guide for Cruising Sailors which by the way I have found to be a very good read. There are more formulas to discuss, but I need to take a break.

The LWL/Bh(Hull Beam at waterline) would also be great to compare, however I will need to dig deeper to find the stats for this calculation. I am also considering adding the PI-C which indicates the speed potential of the boat. For this you use SA, Displacement and LWL in your formula. I am unsure though that the formula is valid on Cats. Keep checking the Cat Stats table for new cats and formulas.

More on Diesel-Electric Hybrid Propulsion

Based on my hit counter many of my readers are interested in diesel-electric hybrid technologies. Can you blame them? As I write this, the price per barrel of oil is at an all time high at over $100.00 per barrel. Regular gas is selling as high as 5.19 per gallon in the San Francisco area. With the dollar falling and the price of fuel going up sailing without fuel is very attractive. Cat builders beware. If you are not already testing these new fuel saving technologies, then you are falling behind your competition.

I have done some additional research and found a few other cat builders that are on the diesel electric hybrid bandwagon. Catalibi is marketing a 47 footer and has made the following claim regarding this new technology.

Other Cat builders offering electric propulsion include Ksenia and Corsair Marine. Corsair Marine is reported to be working on a 50 footer featuring the OSSA Powerlight system powered by two 35hp diesel electric engines.

Glacier Bay is also using the OSSA Powerlite technology and stated the fuels savings is as high as 45% along with the following list of advantages.

• Better weight distribution providing superior handling and performance while underway
• Better space utilization allowing larger and more functional interior design
• Lower noise — up to 90% less underway and 70% less at anchor
• Superior low-speed maneuverability makes docking and intercoastal cruising a breeze
• Up to 70% less maintenance than conventional power systems
• One-stop warranty and service is another company specializing in www.glacierbay.com

Why is that most cat builders have only offered this on only one of their cats with hybrid or diesel electric propulsion? Most of the information I have found is from 2006 and 2007. I look forward to seeing more information and progress in the near future.

Lets Talk About Gear

We have been invited to go sailing on Saturday on a cruising catamaran. Woo Hoo! I can’t wait. He has asked us to bring a life jacket. Currently I own several; however these are typically used for wake boarding or water skiing. I expect we will look like rookies on this trip. I hope he doesn’t expect us to wear these life jackets on a large catamaran. I think he meant that if we have kids, that they should have them since he most likely doesn’t have their size. Nevertheless we will bring ours because the Captain said to bring them.

As a boat owner I prefer passengers to wear shoes that are non marking. I am sure the captain of this catamaran is no different. Boat shoes are preferred for several reasons. We don’t own any boat shoes. I do have shoes that are non marking that will have to do. It is most likely safer to wear shoes designed to grip well on a boat and that will stay dry or are designed to dry quickly.

Rain gear and protection from the wind and cold will be important as well. SF weather can be cold this time of year. We are ok in this department for now. The important thing is to stay warm. It is no fun if you are cold the entire time.

I have been pricing inflatable PFD USCG Approved life vests. They are not cheap. Cabelas sells the Guardian Essential brand for 89.95, however most brands I have seen so far are well over 100.00. These vests are compact and won’t get in the way like older vests. Some inflate automatically and others require you to pull an activation cord to inflate the PFD. I suspect this is the way to go. I could also use it on fishing trips in the ocean.

Shoes aren’t cheap either. I have seen several pairs of Harken Sailing shoes selling for $72.60 each, but I have no idea if that is the right way to go yet. Other brands like the Cabelas guidewear I have seen as low as $24.95 on sale. Again I will be able to use these on fishing trips.

Foul weather gear, gloves, hats, sunscreen and sunglasses are all things to think about as well. I expect to learn a lot on our catamaran trip this Saturday and will report my experience. I don’t want to go spending a ton of money on gear only to find out later that I made the wrong purchase. I will of course bring a camera with a waterproof case although I don't expect I will need the case based on the weather predictions. I expect to learn from experience and advice from others.

Lets Talk About Trash

Let’s talk about trash. I have yet to see this discussed in my research. So you are planning to circumnavigate the earth and may be at sea for weeks. Do you bring bottled water, paper towels, paper plates and cups? I think not. For those of you who consume alcohol, do you bring 5 cases of beer in bottles or cans? I am assuming if you are a decent human being, you won’t be throwing your trash overboard, so you will be collecting it and storing it which may eventually take on an odor. I have heard of people being at sea for weeks. The trash can add up right?

I am thinking instead of paper towels, you bring cloth napkins. Instead of paper plates you bring reusable plastic lightweight plates (Use plastic to keep the weight down). If you only bring enough plates, cups and bowls for the amount of people you have on your trip you will keep the trash and the dishes to a minimum. Some prefer bottled water, but I would imagine a good water maker and perhaps a compact reverse osmosis water filtering system would provide good tasting clean water. This would save on weight and space and keep the level of trash down.

Perhaps instead of cases of beer and wine, you bring a small keg or wine in a box, or switch to hard liqueur and mix it with your favorite beverage. After all, where would you keep all the empty bottles or cans? If you are a soda drinker, do you bring cans or the plastic bottles? Soda isn’t healthy, so maybe you can switch to juice. Perhaps the powdered juice will do but if not you could bring the frozen can variety.

I think I heard of one cat coming with a garbage disposal. Perhaps this is more common then I know or it is a new trend that is catching on. Is it legal to dispose food waste into the ocean? I found the following statement from the USGS Marine Sanitation Devices (MSDs) web site.

Discharge of Graywater
Graywater is defined as drainage from dishwasher, shower, laundry, bath, and washbasin drains. It does not include drainage from toilets, urinals, hospitals, and cargo spaces. Gray water discharge is prohibited only in the Great Lakes. Gray water is NOT sewage and may be discharged overboard without passage through an MSD or a holding tank. In fact, draining galley wastes into the MSD is not recommended, because food waste is much more difficult to decompose than the human sewage which the marine sanitation device is intended to handle.

Regarding human waste the MSD is required while the vessel is within U. S territorial waters (three nautical miles offshore), the Great Lakes, and navigable waters. A valve may be installed on any MSD to provide for the direct discharge of raw sewage when the vessel is outside U. S. territorial waters.

If I understand this correctly, you can dispose of sewage without treating it when you are at least three miles off U.S. shores. There was no mention of when you are allowed to dispose of graywater. Unless I missed something technically you can dispose of graywater whenever you like although I am sure this is frowned on in some situations. I presume there are some limitations on disposal of graywater, I just haven’t found it.

Bottom line is that trash can be kept to a minimum. This will save on space and keep our environment cleaner.

Hybrid Diesel Electric Propulsion

If you haven’t heard yet, several cruising catamaran sailboat manufacturers are selling or are researching alternative propulsion techniques that minimize the use of gas and diesel. For example, the Lagoon 420 features a hybrid diesel-electric system. The African Cats FastCat 455 Green Motion is similar.

Wouldn’t it be nice to travel without using fuel? Lagoon claims you can run on batteries at full speed (10kW per motor) for about 1 hour. If you add solar and wind generated power I am sure you could go farther without running the generator. How often do you need to travel for one hour or more in general? If you are in the doldrums you may need to motor more then an hour, but at least you will be doing it more efficiently.

With the combination of Solar, Wind and Water driven power generation it may be possible to go from A to B without using a single ounce of fuel. With today’s gas prices this makes so much sense. Who wants to hear or smell and noisy diesel running. There is no motor to start. You just turn a key and go. I wonder if you can run the microwave without starting the generator?

The Lagoon 420 Hybrid system uses two electric motors, a generator and a bank of batteries. Under sail, the propellers are driven by the speed of the boat and recharge the batteries. Add Solar and wind generation, and you may never need to start the generator unless you need to run your AC or washing machine. Very little maintenance is required compared to most cats which come with two engines and a generator.

What if the generator failed? You would have to rely on sun, wind and the water to power to charge the batteries. What if the Electrical system failed and you had no power to the motors? If one motor fails you still have the other. Lagoon stores energy in 2 separate banks of 6 batteries each which can be isolated, dedicated entirely to driving the electric motors. (Safety measure: in case of battery failure, one single bank can supply power to one or both motors). I am still not entirely convinced that there is enough redundancy so that you always have propulsion, however I suppose similar problems can potentially happen on any propulsion system. The question is which is more reliable.

How much does this system cost you long term in comparison to the traditional twin diesel’s and a generator? Lagoon claims the only maintenance on the electric motors is to replace the motor bearings at 20,000 hours or more. Batteries don’t last for ever and will need to be replaced. Diesel engines don’t last for ever either, but which will cost you more long term? With todays fuel prices these hybrid technologies should pay for themselves. Lagoon says they are working on the possibility of using Lithium Ion batteries which looks promising : 1/3 the weight, 1/3 the size, and an expected life of 8 to 15 years, with a capacity loss of 20%. The Cat is slowed less then 1 MPH by the spinning propellers, however once the batteries reach a full charge they will free spin. The African cat offers retractable propellers which will improve sailing performance while not charging batteries.

Is the power plant in you cat aging? Is it time to replace old engines? Perhaps you should consider switching to Electric motors. In that case you might want to contact OSSA POWERLITE. You can check out two of their projects, the Moorings (Robertson & Caine) - 43' eLeopard . View video footage at of the boat here. They are also working on a Alwoplast - 47' Crowther Catamaran.

I will seriously consider diesel electric and hybrid technologies in my 1^st Cat.

Fly Fishing in La Paz Mexico

My father is funding a trip to La Paz in May for 5 days of big game fly fishing. This trip is a dream come true for him. He is retired and wants to do this while he can. He is in great health and has many years of fishing left in him, but for him his fishing clock is ticking. He has the money, so he might as well spend it while he can. The trip is a total of 7 days and only cost 1,350.00 US each plus airfare. 5 days of fishing, lodging and most meals are covered. Not bad especially since he is picking up most of the tab. I guess this is an early birthday gift. I will enjoy the trip as much as he will. I need a vacation.

Although I am experienced in Fly fishing, this will be my first attempt to catch big game on a fly. I will be obtaining some lessons next weds evening on fly casting. I plan to practice in part so that I can get my arm in shape. I can imagine casting for 5 days straight could be taxing on the shoulder. I need to learn how to cast far with large fly rods and reels. This should be fun.

My goal on this trip is to add several new species to the list of fish I have caught. We can potentially catch any one of the following. Tuna, Dorado, Yellowfin, Marlin, Sailfish, Pargo, Sierra, Skipjack, Jack Crevalle and Rooster fish like the one shown here.

We will be fishing on small panga boats like the one pictured below. Only two fisherman per boat. I hope the one we are on have shade, however I am not betting on it. Might be time to do some shopping for sunscreen, a large sombrero and a long sleeve shirt.

I wish I were sailing to La Paz. This is an example of something I plan to do on a Catamaran. I enjoy fishing and diving, so what better way to get there then on a Cat? If it were up to me we would combine fishing with some days of diving or spear fishing. I recall a fishing trip to Cabo San Lucas where we backed up as close to some rocks near shore at least as close as was safe. The fishing guide knew were the fish were. With one cast he hooked up. He would cast live bait near the rocks and let it fall next to the rock face and hooked up with the biggest Dog Snapper I have ever seen (25-30lbs as I recall). Mine got off and he proceeded to hook into a second fish which my buddy managed to get in. I look forward to going back someday to fish or spear fish for them if allowed. I still need to research fishing licenses and regulations for the area.