Thoughts on Used Catamarans and US Dollar Update

Been thinking more seriously about narrowing down the list of cats that I might want to purchase sometime in the future. Outremer certainly comes to mind. There is a good article comparing two of the Outremer 42’s. One uses diesel and the other uses diesel electric propulsion. Check it out here. There is some promising information surrounding electric propulsion. Although there are still ups and downs, I have to remember that my boat will be power hungry. This is another reason to go with an electric cat.

Another cat I would love to own although I am guessing it will be out of my price range is a Gunboat. Just to see what is new I went to there website. There are a couple links to some interesting Gunboat blogs and additional news found here. They have announced the new Gunboat 66 although not much info on it yet.

I would love to own a cat 50 feet or more but I suspect I will at some point have to do a reality check and drop that goal. A 41 foot Maine Cat might be a better option for me. It would be substantially less money and still be a good performing and functional cat which are two of my top priorities. This would free up much more money for upgrades and ongoing maintenance.

Here is an update on the US dollar to EURO that I have been watching. Things are starting to show improvement for the US Dollar. To recap, I started on 2-14-2008. In my sample I made the assumption that someone might buy a Catamaran at 500k EURO and converted that into US Dollars using http://www.xe.com/ as a translator and kept track over time. Below is the data I have gathered so far. As you can see as of April things are beginning to trend downward.

New Catatamaran - Marquee 380 - CatStats Update

I ran across a new Cat at the Strictly Sail Show last Friday. The first Maverick 380 Sailing cat will be available this month according to their flyer however the distributor is advertising July 2008. This cat is being distributed by Catamaran Marquee out of South Africa. The cat is aimed at the Private owner and offers a Twin owner layout with space an privacy.

One thing that I noticed right away is the large protected cockpit which will be ideal for SF sailing. It appears to come with boards. I entered the statistics into my CatStats table to see where it ranks in performance compared to the rest. It doesn’t look like it will be very fast compared to the other cats out there, although it is not the slowest either. I added more links and corrected a few stats on the cats statistics table as well.

Strickly Sail Show Catamarans

I was at the Oakland Strictly Sail show on Friday. I could have used two days at the show rather then just one. I only saw one of the presentations. There were at least two others I wanted to watch. I just couldn’t fit everything in. There was only three catamarans at the show. The Lagoon Hybrid 420, Fountain Pajot Mahe 36 and the Seawind 1160. I didn’t get to spend as much time as desired on each of the cats. For a weekday, the show was very busy. You had to wait your turn to go through the cat. Just walking though these cats isn’t enough. Eventually I will need to do some sea trials.

There were no surprises on the Seawind. It was what I expected. Wide open cockpit area with the sliding glass doors up. I was happy to note that while standing behind the helm I was able to see through ahead just fine. Sailing in the busy SF bay would be a must though to know if the visibility is a concern. You can’t really navigate without having to look through windows with this design. However there are a lot of windows and the visibility was excellent so perhaps that makes up for it. I suspect this boat would be very nice and allow one to stay relatively comfortable out of the cold SF wind if desired.

I was surprised at how spacious and roomy the Mahe 36 felt. I realized when I was done why it felt so roomy. Unless I missed something, there was only one bathroom on the whole boat on the Owners side. This concept has it ups and downs, and may not be a bad idea in some cases. I like the idea of only having to clean, maintain and replace parts on just one bathroom as apposed to two, three or sometimes 4 separate bathrooms. It really made it feel like a bigger boat. Privacy would more then likely be an issue though if there were 6 people staying in the three berths.

The biggest disappointment came from my discussion with the salesman aboard the Lagoon 420 hybrid. He didn’t have much good news to say about the hybrid technology. In fact something very important he mentioned was that they could barely make it out the Golden Gate Bridge on electric power. I am familiar with the strong winds and currents that can occur. It is not uncommon to have a strong incoming current and a strong headwind while heading out of the SF Bay through the Gate. In fact it can be rather nasty if the seas are rough. This wasn’t the only issue. The salesman advised me that you are supposed to replace the batteries every two or three years or so. This hardly makes up the difference for the fuel savings. I mentioned solar power and he shot down that idea. He said if you can afford the boat, then you can afford the gas and that most likely there is no savings by going green with the Lagoon. He mentioned that some have discussed more powerful electric motors, but that this raises safety concerns as there is possibility for electric shock from the more powerful electric system required for the larger electric motors. This salesperson is just one opinion, but it isn’t a good one. More research is needed on the Hybrid topic.

I know that better batteries are being made. I recall reading about a lighter and more powerful batteries are available now. There was a battery vendor advertising 7 and 10 year warranties on their batteries. I wish I had more time to discuss this issue with them. I was hoping to run into an OSSA Powerlight vendor at the show. Perhaps Lagoon should look into better batteries or better salespersons. I would like to think that the Lagoon salesperson just wasn’t very informed. Regardless this is a serious blow to my theory of going green on a cat for the purpose of saving money. If prices keep going up on fuel, hybrid technologies will make more sense, but perhaps we are just not quite there yet.

Traffic on this blog has jumped up sharply over the weekend for some reason. Could be that search engines are finally finding me. I hope that folks are finding the site informative. there is so much to learn and research before buying your first cat. It is not uncommon to hear about folks taking two years or so to find the right boat. Now I know why. I feel like I have only scratched to surface. I really need to get out on more Cats for some real world experience. I just don' t know when that will happen at the moment.

Surfing for New Catamaran News

In a way I am kind of glad I am not ready to buy a Catamaran just yet. There is so much innovation and change going on, although not fast enough for my tastes. I hope that when I am ready to buy, the cat I desire will be available at a used price and in relatively good shape. I may end up waiting a long time for this to happen. I am sure I won’t wait any longer then I have to. I may instead opt to buy something as new as possible for as less as possible with the idea that I will replace the power plant and generator to support a diesel electric/hybrid concept. I really feel like this will be the best bet and I expect in the next year or two that technologies will improve in this area.

The area I plan on parking my cat will require me to motor for short periods of time here and there to reach to my destinations. While I am not motoring, the solar panels, props and wind generators will replenish the batteries. My ultimate goal is to travel using Mother Nature 99% of the time. This may sound like I am a tree hugger. I am sure I would get along great with them, but I am not so sure about the whole global warming thing. Bottom line is I just don’t want to pay 4 or 5 bucks a gallon to get from point A to point B. Can you blame me? If I can figure out a way to cook, heat water and keep things frozen without using fossil fuels, you can bet I will be looking into it. While moored I do not want to have to run the generator either. But you can bet I will want to shower, watch TV, and run lights all night if needed, maybe even do laundry if I have one on board. Question is, will I have any choice in the matter? Depending on the situation I am sure I will hit a point where the generator will need to kick in. I just want to minimize this as much as possible.

I did a little surfing today to look for some Catamaran news. Not much new though. There is some news about the Voyager 10, however this is two small for my taste. . Apparently the Lagoon 440 is now offering as an option the same hybrid power plant that comes standard on the 420. I am not a fan of Lagoons yet though but it is nice to see this technology taking off. You can read about some recent launchings here. Most are below 40 ft in length. Although I don’t know if I want to go aluminum, it is something I would love to take a look at. The Sirus Racha 1530 Aluminum Catamaran might be something to keep an eye out for. It is considered to be very weight efficient for a 50ft cat. She doesn’t look very pretty without paint, but maybe that is a good thing. Looks mean. Something that pirates might pass up.

Justification for a Dream

How do you justify making your dream a reality? There is a wealth of information out there that I am collecting surrounding sailing. Today I received an email from the Captains’ and Admiral’s Café Yahoo group which appears to be a fairly active group. The email mentioned some of the pros and cons of living aboard their boat. Although she says they enjoy it, there is some boredom and frustration that comes with this lifestyle. Additionally she mentioned that whatever you think cruising will cost, you have to double it. She also mentioned a saying “Cruisers look out for one another” that is not always accurate according to her experience. Well, I hope to learn from her experience and others in hopes to prevent or at least have the appropriate expectations.

She mentioned that there are some frustrations with customs and immigration officials and the issue of not being able to get what they needed. I am sure living life on land has similar frustrations. They are just different and on land I suspect that there are more frustrations. I guess boredom can get old, but I am so busy, I would welcome a little boredom. I also think that by learning from this experience that one might be able to do things and equip your catamaran with things that will prevent or at least reduce the amount of boredom.

Perhaps if you knew ahead of time that you would likely run into customs issues, that it wouldn’t be so bad. If you knew it would take a while and you were mentally prepared it wouldn’t be so bad. If you are in a hurry, then customs could be frustrating. If you don’t have the necessary items to clear customs it could be a challenge. If you researched ahead of time what you would need to get through customs, perhaps the experience wouldn’t be so bad.

A natural thing that happens with me is when I hear some negatives that will impact my dream; I begin to formulate theories as to why these things won’t be an issue for me. Being better prepared is a valid theory. Buying a newer boat would perhaps be less frustrating. Installing a satellite dish, game console, and lots of books might prevent boredom. I have to be careful here though. After all this wouldn’t be the 1st time I have theorized and been wrong. This is not the 1st time I have been blinded by love. In this case it is the love for a dream. It is easy to make excuses for a negative, because you don’t want to admit that there are negatives. It will take some time before reality sets in and love ceases to be blinding.

One of the reasons I have chosen a Sailboat over a power boat is that in theory this should be a less expensive option, but is it really less expensive long term? How much fuel can you save sailing vs the cost of owning a power boat? How much does it cost to replace the sails? Does it make up for the fuel savings? I am still concerned about ongoing costs and maintenance needed to keep a Catamaran. I know that when it comes time to take out a Sail boat VS a large Yacht, I will be much more excited to take out the Sailboat because there is almost no fuel costs to take out the sailboat. If you take out a power boat, you know that every mile will cost you. On the other hand, could put a price per mile on a sailboat after including maintenance? Although I am 99% sure what I want to do, when it comes down to it, I have to be 100% sure that a catamaran sailboat is the way to go for me. As you can see I still have some convincing to do and reader comments like the one above do cause one to pause just a bit.

I am confident I will be purchasing used. The price needs to be right. I have some ideas of what I will be looking for. I have to justify jumping into this dream of owning a cruising catamaran. Since boats don’t generally appreciate in value (Here is an interesting post on resale value of Catamarans) I need to make sure I can turn around and sell it if needed for a fair price. I need to make sure that if things don’t work out that I can still get out of the relationship unscathed. I want to keep it simple, however my needs are complicated. The more luxuries I have the more items that will eventually need repair or replacement. Will it cost more to live on a boat or on land? Which is more fun? Which is less frustrating taking all into account?

In the end I might just have to try it to answer some of these questions. After all, the best way to learn is to learn it the hard way. I am notorious for learning the hard way. This is most likely why I do so much research. Unfortunately one can never research enough so it seems. At some point you make a decision and hope that your research paid off. If I could buy a cat now, I would probably do it, but the fact remains, that I have a lot of time to research. I find my self doing a ton of reading. Every little bit helps to educate me and helps me to cope with my strong desire to achieve this dream.

The cat pictured above is a Kynsa 440. I just came across this cat today and thought I should share it.

Main Cat 41 and Catamaran Statistics Updated

I read about the Main Cat 41 today. This appears to be an easy to maintain and pilot, performance minded, functional Cat. It doubles as a day sailor or cabin cruiser. The cockpit and cabin are integrated into a great room. The great room can be opened like a day sailor or closed up to keep out of the weather. This should create a wonderful central social/sailing area with excellent 360 degree visibility for navigation. Accommodations appear to be simple, hardy and functional which is all I require in a starter cat.

The Main Cat will perform will and ranks very high on the Performance Potential scale. The price per lb may be the highest which indicates that it is a very lightweight cat compared to the other cats on my Catamaran Statistics table. Bridge deck clearance is ample so this cat should perform well in rough sea’s. The price for a new Main Cat 41 including the Performance Cruiser Package is listed at $499k as of 8/9/07 here. The Main Cat 41 was also certified in 2006 by the US Coast Guard as a “T-Boat” for commercial day-charter service to carry 18 passengers and two crew.

Each time I visit a catamaran manufacturer’s website I will check the specs with the Catamaran Statistics table. I am slowly picking away at the lengthy list making minor changes and updates to it. I have just updated it with new information. Check it out. You will see that currently the Main Cat has a Ranking of 10 which is very good compared to most. I have also added Bridge Clearance, Mast Height and Payload columns. I don’t have much data yet for these columns, but I will add to it as time goes by.

Vessel Certification & Mast Failure Related Fatalities

I was reading an article on a website that brought up the fact that in order to run charters in a vessel in US waters it must meet the minimum U.S. Coast Guard Regulations. Since there is a chance that I may run charters in my Catamaran, I will be looking for one that is USCG certified. There is a CE Certification that is required for all recreational boats entering or being sold in the European Union. As it turns out, the NMMA verifies annually, or whenever a new boat model is introduced, to determine that they satisfy not only the minimum U.S. Coast Guard Regulations but also the more rigorous standards based on those established by the American Boat & Yacht Council. So it appears that the CE Certification kills two birds with one stone.

I don’t expect to be circumnavigating for a long time. I am a ways away from retiring, and as a result it will be difficult to take any long journeys. I suspect I won’t make it to Europe on my 1^st Cat, however just in case I will be looking for boats that meet the USCG and or the CE certification. The NMMA certification information can be found here. This web site also has a chart that compares the U.S. Coast Guard Regulations to the higher standards used by NMMA to inspect and certify boats.

There is also a list of certified boats, however I don’t see any sailing catamarans manufacturers on the list. According to the PDQ web site, the PDQ Antares 44i is CE Certified Category A Ocean and they even let you see their certificate. So why are all the Catamaran manufacturers missing from the list? I suspect that most Cats are certified. I just checked out the Lagoon and the 500 is CE Certified/EEC Certificate. I would hate to buy a Cat only to find out it will not pass USCG Certification.

It appears that the Coast Guard will inspect your craft but the certification may be limited. In the report mentioned below theirs was only good for 5 years. At least that is what I am reading from this tragic story where a sailing catamaran on a whale watching tour lost it’s mast and eventually sank. One life was lost and 50 were saved. Apparently the crew was unable to detach the rigging from the broken mast and the boat was drug under the water and eventually sank.

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.

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.

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.

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.

Catamaran speed prediction

The more I read about Catamarans the closer I become to knowing what the right boat will be for my needs. I am leaning more towards the need for speed rather then the need to live on the boat. Although there is still a chance I will end up living on my boat, the more ideal solution for me, for now, is to live on land.

I have recently learned more about how to determine a Cats potential for speed. In a nutshell you want to find a boat with the lowest Displacement/Length Ratio (D/L) and the highest Power to weight Ration (SA/D). The Gunboat, Outremer and Dazcat are examples that tend to rank at the top of it's class when comparing displacement and length which means they have the potential to out sail most if not all of their competition.

Based on my current line of thinking, I won't need a washing machine on board. At my age my sailing will most likely be limited to one or two week excursions. The majority of the time will be day and weekend sailing adventures in the San Francisco Bay area. I envision the provisions needed will be similar in experience to the RV trips that we currently do. So our equipment needs will be small. Space will not be critical and we can keep things on the light side. After 5 or 10 years my situation may change and I can consider upgrading to something more comfortable for long term sailing.

I expect to participate in some racing and will enjoy being one of the fastest cruising cats on the bay. The boat will need to be a good ocean capable boat though. Accommodations need to be functional and comfortable but not extravagant. Heating will be necessary. AC would be nice as well however I am up in the air as to how important it will be. Will have to way the pro's and cons. I want my boat to be green and take advantage of Solar, wind and water power generation. If would prefer not to have to run the generator to stay cool. I will blog more on the topic of going green later.

New Thoughts on a Cat Purchase

I have been reading the Multihulls World Magazine. It is the 2008 buyers guide version. It has opened up my mind to other options to consider when purchasing a Cat. There is more then one brand out there that allows you to have it shipped in pieces for assembly here. This would require a significantly smaller investment initially and allow me to customize it to my specifications. This might be a good option for me. More research is needed, but it does give me food for thought.

The article was on a cat called Spirited 380. Essentially it is a build it yourself Cat Kit. I could see going this route if you have a tight budget. You could theoretically assemble the cat to a point that would allow it to sail safely and work on the rest as time and money allows. This does peak my interest.

ok. I am off to Jury Duty. Fun!