Monohull or multihull

Armchair sailor has posed some interesting questions comparing monos to
cats.I love both for different reasons and I prefer to be a staunch
supporter of sailing vessels compared to powered vessels but even they
have their place in the market.Regarding your plotting it is always wise
to check and double check,especially if something does not look or feel
right.On an unrelated subject Gareth uttered a saying today,measure
twice and cut once.We are following the predominant currents and winds
which have us more or less aiming for the tip of South America,anything
that shows different to that is suspect.Perhaps you were plotting at a
45* angle as on a mono which may explain the slight error.back to monos
and cats.

On a downwind run a cat is as steady as you can imagine whereas a mono
will roll from side to side.I won't easily take a cat into the roaring
40's or beyond though but if I have to I'll drag a sea anchor or
two.It will prevent any chance of pitchpoling but you may get pooped
every now and then,pooped is when a wave brakes into the back of the
boat.For a cat to capsize you will really need a combination of
excessive strong wind and big waves,too much canvas out and taking a
wave on sideways.This cat weighs over 14 tons,over 15 mtrs long and more
than 7 mtrs wide,and even in smaller cats it is nearly impossible to
capsize.In extreme conditions you will always want to place your bow
into the oncoming wave,using both motors if the seas are confused and
coming from different angles.I have read of a cat that capsized years
ago and were adrift for 114 days on the Indian Ocean,and the crew
survived.More recently a cat was capsized off the South African
coast.The skipper was,and respect to him,young and inexperienced,and had
full main and genoa out in adverse conditions.The cat capsized and
apparently the helming chair was slotted into a tube and slipped out
when the boat capsized,taking the young man down as he was attached to
the seat via his safety harness.He was never found but the father and
son were rescued.Cats don't sink,even when upside down.

An ideal windstrenght would depend on the size of your rigging.There are
limits but normally I would prefer a rather bigger rig than to small.You
can have more sail out in lighter winds and when the wind is strong you
can always shake a reef or two to get optimum balance and
performance.The boat will soon tell you if you have to much sail out.Our
motto is if you think you should reef,then reef,don't wait and see if
the wind will drop.Always respect the elements and your gut feel.Fastest
point of sail I find slightly ehead of the beam the best,between 75 and
80 degrees.You can still get good speed up to 40 degrees into the
wind.Pointing higher we will probably use a motor to slightly alter the
point of sail and maintain a fair speed.There is very little heel on a
cat.The saying of when in doubt let it out applies here as well.The more
you open the sail the less stress you place on the rigging and you would
reef both main and genoa to suit the conditions.Surfing on a following
sea and swell is an absolute delight and having more weight on the stern
will assist in big seas.Up to three meter swells I prefer a bit more
weight forward as it gives you longer runs and you hook into the swells
quicker.Similar to bodyboarding you would get more speed and purchase
when you press more forward.Regarding wind strengts and sail cofiguration
it depends on a few factors,mainly point of sail and seastate.As a rule
you will rather just have some genoa out when the wind goes higher than 30
kts,but as I have said before,your boat will soon tell you if she is not
happy.Personally I don't like sailing on the edge but a good balance
normally gives you great results.When things really get rough you can
always hove to for a while,and a cat can do that just as well as a mono if
not better.Regarding diesel consumption and mileage we easily maintain 6
kts at 1800 rpm and burn less than two ltrs per hour on our 56 HP
Yanmars.As a final thought on this matterof cats and monos,if your motor
dies on a mono that's it,on a cat you have two motors.So if you pick up
problems in the doldrums on your mono,ouch,you may have to sit there for
weeks,on a cat,not likely.Combine that with the comfort a cat affords,and
you may change your mind.The Moorings and Sunsail charter fleets are
outphasing all their monos with cats as well.But I am sure they will keep
a few monos for people who like to life at a 45* angle.As I said,I love
both,but I specialize in cats and I spend close to 10 months a year on the
ocean.I choose to do it on cats.

Our position at 03:00 UTC is 10*49'S/20*22'W.Wishing you a pleasant day
and will elaborate on our fitness challenge at a later stage.