At The Risk of Starting WWlll

[SV Windrush II]

If I was to move over to a multi I would chose a tri. We almost purchased a 48' Piver tri but when we looked at it we realized it had much to cramped of living space for us compared to a 48' mono.

I love the fact that a tri can be very fast and can be beached. Although with props or a side tie I can set my full keel on the bottom on a low tide

[SkiprJohn]

I think I mentioned this in your other thread. I've sailed on cats, tris and monos. I don't care for the motion at sea of the multi-hulls. Tris sail to weather better than cats. A fully loaded cat does not go to weather as well as a cruising mono and, again, I don't like the motion of a multi at sea.

[44'cruisingcat]

Generalisations are rubbish. "Cats don't sail to windward" for example. There are cat's that sail to windward better than any mono ever made. The AC 72's were making VMG's of around 18 knots.

My cruising cat sails to windward better than the majority of cruising mono's.
But some cat's can't sail to windward well at all.

If you're really trying to choose, you need to charter some boats and try living on them for a while. You also need to decide what's important to you, and try to charter boats that fit those priorities.

[StuM]

Originally Posted by 4music3

My gut tells me a mono is more seaworthy if it gets really nasty but I assume that gets less true as technology improves.
.

This one can be found in a few places around the intertubes. Not sure who the original author was, so it may be apocryphal:

"Little has been written specifically for survival situations in multihulls. The basic reason for this lack of literature is the astonishing safety record compiled by ordinary sailors in “off-the-shelf” catamarans. At the time of the famous Fastnet disaster, of which volumes have been written, there were two cruising catamarans in the vicinity. They were shadowing the fleet as unofficial entries when the racing fleet sailed into a serious storm. The carnage caused by the storm was so great that a “Committee On Safety From Capsizing” was formed. Their purpose was to design a minimum stability formula for ocean racing monohull yachts. The weather that was a disaster to the Fastnet fleet was considered merely “beastly weather for sailing” by the two adjacent catamarans."

[SVNeko]

Originally Posted by Razoo

Cat vrs Monohull. What do people like one and hate the other?

Oh come on, really?

Sent from my SM-T210R using Cruisers Sailing Forum mobile app

[belizesailor]

I own one of each and have sailed many of each plus tris. They are all good, just depends on your intended use and preferences.

Cats are hard to beat for cruising/liveaboard/charter: roomy, stable, shoal draft, more privacy in cabins at opposite corners of the hulls, better traffic flow...and most modern production cats sail just fine (relative to a cruising mono) regarless of some of the BS you hear. For example, my W35 goes to weather respectably well at about 40d apparent and will pinch to 30d. Listened to mono-biased friends talk trash about cats going to weather one night (neither had any cat sailing experience) at anchor in the Dry Tortugas...never said a word. We left the next AM pre dawn bound for Key West in moderately rough weather and Key West a tight beat to windward....I had cold beer waiting for them when they got to KW three hours after me! ;-) Last thing I recall hearing on the VHF before they dropped out of range astern was "...where did he go?".

As another post pointed out, cats do tend to have a more "irregular" motion in rough seas, but you don't roll your guts out.

Monos give you more sensation of sailing. My Hobie 33 (a mono) is a blast to daysail, but would not want to cruiser her. Would get to the next anchorage really fast though...capable of almost 20 knots! Sails in a breath of air and tacks on a dime (neither the strong suit of most cruising cats) and will sail, not pinch, at 28d apparent (per polars and experience)...impressive.

Really like tris for pure go fast fun too. Used to race on an F-31...break 20 knots with ease!

[4music3]

Originally Posted by StuM

This one can be found in a few places around the intertubes. Not sure who the original author was, so it may be apocryphal:

"Little has been written specifically for survival situations in multihulls. The basic reason for this lack of literature is the astonishing safety record compiled by ordinary sailors in “off-the-shelf” catamarans. At the time of the famous Fastnet disaster, of which volumes have been written, there were two cruising catamarans in the vicinity. They were shadowing the fleet as unofficial entries when the racing fleet sailed into a serious storm. The carnage caused by the storm was so great that a “Committee On Safety From Capsizing” was formed. Their purpose was to design a minimum stability formula for ocean racing monohull yachts. The weather that was a disaster to the Fastnet fleet was considered merely “beastly weather for sailing” by the two adjacent catamarans."

Ok so what actually happens on a cat if a surprise wind is way to strong?

Will the cat turn up/ rigging brake/ sheets auto release/ what?

We all know on a mono when it leans over it spills wind -- how will the cat take care of this-- no really I'm just asking because I don't get it?

[eyschulman]

Almost everything has been said several times. This one may have been missed. Many of the new cliff sided cats are a real challenge to get on or off along side a dock. They seem to be designed for med moor. On some it looks like you have to be an agile monkey to swing from the sugar scoop rear over to the dock and the 6 ft sheer freeboard would be a real challenge. My previous tri and my present mono and power boats up to 50 ft LOA without life lines its almost step on and off. As an often single hander the big cats because of this and other berthing issues are not for me.

[eyschulman]

How the cats handle big wind puffs. Almost all of the big cruising cats have their claws pulled at the design stage. Very conservative sail area. A high performance multi tri or cat is meant to fly hulls this is an absolute no no with the cruising rigs and in the hands of most of their owners we would be seeing cats moving toward their highest state of stability that being upside down. Now don't get me wrong I owned and loved my 20 Knot tri and flying a hull is a hoot but its not for mom and pop cruisers.

[Don1500]

Cats are fine, so are monos, I just don't want to pay for two hulls at a marina. I would like the low draft though.

[ShaktisBoy]

Originally Posted by Don1500

Cats are fine, so are monos, I just don't want to pay for two hulls at a marina. I would like the low draft though.

Admittedly i just cruise Florida and the Bahamas so far but what marinas charge for extra hulls. Here its price per foot LOA not beam

[svsunbeam]

Just a thought that no one seems to have touched on..... the Movement of a Cat.
I had been a mono sailor for many years and before cats were first making a big splash here in the states there were a number of Aussie cats in Guam where I lived. Like most folks, I was enamored by their speed and spaciousness... kinda like your living room going to sea at 12-15kts and thought this is the way to go! I was in lust... UNTIL... I did the Guam-Rota race in one of the Aussies. (The 54 mi wide Rota channel has a notorious short steep chop kinda like the Great Lakes in a blow or the gulfstream in a norther)

Where a mono generally has a rhythmic and predictable motion; On the Cat it felt like I was standing on a huge sheet of plywood and I never could figure out which corner was going to go up and which would go down first and it was never a repeat of the last. By the time we got to Rota I was halfway green!!! So for me it was a one nite stand and back to Monos!

[Razoo]

Originally Posted by SVNeko

Oh come on, really?

Sent from my SM-T210R using Cruisers Sailing Forum mobile app

Yeah I know, I typed the wrong word so hang me upside down and lash me 40,000 times. It should read Why instead of what.

[socaldmax]

Originally Posted by 4music3

Ok so what actually happens on a cat if a surprise wind is way to strong?

Will the cat turn up/ rigging brake/ sheets auto release/ what?

We all know on a mono when it leans over it spills wind -- how will the cat take care of this-- no really I'm just asking because I don't get it?

It simply goes faster.

[thinwater]

I wonder how many would coment on riding, even if they'd never been on a horse.

And they sure sound foolish.