For my two cents - I don't agree with much that has been said here, but like Big Beakie, I am from a multi background that values performance in all its forms over room.
Hobbyhorsing was sorted out in the early 80s when designers worked out that high volume ends produced cats with better
pitch damping. Designers also learnt quickly that weight in the rig or the ends of the boat increased hobbyhorsing. If you look at the cats from designers like Crowther and Chamberlin you will see the lengths they went to to get the weight central - the
diesel motors on many designs are in the middle of the boat. Weight low and central.
Getting weight centralised and increasing end volume, along with a low windage deck profile, and efficient rig will help any cat reduce its motion. The is basic physics and you can't get around it. When you put weight in the ends, or increase the height of the CG, or increase air drag, you get poorer dynamic performance.
Then have a look at the track the French
charter cats design type has pushed cat design along to. The GC is higher, the motors are now often right at the stern, weight is up at the ends, the air drag is much higher and rigs have been pushed up to avoid flybridges. The boats are more Winnebago than touring car. Winnebagoes are great, but they are Winnebagoes.
No one would expect great driving performance from Winnebagos and condocats can't be expected to
pitch damp like a Crowther 105 or Deguello. There is a real reason why the great designers like Lock Crowther and Chamberlin, Schionning drew the boats they drew - because they were sailors first and found it impossible to compromise the dynamic performance of their cats. That is why I like sailing these type of cats - great windward performance, great light air sailing, smooth helm, great groove - just like a nice touring car.
So if you want better sailing, try a better sailing design, with daggerboards, a nicer rig, no flybridge, low windage, weight centralised. That is what I would do, and it was the norm for most of multi
history. Now we are in a different world where
interior performance is paramount but it was not always this way. You won't just go faster, the boat will feel better too and sailing it should be a joy.
I hope the condocat owners don't get upset but the physics is undeniable and we can't choose the science we agree with. My cat is smaller inside and it can't carry as much weight as a fatter hulled cat - basic physics I can't deny either. But as to other
parts of your question.
Cats usually move more quickly than monos - but sometimes you can trick things. I rarely sail beam onto chop. In some places where the chop is vicious I will sail slightly upwind and then slightly broad rather than beam reach. Beam reaching on a cat can get awfully tough as the stability is huge and the boat complies to the wave surface with massive accelerations - point up slightly and then bear away later to get one bow or stern to meet the wave first. I even do this in sheltered waters and turn our cats into
power boat waves rather than take them side on.
I always try to remove any windage I can if I need to sail a reasonable distance. Kayaks on the sidedeck will increase parasitic drag and slow you down. This will also increaes tacking angle and leeway. So pop the kayaks on the
dinghy at the stern (I hope they are light).
Don't stow anything heavy up front, or way down aft. The only things that should be up front are fenders and pool toys - light things go up and down really well so keep bows light. I once moved a 30 kilo
dinghy from the bow of my 31ft tri to the
cockpit when sailing upwind, it changed how the boat behaved, she went from a nasty cantankerous thing to a real lady - only 30 kilos ( on a very light boat agreed) 5 metres too far forward. However this meant the tri needed to bury its bow deeper every wave to produce an extra 1500 Newton metres of torque. With the weight around the pitch centre the bow dug in far less.
It seems like you like your sailing. I would get down to a multi
racing club and sail on some nice multis - you might really like it. You can get some that sail incredibly well and still have heaps of room. You don't have to get a production condocat. It suits lots of people but I would much rather sail a Sayer 40 mono or
Searunner 37 tri, because they are great boats, rather than a cat that didn't make my heart sing.
The
photo attached is a favourite of mine. We are daysailing down the
East coast of
Australia and have been on the wind every day for weeks. The boat is loving it and we are still having fun. She is in the groove and I am just part of the scenery - smooth, and fast, raking in the miles - to windward.
cheers
Phil