Multihull storm tactics?

[northerncat]

i did say the scary zone
sean

[smm]

Originally Posted by northerncat

there is such an easy(as in the cat that im building) solution to this and that is to use the superior speed of a cat to get away from the weather fly a little more sail and 20+ knots your away from the scary zone
sean

I think that you're confusing a high performance cruising cat which will happily knock off 200 mile days with a high-performance fully crewed ocean racing cat which will be in the hunt for a 700 mile day. Driven by the jet stream, storm systems frequently move 600 miles in a day.

What you certainly can do is monitor the weather so that you have several days to put your speed to work. For example, if you're on the HI-WA trip and you see a gale tracking a little further south than usual, you could turn west earlier and aim for SF or Arcata instead.

-Scott

[44'cruisingcat]

Originally Posted by fhrussell

Sure there are systems that move faster than 20 knots, but if you are aware of its location and direction, a fast cat can get out of its path with some forthought and planning....as opposed to actually "outrunning" the LP system.

This is what it's all about. When something big is coming you do get some notice, and having the ability to move fast lets you put that notice to good use.

Of course you will still get local storms, and some can be quite violent, but they wont be around long enough, or be big enough to build up dangerous sea states.

[GordMay]

The faster you sail, the narrower your required weather-window.
1. You’re “out there” for a shorter time.
2. You have a better chance of outsailing a nasty system, once detected.

The faster you sail, the smaller & lighter your required storage (water & victuals), so the faster you sail - a case of compound interest.

[Talbot]

But the faster you sail, especially in a multihull, the higher the chance of a pitchpole, especially if you are trying to outrun bad weather during the period when the weather is deteriorating.

Especially if you are sailing short handed.

Personally I prefer to have a boat that can cope with the bad weather, but these are personal choices,
I suspect that UK design multihulls were developed primarily to cope with the bad weather that is a constant threat around UK, and the short steep seas that are a natural consequence of a long fetch and a continental shelf.

[cat man do]

On a light , fast multi you dont need much sail up to do good speed unlike heavy boats that need full gear to do 7 knots in 30 knots of wind.

Whos more likely to pitch pole?

We personaly had 15 knot average for over an hour in 30+ knots of wind with just a working jib up at New Caledonia. Light enough to power up and get a good surf happenning.

At no stage were we any where near stuffing a bow.

Dave

[Talbot]

You are missing the point completely. How do you slow her down in bad weather with very steep very short seas. You cant! What you do is fine for a day or two in your area, but unless you have a big crew, on the third week of the trip, you are in trouble.

Yes those speeds are great, and exciting, but you are trying to compare bananas with shoes.

[cat man do]

Of course you could use series drogues to slow down. Nothing new in this idea.

What weather system would you be sailing in for 3 weeks?

That would put you 7500 miles away from where you started from if you could maintain these speeds.

Even at a 7 knot average you'd be 3500 miles away.

Surely by now we would have figured out how to blast around the edge of this system.

Dave

[northerncat]

hmm thinks maybe i need to park the half built easy and build a lighter faster set of hulls??,
sean

[blahman]

Originally Posted by sneuman

I'd be interested to hear a discussion here of the best heavy weather tactics for a multi.

Anchor and prepare a claim.

Best,
Aaron N.

[cat man do]

Originally Posted by northerncat

hmm thinks maybe i need to park the half built easy and build a lighter faster set of hulls??,
sean

Made me look at what Wrote and change 30+ to 40+ knots of wind.

15 knots av in 30+ ............ I wish.

Stick with your Easy , Sean Nuthin' wrong with that, and their fast enough for most.

[cat man do]

Originally Posted by blahman

Anchor and prepare a claim.

Best,
Aaron N.

Now there's a constructive comment ................ not.


Dave

[Tropic Cat]

It appears to be another guy who doesn't own or know anything about a Cat, posting in the Multi area.

Rick in Florida

[cat man do]

Originally Posted by Talbot

Personally I prefer to have a boat that can cope with the bad weather, but these are personal choices,
I suspect that UK design multihulls were developed primarily to cope with the bad weather that is a constant threat around UK, and the short steep seas that are a natural consequence of a long fetch and a continental shelf.

Fair enough, but just because a boat is built using light construction techniques does not mean it's not strong. Infact quite the opposite. I'm sure i've read reports on Hurricane damage in marinas in the States showing that light composite structures survived better than some solid glass boats.

And if you always get to sail in constant bad weather I suppose heavy short rigged boats are OK for you, You don't have to put a reef in often as you already are.

But if travelling in mostly good weather with only the occasional bit of $hitty stuff, I reckon the novelty would wear off pretty quick.

I still think that the best tactic for surviving bad weather is to try not to be in it, and that wil mean either a fast boat, or never leaving the lounge room.

Of course this is my opinion only, but others can agree if they want.

Dave

[Tropic Cat]

Dave,

You fellas are on opposite sides of the planet and obviously have completely different weather conditions. But when the weather gets bad, it can get very bad as demostrated by Fasnet in 1979 or Sydney -Hobart in 1998.

I'm not sure the weather in 1979 could have been avoided.

Rick in Florida