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Kashmir cat · 04-05-2010, 17:12

Dear Zarkmud: Good questions about catamarans and severe weather conditions. I guess the reason for the paucity of answers in return is that few cat sailors in this forum have weathered conditions you describe. The only other explanation is the ones that did are no longer with us or are still out there having a picnic on the bottom of their boat.

I would imagine that the biggest danger to a cat is pitch polling while surfing down large, steep waves. This maybe what happened to the brand new Voyage 44 that washed up on the Oregon beaches upside down without a crew a few years ago.

Certainly a good drogue (I like the Jordan series drogue) should be standard emergency equipment on offshore boats of any hull type. Meanwhile, I await as you do, to hear any tall tales (or short ones) about catamarans in heavy seas.

zarkmud · 04-05-2010, 20:00

Please tell me about your errors, what you did, how you corrected and survived. What things typically go wrong. If I feel I can handle the worse the sea can give me then I feel I can relax a little when things are calm, the sun warming us gently...but when it is not going well...now what? I just bought a $300 PFD and a $100 tether and that was just for a little sail out of Panama. So I probably overthink this stuff.

zarkmud · 07-05-2010, 01:47

The know "zip about sailing" is about to change with a trip as a "crew" from Ft Lauderdale, Bermuda, Azores and somehow to Southhampton or Brest, FR. This on a Broadblue 415 and a member of Cruisers Forum.

YOGAO · 07-05-2010, 08:49

cool!

Enjoy the trip, among other things, take along your digital camera and a notebook so you have a record of your first impressions, what worked, what didn't etc.

Then, of course, you have to post it all here.

Fair Winds,
Mike

Kashmir cat · 07-05-2010, 09:06

Terrific! Enjoy the experience and return to tell everyone here about the trip! Broadblue purchased Prout a few years ago, now Prout is building boats again--of course, under entirely new management, construction, and crew. So spill the beans on your return. Have a ball.............

Eleven · 08-05-2010, 14:35

"Broadblue purchased Prout a few years ago"
Carefull here, it is a tangled web which I believe went something like:-
Prout went bust in the '80's following an expensive expansion just before an economic crash. Out of the ashes, and with at least one senior Prout manager BroadBlue were formed and bought a set of moulds, improved a few things and got going again. That went bust after a good few years, with a decent range of sound boats. Broad Blue were resurrected recently ( contact 'Multihullworld' ) who now have three hull sizes, I think, and are manufacturing in Poland to European standards.
The Prout name has re-surfaced too but to my knowledge have no connection to the old Prout 'dynasty' and no transfer of quality, design or integrity should be assumed. I believe they manufacture in Indonesia.
The current and more recent BB's I would guess are similar to the Fontaine Pajot range and worth a look see by buyers either way to make sure they are getting the optimum package.
My dear old 1968 Prout is still sailing well and gives a good indication of the sort of working life that can be expected from a sound, conservative GRP built boat.
'Kasmir Cat' may have more recent details on Prout, I hope I'm summing things up reasonably.

Eleven · 08-05-2010, 14:46

Just on the Broad Blue thread, for the UK and with apologies for Vendor info:-

Do you want to try a tri?

If the answer to either of these questions is a “Yes” then we have the perfect invitation for you! Saturday 22nd – Sunday 23rd May we will be hosting a unique FREE ‘Try-A-Multihull’ event at Gunwharf Quays Events Marina in Portsmouth (UK).
Each visitor will have the opportunity to board and experience sailing a selection of modern multihull designs.
Vessels to choose from will include: a Corsair F-31 folding trimaran, a family cruising Broadblue 345 (ex-Voyager 10), a bluewater cruising Broadblue 385, a high-end luxury bluewater cruising Broadblue 435, a performance-orientated Format 400 Cabrio, a sleek luxury cruising Nautitech 40, and the rare opportunity to sail aboard a bluewater performance cruising Outremer 45! The vessels will be skippered and crewed by qualified multihull sailors, and so you will have the chance to evaluate the performance of the vessels in comparison with each other and your own expectations. This is a new type of event for us, and due to anticipated high demand we are allocating tickets on a first-come/first-served basis. If you would like to book your tickets please contruct an email to: audrey@multihullworld.co.uk

Kashmir cat · 08-05-2010, 14:49

Eleven---No doubt your info is far more accurate than my own. However, we own a 1999 Prout 46---nothing Broad Blue about it. You're so right--Broad Blue did come in a few years after that and began producing Broad Blues (that we replicas of our Prout 46), however, the "new and improved" Prouts are made far from UK (where ours' was built). Thanks for the history lesson and even happier that your '68 Prout is alive and well!

Eleven · 08-05-2010, 14:56

Thanks Kashnir, I was going by fading memory of the demise of Prout (UK). As a replica Prout you have the slam breaking centre nacelle that no-one seems to go with nowadays and I'd expect a pretty decent performance too. Ron Underwood (ex Prout MD and part of your BB) when quizzed on the rear mast design said they had started building a forward mast system, termed the sport rig, and found no performance difference either way. I love the rear mast, I'm sure you do too and perhaps your cockpit is not quite so cramped as ours. 4 is a working maximum. Many happy sailing miles to you.

Kashmir cat · 08-05-2010, 15:24

We love our sturdy Prout 46. It's safe, beautiful, functional, fast, and built to withstand offshore challenges. Purchased 3 years ago from the original owner, we have yet to do anything long-term on Kashmir. That day will come and we're anxious to "see what she can do". It is the perfect liveaboard platform, with space for occasional guests to have their own space, and room for our dogs to share our sailing needs. From our previous deep draft monohull to this shallow draft was what we went shopping for and feel soooo lucky to own this lovely vessel.

Eleven · 08-05-2010, 15:37

Just back from Malta (flew steerage) where there are some great bays. Another place to go when we get near. There were mono's anchored there, swinging thro a wide angle as they do and tending to catch the swell at one end of the swing.
Since there is little tide there why don't these mono's put a stern anchor out to control the swing and align the boat to best suit the standing swell? Corsica (from 40,000 ft) also looked superb cruising with tiny islands, many bays and beaches, and some big harbours.

zarkmud · 13-08-2010, 06:51

Well, my sailing experiences have been the pits. I learned what I wanted to learn and that is that I think think a sailboat is too complicated a machine for me to put up with over time and even a 42' cat is just too small for me to not go a little nuts in it. So that is the positive-here is the negative. I hopped on with a guy in Panama who was going from the Canal zone to Ft Meyers. Well, he didn't exactly go there, he went to Bocas del Toro, Panama and proceeded to get drunk with friends that he met on the way down from San Francisco. Three of the crew and me jumped ship. I flew out to Costa Rica and back to the US. # 2 was in a Broadblue 42 from Ft Lauderdale to the UK. That captain was so nasty in every way that I jumped in Bermuda. He was so nasty that I refused to eat food with him the last three days of hell on that boat and lost 12 lbs. Since then another 12 lbs so that is the big plus. So if you are going to crew-ask a lot of questions and if your instincts tell you the captain is strange....go with it and do not get on the boat.