Catamarans

[Quiet Magic]

Ok, i realize that ericson did not make catamarans in anyway, shape or form and i realize that this is a website dedicated to the fine ericson yacht. But due to a prolonged drought in the mille lacs lake area of minnesota i can not get my E-27 in the frickin water (its a bout 1' 6" to shallow) and because of this travesty i have recently purchased a 79' hobie 18 to cope with not being able to sail my " Big E". Now my question is: what, for those amongst you who have catamaran experience, is a good book, video or some form of reference material on how to sail cats? i've had it out a few times (no capsize yet!) and man o' man are these boats a whole different animal or what!! so, to get a better understanding of this machine, i think i should research it more than i did for my ericson!

 

[Sean Engle]

Hobies

Hobies are a lot of fun - my first boat was a Hobie 16... You'll fly a hull, etc - just make sure you know about how much weight you need to pull the 18 back over - as they're a bit heavier...and learn how to feel things - so you don't push it too far when you're alone...or you'll have a problem (not that I ever did, but...).

On books, I have no idea - try one of these...and check your library. Also, if you find a book of interest, try purchasing it from www.fetchbook.info - you'll save tons of money...

Have fun - and take some pictures for us!

//sse

 

[NateHanson]

I took a hobie 20 out one day on the Charles River Basin (MIT Boathouse) because it was really blowin like stink, and I thought it was a good day to give it a try. The only other person around was a Turkish MBA student I had sailed keelboats with a bunch, and she was 5'0", and certainly no more than 110 pounds.

Well, we had a BLAST! That boat would accelerate so fast out of a tack, that it would jerk your head back. The river basin is only about a mile wide, and we'd just manage to get out on the trapeze by the time we were approaching the far bank, flying a hull, and have to dive back across the boat to tack before skidding across Storrow Drive.

Since we'd gotten our confidence up with the screaming reaches, and since the wind was blowing along the length of the basin, we decided to try some broad reaches, and gybe downwind a few times. Well, that didn't go so well. We dumped a couple times, and that 10-foot wide boat is a bit too heavy for 280 pounds of crew to right. Had to get help from Dwight, the trusty dockmaster, for that rescue.

What a blast though. I'd do it again in a second. I've also sailed an 18 a few times, and that boat is MUCH more forgiving, and also easier to right. Still fast and lots of fun, but not as insanely fast and wide as the 20. More reasonable mainsail size on the 18, which is certainly better for learning and puttering around without someone in a launch who can get you out of trouble.

Have fun! Keep your weight upwind. Keep the bows downwind when you gybe. And on light wind days, get your boat speed up before you tack.

 

[Quiet Magic]

Thanks, sean, for the link to the books and thanks nate for the experience advice. So far i havent capsized yet, but i question my ability to (at 145lbs) to right a 450lb catamaran alone. And I know what you mean when you say that these things are so fast that you cant get into the trapeze before you hit the other side of the body of water your on! I had it out on Big Lake (about a 1/4 to 1/2 mile wide and long) yesterday with my brother and his wife and it seemed like we would tack then once we were all settled we'd already hit the other side and have to tack again! Loads of fun though!!

 

[rwthomas1]

Ah, the lure of the multihull. SPEED! I grew up sailing/racing Hobie 14's and 16's, etc. They are great. If you need a bit more weight to right the boat a buddy of mine used to use a cheap nylon duffle bag. While in water, fill the bag, hang off shoulder for extra weight then right the boat. RT

 

[chrism]

I sailed a Hobie that we rented from the Bitter End about eight years ago and loved it. It was my first real exposure to a small boat. I love how you're still getting out there even though your Ericson can't go in. If you're ever in Massachusetts, there's a fellow teenage captain with an E-35 who'd love to take you for a sail.


My father's first boat was a Hobie.. This was the early '70s. He had it out in Boston Harbor with my mother and aunt, flipped it off Wollaston beach, and lost his glasses. My mother and aunt were picked up by a good samaritan, and my father somehow got the boat back to the ramp without glasses. The Boston Globe caught wind of the whole thing, and they appeared twice in the next days paper - a story on page two, and three entries in the obituaries! No one got hurt, let alone died, and their parents received cards and phone calls about their deaths for a few days.

 

[Quiet Magic]

Hahaha

Wow! call me sick but that is a funny story! Man, I would love to get out on the east coast and sail! I'd especially love to try sailing on a bigger ericson!