The Sun Cat is a delight to launch and rig — plus easy to sail, and comfortable, too!

The cockpit in the Sun Cat is surprisingly roomy for a small sailboat.

The hinged mast makes it easy and fast to rig — The Sun Cat's main boom, gaff boom, and rigging lines stay in place while the mast is raised and lowered.

I recommend buying the Sun Cat's optional bimini top if you live in a warm climate.

Com-Pac's exclusive Mastendr (tm) system consists of a mast with a stainless steel hinge a couple of feet above the deck and a quick rig tensioning Highfield lever on the forestay. Just lift the mast to vertical (it is very lightweight) and insert the safety pin in the hinge to hold it, pin the forestay in place, swing the lever to tighten the rig and secure it with another pin, and the boat is ready to sail.

The main boom, gaff boom, sail, and all running rigging remain in place when trailering, so rigging time is cut dramatically compared to most trailerable sailboats.

Lowering the Mast While Afloat — It's Easy On a Sun Cat

We motored out the channel and raised the sail, only to find that the main halyard was improperly led through the cheek block at the top of the mast, and we could not get it all the way up. This was a new boat, and Com-Pac very seldom makes such an error in rigging, but someone messed up in this case. On many trailerable sailboats, the discovery would have meant a trip back to the ramp to set the boat back on the trailer in order to fix the problem, but not on a Sun Cat. I went forward, released and lowered the mast, and re-threaded the halyard properly, and we were raising the mainsail back up a few minutes later.

The sail is raised by simultaneously pulling on the main (or throat) halyard and the peak halyard, lifting the gaff boom in a more or less horizontal attitude until the throat halyard is all the way up against the block, then the peak halyard is raised the rest of the way, pulling the top of the sail up above the top of the mast. Because of the 2:1 purchase on the peak halyard, the easiest way to accomplish this is to pull both halyards, then pull only the peak halyard, repeating until the throat halyard is all the way up. Both are led through Spinlock line clutches, so you can release them momentarily without losing any ground.

The line clutches are a neat design — you snap the line upward to tilt and release them, and snap it back downward to engage the locking cam. Another identical one is used on the port side coachroof for the downhaul.

The Sun Cat's Trim Adjustments

For such a simple little boat, the Sun Cat has quite a few trim adjustment capabilities. Sloop sailors will have to get used to the fact that one of the halyards is actually a sail trim adjustment. The peak halyard controls the angle of the gaff boom, and small adjustments make a big difference in sail shape and performance. The downhaul controls tension along the luff, and is used in the same way as it would be used on a sloop rig.

There are two outhauls, one for each boom, and those can be used to flatten the sail or make it more full, depending on conditions. The boat has a traveler mounted across the bridgedeck, enabling good control over sail shape and main boom position on all points of sail. Last but not least, the stainless steel centerboard affects helm balance and thus is yet another trim adjustment. Update: see the rigging modifications I did on our Sun Cat.

The Sun Cat's Performance Upwind

Upwind, the boat likes all controls except the mainsheet set fairly tight and the centerboard all the way down. A common error made by sloop sailors is to pull the main boom over the center of the boat, which will result in lousy performance. On a catboat, you set the mainsail to about the same angle you would use for a jib on a sloop. No one pulls a jib flat and tight over the center of the boat to beat upwind, and you should not do that to a cat rig either. The boom end should be near the corner of the boom gallows for best performance when beating to windward. Pulling it closer to the centerline will not allow you to point higher.

Sun Cat Frisky

We did a few tacks upwind, and the boat performs well with proper trim. Because of the wide beam and ballasted shoal keel, heeling angles on an upwind beat are comfortably low. The Sun Cat really punishes those with a tendency to pinch, but if you let the cat rig fill up and maintain proper air flow, it has plenty of power to move the boat upwind and get through tacks without much speed loss.

Reaching

On a reach, the boat likes a slightly eased peak halyard, and by slightly I mean an inch or maybe two. Small adjustments make a big difference in sail shape, and it is easy to go too far. Once again the angle of the sail should be similar to the angle used for a jib, not a main, on a sloop. A good catboat rule of thumb, especially for beginners, is "when in doubt, let it out." The boat will have a bit of weather helm on a reach, but pulling up the centerboard a bit will balance it.

The Sun Cat is quite responsive to small adjustments, and will quickly let you know what it likes and what it does not like. We soon had the boat reaching across the harbor at a good clip, the centerboard pendant humming a happy tune.

Running Downwind

The hardest part about sailing a Sun Cat is making the decision to go home, but the time came to head in, and we turned downwind toward our destination. This is the part of catboat sailing that sloop sailors will like the best. No more blanketed jib flapping around uselessly, no more need to rig a whisker pole on one side and a preventer on the other for a wing on wing run, you just let the traveler down and let the mainsheet all the way out, and all that sail area goes to work.

On a run, the centerboard should be pulled all the way up to reduce drag. The boat tracks well without it, and leaving it down can make the boat round up excessively in the event of an accidental jibe.

Cockpit Comfort, and Going Home

The curved aft corners of the Sun Cat cockpit wrap around the helmsman's shoulders and it feels like the boat is giving you a nice hug as you lean back and relax in the corner. The three of us were all able to find comfortable spots in the shade of the Bimini top, a necessity on a warm day while running with the wind.

We lowered the engine and fired it up to turn upwind and drop the sail. Many owners outfit the Sun Cat with lazy jacks, which help to contain the sail as it falls, and also help to control the swinging of the gaff boom as it comes down. The main boom falls into the gallows, and if the rest of the sail and the gaff boom are kept on top of it by lazy jacks, the whole procedure is quick and easy.

There is a pin which can be inserted through the mast hinge, holding the forward end of the main boom high enough above the deck to clear the bimini top and allow the forward hatch to open. If the boat is to be docked or anchored, this is very convenient. If it is going right back on a trailer and the mast is coming back down, there is no reason to pin the boom at the hinge, since the booms and sail must be below the hinge to lower the mast.

The Sun Cat is a great choice for anyone who wants a small sailboat that is both comfortable and easy to sail, and it also has enough responsiveness and trim adjustments to please and challenge even very experienced sailors. For those who intend to trailer the boat each time it is used, the Sun Cat's quick and easy Mastendr (tm) rig system makes a short afternoon sail a possibility by dramatically reducing time spent at the ramp. Many small trailerable sailboats take 20 to 30 minutes to rig, and if you only have a couple of hours to spare, going for a quick sail is just not worth it. With a Sun Cat, you can be out on the water in minutes, and be back on the road home a few minutes after arriving back at the boat ramp.

Sun Cat Is Available With or Without a Small Cabin

The boat is made in two versions. The Sun Cat Daysailer is an open boat with a huge cockpit capable of seating 6 adults with room to spare. There is abundant storage under the cockpit benches, and an enclosed locker forward providing more storage space. The standard Sun Cat has a cabin with two berths and space under the bridgedeck for a porta potti. The cabin is quite spacious for a 17' boat due to the 7'3" beam, and is great for overnight trips.

Com-Pac Sunday Cat

Update: Com-Pac Yachts introduced a design in between the Daysailer and the Sun Cat, called the Sunday Cat. It has a small cabin forward, just big enough for a porta potti, and a larger cockpit than the full cabin Sun Cat version. At right is a picture of a Sunday Cat competing in the 2011 Sun Cat National Championship Regatta on Charlotte Harbor.

For those who just want a simple little daysailer, Com-Pac also makes the 14' Picnic Cat, and for more ambitious cruisers they make the 20' Horizon Cat, which features wheel steering and is available with a small Yanmar diesel engine or an adjustable outboard engine mount.

All share the same Mastendr quick and easy rigging system and have very similar sailing characteristics. Any of the Com-Pac catboats would make a great choice for trailer sailors who want a comfortable boat that is very quick and easy to rig and sail.

• Com-Pac Legacy Review
• For more on Com-Pac catboats, I recommend the catboat forum at trailersailor.com.

Attention Catboat Sailors

• Catboat sailors of all kinds can download and enjoy this Catboat Sailing Manual, filled with information about catboat sailing techniques and specifics about certain Com-Pac and Marshall catboats:
  Catboat Sailing Manual in pdf format

The post The Com-Pac Sun Cat: A Review first appeared on Tropical Boating.

A sailboat for families with a serious need for speed

In 2009, my friend Don bought his new Multi 23 trimaran. I had heard of the French-designed and Chinese-built boats, a very light 600 lbs. driven by a fairly large sail plan, with the necessary reserve bouyancy in the amas to ride up on one hull. He had raced aboard his son's large carbon fiber catamaran, but was primarily a monohull sailboat guy before purchasing the Multi 23. Knowing that I had an interest in trimarans, he included me in his boating plans in an effort to pick up some multihull tips.

This is not quite the blind leading the blind, but maybe someone with cataracts leading the blind. I owned an F-27 and have sailed on various Corsair trimarans and other catamarans and trimarans. Sometimes an enthusiastic amateur is the best "expert" available, so I became Don's "expert" multihull guy!

The Multi 23 design is by Marc Van Peteghem & Vincent Lauriot-Prevost Yacht Design, creators of numerous racing and cruising multihull designs including Lagoon catamarans and the BWM Oracle America's Cup racing trimaran some call "DoGZilla." Their long history of popular, winning designs made me sure that the basic Multi 23 would be fast and fun, and would be engineered properly to meet the loads it will encounter.

Multi 23 Delivery & Setup

After months of anticipation, the day finally came when the new Multi 23 was to arrive, and I went down to the boat ramp to help with assembly of the boat. There I met Mike Leneman of Multimarine.com, who was delivering the boat. It did not look much like a boat at first, just a bunch of bubble-wrapped pieces on a trailer.

We cut away packing material, and started to mount the akas, or crossbeams. I got a look inside the hull and amas at that point, and was impressed with the quality of the layup. I could see no dry patches anywhere, nor any extra resin, no sloppy trimming of glass — basically none of the hallmarks of shoddy boat construction. The akas fit perfectly in their attachment points, and it started to look a little more like a boat.

Next came the process of mounting the amas and attaching the trampolines. This kind of activity with a new boat design is guaranteed to attract other multihull sailing enthusiasts, and that day was no exception. Leaning on the forward aka is former Corsair dealer and Charlotte County area realtor Jim Mulligan, who came by to see the new boat with his partner John, a former Corsair sailor who now owns a Stiletto. Yes, we were all supposed to be working, but no multihull sailor can resist going to check out a new boat and talk about it with other sailors!

With the amas and akas installed and the trampolines stretched tight, it was time to raise the mast. The rotating foil shaped mast on this boat is aluminum, with carbon fiber spreaders. It is pre-tensioned with a double diamond rig, and rests on a ball that is mounted on the forward aka. To raise it, we used the boom as a gin pole and Mike's truck as a support stand. Check out the pre-bend in this mast!

Once the mast was up and the jib furler attached to the bow, it was time to tension the cap shrouds, which just have a multi-part section of that crazy high tech line, Dyneema or something, as tensioner tackle. Unlike the cap shrouds on our old Corsair F-27 trimaran, these do not appear to be intended for adjustment while under sail. With the rig tensioned, the Multi 23 was ready for launch.

I put together a short video showing the process of assembling and rigging the Multi 23:

https://youtube.com/watch?v=UD_YHeoZ__Q%26hl%3Den_US%26fs%3D1%26

Multi 23 trimaran at the dock waiting to race.

My first time out sailing it, there were three of us aboard, and the wind almost completely died on us. The Multi 23 was able to sail along slowly despite the heavy crew load and lack of wind, but it was more frustrating than fun. We only had the standard main and blade jib at that time, so we could not even catch what little air there was with a large headsail. After a while, we got tired of bobbing around slowly and went home. I did not even take any pictures that day.

I got a call early this week asking whether I would be interested in sailing in a race with the Charlotte Harbor Multihull Association on Thursday. Yes, more than a little interested! I showed up at the boat a little early, and no one was around. The boat sat at the dock, stripped of sails and unprepared to race

Multi 23 trimaran heading out the channel from Punta Gorda Isles.

I figured they would be along soon, and took the time to apply some sunscreen. After a while, when no one showed up, I began to wonder whether we could make the start line in time if they did not show up soon. I called the owner of the boat, who was blissfully having a late breakfast at IHOP, having forgotten about our race schedule. He came home in a hurry, and we threw the sails and gear on the boat and headed out. Our third crew member could not make it, which was just as well since the wind was pretty light. We put up the reacher to make sure all the lines were run clear and untangled on our way out.

Charlotte Harbor Multihull Association fleet gathering for an informal regatta.

The CHMA is a pretty informal group, meeting at a local restaurant and using government marks and keeping their own race times with GPS. They use no committee boat, and only one starting line mark. There are a variety of boats, including cruising catamarans, homebuilt trimarans, Corsairs and a few racing oriented boats like the Multi 23. It's kind of the opposite of serious class racing, but a very good time! It is fun to head out on the harbor and start to see multihull sailboats converging from every direction.

Charlotte Harbor Multihull Association fleet gathering for an informal regatta.

Among the boats that came out to sail that day were a big cruising catamaran, a Corsair Sprint 750 named "Improbable," along with a Stiletto 27 catamaran and what appeared to be a homebuilt trimaran:

Corsair Sprint 750 Improbable.

Stiletto flying blue star spinnaker and jib in light winds.

The winds were light, and the course for the day was from Charlotte Harbor marker 2 down to marker 1, over to marker 7 in the mouth of the Myakka River, then return to the start/finish line at marker 2. With the wind from the Northeast, our initial course was almost directly downwind. We got off to a good start and right away we were out in front of the fleet. A couple of the boats decided to go wing on wing, straight for the mark. The Stiletto was trying without success to use his jib as well, making for a weird looking cutter rigged multihull trying to go straight downwind

The Footerhauler enhances sail shape on the Multi 23.

Not to be outdone with unconventional sailing tactics, we quickly invented and deployed the footerhauler, a specialized sailing device used to help hold the proper shape in a Multi 23's reacher.

We rounded Charlotte Harbor marker 1 and headed up toward 7 in the Myakka river mouth.

We turned away from the mark a bit and tried sailing a hotter angle. We were going faster than the other boats, but not quite going in the right direction. In the end, as often happens with multihulls, the hotter angles proved faster. We were also helped by a favorable wind shift and increase in wind speed near the mark, but it seemed to me that our speed more than made up for the extra distance covered, even if we had not gotten the lucky shift. By the time we rounded marker 1, the Stiletto and the Corsair were well behind us, still moving slowly downwind, while we took off on the reaching leg at more than twice their speed. Though I should have been concentrating on our speed and maintaining course toward the mark, I could not resist snapping a picture of our competitors back at the mark.

I also took a moment to preserve the moment on video, which I shot using my waterproof Canon Powershot D10. The D10 is a great little waterproof camera but does not have the video quality of modern camcorders. At least I don't mind taking it out on wet boats like my Hobie Adventure Island!

https://youtube.com/watch?v=-YVSWpSwYP4%26hl%3Den_US%26fs%3D1%26

Reaching across to marker 7, I was experiencing some feedback on the tiller, but did not think anything of it. After a minute or so, the owner realized we were still cruising along with the centerboard mostly retracted. He pulled it down and immediately the helm was pleasantly neutral, but I could feel and hear the board moving around down there, along with tremendous turbulence in the trunk. At the speed we were going, it seemed to me that the reduced drag from neutralizing the helm was offset by the increased drag from the now-fully-open centerboard trunk. I am told that Mike at Multimarine.com has devised a fairing that drops into place as the board is extended, which should reduce this source of drag quite a bit. The owner of the boat told me that when boat speed reaches around 15 knots, the center hull will lift out of the water and the boat rides along on one low-drag ama. The acceleration when the vaka lifts is exciting, but we did not have the necessary wind to have that kind of fun.

Rounding marker 7, the wind died down quite a bit. We dropped the reacher and rolled out the blade jib, and slowed down so much that I was wondering whether the boat had the stored energy necessary to tack. It did, barely. We adjusted the travelers, sheeted and shaped the sails, and headed off on a long tack across the harbor.

Steering the boat upwind was a bit of a challenge for me. I was sitting as far forward as possible, and there was just not that much boat out in front of me to watch. Many of the telltales were stuck to the sails, and the yarns tied to the cap shrouds were above and behind me. I could not really tell which way I was pointing the boat, which way the wind was currently coming from, nor whether the telltales on either side of the sails were fluttering. I managed to figure out what the boat would do upwind, and was pretty impressed with our tacking angles.

While we were trying to get going upwind, the Corsair Sprint 750 made up a lot of ground on us. I'm not sure what happened to the Stiletto, which I figured would be pretty fast on the reaching leg, but by the time we got to marker 7 they were far behind. The Sprint rounded the mark and started coming upwind pretty fast, but not as close to the wind as we were sailing. The extra speed did not help them, and they were unable to close the distance between us on that leg. We finished with line honors, and probably beat the fleet on corrected time, but one of the nice things about the Charlotte Harbor Multihull Club races is that no one really cares who won on corrected time, including me! I'm just glad to work on our skills so we can make a decent showing in some of the more serious races on the harbor, and it's always fun to see friends sailing multihulls on the harbor.

Catboat Willy in his Marshall Sanderling catboat.

After the race was over, we sailed around a bit and encountered Catboat Willy out sailing his Marshall catboat before returning to the dock in Punta Gorda Isles.

Our next time out was quite a bit more exciting. Racing on Feb 28, 2010 with the Punta Gorda Sailing Club, we left the dock around noon, with winds in the low teens and just a few whitecaps starting to appear. Heading out into the harbor, we saw a Sea Pearl with tanbark sails going by at a good clip.

Sea Pearl.

By race time, the wind was a steady 15 with gusts to 20 and the typical nasty harbor chop with whitecaps everywhere. Only one Stiletto showed up to compete in the multihull class, and we got a good start while they wound up in irons on the line. Somehow, they recovered from that error and got out ahead of us, forcing us to duck out in mid course at one point. They had to make an extra tack and we were ahead again rounding the upwind mark, then we took off downwind and left them behind, eating up the whole fleet of hull-impaired boats on a wide jibe at speeds up to 13 knots. We were just flying the leisure main and jib and did not use the screacher, as neither of us is really ready to handle that sail in those winds.

The second lap went smoothly, as we are starting to learn the little things that make life easier when tacking and rounding the marks. The blast downwind was not as fast because the wind eased up a bit, and if we had had more race course in front of us when it happened, we would have benefitted from launching the screacher, but decided we were better off concentrating on getting the speed we could with the sails we had in the short distance remaining. We were a little early calling the jibe down to the finish line and wound up going too deep and too slow for a little bit, but still finished the 4 mile course in about 45 minutes. I wanted to take pictures and video while we were zipping along, but now realize that will only be possible when we have another crewman on board.

Multi 23 Ama Splash.

Update 3/29/10: We sailed in the 2010 Leukemia Cup Regatta in Charlotte Harbor, and did OK. I took a few nice pictures and some video.

https://youtube.com/watch?v=Mp4RCieIv-Y%26hl%3Den_US%26fs%3D1%26

The post Multi 23 Sport Racing Trimaran Review first appeared on Tropical Boating.

The Catalina 309

A self-tailing winch on the coachroof can be used for the outhaul or the mainsheet, but in practice is only needed for fine adjustments in strong winds.

The furler loop turns a winch that is mounted into the mast. The winch actually turns the furler itself. In an emergency, you can crank in your sail by using a winch handle.

The jib and spinnaker halyards and the line for the rigid boom vang are all led through stoppers to a self tailing winch.

The folding steering wheel makes even more room in the already-roomy cockpit

Sailing the Catalina 309: A Review

The Catalina 309 sails like a dream. Serious sailors may think that the standard in-mast furling mainsail doesn't look like serious sailing equipment, but to them I say, "just try it." That mainsail may look funny, and there is not a telltale anywhere on it, but it drives the boat nicely, and is the easiest sail to operate you have ever seen on a boat this size. You can adjust the size and shape of the sail to suit conditions, and the boat responds quickly to those adjustments, letting you know what works and what does not.

Catalina Yachts designer Gerry Douglas has hit a home run with the Catalina 309 in many ways, but my favorite part of the boat is the in-mast furling mainsail and its controls. The furler can be operated by a continuous loop of line which is run underneath the traveler and through a pair of rope clutches on the starboard side of the companionway. Next to those are the outhaul, also led through a line clutch, and the mainsheet, led through a heavy duty jam cleat. A self-tailing winch on the coachroof can be used for the outhaul or the mainsheet, but in practice is only needed for fine adjustments in strong winds.

The furler loop turns a winch that is mounted into the mast, and the winch actually turns the furler itself. In an emergency, you can put a handle in that winch and crank in your sail. The furling line cannot become entangled inside the mast, because it never enters the mast at all.

The 309 is Light and Maneuverable, With Quick Helm Response

The boat is light and maneuverable enough, and the sails are not all that heavy, so a quick pinch into the wind will allow you to pull the outhaul to flatten the sail or trim in the main and jib sheets without using the winch in winds up to 15 knots or so. Helm response is quick, so if you're quick on the lines, you won't lose much speed at all.

Easy Sail-Handling and Reefing

Reefing is quick and easy. Just release the outhaul and pull one side of the furling loop with the other released, and the sail rolls away inside the mast. You can then close the furler and outhaul clutches, pull the outhaul tight, and you have a smaller mainsail. You are not limited to one, two, or three reef points. If the conditions dictate that you fly 1/2 of your mainsail and 1/2 of your roller furling jib, you can do that. We did, and we sustained an average of almost 7 knots for a few hours.

It was easy to set the sails so that the boat's helm was balanced and we were not heeling too much as we cruised up Charlotte Harbor. In the gusts of wind in the mid to high 20s, we were of course overtrimmed, but compensation was easy with the traveler. Both traveler lines are led to cam cleats on the port coachroof. We were on a port tack the entire time, and I was able to sit behind the traveler controls and ease the main out during the gusts, then quickly pull it back up as the gust subsided. If I got distracted by a bag of chips or something of similarly pressing importance when a gust came along, the helm was overpowered and the boat would round up, but as long as I played those traveler lines with the wind, our helm was balanced and we had great speed through the gusts.

Also on that side are the jib and spinnaker halyards and the line for the rigid boom vang, all led through stoppers to a self tailing winch.

I would like to see the vang and traveler lines led to the other side with all the other mainsail controls, but that would require an asymmetric cockpit with the companionway offset to the other side. It would allow a nice, long bench along the bulkhead, and someone resting on it could control every aspect of mainsail size and shape without getting up. The mass market may not be ready for my wacky idea.

The Mainsail Halyard

Where, you might ask, is the mainsail halyard? It is led through a clutch on the mast, and can be coiled out there, out of the way. If you must tension it, it can be led through a block at the mast step and to a cockpit winch, but that is usually unnecessary once the sail and halyard are broken in.

Catalina 309 is Roomy Even for a Six-Footer

The cockpit of the 309 is vast. I'm 6 feet tall, and when I sit on one side of the cockpit, my feet are nowhere near the bench on the other side. We put a 48 quart cooler in the cockpit, and it is the perfect size to fill that gap and give you somewhere to brace your feet when the boat is heeling. The stern rail seats are comfortable. They have a great view and a drink holder, as all stern rail seats should. The coaming is set at a comfortable angle to sit on under sail, and is low enough to make exiting the cockpit underneath the Bimini top easy. The side decks are wide, with excellent non-skid, and the inboard chainplates make going forward safe and simple. The cockpit lazarette locker is cavernous. It is deep enough that it is kind of awkward even for a tall person to get inside, but there is a huge amount of storage space in there. The trash can is in there, with a flap in the bulkhead so that it can be used from the galley. When it is full, you don't have to carry a stinky trash bag through the cabin, as it is already outside.

Engine access on the 309 is outstanding, with complete access to three sides of the Yanmar fresh water cooled diesel engine once the companionway step is swung out of the way or removed. It also provides great access to the transmission and dripless shaft seal under a panel in the quarterberth. All through-hull fittings are labeled and easily accessible. It is generally an easy boat to maintain or upgrade.

The galley and main salon have good headroom and ventilation. The beam of this boat makes it feel much larger than its actual 31 foot LOA. Four of us ate at the salon table, with plenty of room for a couple more. When the table is stowed away, movement around the cabin is unrestricted. A handrail overhead allows safe passage forward in a seaway, or lets you stand at the navigation station if you don't wish to sit down.

The V-berth is comfortable, and I like how the filler panel slides away forward when not in use. My wife and I slept up there and had adequate space even though she is a notorious berth-hog. Or maybe I am. (Wife's note: he is.) Anyway, it worked out fine on the Catalina 309.

Dinghy Access, Electronics

We were towing a West Marine inflatable dinghy, and getting on and off through the walk-through transom from the swim step was easy. No one took a hot shower on the swim step in the crowded anchorage at Pelican Bay, but the shower does a great job of washing off your feet if you return with sand on them. The 4'4" draft wing keel allowed us to make our way in to the protection of the inner anchorage, while most sailboats stayed out in more wind and chop. The ability to get in to calm water also makes getting on and off a dinghy easier. A Garhauer stainless davit mounted on the stern rail with a foot mounted on the step outside the cockpit made lifting the dinghy engine on and off a breeze.

The boat we were on had a Garmin chartplotter and the factory-optional Raymarine ST 60 speed, depth, and wind instruments and the autopilot. All instruments are mounted in a NavPod on the helm pedestal, which also has all engine controls and instruments and the compass. All the instruments and controls are readily visible to and accessible by the helmsman; guests cannot sit in the way of your instruments, and you don't have to strain to see or operate anything.

Catalina 309 Conclusion

The Catalina 309 has the speed, balance, and agility to please a sailor, the ease of handling and maintenance to please an experienced boat owner, and the amenities to please your guests. It's big enough to cruise, yet small and easy enough to daysail. I expect to see lots of these boats around in the years to come, as it fills all the needs most sailors want.

The Catalina 309's salon is roomy and spacious, with enough headroom for a 6-footer to stand up straight just about everywhere

The post The Catalina 309: A Review first appeared on Tropical Boating.

The Com-Pac Legacy

Tohatsu 3.5 2-stroke

The handheld GPS recorded 4.6 knots of speed from the little Tohatsu at a comfortable cruising speed — and 5.1 knots at full throttle

The Legacy has a mast-mounted halyard fairlead (at left in above photo) and velcro jib tack (right), which make sail handling easy.

I sailed the Com-Pac Legacy up to the dock single-handed. Small boats are great, and the Legacy makes it easy!

A Test Sail in the New Com-Pac Legacy

Reviewed May 2007

Wednesday is small sailboat racing day at our sailing club, when a bunch of small-boat owners with a wide variety of little sailboats converge on the Port Charlotte Beach Complex for some extremely informal racing. Dennis brings his Martin 16's, and there are usually a couple of Sunfish, a Precision 15 or two, a Precision 185, and whatever I decide to bring. Working at a dealership for Com-Pac, Precision, and Hobie sailboats, I have a few sailboats from which to choose!

For one of the small sailboat race days, we decided to bring the new Com-Pac Legacy. The first one was produced less than a year ago, so few people have sailed these boats. I had never sailed one, but we had one in inventory at the dealership. Jim needed a break from the office, and I'm always up for a sail, so we decided that we should go and sail the Legacy, so that we could better inform our customers about the boat. I just love it when I can go sailing and call it work!

Rigging Was Easy — And Fast

When we got to the beach complex about 11:30, only one other sailboat was in the lot, a Precision 185. I parked the truck and began freeing the mast, an easy process on this boat. By the time the P-185 owner had sauntered down to my location, everything was free, and I was up on the boat, ready to move the mast back. The gentleman asked whether I needed any help rigging the boat; I thought to myself how much I love little boats and the innovative folks at Com-Pac, who seem to realize that I don't wish to spend my day at the boat ramp. I thanked him but politely declined his offer, explaining that they made it pretty easy on this boat.

I then picked up the mast and boom, mainsail and all, and walked it back until the mast step lined up with the deck hinge plate. I pinned the hinge and lifted the mast, pinning down the safety pins to hold it up. At that moment, Jim walked up and I handed him the forestay so he could pin it and use the quick rig tensioning lever to pull up the tension on the rig. As he did that, I released the small line holding the boom up against the mast, and let it fall down into position and clipped on the mainsheet. This was all accomplished in just a few minutes, and our friend with the P-185 had a kind of surprised tone in his voice as he remarked that "they really did make it easy, didn't they?"

We hanked on the jib and put on the Bimini top, hung on a fender and a couple of dock lines, and we were backing down toward the water. Launching was smooth and easy, and I did not even have to dip the back end of my truck, as I sometimes have to do on the larger boats. Did I mention that I love small sailboats?

Auxiliary Power

For this mission, we brought along the Tohatsu 3.5 two stroke that we keep around as a shop engine.

With the 20 inch shaft, the lower unit of the engine barely cleared the water when the boat was empty. The engine easily drove the little boat at about 4.5 knots at cruise power, and we achieved 5.1 knots on the GPS at full throttle.

Raising the Sails

As we got to open water, we raised the sails. The halyard fairleads with cam cleats are great. It was easy to raise the sails from the cockpit. Small boats with light sails are just so easy to sail. A few pulls, no winches required, and the main and jib were set. We found that in light air the boat sailed best with the two of us on opposite sides of the cockpit, which was fine with us, as it kept us both under the shade of the Bimini top.

Winds at that point were light and variable, about 3 to 6 knots, and the Legacy wanted to sail at about 2.5 knots beating upwind or running, and about 3 knots on any other point of sail.

The 20" Tohatsu dragged along slightly, especially on port tacks, since it is mounted on the starboard side of the transom. A 15 inch shaft engine would work fine, or the angle of the bracket could be changed to make the engine come to rest at a higher angle when tilted.

A Jib Track Would Be Nice To Have

I think the boat would benefit from the addition of a jib track, set diagonally from the corner of the coachroof toward the mast. The fixed jib lead is nice and simple, but as the wind picked up a bit, it would have been nice to lead the jib in a bit more. When we were downwind, it would have been nice to have the jib led outboard a bit more and led outside the shroud. To make the switch in strong winds would require two lead blocks on each track, so the lazy sheet could be led through on the opposite side of the shroud.

The Mainsheet Traveler

The mainsheet traveler is just a stainless rod welded onto the stern arch. The sheet clips on to the rod with a snap shackle. We found that in light air, it would stay where you put it when the sheet was tightened, and not slide back and forth. When tacking, and when the wind picked up, it did tend to slide to the downwind side. I think it would benefit from the addition of a couple of control lines with cam cleats on each end, so that you could fix it in the desired position.

We were having a great time sailing the little boat, and found that it would sail at speeds over 4 knots easily when the wind came up to 8-10 knots, but had to return to shore. When we got close, we sailed up to the beach, and Jim stepped ashore to take a few photos.

Jim did not make it around to the dock in time to catch me on the way in, and since it was a very short distance and winds were favorable, I decided to sail in to the boat ramp dock without firing up the engine. I was able to bleed off most of my speed approaching the ramp, reach up and release both halyards, and then make one last course correction as the sails came down and the boat glided to a stop within easy reach of a dock piling. Small boats are the best, and for single handed docking under sail, the smaller the better!

The post The Com-Pac Legacy: A Review first appeared on Tropical Boating.

The akas attach to crossbeams with a single pin

His and Hers Reviews — His Review

• See Her Review

Sailing the Hobie Adventure Island trimaran "Sail/Yak" is a pure sailing thrill! Just roll out the sail and you are coasting along at speeds that would require vigorous paddling in a normal kayak. Quickly accelerating to 4 or 5 knots while sitting so low in the water makes it seem like the boat is going much faster.

Sailing my Klepper kayak requires a good deal of "body English" as I lean far out over the coaming and put my elbow on the upwind side of the hull to help stabilize the boat. The trimaran configuration on the Hobie Adventure Island makes all that unnecessary. Just sit and sail, steering with your left hand and managing the mainsheet with your right. Even in fairly strong gusts, the boat does not heel over much at all, not even burying an ama most of the time. You can stand up in the boat and remove the mast with no trouble.

Assembling & Rigging the Adventure Island

The boat was quick and easy to assemble and rig. The 4 akas attach to the crossbeams with single pins, and their ends are inserted into holes in the amas and held in place by a bungee. Two support struts from the rear akas snap onto the hull sides with a ball and socket type joint to hold the hulls out. If you want to swing them in, just pull the strut off and they swing back alongside the main hull and are held in place with a bungee.

The mast is inserted through the deck to rest on a pin. A locking device holds it down, and it releases with a small trigger lever at the mast base. Once the mast is in place, just attach the mainsheet-outhaul to the clew of the sail and run the furling line from the drum at the mast base to the cam cleat, and the Adventure Island is ready to sail.

The Adventure Island is well-balanced on a reach.

Sailing the Adventure Island

The easy way to set the sail is to simply reach up and grab the clew with your hand and pull on it, using the other hand to take up the slack in the mainsheet. If it is windy, it is a better idea to pull the mainsheet with one hand while slowly letting out the furling line with the other hand. You can stop letting out the furling line when you have enough sail unrolled for the wind conditions and point of sail.

I found that pedaling with the MirageDrive helped maintain boat speed when the wind slacked off, and it was nice to be able to pedal a few strokes to power the boat through a tack without losing any speed. Without assistance from the MirageDrive, the boat tacked through 110 degrees, but a little pedaling significantly narrows that angle. The daggerboard did not seem effective at preventing side-slippage at low speeds, but with a little speed, the boat tracked straight. Pedaling a bit when sailing upwind almost eliminated slippage.

Reaching

Sailing on a reach with the Adventure Island, the power of the sail is easily balanced by the ama, and the minimal resistance of the kayak hull and the downwind ama result in quick acceleration and good speed. If you feel like sailing, the boat is quite responsive to small changes in sail trim as the wind speed and angle changes, so you can sit there and endlessly tweak the sail to try to maximize speed. If you feel like relaxing, the Adventure Island has two drink holders, and you can just set the sail and coast along.

Running Downwind

On a downwind run, the Adventure Island performs well if the wind is fairly strong and steady, but the lack of a boom means that it is hard to keep the sail out and filled on a run in light air. The boat could benefit from a light line run from the clew to the aft end of each ama to help pull the sail out to the side. It would make rigging and sailing a bit more complicated, but could add significantly to downwind performance. Because there are no shrouds to prevent letting the sail out beyond 90 degrees, it is possible to just keep letting it out and sail by the lee, and having an extra control line out at the corner of the boat would make that easier as well. It would be a good idea to build a weak link into such a line so that if there are strong loads in an accidental jibe the boat is not damaged. I doubt that Hobie designers intended for us to use the sail to tug on the aft end of the ama, but sailors must tweak and modify.

Sailors also feel a compulsion to add sail area, at least in this part of the world, where winds are often light. The Adventure Island's light weight and low drag allows it to move well in light air, but wouldn't it move a bit better if I could just figure out a way to add a jib up there? And maybe a bowsprit to allow a BIGGER jib or a spinnaker? I'll just need to devise some kind of a swivel in the top of the mast... nah, maybe I'd better not.

• Note: A few months later, I couldn't help myself. I took an old jib I had from a boat I no longer have, and made a jib for my Adventure Island. You can read about adding a jib to the Adventure Island here.

The sail furls easily.

Furling the Sail

The large roller bearing mast base and drum make furling the sail easy — just ease the mainsheet and pull the furling line, and the sail rolls around the mast. There is a small line and a jam cleat sewn into the sail so that you can secure the rolled sail easily when you disconnect the mainsheet and furling line to remove the mast from the boat.

Paddling the Adventure Island

With the ready and easy power of the MirageDrive and the fun of the sail, I almost forgot to try paddling the Adventure Island the first time I took it out. When I did remember to pick up the paddle, I found that my strokes were somewhat constricted by the akas. The boat moved pretty well with short "cruising" paddle strokes, but with the extra resistance of the two amas and the mast, I would not want to paddle very far into a strong wind and chop. Using the paddle to assist the MirageDrive would work very well in those conditions, once you get the feel of paddling while pedaling.

I can see lots of fun in my future with a Hobie Adventure Island kayak.

2012 Update: still enjoying the boats! Here is a short video:

• See Her Review

The post Hobie Mirage Adventure Island: His Review first appeared on Tropical Boating.

The Hobie Mirage Adventure Island — the kayak that sails, paddles, and pedals.

His and Hers Reviews — Her Review

Hobie calls it a 16' trimaran "sail/yak" — but I just call it fun. My husband and I had an opportunity to play with Hobie's revolutionary pedal-powered, sail-powered, paddle-powered Adventure Island kayak, and it gets a big thumbs-up from the wife.

When my husband heard my shout of "Yee-Haw!" from out in the river, he said to himself, "Oh, good, that means I have permission to buy one." I told him no, it doesn't. It means he has permission to buy two, and that if he buys only one, it better be the red one and have my name on it.

The Adventure Island is indeed a trimaran, with two amas that are easily attached or removed via the metal crossbeams. The amas can be folded in toward the boat — easily done while the kayaker is seated in the boat — to bring the boat up closely alongside a dock, ramp, or beach.

When the amas are out, the boat is exceedingly stable, and even when the amas are folded in it's much more stable than other kayaks. Even deliberate attempts to rock it, while standing up in the cockpit, fail to elicit much side-to-side movement. Anyone who dislikes the instability of most kayaks will find the Adventure Island a rock-solid delight.

Human Propulsion

Pedaling the Hobie Mirage Adventure Island.

The Adventure Island can be paddled like a conventional kayak, or it can be propelled by pedaling Hobie's "MirageDrive," which uses bicycle pedals that operate much like a stair-stepper, which oscillate underwater flippers similar to a penguin's. The flippers are surprisingly efficient at moving the boat through the water, and turned out to be very quiet. Women generally don't have as much upper body strength as men, and the pedals allow us to use the larger muscles in the legs to power the boat. I always have trouble keeping up with my husband in a paddling kayak, even when I'm paddling the faster boat, but I had no trouble keeping up with him when he was paddling his fast kayak and I was pedaling the Adventure Island. The demo model we used had the standard fins, but when I get my own Adventure Island, I'll probably purchase it with the "turbo fins" — and it won't surprise me if I sometimes find myself pulling ahead of Tom when I'm using those.

The Adventure Island can also be paddled like a regular kayak, too. There's a handy bungee cord and knob on the side of the boat to clip the paddle to, so that it's handy without being in the way. I paddled a bit, but as usual I immediately started falling behind Tom, and my arms grew tired quickly.

Instead of a foot-controlled rudder like most kayaks have, the Adventure Island has a little lever (tiller?) built into the left gunwale. When under pedal power, or sailing, the steering lever is convenient to use, but serious paddlers who want to use a kayak primarily for conventional paddling probably wouldn't want the Hobie Adventure Island as their primary kayak if only because of the hand-controlled tiller. When paddling, the kayaker must remove the left hand from the paddle to adjust the rudder, which I found inconvenient during my brief period of paddling. Mostly, though, I left the paddle clipped to the side of the boat and enjoyed pedaling it.

Wind Propulsion

Sailing the Hobie Mirage Adventure Island. The sail furls and unfurls easily.

Sailing the Adventure Island is pure, unadulterated fun. Before I went out in it for the first time, I was a little concerned that I would have trouble reaching the sheet from my seated position, or that the sail would be difficult to furl or unfurl. My worries were groundless, though. Sailing the Adventure Island is so easy, even a caveman could do it. When you're ready to unfurl the sail, you simply pull one line back towards you until the sail is out — an operation that takes just a few seconds and requires no specialized knowledge or skill whatsoever. When you're ready to furl it, you pull a different line, requiring no more time or skill than unfurling it. The sail is self-tacking, so tacking only requires adjusting the rudder to your new tack. My husband tells me it's a good idea to tighten the sail a little before tacking, then ease it back out after the tack, to reduce the wear created by the impact of the sail coming over hard.

The boat sails nicely on a reach and downwind, but I didn't really test how well it sails on an upwind tack or how closely it can sail into the wind. I'm not that skillful at trimming the sails even on a "real" sailboat. I'm pretty sure Tom will address that in his review, so I won't worry about leaving out such information. I can say that in our river where we played with it, I sailed upwind, downwind, and across the wind, and didn't have the sail flapping about too much.

Pros and Cons

Cons:

• The Adventure Island is relatively heavy — I would not be able to launch this boat on my own, if I were of a mind to go kayaking by myself, which I don't. I'm pretty sure Tom would be able to launch it by himself with some effort, but it's not as easy for one person to handle on land as a lighter-weight conventional kayak.
• If you want to use the sail, and the pedals, and the amas, it's a little more time-consuming to prepare the boat before launching it than most conventional kayaks.
• The cost. It's not cheap, but you get a lot for your money. The Adventure Island comes with the amas, crossbeams, pedal assembly, paddle, mast and sail, seat, and all rigging and covers. We plan to buy a pair of them, plus a trailer, so we'll need to find a few thousand bucks in the budget.

Nitpicking:

• When the sail is furled, the sheet leads from the mast back across my shoulder, pressing uncomfortably into the side of my neck. Although I didn't try it, I believe this could easily be corrected by loosening the sheet and leading it down to the deck and then back.
• As mentioned above, a serious paddling kayaker would probably dislike having to let go of the paddle with the left hand to adjust the rudder. My husband's comment, though, was, "I can't wait to get our own so I can throw away all my paddles."

Pros:

• Fun fun fun!
• Easy to sail, and easy to deploy the sail.
• Easy to pedal. When pedaling with moderate effort, I easily kept up with Tom, an experienced kayaker who is a strong paddler, at a pace that I was comfortably able to maintain over a sustained period of time. While resting, I continued to pedal at a very slow, restful pace, and, according to the GPS, I was making about 2 knots even while feeling like I was at nearly complete rest. During a short sprint, I kept up with Tom when he was paddling his fast kayak as hard as he could — but that wasn't a pace that I would be able to maintain.
• The Adventure Island is very stable, and has plenty of storage space: A convenient cupholder for my soda, several net pockets, a zipper pocket in the back of the seat, two built-in fishing rod holders, an enclosed forward hatch, and an open rear storage area.
• Trimarans can make it impossible to go through a narrow pass, and sailboats often can't go under bridges. But in the Adventure Island, the whole mast can be lifted out and laid down across the crossbeams, and the amas can be folded in toward the boat, which enables the Adventure Island to go under bridges or go through narrow passes. The boat is stable enough that standing up in the cockpit to lift out the mast presents no concerns at all about capsizing.

• His Review of the Hobie Adventure Island

The post Hobie Mirage Adventure Island: Her Review first appeared on Tropical Boating.

The Catalina Expo 12.5

Reviewed May 2007

I took the Catalina Expo 12.5 out for small boat sailing day with the Punta Gorda Sailing Club and learned a bit more about how the boat likes to sail in light air. On the way out, I passed one of our gang in a Precision 15, returning to the dock because he had already been out long enough to drink all of his water. I turned around to chase him, and found that the little Expo could almost keep up, but not quite.

I turned and went back out the channel, messing with the outhaul tension as I went. Just a small adjustment of the outhaul substantially changes the amount of curve or camber in the sail. You can flatten it for strong breezes or let it assume a full shape in lighter winds, and the boat responds instantly to the changes. Weighing in at only 130 lbs and carrying 65 square feet of sail, the boat is naturally responsive to any changes made to the sail.

The free standing carbon fiber mast inserts easily into the deck, and we just leave the Hoyt boom in place when trailering the boat. I arrived at the park after almost everyone else, but sailed away while they were still rigging their boats. Because the sail rolls around the mast, it is possible to roller reef it, rolling up part of it when winds get strong, or let the whole thing out when winds are light.

Also present that day were a few Martin 16's with spinnakers and a nice Laser. All of those boats were considerably faster than the Expo 12.5, so our "races" in the very light winds were not very close. In the first race, they clobbered me badly because I did not have the sail set correctly to beat into the light winds. I had set it too tight, and it did not have the power to move the boat well at all. In the next race, I eased the outhaul just a couple of inches, and although pointing angle was not quite as good, the increased boat speed more than made up the difference. I still could not keep up with the faster boats, but they were noticeably closer as I came around.

A Sunfish also showed up, and provided at least a little closer competition, though that boat can also walk away from the little Expo. The guy sailing the Sunfish was curious about the Expo, so we abandoned one of the races and switched boats with each other.

I had not sailed a Sunfish in about 30 years, but remembered it being fun. It was still fun! I was racing it in what turned into our last race of the day when the wind completely died. As I approached the windward mark, I could hear Dennis yelling to me to just pick it up and bring it back with me. He did not want to try to sail all the way out to the mark to get it, and I can't say I blame him.

As we went back in toward the beach and boat ramp, the wind shifted and increased quite a bit as a small thunderstorm approached. I wished I had traded back into the Expo so that I could see how it would handle the gusts, but I did have a good time making the little Sunfish really move out as I headed to shore. Once we all got back, the rain started to fall. I quickly furled the sail on the Expo around the mast, pulled the boat up high on the beach, and got in my truck to wait out the rain. The rest of the guys were getting their boats on trailers and derigging them in the rain as I listened to the radio. When the rain let up a bit, I got the boat on the trailer, unplugged the free standing carbon fiber mast and tied it to my truck, and left as the rest of the soaked sailors finished getting their boats derigged and secured for travel.

I may not have had the boat to beat all those guys in a race, but I clobbered them in the race at the boat ramp, and I'll put the ease of use and sheer fun factor of the Catalina Expo 12.5 up against any other boat. You don't have to duck as the Hoyt boom goes overhead, and three lines allow you to control the size, shape, and angle of the sail. The side decks are wide and angled comfortably for any point of sail, and the cat rig really pulls the boat along with surprising power once you tune it correctly for the wind.

The little Catalina Expo 12.5 may not be the fastest sailing boat in its class, but it's the fastest to rig and launch.

The post The Catalina Expo 12.5: A Review first appeared on Tropical Boating.