Just got a new boat!!!

[Winnipesaukee]

Whats up Lake Winni!

I just got back from the lake today, where I picked up a 20' Tornado racing catamaran sailboat from a VERY nice gentleman I met on this forum (I don't know if he wants to reveal himself...but if you do... ) .

I hope to take it out on Winni at least once in August sometime, then I'll sail it a bit on a small lake down here in MA, then over the winter I'm going to do a "mini restoration" and get the hulls nice and shiny. Plan to see me mostly around the Gilford/Weirs/Meredith area most of the time. I'll be "that nut" rounding FL #1.

Just had to brag a little.

[Dave R]

Congrats! Sweet boat. Ought to provide some excitement.

[SAMIAM]

Lookin' GOOD.Winni.Congratulations and have fun.

[jrc]

Holy cow! That looks like a blast, good luck!

[SIKSUKR]

Ya,nice ride Winni.Although that's a little too high in the trapeze for me!

[pmj]

Congratulations, that looks like a blast...giving a whole new meaning to rail meat!
Have fun with her....did they really name it "Patricia"?

[Winnipesaukee]

Hahah. That's not me; I just pulled that picture off Google. Same type of boat, though (minus the spinnaker).

Thanks guys!

[SAMIAM]

I've a couple of pretty fast day sailers but never owner or even gone out in a "cat" and I'm curious about something.I'm familiar with the advantages of twin hull sailing but don't you lose that advantage when you heel as the picture shows? Looks like close to 45 degrees and it sure looks like fun but I'd think you would lose speed with only one hull in the water.

[ApS]

Originally Posted by Winnipesaukee

"...I just got back from the lake today, where I picked up a 20' Tornado racing catamaran sailboat from a VERY nice gentleman I met on this forum (I don't know if he wants to reveal himself...but if you do... ) .

Well, NOW I don't! I have a curmudgeon's reputation to maintain here, y'know.

Hope you get a lot of enjoyment out of the Tornado. It was my Winnipesaukee mainstay for 14 years, and it's only my "trick knee" that keeps me out of catamaran sailing.

Your newly-purchased sailboat was a participant in the World Olympics, and has the proof of an inspector's seal on it. There's no reason why the boat can't be entered once again: that Tornado remains Olympics-competitive after 30+ years!

(And it's the only sailboat on the lake that can break the proposed night-time speed limit!)

Thanks to Don and the Forum for getting this Tornado back on the lake again, and into the able hands of member Winnipesaukee.

[Winnipesaukee]

SAMIAM:

I'm familiar with the advantages of twin hull sailing but don't you lose that advantage when you heel as the picture shows?

Absolutely. When you heel that much, although you get one of the hulls out of the water and reduce drag (a lot of drag, you can feel it), you are also dumping the air out of the top of the sail, effectively depowering it. That's why it isn't hard to get the hull at the "sweet spot" balance point (for fun).

Now, if you want to be as fast as possible, you want to get the windward hull just out of the water. That way, you cut your drag in half without depowering the sail too much.

APS, thanks again! Next 4th of July weekend, I hope to get proficient enough with the T to race it in the Statue of Liberty Race and represent the lake with "Lake Winnipesaukee, NH" in vinyl on each side, under the name (which I still can't decide on).

I have a curmudgeon's reputation to maintain here, y'know.

Anything but!

There's no reason why the boat can't be entered [in the Olympics] once again

How about my skill level? That a good reason?

[John A. Birdsall]

I looked at that picture, its great but you sure that isn't FLL

[Captain Zipper]

Originally Posted by SAMIAM

I've a couple of pretty fast day sailers but never owner or even gone out in a "cat" and I'm curious about something.I'm familiar with the advantages of twin hull sailing but don't you lose that advantage when you heel as the picture shows? Looks like close to 45 degrees and it sure looks like fun but I'd think you would lose speed with only one hull in the water.

You are correct but as an old Hobie Cat owner I know from experience that when you "fly a hull" in front of a caribbean resort a few times you end up with the "beach babes" being "putty in your hands". They all want a ride. Ka-ching!

Had a friend that used to race his.........I crewed for him "once" and only "once"..................I said, "Bill, we're a mile from the beach....no one can see us! " Of course it was a windless day so that only made it worse.

The funniest thing ever was the time I was flying a hull with my friend in the harness and he shifted too far forward. We pitch pulled (the only hull in the water submarined) and he went swinging around the bow like he was on a tree swing......finally ending in the water.............I was laughing so hard at the site of it that I almost drowned........of course that is why it's called the trapeze........he knew to listen to the captain before moving forward the next time................oh man, I still miss that boat.


CZ

[ApS]

Originally Posted by Captain Zipper

"...The funniest thing ever was the time I was flying a hull with my friend in the harness and he shifted too far forward. We pitch pulled (the only hull in the water submarined) and he went swinging around the bow like he was on a tree swing......finally ending in the water............."

The splash in the water on the left of this photo is the crew member experiencing a "pitchpole". The Tornado captain (middle-lower) is about to get wet. Putting three aboard a "beach cat" nearly guarantees a pitchpole in heavy waves.



Not that a pitchpole is unknown among larger multi-hulls.

When the Tornado was first advertised for sale in the 70s, sales brochures showed a waterskier being towed behind it. Since then, Tornado speeds are approaching 40-MPH, thanks to the assymetrical sails that are allowed under racing rules.

Another catamaran I own, a "Matrix", was an under-capitalized competitor of the Tornado, and never achieved Tornado's popularity. It could be even faster, due to its lighter weight and huge jib. I run it with only one rudder, because high speeds had ripped the second one off the transom! Here, its two "trampolines" are protected against the sun.



It's hard to believe the power of dacron sails in a breeze, but never try to hold back your riderless catamaran when standing knee-deep in the water without waterskis. Ask me how I know!

[Airwaves]

My cousin used to have a Hobie Cat and he pitch poled more than once! We look back on it NOW and laugh.

Have a great time Winnipesaukee, I'll keep a weather eye out for you!

[Captain Zipper]

My first few boats when I was younger were sailboats......mono hull and the the Hobie. When I was in High School, a friend's family had a 40 ketch. I had the pleasure of sailing from Mystic to Block, Martha's Vineyard and many other points.

I own a powerboat now and enjoy it a great deal but those days of sailing will always hold a special place in my heart, as I see they do to Acres also.

The joy of boating with a sailboat was always the trip.......not the destination.

It is amazing the power some wood/fibreglass, lines, and cloth can do to leave such deep and lasting impressions.

Acres; here's to the memories. I can tell your boats meant a lot to you.

CZ

[Rattlesnake Guy]

Last night we sold the kids first real sailboat. A lot of good memories for this family. Some of the best time the boys spent as brothers were sailing the broads in that old boat. Glad she found a new home on our lake.

PS they have a newer boat now but scarcely any time to enjoy it. Hope when they get a bit older they remember to make the time.

[Winnipesaukee]

For a sweet pitchpole, try this.

http://youtube.com/watch?v=J9LFsyoUDDQ



Also, APS, something happened to my email about a week ago, so if you need to get in contact with me, just use the PM.

[Captain Zipper]

I like this one............http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-SgT5...elated&search=

Picture is kind of blurry in spots but it really shows what it's about.

One time I was out by myself on my Hobie 16 on a local reservoir........This lake is the only body of water I've sailed on where you could make a 360 degree course change and keep your boom on the same side. This lake was like a big toilet bowl with mountains surrounding it.

Anyway......... I was out sailing.......the winds were kind of funky........I see my first bald eagle!.............amazingly I watch him swoop down and grab a fish out of the water about 50 yards away from me.........obviously I was dumbstruck.........well, in not paying attention to the wind.....over I go.......I couldn't right the boat myself.........the patrol boat comes out............2 lifeguards in a rowboat with a 9.9..............One on of them jumps up on the hull to help me right it..........he falls as the boat comes upright and somehow he broke his ankle............ I felt terrible (but somehow for as badly as I felt I couldn't stop laughing).............I hid my face every time I saw him the rest of the summer sitting in the boat house with his cast on.


CZ

[Winnipesaukee]

Haha. Nice story!

I've never had the thrill (or hole in the wallet) of a pitchpole. A few weeks ago, however, a friend and I were sailing a Boston Whaler Supercat 17. We were in a rush to get out, so I had rigged both the mainsheet and trapeze wires wrong. Well, a gust of wind came, I was on the trap and my friend tried sheeting out, but it wouldn't go out fast enough. We ended up capsizing. When the mast hit the water, I was standing up 8 feet in the air trying to unhook myself from the shoddy trapeze rigging. I ended up falling forward into the shroud, and then into the sail. Now I have a nice foot-long gash on my leg and side. Was it worth it? Absolutely!