Should I start with a cat or monohull?

[Talbot]

I believe your answer is rather more correct for the lightweight cats, than the heavier designs. For example privilege, broadblue and prout are slower, but more comfortable, with better space for a family. If you are looking at the lightweight designs, particularly those coming from Aus, where the design emphasises speed rather than endurance.

[sandy daugherty]

Leaping bows? Is this some newly discovered catamaran feature? Why don't I have it?

Just maybe its a new urban myth that grew out of some exceptional conditions in an area notorious for it, which would have had nearly the same effect on any other floating object.

I recall watching a lot of "Victory at Sea" flicks with a huge Battleship playing the Leaping Bow Game, so maybe this concept is more a function of being in the wrong place at the right time, than being there on too many bows!

[Jmolan]

We originally bought a mono for a number of reasons. I wanted a boat that need nothing to get going. Fully outfitted and in great shape a Norsea 27 was a great choice to enjoy learning the sailing life. It was easy to sell (which was a reason to buy it) In fact the original owner bought it back for the same preice two years later.
We moved to a 37' Searunner and really enjoyed the difference. I like any good boat, but the Searunner makes it all come together for us. we now own the 34' Searunner and do not look to "upgrade" anytime soon.

[Oyvind]

We are in pretty much the same family situation as you are, with three kids aged 5, 6 and 9. We bought our first family cruiser a year ago, a 28' Maxi 84. The two youngest ones sleep in the forepeak, the rest in the saloon. The Maxi 84 is quite roomy both below and in the cockpit, and sail handling is unproblematic even when the entire family sits up there. A deep cockpit makes it safe for the kids, the disadvantage being that forward view is restrained when sitting on the bench, so I prefer to perch on the narrow and arguably somewhat narrow coaming when steering.

Some smaller boats may not be laid out with a separate compartment for the head. For pleasurable family cruising, and as long as the boat otherwise fits a young family, both accomodation and safety-wise, I'd say a separate head is the single most important feature IMHO.

The fact that we have to share the cabin with the kids at night doesn't really bother us much, and believe me, Norway is way wetter and colder than California, so sitting up in the cockpit is seldom a real option. But then our entire family hugely enjoys reading so we make sure we are well stocked up on literature, and as each crew member snucks up in their berth with a book, the evenings become quite pleasurable IMHO.


BTW, the Maxi 84 is a mono, I have no experience with multihulls.

[Talbot]

At Anchor -- yes an important plus for a cat - but this is offset by the extra cost of the occasional need to be alongside in a marina (something that becomes very important if you go the lightweight very long hull, but minimal accommodation and very fast route).

Beam reach -- good point of sail which may offset the reduced windward capability - to be fair, the reduced windward capability is a more significant problem for very old design catamarans like the catalac. (I am not denigrating the design, I love them and owned a 9m for 21 years, but must be realistic.)

Down wind performance. -- Lots of information about other points of sail, praise and plaudits, but what really makes the difference to me is that as a long distance cruiser you are looking for routes which are utilising the trade winds, and this means downwind sailing (if you have got it right). The point of sail that I detest in a monohull is that cyclic roll during downwind sailing. If for no other reason, and personally I have a lot of other reasons, the ability of a cat to sail downwind without a roll that would create a psychotic response in the sanest individual illustrates the single most important reason for buying a cat.

For most women, the ability to move around the vessel and do things without being heeled over at a worrying angle, comes high on their list of decision points. A large uncluttered galley decent cooker, fridge and freezer so that they feel comfortable, in what a lot of women still view as their own preserve, is also a valid statement.

If I am being PC, I would merely comment that the domestic capabilities of a cat far outweigh those provided in a half boat.