PDQ Yachts 36 Capella Owner's Manual page 34

Cruising Under Sail 6-3
(Continued)
Heavy Weather and Offshore Safety
One of the keys to surviving in bad weather is to keep your boat speed down. In a
monohull, lying a hull or heaving to generally does this. Neithe r of these techniques is
recommended for the catamaran. With no heel angle to reduce the weight of the wind
on the mast and rigging, and to reduce the lateral resistance of the hull and keels, the
full forces of the storm bears on the boat and increases the likelihood of damage or
capsize.
Heavy Weather and Offshore Safety
(con'd)
If the sea room is available, running before the storm is appealing, providing speed can
be controlled and the crew is not too tired. The problem is that in extreme conditions,
even with no sails up, the surfing speed down larger waves may increase to dangerous
levels. This is the time to use a drogue deployed on 300 feet of line from the stern,
balanced with a small amount of sail to give a steady speed for control. The artic le,
Drogues and Sea Anchors by Ian Johnson and Cathy Hawkins, (Multihulls, May-June
1989) provides more detail. If a drogue is not available, you can also trail the anchor
line between the hulls, with the bight streaming aft in a huge U.
The ultimate cho ice for surviving the worst is the parachute sea anchor. This is
deployed on a bridle from the bow. If you are considering a trip offshore, please read,
The Parachute Anchoring System, published by Chiodi Advertising and Publishing
Inc., Boston, MA, USA, and follow Charles Chiodi's advise – "Get the system and
don't leave dock without it."
All this talk of heavy weather and survival sounds alarming. Remember that all
accounts show that yachts of any type are almost always tougher than the crew. The
crew, often with fatal results has abandoned many, and the yachts have been found
PDQ 36 Capella - Owner's Manual