When we took the boat to be hauled in Hampton, Va. in the winter of 2003, the marina had never hauled a "full keeled" sailboat. They invited a legion of people to consult. One person had spent some years restoring and sailing the square rigged replica vessel, "Discovery,".in historic Jamestown. In asking about the name and after hearing the story, he offered that "it probably is "cat-harpings" rather than Catharpin. The cat-harpings were part of the rigging for square rigger sailing ships and were used to allow the yard arms to enable the vessel to sail upwind."

When we sailed with the Caribbean 1500 in 2006, one of the other ralliers asked if we had looked it up in "The Sea of Words." When we said no, they brought it out and we found the entry:

"Cat-harpings: Small ropes that brace the SHROUDS of the lower MASTS under the TOP of SQUARE-RIGGED vessels. Until about 1820, the FUTTOCK SHROUDS were secured to the lower shrouds and futtock-STAVES rather than to the lower mast. To assist in securing the TOPMAST ropes were snaked between the futtock-staves and FRAPped together to form cat-harpin legs. Later the cat-harpin legs were short lengths of heavy rope with an eye at each end and served throughout their length. Since the cat-harpins pulled the lower shrouds in a little, this facilitated the bracing up of the lower yard. In Young Sea Officer's Sheet Anchor, Darcy Lever illustrates a variation, in which the cat harpings cross, forming an X. This is the source of Patrick O'Brian's cross cat-harpings."

When we ran across another rallier who also asked about the name, he asked if we had looked in Ashley's Book of Knots. Their entry states:

"Catharpins (are a knot that) stiffened the backstays by frapping them to the tops, and were a variety of the crowfoot. The ends were spliced and seized similarly to "ratlines". Sometimes they had a euphroe block, at other times they were merely lashed. Catharpins were still to be seen occasionally at the turn of the present century."