High-Speed Sailing

I'd like to start with a look at one of the most basic problems of sailing and particularly of sailing fast. As we all know (but some of you may not have realized) a sailboat has an apparent stability problem. This problem is due to the vertical misalignment of the forces that drive the sailboat. In other words the force of the air acting on the sail is above the force of the water acting on the boat hull. This misalignment of forces causes the craft to heel (or capsize if great enough). The solution since the beginning of sailing has been to add weight to the boat. Adding weight to the boat does not solve the problem, it shifts the problem into a higher wind range. In a mono-hull the balancing weight is set low (lead in the keel) in a multi-hull the balancing weight is the windward hull (and any crew on that hull).

Stability of the craft is the single biggest barrier to high speed sailing. While some of you might not agree on that point I will make my case as I proceed, and I will analyze all the contenders from that view. This stability is such a complex problem that Burt Rutan (yes the genius engineer who heads Scaled Composites) said "I don't know how man learned to sail before he learned to fly".

A few designers have solved this stability problem. I only know of a few at this point so that's all I'll mention but I would like to hear about any others.

First I'll toot my own horn. I solved the problem at the model stage and proved it, then proved it again with the full sized prototypes. (See my previous post for more info.) These craft are totally stable and controllable on any point of sailing (any wind strength) with no added weight. My current prototype weighs about 175 lbs and will carry two people.

I should probably add that my design is scalable to any size so you can have a full-size live-aboard ocean cruising yacht that can not only be faster than existing designs, but safer as well.

Bob