Cat Boat??? Why is it called a Catboat

[Tom L.]

When I go back North for the holidays and tell all my friends and relatives that I just bought a Cat Boat or is it Catboat they are surely going to ask, what's a catboat. That is the easy part to answer but how did it get that name? Anybody know?

[Jon898]

Lots of theories, but nothing definitive.  Some of the ideas out there are:

1. Quick as a cat
2. Portholes look like a cat's eyes
3. Derived from similar rigged boats used in the coal and timber trade on the east coast of England (unlikely in my opinion, as I'd never heard the term catboat until I came to the US...sorry Oxford English Dictionary!).
4. Associated with the mast being well forward where the catheads would be found on a ship.
5. Possibly derived from the German term Kattenkopf for the spike stuck vertically in an anchor windlass (even more unlikely IMHO).
6. Sail flat, replicating a cat landing on it's feet.

You'll probably spend more time convincing people you don't have a catamaran, and I just tell them it's a uniquely American rig.  After all, who needs a mast that looks like a radio tower (origin of the term Marconi rig common on modern sloops)?

Jon

[blighhigh]

I like Jon's thoughts about the derivation of the term.  Thinking about the Marconi rig makes me wonder when someone will develop a "Cell Tower" rig.  Although I suspect in the UK it would be the "Mobile"rig.

[Tom L.]

Thanks for the info. I think I am going with the Catheads theory. That to me sounds the most logical and I had heard that a few times in the past. It does seem strange that there really is not a definitive answer.

In any event I had my second sail in my new for me Catboat and it is I think one of the if not the most comfortable small boats I have sailed. Wind so far has been about 12 kn. I still haven't done any windy stuff yet. That long boom worries me. From what I have learned it is much better to feather up in gusts than to try and dump the main sheet.

[capt_nemo]

Tom L,

In "windy stuff" sailing solo with no other human rail meat to hang over the high side, it's best to REEF 'er down. Otherwise, with excessive heel in heavy gusts you may experience rudder stall with the boat rounding up uncontrollably.

Try intentionally to gradually push the boat to her limits to get a real feel for how she reacts to various wind forces with different numbers of crew aboard.

capt_nemo

[Tom L.]

Tom L,

In "windy stuff" sailing solo with no other human rail meat to hang over the high side, it's best to REEF 'er down. Otherwise, with excessive heel in heavy gusts you may experience rudder stall with the boat rounding up uncontrollably.

Try intentionally to gradually push the boat to her limits to get a real feel for how she reacts to various wind forces with different numbers of crew aboard.

capt_nemo

Yep I intend to do that. I hope to have some windy experiences this winter to experiment with the boats habits both good and bad. Near home I only sail on lake Eustis or Harris so larger wind driven waves may be few and far between to see how that will affect the boat. But My guess is it's not going to tolerate larger waves very weel. But maybe I am wrong the cabin is low so windage will be less than most boats. I think sometimes windage on the top sides has a greater effect on the pointing and tacking than hull shape.

Tom L.