Sailing Catamarans

Sailing CatamaransBluewater Cruising · 50–60 ft

Sailing Catamarans · Bluewater Cruising · 50–60 ft: YachtCodex lists 19 models, 15.2–18.0 m long. The builders with the most are HH Catamarans (5), McConaghy Boats (3), and Windelo (3). The largest in production is the McConaghy Boats MC55 (17.9 m); the shallowest draft is the Windelo 50's (1.03 m).

Two hulls set apart, which buys stability from geometry rather than from lead. A cruising catamaran sails level, draws little, and gives a family more room on a given length than a monohull can; the trade is that it does not right itself if it ever goes over, so its margins are designed rather than recovered. It is the form that has grown fastest in cruising over the last two decades.

Bluewater Cruising

Boats whose published figures say they are built to cross oceans rather than to coast along them. A sailing yacht is listed here when the builder states CE Category A -- the Recreational Craft Directive's ocean class, force 8 and above, waves of four metres and more, and the only certified basis there is for such a claim -- and a length overall of 11 metres or more, excluding racers and daysailers. A motor yacht qualifies as an explorer or trawler, or on a published range of 1,500 nautical miles or more.

Models: 19
Builders: 9
Length range: 15.2–18.0 m50–59 ft
In production: 15