PowerMultihulls Editorial

THE POWER OF MULTIHULLS

For years, pressure from readers was gradually building, asking for articles about power catamarans. As far back as 1982 we had a report that Tacoma Boatbuilding Company had a commission to design a mega-catamaran for a client in Egypt. The resulting yacht measured 99 feet, had a top speed of 50 knots, carried 22 guests and cost $5 million. Since we have very few subscribers in Egypt, or for that matter anywhere with a loose $5 million, we did not classify the subject as "general interest" for publication. There was the increasing number of catamaran and a few trimaran ferries (see cover of Jan/Feb 1990), and a small number of private yacht designs, mainly from Prout, Tennant, Crowther, Hughes, Jeantot, etc.

The first serious attempt to marry twin hulls and powerheads came from Glacier Bay in 1988. Since then others have embraced the idea of creating fast, stable, economical, comfortable-in-any-weather powerboats which, inevitably, led to catamarans.

The United States Sailboat Show and Powerboat Show in Annapolis are reliable gauges of what can be expected to come onto the market. For the past 8 years MULTIHULLS organized the sailing Multihull Lagoon, and as a result, the exhibits of catamarans and trimarans grew from 5 to over 30. While in the past it was hard to spot a twin hull among the myriad of monohulls, it is now a very visible section of the show where all the multihulls gather. The benefits are multifold. Visitors to the show take the beeline to the Multihull Lagoon as soon as they arrive at the City Dock. How do we know that? It’s simple.

There is no parking available anywhere in Annapolis during boat show time. Visitors leave their cars at the Naval Academy stadium outside the city and shuttle buses are put into service to bring them to the show. When a short lull at our MM tent is interrupted by an onslaught of visitors, we cheerfully exclaim: "Another bus has arrived. Let’s get to work!"

Based on the success of the Multihull Lagoon for sailboats, show management approached me two years ago and asked to organize the same for powerboats. I wasn’t ready because I felt that the industry wasn’t ready. Last year there were three power catamarans at the United States Powerboat Show. Hardly enough for a Lagoon.

But, before I said "no" again, I took a month-long trip to visit power multihull manufacturers on the East Coast and did some telephone surveys elsewhere. To make a long report into a short story, as of this writing there will be a Power Multihull Lagoon at the show in Annapolis. As of this moment, manufacturers signed contracts to exhibit a total of 27 power multihulls, and more are coming. The Day of Power Multihulls has dawned in America.

To celebrate this power I am excited to announce the launching of a new magazine devoted exclusively to power multihulls. It will be launched on October 15 at the United States Powerboat Show – without any fanfare. This magazine will be very similar in nature to its older brother, the one you are reading now. No tons of advertising, no guilding the lillies, no exaggerated claims; just good reading, honest information, and above all, down to earth (water) attitude towards our readers. It may be a small publication, not backed by a publishing empire, so please bear with us while it's growing.

In turn, we can promise you straight forward reporting that only an independent magazine editor can offer, who does not have to follow guidelines set up by a board of directors who have never been on the water. For the same reason you can trust the Publisher’s honesty, he does not have to report the bottom line to a bunch of hungry investors.

So, if you are interested in what’s happening with mastless multihulls, this is the magazine for you.

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