Trawler Catamarans: Are They For You?

TRAWLER CATAMARANS
by Graham Pfister

EVOLUTION
Trawlers have proven themselves over decades as being strong, safe, seaworthy, hard working long range vessels and with a reputation like that why you may ask should anyone want to change such a tried, tested and proven theory.

The answer to this of course, as it is in any field, is to improve on an already proven record by bringing in to play the latest technological breakthroughs in materials and design and to build a better, more efficient "mouse trap." If man had not followed this line of thinking, we would all still be hunter/gatherers or, at best, still using the horse-and-cart to get around - assuming we had bothered to invent the wheel when the sled still worked okay.

And so we now take the proven trawler concept and mix it with one of the earliest and safest types of boat ever developed for ocean passage making, the Pacific out-rigger canoe and its evolution into the modern catamaran. The simple paddle and primitive sail catamarans have now evolved into 400 passenger catamaran ferries capable of carrying a mixture of passengers, cars and trucks in open ocean conditions at speeds in excess of 30 knots. I have experienced this many times while crossing the English channel in beam sea conditions and the complete unawareness of speed and the comfort of the ride only come home to you when you reach your destination and you say, are we here already?

DEVELOPMENT
Since the early 1960's much of the development of catamarans has come out of Australia and they still lead the world in catamaran design, building and commercial operations. Many of these designs come from the drawing board of Lock Crowther and others and many large commercial catamarans are still being exported all over the world on their own bottoms to Europe the United States and even mainland China.

CONSTRUCTION
For catamaran ferries to be able to attain high speeds and carry heavy loads they have to be built very strong and light. You could not produce these speeds building in steel as the very weight of the boat alone would reduce it to that of a slow barge requiring larger engines and more fuel to push unnecessary weight.

Almost all high speed ferries are built in aluminum the same as a jumbo jet and I don't think we need say more on the strength and ability of this material to do the job, but you may not like the maintenance problem that goes along with aluminum. Aluminum starts to oxidise the moment it is exposed to oxygen, hence the word oxidise. This is aluminum rust and is a continual but slow process that produces small bubbles under your gleaming paint work that eventually breaksout and requires continually painting over. Even with the best 2 part etch primers this oxidisation breaks out wherever the slightest amount of oxygen reaches the raw surface such as a screw hole with a metal screw holding on a fitting or an accidental scratch.

In the final years of the 1940's the fibre glass and resin technology was discovered and in the last 50 years this has developed to where strength to weight ratios, its ability to be combined with other strong light weight materials to make it even stronger and the fact that it is almost maintenance free makes it the material of choice for boat builders and buyers. This is known as composite construction and is a combination of differing materials placed at various points around the vessel where strength is required without adding too much weight.

TRAWLER CATAMARAN
The trawler catamaran you and I would be interested in would use only a fraction of the technology of the commercial high speed catamaran ferries or hi-tech racing boats as we are after range not speed, but not wanting to have the maintenance problems associated with aluminum we would opt for the latest in composite fibreglass construction.

The catamaran industry has developed along the lines of a basic theory of physics that it takes less energy to move a light object than it does to move a heavy one. This means a light strong trawler cat requires smaller engines and consequently needs to carry less fuel, in itself a weight saving, than a heavy steel displacement trawler to have a long range capability. Also being light and having two long thin easily driven hulls means they are faster than a displacement trawler with expected cruising speeds of 12 knots. More than a few trawler owners have moved away from conventional trawlers having experienced too many long tiresome journeys at 8 knots or less.

A typical trawler cat sits flat, does not roll and enjoys the inherent stability that comes with its beam. The two widely spaced hulls give it the ability to allow the wave pressure, that normally causes a single hull to roll from side to side, to pass under one hull at a time creating no more than a quick up and down motion as it side steps over the wave. This is the single most expressed delight of anyone who suffers from mal de mere as this rather quick and unpronounced motion does not produce the same sea sickening effect that a long slow rolling motion does.

SAFETY
Tank testing carried out in Europe by world renowned Australian catamaran designer Lock Crowther proved conclusively that the power catamaran configuration was superior in stability to a conventional monohull power vessel. In simulated 52 foot (16m) breaking beam seas, the largest the facility could produce, the power catamaran could not be rolled over but the similar sized monohull power vessel could.

Hundreds of sailing catamarans safely cross oceans while cruising or circumnavigating only the leading edge of multihull vessels get into trouble on the high seas as they continually push the envelope in open ocean full on all out racing, but the figure is no greater than that for racing monohull disasters or for that matter accidents occurring in motor racing or any other sport pushed to the limit. TrawlerCats are designed to withstand the elements and treated correctly will bring you through the worst conditions unscathed.

COMFORT
With safety not an issue the comparison of comfort can be looked at. A trawler cat of say 38' with a beam of 22' would have more flat usable space and therefore a better accommodation layout than a 50' conventional trawler and the configuration of a catamaran gives you two full headroom engine rooms.

Where a boat designer must be creative with every inch of space on a conventional trawler just to fit everything in a catamaran designer on the other hand sometimes has too much space to fill leaving large open areas. The flat ride and non rolling motion of a trawler cat also means that commercial and domestic appliances can be included in the fit out along with free standing furniture. The dining room table for instance can be carried out to the aft deck for dining al fresco. The trawler cat then starts to take on the comforts of a cottage at the lake rather than what has often been considered as a macho lifestyle of roughing it on a boat.

ANTI CATAMARAN OPINION
People looking for faults in a catamaran often say they are too wide and take up too much space at a marina and of course they are wide, this is their advantage but monohulls are also becoming wider as the advantages and comfort of that extra space are becoming obvious. It is not uncommon to see a monohull boat of 50' with a beam approaching 18' and in the 100' area boats are being built with beams of 24' to 27'. Where do these boats dock? At the end of almost any dock and as societies affluence grows so does the size of the vessel people can afford and consequently the size of the marina facilities available to accommodate them. Its an on going supply and demand situation.

If you hear anyone saying anything bad about a catamaran you can be absolutely sure of one thing, they have never been to sea on one.

VALUE FOR MONEY
If there is any down side to a catamaran it is its cost. Obviously you pay more for a 1500 square foot apartment than you would for a 1000 square foot apartment, you get nothing for nothing. The spaciousness of a trawler cat requires a much bigger quantity of fibreglass alone to cover its area. The two hull configuration requires some equipment to be duplicated. You require more bilge pumps, float switches, thru hulls, 2 sets of stairs, engine room doors, additional noise insulation, duplicated systems and longer runs for your plumbing and electrics. You may not see it at first but you get a lot more boat for your buck.

If you look at it from the right perspective you will see you are not buying a 38' boat but a 50' boat in a 38' length for about the same price as a 45' boat but with all the added advantages in safety, space, comfort and stability that only a trawler cat can offer. The comfort means you arrive at your destination more relaxed and the widely spaced engines make manoeuvring a trawler cat a simple operation even in the strongest breezes and they require no bow thrusters.

Long range cruising in trawlers is about to make a leap forward with the introduction of a range of semi-production TrawlerCats incorporating all the features of catamarans in low maintenance, economical, 3000 nautical mile, go anywhere comfort.

All TrawlerCats will be Production Built but Custom Finished.

Because everyone will have a unique purpose for their TrawlerCat with different ideas on its level of finish and choice of equipment I intend to work directly with each client to customise their production dream boat so that it fits perfectly its intended role. You wont be able to buy a TrawlerCat off a showroom floor. I realise this will delay its final delivery but proper planning and choice at the fit out stage will ensure that what is delivered will be exactly what each owner wants and not a black Model T Ford.

For instance a Circumnavigator 45 owner who wishes to spend the next 4 years or more cruising on a low budget to remote areas where no marinas are available or wanted may want an independent self contained and inexpensive TrawlerCat that runs on 12 volt DC only. No generators running 24 hours a day to disturb idyllic anchorages for him. Just one hour a day running the main engine will recharge the batteries, heat the hot water and bring down the fridge and freezer temperatures. He can still have some 110 volt comforts by running a 1500 watt invertor to operate a microwave, watch a video, use his electric shaver and his wife can use her hairdryer. We will cool his boat by installing deck hatches to catch the sea breeze.

On the other hand a Circumnavigator 55 owner may wish to call at the most popular ports of the world to rub shoulders with the rich and famous in places such as St Barts, Mystique, Monaco, St Tropez, Mikanos and the Isle of Capri, etc. His boat will be all electric with two sound shielded Northern Light generators allowing him to live the same life he lived at home even while on passage and then to plug into shore power while in harbor provisioning and exploring ashore. While in the tropics he will be kept cool in air-conditioned comfort, reach for something cold from his drinks fridge in the main saloon or adjourn to his private office to send a fax or make a phone call. With modern satellite communications on board, home, family or business can be as close or as far as you want it to be. The galley will provide a dishwasher, garbage compacter, domestic two door refrigerator freezer and a 4 burner range. A washer and dryer are installed in the utility room along with a water maker that allows you to use all the water you want. And of course the expensive inflatable is safely installed in the transom garage away from ultra violet degradation.

If you are someone who wants a boat somewhere inbetween these two extremes then let's sit down and talk about your particular needs because now is a good time to plan that cruise to Australia and New Zealand for the year 2000 Olympic Games and the Americas Cup, you might even be able to take a few charter guests out to watch the cup, you certainly have the space for it on a TrawlerCat.

COULD THIS BE YOU?
You and your wife traveling and exploring new places around the globe, meeting new people and enjoying new adventures. Finding independence and freedom most people only dream about.

YOU CAN IF YOU MAKE A TRAWLER CATAMARAN YOUR FULLY SELF CONTAINED RETIREMENT HOME AFLOAT.
A Trawler Catamaran is wide and stable, it does not roll from side to side like an ordinary boat. It has all the comfort and amenities of a cottage at the lake, including a country kitchen. You can even have satellite TV if you wish.

Most high speed ferries are catamarans they carry cars, trucks and up to 400 people in open ocean conditions at 35 knots.

Our homey, 12 knot TrawlerCat is based on the same technology, but is simple, safe and as easy to drive as the family car. We include a step by step manual to guide you along your way. It includes things like, what to do if you can't avoid bad weather, where to anchor, how to anchor - in a TrawlerCat you don't even have to go outside to anchor, it can all be done from the pilothouse by a press of a button and it has a meter to display how much chain you have put out.

Fuel flow meters are standard equipment on a TrawlerCat so that as you bring up the rev's on the engines you see exactly how much fuel you are using, how much you have left in the tank and how far you can go before you run out of fuel. Pretty simple, huh!

Our navigation package is also simple, you and your wife can learn to use it in no time at all. First put the cursor on the Chart Plotter chart where you want to go, enter, and the screen will display what course to steer and how far it is. Set the course into the Auto Pilot and away you go. And you can forget about equipment failure, TrawlerCats have back up systems.

The Chart Plotter screen will constantly display where you are all the time, day or night, you cannot get lost. You see your boat displayed on a colored chart on the screen as it moves along your course to your destination. It even tells you what speed you are doing and what time you will arrive.

If it's night time your Digital Radar will guide you in avoiding other boats and above water obstacles. Your Color Chart Plotter will show you any underwater dangers to avoid while your Color Depth Sounder will show you the depth as you travel in towards shallower water to anchor.

The same technology and simple operation that let an average soldier find his exact whereabouts in the middle of the desert during Desert Storm, and the same technology that is used in modern Jumbo Jets is used in the equipment on our TrawlerCats.

Now you and your wife can enjoy the pleasure of navigation. No more mystery, no more morse code key, no more sextant, no more sun sights, no more books of numbers and no more complicated calculations. Modern technology and satellite communication has made navigation as simple as operating a home computer. And it can also keep you in touch with home or the office if you desire.

WELCOME TO LONG RANGE CRUISING IN THE NEW MILLENIUM.
This could be the goal your soul has had you preparing for all your life. This could be your lifes great adventure, the sum of your life experiences finally coming together to do what you feel deep inside you is right.

You know you can do it and we want to help you. So we are prepared to train you to a level of competence that makes you feel safe and knowledgeable enough to do it.

With your new found competence your TrawlerCat can take you safely, comfortably and economically anywhere in the world.

FROM ALASKA TO THE TROPICS, TO AUSTRALIA AND THE SOUTH PACIFIC AND ON TO THECOUNTRIES OF THE MEDITERRANEAN INCLUDING THE FABLED AND FABULOUS GREEK ISLANDS.
Only you, are holding yourself back.

If you would like to find out more about a TrawlerCat and how it could affect the rest of your life, then talk to someone who has been out there in a catamaran and done it already, call,

CAPTAIN GRAHAM PFISTER AT TrawlerCat

FOR FREE FRIENDLY OVER THE PHONE INFORMATION AND A COLOR BROCHURE
902-645-2902 or e-mail me at trawlercat@ns.sympatico.ca

Crowther TrawlerCat
Developed by Capt. Graham Pfister, Mail 2, Box 2, Highway 1, Meteghan NS B0W 2J0, Canada. tel 902-645-2902; fax 903-645-2903 trawlercat@ns.sympatico.ca