Tag: Catamaran Interviews

Below are interviews with catamaran builders, designers, and sailors. These interviews are published both in their original video form embedded in the article alongside transcripts of the Q&A with educational photos as appropriate. We hope you enjoy them as much as we enjoyed making them, and they educate you in your search to purchase or current ownership. If you have questions, suggestions, or would like to be featured yourself, then please contact us or comment on the given article.

Interview with Hanneke Boon of Wharram Catamarans

Diane interviews Hanneke Boon who is a long time partner of James Wharram and designer of Wharram. She gives a historical recount since the 1938’s of catamaran design and sailing! She talks about her opinion of modern cruising catamarans and how Wharrams are different and really better for cruising. She and the team at Wharram are still busy selling plans to people all over the world! Wharram’s book of memoirs ‘People of the Sea’: www.wharram.com/shop/books/people-of-the-sea Please enjoy the recorded interview available below and the transcript with many photos. Today, we’re really happy to be here speaking to Hanneke Boon, head of James Wharram Designs. Hanneke also co-designed the boats alongside the legendary multihull pioneer and designer, James Wharram. Hanneke, welcome. I’m wondering if you could tell us a little bit about yourself, and your role at Wharram. I’ve spent most of my life with James, actually. I first met him when […]

Interview with Erik Berzins of Morrelli & Melvin / HH Catamarans

Diane interview Erik Berzins, the lead designer of HH Catamarans. He works for Morrelli & Melvin in California, USA. He touches on his personal story to becoming a designer, some basics about M&M, and a lot about performance cruising catamarans. He covers the current state of innovation in performance as well as near future developments. He talks about eco-friendly designs too and how that constrains design and performance. Please read on or sit back and watch this excellent interview with our second M&M designer. Please see our prior interview with Ferdinand Van West also of M&M. Another interview from CatamaranSite. I’m with Eric Berzins, he’s with Morrelli & Melvin, so we’re gonna learn a little bit about what he does there. Eric, can you tell us a little bit about yourself and how you got involved with Morrelli and Melvin? I’ve been in their business, basically straight out of university. […]

Interview with Ferdinand Van West of Morrelli & Melvin / Rapido

Diane interviews lead designer of Rapido trimarans at Morrelli & Melvin. Morreli & Melvin is a famous design studio out of California which has designed America Cup winners, Gunboats, H&H catamarans, and Leopard catamarans. Please go to www.MorelliMelvin.com for more information about M&M and inquire about their design services. The Rapido 60 trimaran is well known as the choice of YouTube superstars, Sailing La Vagabonde. Trimarans like catamarans are becoming more popular, and Ferdinand covers how they compare in terms of performance and accommodations as well as what he sees as the future in multihull design. Read on below to hear about the Rapido 60, 50, and 40 foot models. Welcome to another CatamranSite interview. Today I’m with Ferdinand Van West and he’s with Morrelli & Melvin. Ferdinand, can you tell us a little bit about your background, and how you ended up with Morrelli & Melvin? I’m actually originally […]

Interview with Cyrille Corlay of Garcia Yachts

Alicia interviews Cyrille Corlay about Garcia’s aluminum catamaran designs and more. He talks about the Explocat52 and why it was developed, how is differs from Outremer designs, and how it compares to monohull Garcias. You can learn more and get in contact with Cyrille at: I hope that French subscribers will enjoy the video, and that English speakers enjoy the translated transcript below. Hello everyone, welcome back to this new episode of the CatamaranSite podcast. I am delighted to be your host for the first French episode of the podcast. I’m Alicia and joining us today is Cyrille Corlay, Vice President of Development of the shipyard Garcia Yachts. Hello Cyrille, how are you? Hello Alicia, I’m really well thank you. Super! I’m delighted to be talking with you today. So, our objective is to present the shipyard Garcia Yachts and, of course, their most recent catamaran, the Explocat52. Garcia Yachts […]

Interview with Naval Architect Mathias Maurios of VPLP Design

Diane interviews Mathias Maurios, Naval Architect and parnter at VPLP Design in France, about designing catamarans and in particular the Lagoon series. VPLP has designed all the over 6,000 Lagoons ever built. He has very interesting comments on the future of catamaran design. You can find out more about VPLP Design on their website and email Mathias at ( m.maurios@vplp.fr ). We’re here again with another CatamaranSite interview. This time with Mathias Maurios. Can you tell tell us about yourself and how you became involved with VPLP? My name is Mathias Maurios, and I’m a naval architect at VPLP Design. I started with VPLP in 2000, so that will be 23 years ago in April. Today, I am a partner in the firm, and I’m responsible for the cruising activity. I am based in the Paris office. Tell me a little bit about the company itself. What you do, what […]

How to Become a Sailing Influencer with Erin of Roam Generation PR

Ryan and Sophie Sailing

Alicia interviews Erin of Roam Generation PR about becoming a sailing influencer. Listen to hear the key skills required and how long and hard the journey is to become the next SV Delos. Erin sailed with her family and that is how she started her PR business, so she has first hand knowledge of the path to start a business while sailing. Her client list is amazing including Delos, Ruby Rose, and many other super famous stars. We really enjoyed making and listening to this interview and hope you will too. Find out more or get in contact with Erin on her website (www.RoamGeneration.com ). Transcript Hello, and welcome back to CatamaranSite. Today, we’re joined by Erin Carey, founder and director of Roam Generation PR, a PR agency dedicated to travel, leisure, and luxury brands. Our objective today is to take a dive into the sailing influencer world, one that […]

Financing a Catamaran Q&A with First Approval Source

Catamaran for sale by owner

In this Q&A with First Approval Source, they cover the basics of marine financing as well as some specific details related to financing a catamaran in the current lending environment. Apply for financing via this link. What is First Approval Source? First Approval Source is a recreational loan company that specializes in finding the most competitive rates and terms for our customers. If you’ve never financed a boat before, don’t worry we’ll handle all the necessary paperwork and walk you through the entire process. People like working with us because we have a wide network of lenders, so we can always find a loan package that really fits their needs. How did First Approval Source get started? First Approval Source was founded with the customer in mind. Buying a boat is fun right? And we think that the finance process should also be fun. One of the biggest struggles that […]

Interview with Kurt Hughes of Multihull Designs

Diane interviews legendary multihull designer Kurt Hughes. It is a huge honor to talk to him. This discussion is quite technical, and everyone will enjoy and learn from Kurt’s knowledge. He gives an excellent history of his experiences in design and how Hughes designs are special. Read more from Kurt and get in touch via www.multihulldesigns.com and www.multihullblog.com. This is Diane we’re at CatamaranSite doing another interview. This time we have designer Kurt Hughes with us. Kurt can you give us a little bit of background about yourself? I first found out about multihulls reading Arthur Piver’s books and I got my degree in architecture. But when I started architecture school, I started building my first boat, and actually I sailed it the week I graduated. It turned out to be the fastest boat in Seattle, which blew everybody’s mind. It was a 31-foot trimaran. I was still working as […]

Factors that Affect Catamaran Insurance Rates with William Coates

Diane interviews Bill Coates on the factors that affect catamaran insurance rates such as age, value, experience, cruising range. They also cover ways to prepare your resume for the best rates and how the process works. Please listen and learn about the knitty gritty on getting insurance for your catamaran. You can contact Bill of​​​​ Offshore Risk Management at via phone at 305-743-7711 x2202 or email to ( wjc@offshorerisk.com ). Apply for insurance online here. I’m with Bill Coates today from Offshore Risk Management. Thanks for spending time with us at CatamaranSite. Can you tell me a little bit about who you are and what Offshore Risk Management is? Yes, my name is Bill Coates. I am a marine and aviation insurance broker. I’ve been in the business since 1972. So it’s been a long time, and I’ve seen a lot of very interesting things. Our business was established at […]

Misconceptions about Learning to Sail a Catamaran with Tim Geisler of Nautilus Sailing

We interviewed Tim Geisler of www.NautilusSailing.com about his week catamaran sailing school. We cover how much experience you need to take his course, common misconceptions, and the big takeaways you gain from the week. Please enjoy and contact Tim via the info@nautilussailing.com email. He also has an excellent educational YouTube channel and is launching an online catamaran-sailing master class in the coming weeks. Good morning Tim, it’s nice to be here to talk to you for catamaransite. I’m wondering if you could tell everybody a little bit about who you are, and what you do at Nautilus Sailing. Morning Diane, It’s an honor to be here this morning. So, Nautilus Sailing. I learned to sail in Southern California many, many years ago. It took about two years to learn how to sail, going every Sunday for a couple hours. At the time, I was a teacher in inner city Los […]

Privilege Builder Interview with Rob Poirier

Rob Poirier with Privilege Catamarans was kind enough to talk with us about what is happening with their new builds. We talk about the most popular model their 510, their new 580, and the changing demographics of catamaran buyers. Rob has 20 plus years of experience selling catamarans and is a wealth of knowledge on the industry with a very straightforward and honest approach you will see. Rob has an excellent YouTube channel with numerous educational videos about Privilege catamarans. You can reach out to him there or via the Privilege Americas website. I’m Deidre Jordan from CatamaranSite.com, a great website where you can buy or sell your boat, as well as access resources such as these videos, where we are interviewing different people from across the industry of catamarans. Today, we are meeting with Rob Poirier from Privilege Catamarans. Welcome Rob, how are you doing? Hi Deidre, I’m very […]

PDQ 36 Review with “S/V Desert Star”

This is another episode of our reviews of common cruising catamarans. We spoke with Eric and Bonnie who own a PDQ 36. They contacted us because they enjoyed our PDQ 32 interview with Aurora and Dennis and agreed to tell us about their boat, Desert Star. Very thankful for their interest in our project and to all of you watching our videos and reading these transcripts. We welcome those who own catamarans and want to see them reviewed to please contact us to setup a Zoom call at your convenience. Eric, do you want to start off by telling us a little bit about your background and who you are and how you came to choose a PDQ36? Eric: Sure. I’m a semi-retired systems engineer. I’m a licensed captain. I do some boat deliveries, run a little video production company, and trying to live a semi-retired lifestyle, wintering on the […]

Seawind 1370 Review with Nick & Terysa of “S/V Ruby Rose”

We talked with Terysa and Nick of Ruby Rose, and they have an interesting story about how they are coming to their catamaran. They are working with Seawind Catamarans to design the first Seawind 1370. They have a tremendous following on their YouTube channel, so please check their videos out and subscribe. They video taped their search for their catamaran and reviewed many different catamaran models on the market. Could you start off with telling us how you got into cruising, and then what took you from monohulls to catamaran? We started sailing back in the UK. Nick started about 15 years ago and I started when I met Nick, so 10-11 years ago. We were just weekend sailors. We used to be part of a club and we would do weekend cruises and races, and it was all very low-key, just fun. We were, at the time, thinking about […]

Xquisite Builder Interview with Tamas Hamor

We met with Tamas Hamor in Fort Lauderdale, Florida on March 9th aboard newly delivered Hull # 14 of his Xquisite X5 series. Also Hull #11 also was docked adjacent and undergoing preparation work to be shipped to Italy. Tamas spoke to us about the history of Xquisite, key features of the model, and future plans including the new X5+ and new 60 sail and power catamarans designed by Bill Dixon. The company won Sail Magazine’s Best Boat of 2017 award and Best Boat System 2017 award, and Cruising World’s 2017 Best Boat award. The maximalist philosophy of Xquisite is very contrasting to other builds we have reviewed here especially minimalist performance catamarans such as Outremer. Please read below and directly contact Tamas for more information on his website ( https://xquisiteyachts.com ) to get in line to purchase a very high quality luxury catamaran. Tell us about yourself and how […]

Jimmy Cornell Interview: The Elcano Challenge / Outremer 4X Custom “Aventura Zero”

We are very excited to publish our interview with legendary sailor Jimmy Cornell. Jimmy is in London currently while some modifications are being made his Outremer 4X to restart the Elcano Challenge. Listen here for an update about the Elcano Challenge as well as hear more about details of his choices and customizations as well as why this is such an important journey. Jimmy is an inspiration to us all and talking to him was a huge pleasure. For more on the Elcano voyage see Jimmy’s website: www.CornellSailing.com Today, I’m honored to introduce Jimmy Cornell. Jimmy, as you know, is a legend to so many of us in the sailing world, really excited to have you today. How you doing Jimmy? Very well, thank you. I’m in London. Still cold, but the winter is going, and spring has come, so I’m very happy about that. Good, good. Thank you for […]

Antares Builder Interview with Mark Silverstein

Welcome to another episode where we interview builders and designers across the industry of catamarans. Today, we present Mark Silverstein from Antares Catamarans. The Antares 44 is a legendary catamaran first introduced by legendary catamaran builder PDQ in 2004. The model was built by PDQ until 2008 when the molds were moved to Buenas Aires, Argentina and production continued under different management. Since then they have made numerous updates to the design and continue to build one of the premier cruising catamarans in the world. For more news, information about exciting new models, and to put in your build order, please see the website for Antares Catamarans and contact Mark. Thanks so much for joining us. I know you’re in Malaysia, tell us what brings you to Malaysia for work. We have a very unique story. We’ve been an owner of an Antares 44 catamaran now, for just over nine […]

Leopard 47 Review with Brioni and Iain of “Red Seas”

We interview new Leopard 47 owners Brioni and Iain about their catamaran search and why they chose the Leopard 47. They share their finding from 2 years of online research as well as their time living aboard so far. We talk about performance issues, layout considerations, and design flaws. Follow and support Brioni and Iain in their travels! https://youtube.com/redseas Facebook/Instagram/Twitter: @realredseas www.red-seas.com www.patreon.com/redseas If you enjoy this review of the Leopard 47, please comment and let us know. We love to get feedback from others thinking of purchasing a Leopard 47 or current owners. Key Takeaways for the Leopard 47 Many to choose from as it was a popular charter model in the early 2000’s. Usually quite a few to look at in the Caribbean. Affordable for its size compared to other newer catamarans over 40 feet in length. Better performing also than some of the newer more comfort focused […]

PDQ 32 Review with Aurora and Dennis of S/V Serenity

We spoke with Aurora and Dennis who have a 1998 PDQ 32 named Serenity that they bought in 2017. They tell us about why they chose the PDQ 32, the strengths and weaknesses of the model, and why it has been the perfect catamaran for them. They compare the PDQ 32 to Geminis, Maine Cat 30, Seawind 1160. Please watch the interview below and read on for a transcript with additional photos to illustrate the features spoken about. Key Takeaways of the PDQ 32 Inexpensive, simple learning catamaran that allows for weekend sailing with kids and longer travels as a couple Light and small enough that you can manhandle at docks which lowers stress and likelihood of scratches. Powered by twin 9.9 HP outboards which are inexpensive to maintain, easy to repower, and can be tilted up to gain 1 knot of speed. Wonderful simple sailing. Loves going downwind and […]

David de Villiers Interview – Aluminum Catamaran Design

We spoke with David de Villiers about catamaran design. David is especially interesting because he is at the forefront of a number of design trends including aluminum construction and the push away from condomarans and towards a focus on lightweight, efficient designs. We talk to him about his famous 62 foot ketch catamaran and his DVD 525 version which is being built all over the world currently. He discuses his time in South Africa under Dudley Dix, his transition to designing in New Zealand, and what he sees as the future for himself and the catamaran design world in general. Please visit his website ( www.devilliersmarinedesign.co.nz ) for additional information about David and get in touch with him about building an aluminum catamaran. Can you tell us a little about yourself? Yes sure. I am from South Africa originally. Whilst in my early teens my father, who was a medical […]

Catana 42 vs Lagoon 440 Evaluation with Multihull Dynamics

Catana 42

We talked to Pat and Cal of Multihull Dynamics which is an excellent site to compare sailing characteristics of cruising catamarans. We walk through what their website can do by doing a comparison of the Catana 42 and Lagoon 440. They discuss why they started the site, various features of the site, touch on overall lessons they have learned from over a decade of analysis, and more. They are launching a new site within the next couple months, so please stay tuned and look for their enhanced site which will have more functionality, better look and feel, and an even larger database of cruising catamarans to compare to each other. You can go to their website and get in touch with Pat and Cal with questions, suggestions, and custom analysis. Welcome Pat and Cal! Can you give me a little bit more information on Multihull Dynamics? Hi. I’m Pat Ross. […]

Lagoon 450F Review with Caroline of “S/V Fizzgig”

We spoke with Caroline who lives aboard “Fizzgig” a Lagoon 450F. She and her family have been aboard for about a year and currently are in Wilmington, North Carolina. Caroline tells us a little bit about the Lagoon 450F and what their plans are. She tells us about their former catamaran, a 2006 Fontaine-Pajot Lavezzi 40 and why they made the transition to a larger catamaran. Please see more from Caroline on her blog Sailing Fizzgig. Key Takeaways of Lagoon 450F Lagoon 450 is very comfortable and voluminous loaded with amenities and excellent separation of spaces for couple, daughter, and dog. This is owner version with three cabins. Headroom to accommodate 6′ 2″ person unlike the 40 Lavezzi where there were only a couple places her husband could stand up in. Lots of space and power for equipment such as air conditioning, washer – dryer, dishwasher, etc Excellent deck space […]

Celtic / Admiral Catamarans Builder Interview with Tim Duncan

Celtic 45

We talked with builder Tim Duncan of Celtic Yachts who tells how he acquired the Admiral catamaran molds in South Africa, and what the current build status is like. He covers what models they are building now, what modifications they have made to the molds, and hints at a new all electric Celtic 45 to come. Please contact Tim via the Celtic Yachts website. Put in an order for his new electric 45! Today we’re meeting with Tim Duncan from Celtic yachts. Tim, welcome. How are you doing? I’m very well, thank you, and how are you? Good, good. Thanks so much for joining us today. Can you just start by telling us a little bit about yourself and how you got involved in Celtic Yachts? I’ve been involved in sailing since I was a kid. About 20 years ago, I built an Admiral 38. For about 10 years, I […]

Derek Kelsall Interview

We spoke with legendary catamaran designer Derek Kelsall. We cover his history and innovations in catamarans design and construction such as the foam coring, KSS. We ask him why his designs and build techniques are so heavily criticized. He talks about what size of a catamaran that a couple or family should purchase and where catamaran design is likely to go in the next decade. Please find out more about Derek Kelsall on his website. You can email him to ask questions and purchase plans or built kit. Thanks for joining us, just start by telling us about yourself. Designing and boat building is my second career. I spent 10 years in survey work and in oil exploration that took me to Kenya, to Libya, and to Texas. It was in Texas that I built my first boat.. When I left school, I wanted to travel. I discovered hitchhiking and […]

Lagoon 500 Review with John of S/V Wicked

John and his family are aboard a 2009 Lagoon 500 called S/V Wicked. He and his four kids and assorted pets and spouse have lived aboard boats for quite a few years from monohulls to a power catamarans. We’re going to learn a little bit about the Lagoon 500. Key Takeaways of Lagoon 500 Enormous salon with multiple places to sit. Galley that four people can stand in. A pantry. Many small cabin spaces for many people. Was the flagship of the Lagoon fleet in her day, so they invested all their resources as a company to show off what they could do. Built 150 hulls of the Lagoon 500 so there is good availability on the used market and many have crossed oceans or circumnavigated. Likely find one anywhere in the world. She will do seven and a half knots sipping fuel at 1800 rpm all day long. She […]

Lagoon 380 Review with Toast of S/V Don Quixote

Diane talked with Toast for a review on the Lagoon 380, a well known design that was a workhorse of charter fleets for the last two decades. She and her family sailed a 2001 Lagoon 380 Owners Version named S/V Don Quixote for about six years. They started in Seattle with three little children and then ended up in New Zealand several years later with much bigger children. It felt really tiny in the beginning and by the time we moved out the kids were willing to move into basically a fender locker. They’re like wow look at all this space, so we did change our understanding of what it was like to live and what you need to be happy. Toast on size and one of her daughters choosing to live in the starboard bow locker. You can read about her latest adventures on her blog. Key Takeways of […]

Schionning Design Interview with Robert Quinn

Schionning

We talk to Robert Quinn of Schionning Design about how their company is navigating Covid-19, their most popular models, and the future of catamaran design. We discuss the Arrow series, G Force, and Waterline / Wilderness designs. Robert tells us why their Arrow series is their most popular and why the Arrow 1200 is the most popular model. He talks about their most common build locations in Australia, Thailand, and South Africa, and their growth plans for the USA market. A big thank you to Robert and Schionning Design for participating in our series of interviews with catamaran designers, builders, and owners. Don’t exactly know why, but I think people are seeing them as escape pods. Robert on why Covid-19 has improved catamaran sales. To find out more information or to purchase design plans or a build kit, please visit the Schionning Design website. Tell us about yourself and how […]

Broadblue 38 Review and Owner Interview – “WorldTowning”

Catamaran for sale by owner

We talked with Will and Jessica of WorldTowning who bought their Broadblue 38 Prestige called S/V Friendship via CatamaranSite.com’s for sale by owner listings. They bought her in France in September 2020 and are fairly new to cruising, but they already have some strong opinions about what life is like on their catamaran. We moved from a 21 foot RV. This is a palace! Will and Jessica on life aboard a 38 foot sailboat as family of four. They have great enthusiasm for travelling and share their adventures across their website, WorldTowning.com and number social media sites such as Instagram, Facebook, YouTube. You can become a Patreon for special access to their adventures. Can you tell us a little bit about yourselves and about your boat? We have been traveling full-time since 2014, and we have now become newly indoctrinated into the cruising lifestyle. For the first six years,we were […]

Broadblue Builder Interview with Mark Robert Jarvis

New 12 M Broadblue

This interview is with Mark Jarvis, the owner of Broadblue catamarans out of the UK. He gives insight into how Covid-19 as well as Brexit is affecting Broadblue, myth busts Broadblue’s connection to Prout, and tells us about their new 12 meter model. For more information and to directly from the owner-builder, please go to their website, Broadblue.com. Tell us about yourself and how you got involved in Broadblue. My background is manufacturing. I’ve worked in aerospace, and the automotive industry. The last real job I had was running a division of a design consultancy designing cars particularly engines and transmissions for most of the world’s motor manufacturers. I had a brief excursion into mobile telephone businesses in the UK, and then a friend of mine was operating a multi-held business here in Emsworth. He invited me to come along through that process. We got involved with the then owners […]

Catana 431 Review and Owner Interview – “S/V Morning Glory”

In today’s interview we talk to Amy who sailed around the world with her family on their 2001 Catana 431 “S/V” Morning Glory from 2009 to 2016. Her enthusiasm for not just cruising but pure sailing comes through so clearly in this interview, and it is a wonderful thing to see. She tells us about what she likes, dislikes, and what surprised her about the Catana 431. Thank you so much to Amy for taking her time to sit down with us and share her experiences. Key Takeaways Loves the exposed helm position because of visibility and lack of clutter in cockpit. Was surprised because the helm position worried her pre-purchase. Loves the owner version with kids in one hull and parents in the other with large master suite and separate stall shower. Size was perfect, and she would not want any larger catamaran. Kevlar skin underwater is great protection […]

Dudley Dix Interview on Catamaran Design

Below is our interview with Dudley Dix about his DH550 catamaran, 43 and 47 foot sisterships, and a future 38 foot version. He talks about catamaran design, why he is popular in Russia, the problems with reverse bows, and why, for most people, the ideal catamaran length is 38 to 40 feet. World renown for his beautiful and surprisingly fast designs, it was a great pleasure hearing directly from this naval architect. It’s bad to design a boat that looks fast and isn’t, but it’s great to design one that looks slow and is actually fast. Dudley Dix on yacht design Please contact Dudley for information about his plans or to purchase one of his build kits. His website is www.DixDesign.com Tell us a little bit about yourself. Okay I am South African born in Cape Town. My dad was a provincial champion in Flying Dutchman. We lived on the […]