Well-known multihull designer, Chris White, was the featured speaker at the NEMA meeting on Thursday, April 22. In WoodenBoat magazine, Jim Brown called White one of the "...few designers...offering extremely wholesome new cruising designs for the amateur. To me, such men appear able to tiptoe down that tightrope of compromise between cruising and performance."

Chris became interested in multihulls when he was only 13 years old after a day sail on a charter trimaran in St. Croix. Five years later he built and launched the 31-foot Searunner Shadowfax, which became home and adventure vehicle for three years of cruising the East coast, Bahamas, West Indies, and parts of South America.

Returning to the U.S. with firm ideas for designing serious cruising multihulls, White worked with multihull pioneer Jim Brown to develop Constant Camber boatbuilding, culminating in the construction of the 52-foot trimaran Juniper.

After two years of cruising Juniper from Maine to the West Indies with his wife Kate, White devoted himself full-time to furthering the development of cruising multihulls. He is an associate member of the Society of Naval Architects and Marine Engineers, has published numerous articles in boating magazines and a best-selling book The Cruising Multihull, and holds several patents for inventions pertaining to high-speed recreational sailboats.

At the NEMA meeting White talked about several of his newest designs beginning each presentation with a brief slide show and annecdotes, followed by on-board video clips that helped the audience imagine what it’s like to sail the boat. Following is a brief description of each boat.

Voyager 45 This wood epoxy construction cat offers an exceptional blend of sailing performance with a comfortable cruising interior. The overriding design concept was to utilize the conventional aft cockpit layout in conjunction with a central deck house that contains a large “living room”. A completely unique, low profile deck house design was developed in order to: 1) allow good forward visibility from the cockpit, 2) improve windward performance by reducing windage, and 3) create a truly monocoque structure that yields incredible strength and stiffness which in turn allows a reduction in structural weight.

Atlantic 42 The new ATLANTIC 42 built by Lombardi Yachts offers cruising sailors benefits and features unmatched by any other catamaran on the market. The ATLANTIC 42 is a thoroughbred cruising catamaran perfected by 50,000 miles of ocean sailing experience with her larger ATLANTIC CATAMARAN sisters.

Concept 63 In designing the CONCEPT 63, the primary goal was to incorporate the benefits of long slender hulls without making the vessel so large and unwieldy that it no longer can be handled safely by a cruising couple or family. The C-63 accommodation plan is somewhat different than ordinary. Because of the boat's long overall length she can carry a large deck house without looking ungainly or top-heavy. Living spaces within the deck house are very pleasing because they have nice exterior views and great ventilation. The large deck house also offers a degree of elbow room usually not found in a sailboat less than 100'. Hammerhead 54 This cruising trimaran combines incredible performance, shallow draft, excellent accommodations, all in the same boat. HAMMERHEAD is capable of sailing at 24 to 25 knots without surfing and without a spinnaker. She incorporates a very comfortable tri-cabin layout that provides a large galley and saloon with a fantastic view, a double cabin forward with it’s own spacious head and shower. Aft, a completely private double cabin with ample stowage and ensuite head and shower provides the space and privacy normally associated only with large catamarans.

Explorer 44 The working concept behind the development of the EXPLORER 44 trimaran was to design a fast and comfortable boat that could be built and maintained economically. By extending the hull length out to 44' an excellent interior plan could be achieved that will accommodate up to six. At this size the boat has ample stability for safe offshore sailing. And she can carry a real cruising load of supplies so that you can stay out for months at a time. Accommodation privacy, so difficult to find in a tri, is gained by the aft cabin layout.

More information is available on White’s Web Site: www.chriswhitedesigns.com.