JollyDogs is a Seawind 1160, an Australian built cat with 38’ of waterline, 21’ 4” beam. A few years ago Seawind introduced a sportier and much lighter variant, the 1190 Sport with a bigger rig, a much more austere interior, outboards rather than diesels, and perhaps most noticeably, daggerboards rather than the mini-keels JollyDogs was built with.
About 18 months ago while we were hunkered down for a rainy blow that lasted well over 2 weeks, Isabel began ranting about how we needed more room for “stuff” as well as room to spread out a bit. There were 62 boats in the anchorage there at Hirifa, the Southeast corner of the atoll Fakarava in the Tuamotus. About half were cats and during that time we got to tour examples of many different builder’s examples, and Isabel had determined that 45’ was the sweet spot for a full time live aboard cruising couple. The Outremers and Catanas which we considered the highest performance boats had daggerboards, the rest had mini-keels.
I wrote Richard a note, asking him to design and build me a 45’ cat with the finest attributes of JollyDogs and “save my marriage”. A few months ago I received a short email from Richard in which he expressed hope that Isabel and I would be pleased with a bit of news, and about 2 days later Seawind announced a new 45’ model, the 1370. The brand-new design was meant to be the answer we were seeking, and after not much deliberation we contacted a broker and secured production slot #14. At the time the boat design was just some line drawings but Seawind promised that all the favorite features of the 1160 and its growth variants would be included. The design is now in the mold building stages and as the details firm up we get more excited about what promises to be our new home around early 2023.
Like all Seawind cats the boat is meant to be structurally sound and have good sailing performance, especially in light airs which we so commonly encounter. There was a discussion early on about daggerboards versus mini-keels, but very quickly dagger boards were taken off the table. There’s a Youtube interview with the marine architect where he does note that daggerboards do generally offer 5 to 15 degrees of improved pointing performance when beating hard to wind, so it’s interesting to consider the pros and cons of each design.
Daggerboards add mechanical and operational complexity. When raised they present a visual obstruction when scanning the horizon. They add weight without displacing much water so they don’t significantly improve buoyancy, and the trunk structure eats up valuable interior volume. Should a daggerboard strike a solid object while underway there will be structural damage, but hopefully the trunks built into the hull don’t fracture and leak. When hauling out for maintenance on the hard, the yard personnel must be careful to block the hull at the correct structural bulkhead points or damage can result.
Mini-keels displace water so they add buoyancy. They extend about 2’ below the hull so they add hull protection in the event of a bottom strike, and they’re structurally tough so when hauled out the boat can sit directly on the. In a bommie ridden anchorage if somehow we end up “kissing” a chunk of coral, the mini-keels are likely going to get the scratch as they extend a fair bit lower than the rudders and saildrives, and a scratched mini-keel doesn’t mean a hull leak which may be catastrophic.
Andrew Crawford is an Australian boat broker and experienced racer with whom we’ve quaffed a few beers. He recently noted that in very light airs the Seawind 1190 would whup an 1160 in a race around the cans, but in most conditions which boat would triumph would have a lot more to do with the performance of the crew and perhaps most importantly how clean the bottom is. He also noted that the buoyancy difference increases the amount of wine and beer one can carry, an important crew motivator.
It’s important to keep your bottom clean!
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