On our last kayak catamaran test sail we held hands for a moment and the wind picked up, then we did it again, and the same thing happened so we developed a superstition that holding hands made the wind increase. It’s amazing how quickly superstition takes hold in a sailing context.
Here we are flying along at about 6 1/2 mph (well above hull speed) in about 12 to 15 mph of wind. The sails are each one square meter Falcon Kayak Sails (similar name, but no relation to our business). For this test, I spread the kayaks wider apart to 16 inches which really helped to reduce to pressure waves that builds up between them at high speeds. The downside is that the longer lever arm between the two boats increases the racking forces to a point where it’s overstressing the system in a quartering sea, but I’m working on a way to deal with that problem.
As usual, we are always filming everything all the time, which is a necessary evil.
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