I am currently looking for an al around good sailing book (kind of a how too) specifically with regards to Catamarans. Does anyone have any suggestions?

Rick White and Mary Wells wrote a good one called Catamaran Racing in the 90's. It'll really explain how the boats work and how to improve the performance. I'm sure you can find it here in his on-line store.

Wyatt

Rick's book is a must have, even for seasoned veteran!

Also consider Rick's videos. In addition to the five that are currently available, there will be a combined DVD coming out very soon with all five on one disc.

Good luck and sail fast,

Tim J.
Executive Producer, Rick White's Video Sailing Seminars

Thanks for the info everyone...I'm looking for a good resource which describes the nuances particular to a catamaran. ie. pointing into the wind, close reaches...etc. The catamaran is not a hobie 16 or the like, it is a 32 foot x 18 foot day sailer. Would the suggestions regarding Rick's material cover these types of vessels. I'm not exactly looking for performance, just all around sailing techniques concerning catamarans.

"Catamaran Racing for the 90's" is helpful for any size multihull, but Rick also wrote a book for the American Sailing Association. It is "Multihull Fundamentals, The Official American Sailing Association Guide to Cruising Multihulls." A.S.A. is in Marina del Rey, CA, and their phone number is 310-822-7171. Maybe that is more like what you are looking for, although it is much more general and basic as far as performance.

Mary,

Thanks for the info. I went ahead and ordered both books you have suggested. Once I have them and have had a chance to read thru them I will let you know what I think. Thanks again and keep sailing.

Billy

To eveyone contributing to my question I certainly appreciate it however, I have read through both of the books listed by Mary Wells and have found them useful in some regards but lacking in many others. Still wanted to find a book about sailing "larger Cats" non racing. Everyday sailing. I currently spend about 8 hours a day on a power cat, and will soon be spending as much time aboard a sail cat. I am a charter boat captain, not a racer. Looking more for a manual regarding sailing that I can give to co-workers before they step onto a catamaran so that they may become better acquanted with the nuances and differences between a sailing Catamaran and a sailing Monohull. Any suggestions?

I believe there is a book titled "Multihull Seamanship", that might be more along the lines of what you are looking for. Don't know the author...

Go to the Multihulls magazine site, then click on the "store" link, then select books. You'll find it and other titles there.

http://www.multihullsmag.com/

What you want is probably "Multihull Seamanship" by Gavin LeSueur, published by Fernhurst. It's somewhat basic on some topics, but have lots of good points for anchoring, drying out etc. Doesn't say much about how to sail them, but the books from RAM press (Rick And Mary Press ??) can tell you that.

There are several other books as well, about both surveying and voyaging on multihulls, but I guess Gavin's book is the one you should get since you probably want info about safety and practical handling in a compressed form.

Katarina,
Are you going to be running these charter boats in the area of Puerto Rico?
What brand of cats are they? and size? and accommodations?
With the answers to those questions, I can help you better.

Mary,
I am located on the very West Coast of Puerto Rico in a small town called Rincon. I currently work for Taino Divers as a master catain and dive instructor. I am having a John Marples design custom 32' Hard Top day catamaran being built for me right now by Sea Isaland Boat Works out of Charlston, SC. I believe we are going for a COI of 30 passengers. This is a DAY CHARTER SAIL vessel, If you would like you can go to www.seaislandboatworks.com and view photos of a boat called "sibling" this is her sister ship. Let me know if you need any further info.
Billy Bonbright