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An Owner Writes
by Tony Cotton

Choosing a boat nowadays is becoming a nightmare, with so many options - from traditional through to out and out racers - all designed to fill a particular niche in the market. So having decided on a list of priorities, the most important being performance, fun to sail and easy handling, I was drawn inevitably to a multihull. The next prerequisites were volume, for extensive cruising, and comfort, which led me to a catamaran. Ultimately I found myself outside the Millbrook yard of Multimarine Composites, known in the multihull world as a builder of interesting and “different” boats. Incidentally they are also the employer of top rate British boat builders, a rare commodity these days.

“No such thing as a standard boat,” was one early comment of MD Darren Newton, which raised my interest and opened up a multitude of possibilities and worries about future decisions. But after many hours in the local hostelry, before a large open fire with a beer in one hand and a pencil in the other, we managed to conceive a specification for Bedazzled which seemed to fulfill most of my dreams. Surprisingly as the effects of the beer wore off, she still looked pretty good on paper!

Even before I had opened a bank account, the moulds were being polished and set up and I was being introduced to the splendid team that was going to convert my dreams into a GRP reality. I was committing myself to a 10m cat, the third that Darren had molded of this size.

Six months later, Bedazzled very much resembles a racer, with dagger boards and a large rig, which includes a self tacking headsail for those days when I want easy handling and a genoa for those days that I don’t. There is also an extendible pole to carry a large but furlable screecher. Inside, a simple but nicely finished interior contains all the prerequisites for comfortable cruising; heating, water maker, shower, fridge, stereo etc.

In the starboard hull lies a large berth aft (the French would call it a double), with a single berth forward. In the centre stands a large chart table capable of taking one and a half admiralty charts. A saloon on the bridgedeck is large enough for eight people to sit around the table, with the seats making two fixed berths. The table itself lowers to form a fill-in, so that three people can be accommodated in this section (one can only live in hope!).

At an early stage the plan for mirrors on the deck head was dropped. Apparently the magnifying effect of the curvature of the deck head can bring tears to the eyes of the squeamish! In the starboard hull aft there is a huge heads and shower, plus a hanging wet locker and space to store sails. Forward lies another single berth, with a cooker mounted on a parallelogram mechanism. This enables it to be raised from under the berth and, in our opinion, is the best way to make use of space in the galley.

The galley itself, in the starboard hull under the bridge deck, is large enough to grace some town flats, having a work surface some 2m long. The sink is large, with a mixer tap, a tap with carbon filtered water and masses of storage space. From this position, it’s nice to be able to get a good all round view outside the boat. It certainly helps prevent that sensation of inadvertently being presented with your last partially digested meal whilst preparing your next one!

Between the saloon seats and the main hulls are two large units which house the electrical systems: the Eberspacher Hydronic water heater and the Spectra water maker and fridge - all in a dry area. In the interests of weight saving and ease of service, it was deemed that a four stroke outboard was the best option. We fitted a 10 hp Yamaha with extra long leg and high reverse thrust prop. This has proved adequate and drives the boat along at about 7 knots but at the end of the season when it gets its first service it can be upgraded very simply to 15hp.

The motor steering can be connected temporarily to the main steering for added directional control in confined places and provides great manoeuverability even in reverse, which is useful when driving a boat the size of a squash court!

Towards the end of the build Darren was getting rather worried about all this extra weight but we compromised over the water tank. We offset the weight of all the extras by having a small tank and water maker to fill it. When the boat was finally lifted from the shed, she turned in a very respectable 2.5 tonnes without the rig. In racing trim we estimate that a weight of about 3 tonnes wouldn’t be far from the mark. So how did she perform?

On our first outing, which was the three leg Plymouth to Falmouth, Falmouth to Fowey, Fowey to Plymouth race, Bedazzled won 1st. prize, winning two legs outright!. Enough said - except to say that she exceeded our expectations in almost every respect. She managed to outsail upwind all the racing, 38 foot monohulls with their crew all hanging over the windward side, whilst the four of us were sipping a rather nice little red wine and eating lunch in total comfort! Off the wind she flies. With the screecher set, she will still sail to within 40 degrees to the apparent wind - the only limiting factor governing speed being one's courage!

The Sobstad fully battened main and furling head sails set beautifully and can be reefed very easily from the cockpit. However the large main, with its 2 to 1 halyard, does take a few minutes to raise fully, but while being lowered, the lazy jacks and “hay racks” along the boom contain and control the sail very efficiently.

Back into cruising mode, she proves to handle very easily, even in quite brisk conditions. She tacks like a mono and, even with the relatively small genoa set, requires very little hard labour whilst tacking and can be single-handed with ease. The Raytheon autopilot, after setting up, has yet to be faulted and handles her well, even at 15+ knots speed downwind, and is indispensable, as is the two position hydraulic steering.

Concerning “home comforts,” the interior layout has proved very user friendly, enabling one to entertain large numbers of people. With the separate saloon, nav area, galley and heads it’s simple to avoid getting in one another’s way. The beautifully finished interior decor has attracted many compliments from women sailors, as has the cunningly concealed 4 burner grill, oven unit and fridge. The latter has a healthy appetite for electricity, even in economy mode, but by using the tow generator and the occasional top-up with the Honda generator and 40 amp battery charger, I have never been embarrassed by lack of battery power.

The ability to make water, at about 30 litres an hour, with the Spectra water maker, allows one to avoid marinas for extended periods. It also produces enough water, for everyone to have showers, when heated by the efficient Eberspacher water heater. This can also heat the cabin to tropical temperatures!

After the first season there are just a few minor modifications to be made, which can be expected from any “one off” boat. But overall Bedazzled has proved very successful as a fast cruising machine and, above all, has been fantastic fun to sail.

Nice one Darren!

Little words by Tony Cotton, big words, spelling and punctuation by Pat!