Catana out in force for the ARC 2001

by Windevent on 27 Oct 2001 With 9 boats from 40 (12 m) to 58 feet (18 m), the Catana catamarans represent the largest fleet of mulithulls entered in the 16th
edition of the Atlantic Rally for Cruisers (ARC), which is to start out of Las Palmas (Gran Canaria) on 25th November 2001.

With their reputation for speed, the Catanas are going to add colour to the oldest of all transatlantic rallies once more this year in an armada of
225 cruiser-racers. Catanas already won the last two editions with the best corrected time for Maya (Catana 39) in 1999 and Corazon (Catana
431) in 2000.

The presence of two 58-footers for the first time opens the way to what might turn out to be a very strong performance indeed. It is quite
possible that they might even rival the big monohulls on real time.

Apart from crew ability, the weather will never the less separate the men from the boys on this challenge,if the trade winds do decide to show up.
In winds of 25 to 30 knots, the Catana 58 can clock up average speeds in excess of 10 knots without any difficulty whatsoever. That is faster
than the average speed of the 68 foot monohull which took line honours in a steady trade wind in 2000.

One challenge which the Catana have yet to take on, is the one put up by the series’ builder, who will be awarding a prize for the best corrected
time performance in Saint Lucia (Antilles), where this race finishes.



A yard in the full throes of development

Such a large presence on the Arc is a fine demonstration of how well the Catana yard has developed over the past two years. The main site in Le
Canet en Roussillon employs nearly 350 people in the production of close on 50 boats a year. And the new build unit in Brittany (Catlantech in
Lorient) is in the full throes of setting up to produce a 52 foot boat.

None of this could have happened without the commitment of those behind the scenes. The company is led by Yves Gallot Lavallée, a former
multihull racing yachtsman turned businessman. He puts a true racing strategy into practice. As if to prove the point, one of his active partners
heading up the Lorient site is none other than ex-skipper of the catamaran Stalaven, in the shape of Dominique Marsaudon, who has been building
mulithulls for many years now.

To follow the Catana in the ARC : www.catana-live.com, www.worldcruising.com, on the Catana stand at the Paris Boat Show from 30th November
to 10th December 2001 and also at the Düsseldorf Boat Show from 20th to 28th January 2002.

High res pictures: please contact Windevent


Catana boatyard
Zone technique du port - 66140 Canet en Roussillon / France
Tel. +33 (0)4 68 80 13 13 - Fax. +33 (0)4 68 73 00 40
Web. www.catana.com

Relations presse / Windevent
6 ter, Avenue Louis Martin - 35400 Saint-Malo - France
Tel. +33 (0)2 99 40 49 33 - Fax. +33 (0)2 99 40 49 34
Email. welcome@
windevent.com