What's the Ideal Sailing Rig...?

Kasten Marine Design, Inc. Copyright 2001 - 2008 Michael Kasten Rig Choice Cat, Sloop; Cutter; Ketch; Schooner... these are the basic configurations. How shall we choose among them? The type of rig is often a pre-ordained choice once one has determined vessel size, the preferred layout, and the maximum size of sail one can handle. While this may seem somewhat heretical at first, there is no arguing the fact that no one wants a mast in the middle of their double berth...! Therefore, if a double berth right forward is a priority, it is likely to rule out the schooner rig on a vessel under around 50 feet. For that layout, we would instead tend toward the ketch or cutter rig. On a fairly small vessel though, we might make excellent use of the Cat rig. How shall we choose? It is always a benefit to windward performance to limit the number of sails. A cutter will perform better for example than a ketch. Why would we consider a split rig then? In nearly all cases this choice boils down to ...  more