Excerpted from Yachting Monthly, March 1989

On board

Strider Club

A trailerable weekend catamaran designed to maximise the fun: £ ratio

The concept of the Club has diverted from its cruiser-racer micro-multihull role to more of a daysailer/ weekender knockabout funboat. She is detuned to a degree, although this doesn't stop her being a sparkling performer, but the addition of a full deck 'pan' bridgedeck has suddenly made sailing the boat a much drier and therefore more civilised affair.

A major change from the old boat is that the new Club is fitted with low aspect ratio fixed keels and fixed rudders, which makes her more forgiving and a simpler boat to sail. Any beachwork is also simplified with this configuration...Simplicity is all, and the longer you spend on the boat the more you see the beauty of it no electricity or complicated rigging; there aren't even any winches. A small 4hp, 360 degree swiveling outboard is mounted at the after end of the bridgedeck to push her into the corners that the sails won't take you, and so on.

Accommodation is about as basic as it can be. Single berths fore and aft in each cabin have moulded lockers beneath them, but owners of the Strider Club will probably need to add some netting pouches and a shelf here and there if living aboard regularly for weekend cruising. Equipping ...if any cruising is done a chemical loo and cooker of some sort will be needed.

....In flat conditions under power, the Strider is very maneuverable, with the swiveling outboard making her easily controlled....

...Sitting behind the deep mast crossbeam with back against the angled cabin side, crew are dry and comfortable with all sail controls easily at hand....

We had ideal conditions to sail the Strider Club, bright sunshine and Force 4, in which she revelled. She was so docile, light and fast, it almost seemed like sailing a dinghy. She slid upwind with no effort at all under full sail, making a steady 61/2 knots whilst tacking through 90 degrees. Off the wind the speed increased to around 8 knots, and broad reaching on a little swell let her surf to 101/2 knots peak speed, all the more exciting as you're so close to the water rushing past.

The Strider Club appears to be a very forgiving catamaran. We sailed her in Plymouth Sound where regular gusts come through the bays that could have given some hairy moments on other boats. She just seemed to pick up her bows and go, although at first my hand was firmly on the mainsheet until confidence was gained.

This really is what the Strider Club is all about; the longer she is sailed, the more she grows on you. She is a practical little boat, can be dismantled quite easily and towed behind a car (she weighs just 800kg). However, with a good reefing system and, bearing in mind her size, a forgiving configuration, she makes a seaworthy coastal cruising boat which offers great enjoyment and satisfaction under sail. GP

A complete copy of this article can be obtained from Yachting Monthly