They could hit the mast or any number of other items protruding off the deck on the way down.

Can catamarans capsize. A catamarans twin hulls usually offer more stability but if you have so much sail exposed to the wind that the force of the wind is greater than the weight of the boat the boat will literally trip sideways over the leeward the downwind side hull capsizing. Yes Im talking about monohull keel boats with external ballast. Many will be surprised to learn that they are the newest of all sailing vessels for 150 years ago they didnt exist.

So a wide beam power catamaran for example. Older boats especially may have gained weight over the years as more gear is stored aboard. A catamaran on the ARC rally reefed for an approaching squall as seen from Jeanneau 64 Layla.

What we can learn from Annas Capsize August 15 2010 On July 31 2010 the Atlantic 57 Catamaran Anna with a crew of two was capsized by a violent squall 125nm from Tonga in the South Pacific. Wind 56 wind and wave 16 pitchpole 12 wave 8 breaking wave 4 flooded 4. A large modern catamaran has plenty of buoyancy and exceptional roll inertia.

Im not saying that you will then capsize just that you then become at risk of capsize. Notice I used the phrase self-righting not capsize for ALL boats can capsize. Small boats are much more susceptible to an extra person or two or a couple of heavy coolers aboard than larger boats.

In other words if your catamaran is 20ft wide you are effectively safe from capsizing in waves until the wave height exceeds 20ft. 84 of the catamaran casualties were the result of wind induced capsize or pitchpoling. See our video trailer film.

Subscribe to Yachting Monthly magazine for all the latest sailing news and reviews. You could stay with the vessel for shelter and protection until you are rescued. This means that a person on the deck could end up falling 26 feet into the water during a capsize.