You can push a Weta downwind with all sails up to 22-24 knots of breeze. No one should really be sailing the boat (unless you have a rescue boat nearby and you like breaking stuff) in over 25 knots especially with any kind of sea state.

I think most capsizes I have seen have been due to either the sailor is sitting too far forward in big breeze downwind or the mainsheet is not eased sufficiently after a tack (the latter is the closest I have come to a capsize in the boat). In any breeze over around 17-18 knots, I move to the aft weather cockpit seat behind the rear beam. You can sail pretty deep and the trick is to slightly overtrim the mainsail as the bottom of the mainsail will be stalled (it pretty much always is since there is no traveller!) and the top will be twisting off. A lot of cats capsize downwind because both the mainsheet and traveller are well eased and that creates a lot of pitching moment at the top of the rig that wants to drive the bows in.

I never sail the boat downwind in heavy air from the aft corner of the weather trampoline. It’s slow if you are racing and I think you have a lot more control of the boat sitting in the cockpit in the correct position fore and aft.

I agree with the previous comments about a Weta being (a lot) more stable than any beach cat or dinghy in big breeze.

Ha. Great story and illustration. I can appreciate that. Thanks for sharing.

In my second or third outing on the Weta my friend and I encountered unexpectedly high winds, which I later learned were gusting as hight as 28 mph. As the wind built we lowered the jib and started home on main alone, jibing to change tacks. While working our way back we encountered a capsized Hobie 16 manned by two of his relatives struggling to right their boat. I passed close to the Hobie, whereupon my friend jumped overboard and swam to the Hobie to help. For the next 45 minutes or so I singled-handed back to a cove where I could dock. I was wet and a bit frazzled but never felt close to capsize. Later that night I learned that the Hobie capsized twice more trying to sail home before being towed back by a passing good samaritan in a power boat.

Lessons learned were re-check the forecast at launch time--and trust the Weta!

Glenn

Weta 545

Having sailed cats and monohulls I can say that the Weta is more stable than all of them. Personally, I play the mainsheet in higher winds. Some folks play the jib. You can also depower the main by moving the mainsheet attachment point on the clew board. A Tri is different from a Cat. The main hull is always in the water. One ama is in the water and the other is out. This creates a very stable platform. And when you tack, both amas come out of the water so the Weta tacks more like a monohull.

The Weta can be very fast in a good breeze. It is not particularly fast in light air. The trimaran is inherently more stable than cats and monos. The leeward ama can be buried when overpowered causing a lot of drag. The Weta has a screecher, which is a blast and can be flown at many angles of attack. I have found that the Weta can be depowered quickly. The main can be sailed in a "feathered" trim that provides some security in very heavy conditions.