Ketch

Ketch 86 Ron Holland

Se un giorno nutrirò mai il desiderio folle di possedere qualcosa, sarà per questa meraviglia qui....

"A ketch is a sailing craft with two masts. The ketch is popular among long distance cruisers as the additional sail allows for a better balance, and a smaller more easily handled mainsail for the same overall sail area. It also allows sailing on mizzen and jib only without introducing excessive lee helm, and in an emergency can be quite well steered without use of the rudder. The ketch is a popular rig in northern European waters where sudden increases in wind strength sometimes requires a rapid reefing: the mainsail can be dropped, reducing sail and leaving a balanced sail-plan with jib and mizzen set.

The ketch rig is often confused with a yawl. The difference is that the ketch has her mizzen mast forward of the rudder post or waterline thus having more sail area, which contributes significant forward propulsion, whereas the mizzen on a yawl is aft of the rudder post and is used primarily to balance the sail plan (and as a riding sail while at anchor)".