no, i disagree. i mean, yes, lengthening the hull is easy, but it does NOT result in bow up trim. merely less bow down. a very important distinction which i don't think many here or elsewhere appreciate.
having only been sailing for 13 years and never ventured out of sight of land, i don't have the experience that many others on this forum have. but the times which i've been in waves (1m on a dinghy, 3m on a yacht) it has been tremendously comforting to move all crew weight aft when off the wind. several degrees of positive bow up trim results and the hydrodynamic lift is very effective at stopping the bow from stuffing.
crew weight shift is difficult on a proa due to both ends being pointy. water ballast is possible but adds weight. pantographing doesn't do it because as mal (?) pointed out it moves the COB too. one could hinge the stern to reduce the buoyancy aft as i suggested on the proa forum a few weeks ago. i have one other out-of-the-box idea which i'll post soon once i get a chance to draw a picture so everyone can understand.
ben
--- In harryproa@yahoogroups.com.au, Rob Denney <harryproa@...> wrote:
>
> Probably not elegant enough to justify giving away your realm, but the
> easiest way is to lengthen the lee hull. Adds less weight, cost and
> complexity than hinges/pantographs/water ballast and increases top speed.
> Easy enough to make it removable or hinged if loa is a factor for
> trailering or marinas.
>
> On Thu, Sep 22, 2011 at 11:46 PM, bjarthur123 <bjarthur123@...> wrote:
>
> > **
> >
> >
> > 30:1 length:beam, okay, i can see how that wouldn't be stiff at all. and
> > true, a full circle has more surface area than a half circle for the same
> > volume, so more drag.
> >
> > a key difference with the weta is that the main hull is longer than the
> > floats, and has plenty of reserve buoyancy for waves. i've seen 1m waves
> > once and though exciting, wasn't a problem. the san fran guys routinely see
> > bigger i bet.
> >
> > another key difference is that it's possible to shift weight aft to get a
> > massive bow up trim. my entire kingdom for an elegant way to do this on a
> > proa...
> >
> > ben