Leisure Cat 266LC
The twin-hulled Leisure Cat 266LC can take a licking and keep on ticking.
August 1, 1999
When I think deck boat, I think of my
grandpa Otto. He was among the first to buy one of those new-fangled fiberglass deck boats when
they were introduced in the late '60s. He had a house on a small Michigan lake, and his favorite
activity was ferrying 14 grandkids down to Mysterious River. Of course, there was nothing
mysterious about it: It was just a typical collection of Midwestern summer cottages on a narrow
river that dead-ended in a waterfall. About the only animals living on the creek back then were
squirrels and chipmunks.
But for kids between ages 2 and 7, it was the most exciting place. Grandpa used to feed us
stories of alligators living on the banks, tigers hiding in the bushes and monkeys swinging from
the trees. And although we never saw them, Grandpa would point and shout: 'Look over there, did you
see that alligator?' Fourteen bug-eyed kids in orange life vests would run to the rail to get a
better look. At least four of us older kids would swear we saw it swimming away, and then the
younger kids would swear they had sighted the gator, too.
We were never disappointed on those trips to Mysterious River, and I still remember the warm
feeling of accomplishment as we chugged home at a princely 8 mph, with Grandpa in the helm seat
wearing a white skipper's hat and one or two little grandkids sitting on his lap.
Deck boats have come a long way in the last 30 years, and you probably won't find many like
my Grandpa's. It was pretty much a no-frills platform, with metal lockers full of life jackets
along the gunwales doubling as seats. We used it to cruise and to fish, with all 14 of us going
after bass with bamboo rods and orange floats. With the 75-hp Johnson cranked up, the boat was all
rattles, like a banged-up starship going into hyperspace.
Deck-boat builders are much more sophisticated these days, but most are still designed for
rivers and lakes. Few I'd consider truly seaworthy.
But as I'm pounding through 4-foot seas off Miami Beach on the new Leisure Cat 266, I
realize I'll have to redefine my notion of deck boat. Gone is the idea that deck boats are party
platforms with relatively flat hulls that may be easily swamped in rough water. The Leisure Cat 266
proves you can join a seaworthy hull to an open deck and head out into the open ocean feeling
secure.
The secret to the 266's seaworthiness is its twin hulls. Leisure Cat has been around for
more than a decade, but the new 266 is definitely a step up from older models. It's built on the
same hull as its sister World Cat line, which has moved to the head of the fishing catamaran class
in the last three years.
The boat's 'Vectorflo' hull, a semidisplacement design that's mated to convex hull bottom
sections, gives a cushioned ride in big seas. A lot of cat builders like to tout their boats as
magic carpets of the water, gliding over wakes rather than pounding through them like a monohull.
That's not exactly true: Cats pound, too, just not with the same force.
I find that out as soon as I head out of Miami's Government Cut for open water and look at
the boats around me. Most see the rough water ahead ' 5-foot breakers marching in from the east '
and turn around to head home. But I want to see how the Leisure Cat handles rough water, so I go
full steam ahead. The ride is impressive. The 266 pounds somewhat, but the difference is in the
landing. It's incredibly soft, and dry, too. Most open boats that pound through rough seas can be
pretty wet. But the Leisure Cat is predominately dry, with only an occasional bit of spray flying
over the gunwale.
Cap'n Alex, an old salt from Mississippi, is the official boat driver, but he camps out on
the back seat and lets me do a complete test. I take the boat through various turns, trying to find
its Achilles heel, but the 266 holds its ground in the water, and after about an hour we head
in.
Besides being a good ride, the
Leisure Cat 266 has a very solid feel. I've been on cats that felt like they might pull apart, but
not this one. It's overbuilt, according to Forest Munden, World Cat's president. The boat has a
longitudinal stringer system cored with Klegecell and uses multiple layers of multidirectional
fiberglass in the hull layup. Six bulkheads are made with Klegecell coring and multi-directional
glass. The basic hull layup includes tri- and biaxial glass strategically positioned for extra
reinforcement, and 2-pound density foam fills up spaces in the twin hulls. Essentially, these
elements all add up to a very strong hull.
'The naval architect we hired said he would design a laminate schedule to withstand 2.5
G-force,' says Munden. 'I told him to make it four.' Munden says he wanted the extra strength
because he figures owners will eventually start heading for big water when other boats are at the
dock. 'Once they figure it out,' he says, 'they will do what the boat is intended to do. This boat
will be stressed more than your normal monohull, so I figured we needed to build it even better.'
Plus, Munden adds, a cat's normal tendency to allow the two hulls to be slightly independent of
each other ' in other words, flexing in different directions ' requires an even tougher layup.
Of course, that extra layup means extra dollars. The Leisure Cat 266 lists for about $59,000
with twin 130-hp Hondas. That's a lot of money for a deck boat, although as Munden points out,
other quality names like Cobalt have comparably priced deck boats. And Munden expects, in this age
of record stock-market highs, to reach high-end customers.
Back in Government Cut, Cap'n Alex gives me the grand tour, and I like the fit and finish.
There are no rough edges or other shabby details: Everything is clean and smooth. The U-shaped
lounge aft has an expanded closed-cell foam under the vinyl fabric, and it's comfortable. The same
goes for the facing lounges up front. Storage space under the seats is plentiful. There's also a
drop-in table that converts to a huge swim platform for the back cockpit.
The 266 has standard battery and fuel filter compartments with access hatches and a custom
storage cabinet for a cooler. There's also a sink and faucet, with a Corian cutting board and two
freshwater showers on the fore and aft boarding areas. Both shower nozzles are connected to the
20-gallon freshwater system.
A lot of deck boats have changing compartments, but they're often a pop-up canvas or a cubby
hole in front of the helm station. The 266 has an honest-to-goodness, nicely finished changing room
where you can comfortably stand up and turn around. This setup works nicely, and solves a major
problem with deck boats ' no privacy. A portable head works well in the compartment, and an
electric toilet is an option.
One thing I usually find awkward about most deck boats is the fact that you feel like you're
riding on them rather than in them. That's fine if you're on a lake, but if you're in the middle of
the ocean, you'll want to feel the security of being inside the boat. That's definitely the case
with the 266, even in the bow area.
The 266 is fun to drive, as I discover during the run back through Government Cut. The
channel is pretty quiet, so I open the boat up and hit a top end of 41 mph at 5500 rpm with twin
130-hp Hondas.
The helm is arranged nicely. The throttles are positioned in front of an elbow rest, so you
can keep your hands on them in comfort. It's easy to see over the helm, and the double seat would
be fine for two people ' although I refrain from asking Cap'n Alex to sit next to me.
Munden expects to sell more Hondas on the 266 than any other outboard brand. This is due to
the fact that many deck-boat owners favor 4-stroke engines, and also because most World Cat dealers
are Honda dealers.
However, buyers can also get Mercury and Yamaha outboards. With 2-strokes attached to the
transom, you won't get the same fuel efficiency as the Hondas, but you'll likely get a lot more
speed, especially acceleration. Munden estimates that a pair of 130-hp Yamahas would give the 266 a
top end of about 53 mph. Its twin 80-gallon fuel tanks make the Leisure Cat a long-distance
cruiser. The fuel tank's also aluminum ' another sign of built-in quality.
Despite the price, there's much to like about the new Leisure Cat 266. It's roomy, speedy
and, most importantly, seaworthy. It's the kind of deck boat my Grandpa would've loved, with or
without alligators.
LOA:
26'6"
Beam:
8'6"
Weight: (w/o engine)
4,400 lbs.
Top Speed:
41 mph
(w/twin 130-hp engine)
Base Price (w/o engine):
$38,000
Price as Tested:
$59,000
(w/twin 130-hp Hondas)
Hull Warranty
10 years
W.C.C. Group Inc.
801 Stanton Road
Greenville, NC 27834
(919) 754-1948