Norman Cross, the seminal multihull designer, was a native of Canada. Before embarking on a career in yacht design, he worked for Ford Motor Company, and spent 16 years with General Dynamic's Convair Division, Department of Wind-tunnel Model Design and Towing Basin Testing. Later he moved to San Diego, California where he remained for most of his life. In the 1950's he began designing multihull sailing craft, the first of which were catamarans. He began full time multihull development in 1968 when he started drawing the many trimarans for which he most noted, especially among amateur builders.