Wednesday, November 17, 2010

Position of Off-Centreboard

The clearing of the centre of the boat by moving the centreboard into the port airbox is great, though I have noticed something else.

If you want to sit on the port side deck and be in a position that doesn't get the transom dragging in the water or get the bow digging in when turning, then the centreboard is probably in about the spot you want to sit.

As with everything else in life, it's a compromise. Now I have a clear deck well but have lost the optimum spot for sitting.

Sunday, November 7, 2010

Snapping Mast

Ohhh, the horror,
I've taken Rosa-J out a couple of times now but each time there were two people in the boat, both grown adults.
Today, for the first time, I went out by myself. The breeze was 'stiff'', no idea of the actual speed. Wow, Rosa-j was fast and very responsive... almost 'twitchy' in how quickly she responded to rudder movements. Actually, it was a bit scary. The first turn I did the sheet pulled hard, she tipped hard sideways and I was nearly in the water. So different to having the weight to two adults in the boat.
Well, I thought I was getting the hang of it when I tried another turn. The sheet went very tight, she started to tip and suddenly SNAP!!!! Suddenly I had two bits of mast instead of one. I was in the middle of the lake, hoping the wind would push me to shore otherwise I was going to have a long swim.
So, finger jointed pine is NOT the material to make your mast out of.
Back to the drawing board and time to contemplate what makes a good mast and what doesn't.