jimi
Well-known member
This is an extract from another website of a forumite describing his/her craft
Which boat & forumite?
The common factor is obviously the hull - well - this is very powerful and the shape gives her some fairly broad shoulders around the bulkhead to the forecabin area. Going into seas upwind she uses these to good effect and so manages to stay reasonably dry on deck - of course when you hit a big wave then this can hit the wheelhouse screens but in rolling seas with a fairly long wavetrain - rather than short choppy seas she is very comfortable and somehow predictable. In following seas she is great as there is so much bouyancy in the hull that when a following wave overtakes her keel tends to sit her straight - as long as the sails are balanced and so she rises up and then sinks down the trailing edge of the wave. Quartering seas she takes under her stern and like any craft she will try to screw up to windward but she telegraphs this - almost gives you notice in writing!
Wherever we go we always hear someone telling us that we look 'comfortable' and indeed thats how we view life aboard - she keeps us out of the rain and the beauty of the semi-enclosed wheelhouse is that if we want to take shelter from the sun we can do that too. We can also stick on the autopilot when motorsailing and sit up on deck or at the back of the cockpit which is my favourite place. I think that it means we can undertake longer passages or stay fresher longer than people sailing in open cockpit boats. Who wants to sail to windward for hours on end anyway unless you're shagging away in the forepeak with the next mutton curry!
Which boat & forumite?
The common factor is obviously the hull - well - this is very powerful and the shape gives her some fairly broad shoulders around the bulkhead to the forecabin area. Going into seas upwind she uses these to good effect and so manages to stay reasonably dry on deck - of course when you hit a big wave then this can hit the wheelhouse screens but in rolling seas with a fairly long wavetrain - rather than short choppy seas she is very comfortable and somehow predictable. In following seas she is great as there is so much bouyancy in the hull that when a following wave overtakes her keel tends to sit her straight - as long as the sails are balanced and so she rises up and then sinks down the trailing edge of the wave. Quartering seas she takes under her stern and like any craft she will try to screw up to windward but she telegraphs this - almost gives you notice in writing!
Wherever we go we always hear someone telling us that we look 'comfortable' and indeed thats how we view life aboard - she keeps us out of the rain and the beauty of the semi-enclosed wheelhouse is that if we want to take shelter from the sun we can do that too. We can also stick on the autopilot when motorsailing and sit up on deck or at the back of the cockpit which is my favourite place. I think that it means we can undertake longer passages or stay fresher longer than people sailing in open cockpit boats. Who wants to sail to windward for hours on end anyway unless you're shagging away in the forepeak with the next mutton curry!
