[C320-list] Boat Draft and Grounding (Wing Keel)

[Amirault Family - S&B]

All:

I have eagerly read your responses and I have been given some hope. For this
relief, much thanks. I will continue to pass thru the harbour entrance
slowly and attempt to tilt myself off if necessary and crew is available to
do so. The use of a halyard and a motor launch to tip a boat off a grounding
I did myself some years ago with my first boat; a fin keeler.

It would seem that there is a variance among boats regarding keel depth and
rudder length. The rudder on hull 797 appears a couple of inches below the
keel on the many times I have seen it while Bear is on the hard - she comes
out every winter. Thus during this period of low water I will continue to
move available crew forward. 

I read with interest the "breakaway keel" comments. To my relief I cannot
yet address this directly, but my second hand experience is that this cannot
be relied upon. Last year a club C34 grounded its rudder with the result
that the rudder did not break away, but the rudder post did bend. This left
the boat with greatly reduced rudder play. Over the winter the owner
replaced the rudder with one made both shorter by 6 inches and wider front
to back to account for the otherwise reduced surface area. He is now happy
again and more confident.

The good news; it has been raining hard for much of the day.

Of course concern never should cease. While out for a sail Thursday
afternoon with non-sailor friends, one got may attention and asked me if
what he saw in the water was a barrel; and pointed to the exposed 1.5 feet
of a 2 foot diameter near-perpendicular deadhead in 26 feet of water. I had
not seen it, was not looking for it and was making 5.5 knots as we passed it
from 10 feet. The possibility is always there, as from 200 years ago the
Ottawa river was a major logging route and many of these old logs which got
away from the drives are still in the river. There is even a company that
goes diving for them and then sells them as individual logs to specialty
processors as you just can't get modern logs in such large sizes.  

It's always something!

Brian Amirault;
797 Waltzing Bear, too