{"id":353,"date":"2013-06-03T04:40:09","date_gmt":"2013-06-03T08:40:09","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/tomdove.com\/blog\/?p=353"},"modified":"2015-07-12T13:59:49","modified_gmt":"2015-07-12T17:59:49","slug":"how-much-can-you-take","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/tomdove.com\/blog\/2013\/06\/how-much-can-you-take\/","title":{"rendered":"How Much Can You Take?"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Sloop<\/a><\/p>\n

A good boat, properly handled, can be a safe place when the wind kicks up.<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

How much can your boat (and you) take? \u0004\u000e\u0003<\/strong><\/span>
\n by \u0004\u000e\bTom Dove<\/span><\/p>\n

First published 6\/9\/89 in several Maryland newspapers<\/span><\/p>\n

“Sunny and hot today with highs in the 90s and a chance of \u0004an afternoon or evening thundershower. Winds southerly at 10 to \u000415 miles per hour with higher gusts in thunderstorms,” the radio repeats almost every day from June through August.\u0004\u001c<\/span><\/p>\n

Within that familiar, innocuous report are at least two hidden \u0004warnings for all boaters on the Chesapeake: the Bay may get \u0004choppy from the southerly wind and a thunderstorm may blast you with winds up to sixty knots.\u0004\u001cYour preparation for a typical summer day should depend on your boat and your experience, in that order. A boater’s axiom states that the boat can withstand more than you can.\u0004<\/span><\/p>\n

Seaworthiness is not necessarily related to size in boats, but \u0004comfort generally is, and a skipper’s mental state is controlled \u0004largely by comfort. Let’s look at rough weather techniques according to size and type of boat, remembering that there are \u0005overlaps; one 30-footer may have a hull shape that gives it a better ride than another 35-footer, for example. \u0004\u001c\u001e<\/span><\/p>\n

*** POWERBOATS UNDER 20 FEET:\u0004\u001c These popular boats are great fun in smooth water but begin \u0004to take spray aboard when the waves are more than about one \u0004foot high. In a two-foot chop, they become downright \u001cuncomfortable and anything rougher than that calls for slowing \u0004down and coming off a plane to slow, displacement speed. Their \u0004transoms are often quite low with a cutout for the outboard motor, so they are vulnerable to seas from astern.\u0004\u001c<\/span><\/p>\n

In a little powerboat, stay off the open Bay if the wind \u0004exceeds about 15 knots. In rough water or thunderstorms, head for \u0004the nearest shore and pull up on the beach. If you are caught out, \u0004anchor or try to power slowly into the wind and seas. Put on a life jacket and stay with the boat, even if it gets swamped.<\/span><\/p>\n

*** SMALL CENTERBOARD SAILBOATS: \u0004\u001cA Small centerboard sailboats, especially self-bailing racers and \u0004day sailers, can generally handle rough water better than they can \u0004strong winds. Thunderstorms are a serious threat and the sight of \u0004black clouds building in the west should send a small-boat sailor to the nearest shore to drop and furl the sails. \u0004If you have a Sunfish, Laser or similar vessel and are caught \u0004out in the open Bay in survival conditions, put on a life jacket, drop the sails and hold on until the squall passes. \u0004\u001c\u001b<\/span><\/p>\n

*** POWERBOATS 20-30 FEET:\u0004\u001c Boats in this size range can generally make progress through \u0004all normal Bay conditions, although the ride may be rough and wet when wave heights exceed two feet. \u0004\u001cThunderstorms are a different matter. If the water is less \u0004than about 15 feet deep and you cannot reach a safe harbor, drop \u0004the anchor and ride out the storm. A good anchor with a length of chain between it and the rope rode can be a life saver.\u0004\u001cIf you are caught out in a squall, slow down and try powering \u0004slowly into or away from the waves and wind. Keep your speed \u0004down to the minimum necessary for rudder control and avoid getting broadside to the waves. \u0004<\/span><\/p>\n

*** KEEL SAILBOATS: Slow speed and deep draft work against reaching shelter in \u0004keel sailboats but these vessels are generally able to ride out nearly \u0004anything the Bay can throw at them. If you cannot reach an anchorage as a thunderstorm \u0004approaches, drop and furl all sails and ride it out under bare poles, \u0004either broadside to the wind or running before it. Check to be sure \u0004you have plenty of sea room to leeward and will not be driven\u001c\baground. \u0004\u001c\u0016<\/span><\/p>\n

*** LARGE POWERBOATS:\u0005 While three-foot chop will not bother a 40-footer too badly, \u0004thunderstorm winds will whip up conditions that require you to \u0004slow down to displacement speeds. If the storm is not too severe, \u0004you may be able to power into the waves, but 50 and 60 knot \u0004gusts will push the bow until the boat is lying broadside to the waves, an uncomfortable and potentially dangerous position.\u0004\u001cIn severe winds and seas, turn your stern to the wind and \u0004run slowly, staying well below planing speed. A deep-draft trawler \u0004will handle these conditions easily while a high, boxy cruiser without much hull underwater will be a handful for its skipper.\u0004\u001c<\/span><\/p>\n

In any boat, keep your eye to the west and northwest this \u0004summer. Storms from other directions rarely reach you (I have been clobbered by a few notable exceptions), but cumulonimbus clouds building in the west on a summer afternoon should be a warning of severe weather within an hour or so. \u0004\u000e<\/span><\/p>\n

— The End –\u000e<\/span><\/p>\n ","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

A good boat, properly handled, can be a safe place when the wind kicks up. How much can your boat (and you) take? \u0004\u000e\u0003 by \u0004\u000e\bTom Dove First published 6\/9\/89 in several Maryland newspapers “Sunny and hot today with highs in the 90s and a chance of \u0004an afternoon or evening thundershower. Winds southerly at Read More …<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[10,1],"tags":[],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/tomdove.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/353"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/tomdove.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/tomdove.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tomdove.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tomdove.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=353"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/tomdove.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/353\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":604,"href":"https:\/\/tomdove.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/353\/revisions\/604"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/tomdove.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=353"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tomdove.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=353"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tomdove.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=353"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}