This is about recovering from a capsize, mainly about getting back into the boat. But first, some background. A few years ago, while sailing single-handed on the Tappen Zee, I capsized my Capri for the first time. The boat turtled immediately, before I could do anything. A motorboater took me on board and we were able to right the boat (by attaching a line to the far side). The self-bailing worked well and I was able to resume sailing.
I contacted Catalina and eventually ordered the anti-turtling device (a floatation sleeve that fits over the head of the mainsail).
A few days ago, while sailing with a friend, I capsized again. The device worked and the boat did not turtle. It wasn't easy to right, perhaps because the center-board was not fully extended. My friend had to swim out to the mast head and push it up. My real troubles began after the boat came back up and the water drained out.
Having been told some years ago that this was a hard boat to board from the water, I had attached to the inside of the transom a piece of line with a loop in it. When I tried to use this, I found that it somehow didn't work. I just couldn't get high enough out of the water to get into the boat. Efforts to board from the side also failed. Note that I am reasonably agile, for example, I have no trouble mounting a horse. I had been struggling for quite a while before a boat from Julius Petersen's Boat Yard came to my rescue. I have just ordered a collapsable ladder that I will attach to the inside of the transom.
It occurred to me yesterday that the boarding problem is largely due to the self-bailing feature. If after being righted there was still a lot of water in the boat, it would ride lower in the water and be much easier to board (this was the case with my previous boat). So my idea now is to install removable plugs in the drain holes. If the boat takes on water while sailing, these can be pulled for drainage and then re-inserted. Should the boat capsize, I would right it, board it, and then pull the plugs for drainage. Has anybody tried something like this? Any thoughts on whether it would work?
I contacted Catalina and eventually ordered the anti-turtling device (a floatation sleeve that fits over the head of the mainsail).
A few days ago, while sailing with a friend, I capsized again. The device worked and the boat did not turtle. It wasn't easy to right, perhaps because the center-board was not fully extended. My friend had to swim out to the mast head and push it up. My real troubles began after the boat came back up and the water drained out.
Having been told some years ago that this was a hard boat to board from the water, I had attached to the inside of the transom a piece of line with a loop in it. When I tried to use this, I found that it somehow didn't work. I just couldn't get high enough out of the water to get into the boat. Efforts to board from the side also failed. Note that I am reasonably agile, for example, I have no trouble mounting a horse. I had been struggling for quite a while before a boat from Julius Petersen's Boat Yard came to my rescue. I have just ordered a collapsable ladder that I will attach to the inside of the transom.
It occurred to me yesterday that the boarding problem is largely due to the self-bailing feature. If after being righted there was still a lot of water in the boat, it would ride lower in the water and be much easier to board (this was the case with my previous boat). So my idea now is to install removable plugs in the drain holes. If the boat takes on water while sailing, these can be pulled for drainage and then re-inserted. Should the boat capsize, I would right it, board it, and then pull the plugs for drainage. Has anybody tried something like this? Any thoughts on whether it would work?