Northeaster Dory capsize test

Builder's Forum
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Last night my girlfriend and I ran a capsize test of our Northeaster dory  with the lug rig and we wanted to share our experience and observations.

Capsizing the boat took a surprising amount of effort, but once one of the gunwales went under, the boat went over pretty gently.  With the mast stepped, the boat floated happily on her side.  Our first attempt to right the boat was with the mast stepped and she came back up relatively easily.  My girlfriend hung on to the dagger board trunk and rolled up into the boat as I righted it by stepping gently on the dagger board.  This technique worked very well except that with the mast up, there wasn't enough buoyancy to keep the top of the dagger board or even the gunwales above water.  We re-capsized and attempted to right the boat again without anybody in it with similar results.  There's just not enough floatation in the front of the boat with the sail rig up to make it work.

After that we un-stepped the mast and righted the boat.  The dagger board trunk was only about two inches above the waterline, but that was enough.  My girlfriend got in and started bailing and I stayed in the water to stabilize the boat.  As the water sloshes around, there's a tendency for the rails to dip back under and take on all the water you just bailed out.  When we had the water down to just below the thwarts, I went to the front of the boat, and using the buoyancy of my dry suit and PFD, hauled myself into the boat.  Using the girlfriend as counterbalance worked very well.  

Observations/recommendations

1. We were in relatively good conditions 5-10mph winds on a lake.  If we were in conditions that would lend itself to capsize (bigger winds, waves, etc) recovery would be much more difficult, if not impossible.

2. The mast must be secured to the boat.  After unstepping, I rested the bottom of the mast on a gunwale, and just kind of stayed there.  Again, if there were winds/ waves/ current, it would have been very easy to lose the sail.  

3. Positioning of the bailing bucket matters.  I had it stowed in the front of the boat with a long tether that promptly got tangled up on everything in the boat.  Will move it aft, and probably add a second one.  Working the bailing bucket and my kayak bilge pump, it took about 15-20 minutes to empty the whole boat.

4. Personal safety gear is mandatory!!  I wouldn't have been able to stabilize the boat without the additional flotation from my PFD and the air trapped in my dry suit (It's Alaska, they're pretty much mandatory too).  From a practical standpoint, if you're in a dry suit, once you're done bailing, you're comfortable and ready to start sailing again, not shivering and soaking wet.

I hope someone can take some value from this, but I recommend running your own test with your own boat.

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   Thanks VERY much for the comprehensive write up...there have been discussions of this topic on this board and yours is one of the best, and yes, I'll definetly be doing my own capsize test.

--Is it your thought that more floatation would help?  If so, would you position it low in the boat on the floor, or along the gunwale?  (maybe boat fenders/pool noodles tied to the gunwale inner rail (which I have) or athwart ship on the floor tied thru the limber holes to another one on the other side of the same bulkhead)..your thoughts?

--Another thing I intend to add to my Dory is a floorboard forward of the mast back to the floatation on the front bulkhead and cut to the shape of the hull, for practical purposes to be a wider "floor", putting it either on top of the mast step, or raised above the mast step 3/4" with floatation under this floorboard.  I spoke to John Harris about this and he said the added floatation forward would be a good idea...your thoughts?  (for example, maybe raising it 1-1/2" above the mast step would be even better for more floatation?

--On the "Mast laynard" are you suggesting a line to hold the mast down in it's mast step or a laynard to keep it from floating away once capsized and the mast removed), or both?

Thanks!!

Curt 830/997-8120 curtdennis@msbm.com (just completed, not yet splashed, NE Dory on the road to Maine for the summer with the boat)

   

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Curt,

I'm mulling the "more flotation" question now.  I wasn't commited enough to capsize with my camping gear but I think that will give me addional bouancy, or at least take up some of the volume so there's less water to bail.  I think the lower you can keep the floatation, the more good it will do, but the more unstable the boat would become when filled with water. I noticed that Neil Calore straps pool noodles to his gunwales and have to think that they help keep the gunwales above water when bailing. There seems to be a lot of things to take into account when it comes to bouyancy and recovery.  

I think if there had been more floatation around the mast, we might have been able to self-recover with the mast in place instead of having to unstep it. 

For securing the mast, I was only thinking about a lanyard to keep it from floating/drifting away once it's unstepped.  With the boat on it's side, the mast floats nicely and kept the dory from going turtle.  It took some effort to remove it from the partner, so I wouln't be worried about it coming out unintentionally.  Having gone through this drill, I'm adopting the mindset of "If it can be tied down, it will be tied down"

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   There is always a lot to learn form this type of drill. For the participants it also demoonstrats how much effort and work is needed to capsize or right a boat.

Secured lines and equipment is very important. Lines need to be secured so there is the minimum number of floating lines that one could get tangled in. In most of the sailboats I have used, the mast halyard is secued to cleat on the mast step, not the mast, so the mast does not popout. One can run the halyard through the hole in the cleat and tie a figure 8 kont in the running end of the halyard so if the main sail is lowered, the mast is still secured to the boat. One could also other ways to secure the mast to the boat. If is even possible to right a boat with the sails still raised. It takes effort and one needs to make sure that all the sail sheets are free running because once righted the boat could sail away on its own.

This drill should also emphasize the need to be ready to help other boaters in times of distress even if participating in a race. The prevention of loss of human life is more important than any race. Sailors even if sailing alone are dependent upon other sailors for help. It is not necessary to sail into the problem boat but to be near enough and have enough control of ones boat to be able to enter the troubled area and perform the resue mission as needed.

For larger boats, capsize drills might not be easy to perform, but man overboard drills should be practiced with the crew. Even in warmer waters there is limit as to how long anyone will survive in the water.

 

 

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   K. Totten,

So, my conclusion on your comments is (feel free to add your comments!)

  • since I want to carry some Taylor boat fenders anyway, I will strap a couple on each side to the inner rails ala Neil Calore so they are right there when needed,
  • and maybe some pool noodles too bow to stern, and
  • also some pieces of pool noodles athwart ships on the floor tied through the limber holes,
  • plus under the yet to be added front floorboard, some pieces of 3/4" foam insulation board cut to shape of 3/4".

--One thought I had...I've seen pictures of people leaning back against the side of the boat while sailing...I wonder if some foam floatation made into blocks cut to sit on each side of each protruding bulkhead, and the same thickness as the bulkhead protrudes would provide a comfortable back rest plus floatation right where it may be beneficial?

--Also, I may be missing something obvious, but you unstepped the mast while you were in the water with the boat on its side...how did removing the mast help it ride higher once righted?

--What did you mean by "more floatation around the mast"?

Thanks!  Curt

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   Curt,

I really like your idea for foam padding/floatation backrests on the side of the boat.  It seems like it would give the progressive bouyancy that would be helpful in a capsize without adding instability.  Attaching them in a non-permanent fashion might be a challenge though.

On our first attemt to right the dory, we tried with the mast up,the sail up and the sheet free. The wet sail, lines, mast and hardware extending way above the waterline pushed the boat lower into the water to the point the dagger board trunk was underwater, making bailing useless.  When we removed the mast and just had it floating next to us, the daggerboard trunk was approx. 2" above water.

One option I'm looking at is adding inflatible flotation bag similar to the NRS Canoe Float bags to the bow of the boat.  It seem like it would provide additional bouyancy near the mast, and displace quite a bit of water we would otherwise have to bail.

 

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Have a look at Skerry impossible to right for some additonal tips and discussion. The link to a guide on righting a skerry is now broken.