Keel Boat Challenge

Launching and retrieving a keel boat at WSC presents some interesting challenges.

The depth of a keel boat is the distance from the waterline to the bottom of the keel, according to the specifications submitted by the manufacturer. A listing of data about most sailboats is available at
http://sailboatdata.com
In the case of the ABBOTT 22 shown below, the depth of the keel is listed at 46". Add to this measurement 16" more for the keel's height on the trailer, and you will see that this boat requires at least 62" (6 feet would be even better) of water depth to float this boat off and on the trailer.

This boat on this particular trailer would be a perfect candidate for a crane or something similar e.g. a large transporter to lift the boat off its trailer and pop it into the water. You wouldn't even have to remove the support bar across the rear of the  frame. However, if you desire to launch/retrieve at WSC you must be prepared to do some modifications since cranes are not available.

 To add to the challenge is the fact that the ramp has a slight curve.

 

 

The easy answer is that you cannot launch/retrieve this boat at the WSC ramp

 PERIOD -  END OF STORY.

 

In fact, at the annual Spring 2011 meeting, the club membership passed the following  rule for members.

Sailboats qualifying for membership in the Wildwood Sailing Club include those with swing keels, dagger boards, or fixed keels with a draught no greater than 40 inches. 

 

However, as with all challenges that life throws at you, this problem has a solution but it will require quite a bit of effort to overcome.

This problem will come more frequently for WSC as more prospective members are exposed to really excellent deals on used keel boats as these boats age and the current owners dispose of them at distressed prices. 

 

 

Ramp characteristics

 

 

 

 

Chart #1 Projected Water Levels      

 

 

 

 

As you can determine from the chart, at spring water levels we have at least 11' of depth at the end of the ramp. The challenge is HOW TO GET THERE.

When the water level starts to deteriorate from the high level achieved in the spring, all boat owners must keep an eye on the water level shown on the ramp to ensure that the water level does not reach the critical point where they cannot retrieve their precious boat. The critical water levels are unique to each boat and the trailer called upon to retrieve their craft.

Sometimes it is difficult to get your boat out of the bay when the water dops dramatically.

In this instance, the water level at the dock was sufficient to float the boat but the water level in the bay behind the boat dictated that the boat had to be heeled over in order to bring the boat to deeper water.

Most seasoned WSC members know when the water level on the ramp reaches the critical point  where further delay means a frustrating and challenging retrieval for their particular boat and trailer.

A suggested list starts here. Please feel free to add your craft to this list in order to inform newer members.

Boat                      retrieve when ramp water level reaches ?? feet
Matilda 20             65'




Chart #2 Actual measured water levels

And you can also see that you can not find 6' of water except at the end of the ramp but once again HOW DO YOU GET THERE.

 

Other factors to consider when coping with the ramp are

 

#1 When you run off the end of the ramp, you are entering upon a muddy surface. If you add the weight of a keel boat to the trailer, then you are likely to be stuck in soft sticky mud.

 

#2 If you happen to run off the edge of the ramp, you could be facing a 10" drop, also into wet sticky mud.

 If you are unfortunate to have a heavy keel boat on the trailer, you might be in a real predicament as the frame could be stuck on the ramp. Good luck getting anywhere.

 

#3 And if the previous challenges were not enough, you could have problems with the large rock, about 20' out from the end of the ramp.

 

This rock is approximately the same height below the level of the water as the end of the ramp, so remember to pull up your centerboard when retrieving your centerboard boat at low water levels.

 

 

#4 Finally, the deciding factor that can override all of the above - WIND.

If the wind direction is from the North or the South and if the wind strength is brisk at all (above 10 kilometers/hour), then all your preparations may have been in vain.

It is extremely frustrating to have all retrieval preparations in order but because the boat gets blown off course and you cannot see the trailer in 6 feet of water, you may be facing a formidable task trying to manouver a boat onto a trailer you cannot see.

Would be much better to arrange your retrieval for early in the morning or late evening if the winds are going to be brisk. 

Late Season Water Levels

As the sailing season progresses the water level usually decreases in height unless we are fortunate enough to receive a real downpour that postpones the retrieval of your boat in a safe manner.

The factors to be considered are

# 1 With the boat sitting on the trailer, measure from the waterline to the ground ( with a keel boat measure from the waterline to the ground also but make a note of the distance from the ground to the plate that the keel rests on as this determines how much water you need). If you add this figure to the stated depth by the manufacturer, the sum of these two figures (depth according to the manufacturer's data  plus the trailer height) should equal the waterline to ground measurement.

#2 Measure the distance from the center of the trailer wheel (if single axle trailer) to the center of the rear wheel on your tow vehicle. If your trailer is a 4 wheel trailer, as most keel boat trailers are, measure from the center of the rear trailer axle to the center of the tow vehicle rear wheel.

#3  Decide how far you want your tow vehicle rear wheels to go into the water bearing in mind that most rear wheel drive vehicles have a vent for the differential mounted somewhere on the rear axle and if water enters your differential thru this vent, you could be facing some very expensive repair bills. My recommendation is that it is good practice to have your rear wheels no further than rhe water's edge.

#4 From the above photo it is easy to determine that with the tow vehicle's rear wheels at the water's edge, we would need 32+" of water depth, 19 feet from the water's edge, to float the Matilda off and on the trailer.

#5 If we go back to the Abbott with the waterline 62" above the ground and a distance of approx. 20' from the center of the rear trailer wheels to the center of the tow vehicle rear wheel, how far down the ramp would the trailer's rear wheel be and how deep would the water be at the trailer's rear wheel when the tow vehicle's rear wheels are at the water's edge when the water level is at 110' on the ramp??

How deep would the water be at the trailer's rear wheel if the water level on the ramp was 80'??  Suggestion- refer to projected water level chart under ramp characteristics.

How long a tongue extension would be necessary to ensure the boat would go off and on the trailer at the suggested levels on the ramp??

Solutions

Outlined below are some factors involved with coming up with a workable solution.

Now might be an opportune time to discuss a challenge that all boat owners must overcome when retrieving their craft.

What is the proper depth of water for the trailer to be sitting at in order to position the boat properly on the trailer?

If the water is not deep enough, the boat will not even go on the trailer.

If the water is too deep, the boat may not be positioned properly on the trailer because the keel guides are too deep to use the keel guides to ensure the boat is in its correct position.

May I suggest a method of achieving the correct depth of water for keel boat trailers, especially if your trailer has to be under 5 feet of water. My suggestion would be to install a vertical frame, permanently attached to the trailer frame, on each side of the trailer. At the top of each frame should be a roller, made of a suitable material that will not mar the sides of the hull. The rollers should accommodate the widest part of the hull. The guide supports should be marked to indicate the correct water level required to float the boat to allow easy launching and retrieval.

Just for your information, most centerboard/daggerboard boats do not have this problem as their boats can be launched and retrieved when the tops of their fenders are just under water.

Make a note of the water level required for your boat and trailer and save yourself a lot of grief.

#1 Use a tow strap, strong rope, or wire tow cable and attach to tongue of trailer and attach securely to tow vehicle and slowly back the trailer, staying on the ramp, out into the lake until a suitable water depth is attained to pull your boat onto the trailer.If you are using a 2 wheel trailer, you will need to somehow support the front of the trailer (usually the trailer front pivot wheel) to prevent trailer tongue from dragging on the ramp. If you have a 4 wheel trailer, supporting the tongue may not be necessary.You must also be prepared to get wet as the trailer will undoubtably require some guidance and you will likely need to manipulate the boat onto the trailer.

Trailer ready for submersion

YUP you are going to get WET

Coming out

So far so good

Made it

#2 Make a suitable extension for the tongue that allows you to guide the trailer (usually without being attached to the tow vehicle) to a sufficient depth of water to float the boat onto the trailer. You will also need to be prepared to get wet as the trailer may not be visible when it is under sufficient depth of water and you may have to guide the boat onto the trailer.

 

 

This photo shows an interesting approach to constructing a tongue extension which should give you good control over guiding the trailer.

 

 

 

#3 If possible, modify the trailer to allow your boat to go on at low water e.g. our Matilda 20 required that the boat be retrieved when the water level shown on the ramp reached the 80 foot level. Sometimes,  just the fact there were 2 people onboard prevented the boat from going on the trailer. Then we had to resort to using an extension tongue and sometimes even that was not enough and we had to raise the front of the trailer using the pivot wheel jack and the tongue extension in order to get the Matilda loaded.

The view from the front

A solution to this challenge was to reduce the height of the trailer's frame rear cross member by cutting out a 3 foot section and welding a new structural section under the cut out area. This modification now makes it possible to retrieve the Matilda even when the level on the ramp reaches

65'.

 

 

  

The view from the rear

HAZARDS of Sailing at LOW WATER LEVELS

Sailing any sailboat at low water levels presents a challenge but sailboats with kickup centerboards are far less suseptible to damage from underwater hazards than boats with fixed keels and boats with daggerboards e.g. Matilda 20's, Macgregor 26D's and Sandpipers.
 Imagine hitting the above stump at speed. You will not only come to an ABRUPT STOP but you also risk damaging your craft. A daggerboard trunk could suffer catastrophic damage and the boat would have to be removed from the water as soon as possible or sinking could occur.At least a keelboat could survive such an impact with less damage.
If you are lucky, you may only run aground in one of the many shallow areas of the lake. With a daggerboard, you can retract the daggerboard and hopefully carry on with no damage. But with a keelboat, you may have to suffer the embarassment of enlisting the help of a fellow boater to pull you off the low area.

Also be wary of crossing the launch ramp area as you may encounter the raised edge of the launch ramp.

 

The above photo is taken from the bridge at the lower end of the lake showing some of the many tree stumps that litter the lake bottom and present a real hazard at low water.

 

 

This photo was taken Oct 12/2012 of stump located approx 100' offshore from the northwest corner of the WSC bay.

 

This is the WSC bay taken Oct 12/2012