Well Saturday was a bit eventful. There I was sailing in the second race of the day about half a mile from the Sailing club and all of sudden after tacking from Starboard too port the starboard hull went underwater, steering was non-existant. I had noticed that the port tack was getting slower and the starboard hull didn't lift out of the water even when it should have done. I managed to return to the club on a run which mean't it didn't get any downward pressure on it so it could float again (just) but when turning the boat into the wind and gybing onto a port tack again my weight sank the hull.
Well what happened was a worn patch of fibreglass on the bottom of the hull near the skeg had decided to split and as a result a hole of about 1.5 inches opened up along the join line of the hull thus the hull filled very quickly with water to the brim! Fortunately it bailed it out again at a similarly fast rate. Picture a slot about a centimeter wide and an inch and half long.
I'll leave it a few days to dry a bit out and then patch it up since I have had this happen on the other hull before. The hulls get their keels rubbed by the shingle on the beach so they loose their gelcoat and then if left the fibreglass starts getting worn until eventually it looses structural integrity and fails! I know its duff maintenance by me
Martin S.
