Thom Stewart wrote:
You're the only one talking about get a hull on plane. I showed you a
picture of my 2nd boat with a semi planning Hull.

That isn't what I'm talking about. I'm talking about the lifting force
created down wind, the righting force created when heeled.

Sailboats need righting force when going downwind too. If
there were none, they would tip over.

A wing keel does not make a boat go any faster by lifting it
out of the water. You don't get lift for free. Lift comes at
the expense of drag, remember? The drag created by the wing
in the process of generating lift would be greater than any
drag saved by lifting the boat... otherwise you'd have a
perpetual motion machine.

Thom, you also stated that you angled the wings down to aid
the boat going upwind... how is that suddenly going to lift
the boat when going downwind? Adjustable flaps?



The Wing Keel works. You have to know how and why it works and then
learn to sail your vessel accordingly.

Wing keels work a bunch of different ways. One is that they
get more mass down low, improving stability and
sail-carrying power. More power = more speed. Another way
they "work" is to reduce drag at the keel tip by reducing
what's called the tip vortex: a large mass of water that is
swirled at the bottom edge & tip of the keel because of the
merging of the high and low pressure zones on the leeward &
windward sides of the keel. It takes a lot of energy to get
this mass swirling, that energy comes from the boat's
forward motion and is felt by the boat as drag.

Thom I was impressed that you remembered the Aussies passing
Dennis Conner on the downwind leg. That was actually the
biggest advantage Australia 2 had over Liberty; downwind she
could go lower & faster in the same pressure.


....Is it faster; probably not, but
it is a more comfortable ride and a decent wind is equal to or better
than a straight Fin. It has to have a flow over it.


One way I think a wing keel helps is to dampen pitching.
I've noticed this on several different boats... this can
make the boat faster as well as more comfortable.

A big disadvantage of wing keels here in the Southeast is
that they get stuck in the bottom. I have also proven that
you can take a 5' draft fin keel boat into places that a
4.5' wing keel can't go. And once stuck, wing keels are
harder to get free.

Fresh Breezes- Doug King