Hitting logs with a spade rudder, that is a different story........

I have noticed that many short keel Catalina's have the rudder deeper than
the keel. This means that the first thing that goes aground is the rudder.
During my first year of sailing I turned on a dime and inadvertently hit the
bottom of the rudder. This resulted in a bent rudder post and minimum
steering capability.

"Gary" wrote in message
news:zB6Bg.325895$IK3.264217@pd7tw1no...
Roger Long wrote:
I've only caught one pot with my E 32. That was one with a plastic jug
for a buoy that had been punctured and dragged beneath the surface where
it tangled up in a bunch of others so the line was stretched out of
sight.

I'm sure I'll catch another one someday but I now have a hook knife and
the handling, maneuverability, and performance are features I'd rather
have than being able to blindly plow through pots.

In fact, the best cruisers are somewhere between being a fin keel, spade
rudder setup. Look at the hulls of Valiant and Pacific Seacraft. I
believe they are a very good compromise.

Furthermore, in my experience with both a fin keeler and full keeled boat,
the snag crab pots and kelp at about the same frequency. That would be
almost every time you run over one. The lobster pot business is not a
good way to choose a hull design.

Hitting logs with a spade rudder, that is a different story........

Gary