November 2023 Archives - Small Boats Magazine

FOPA

Jenny Bennett — Wed, 25 Oct 2023 16:31:25 +0000

Steve Petty wanted to build a boat. He might have built anything on a whim, but he remembered that some years earlier his daughter had said she’d like to have a good rowing boat to keep at the family camp on North Channel in Ontario. That passing comment clinched it. Steve would build a rowboat.

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SEVENTY48

Samuel Hendrix — Mon, 23 Oct 2023 14:57:53 +0000

SEVENTY48 is a human-powered boat race from Tacoma to Port Townsend (roughly 70 miles) with a 48-hour window in which to finish. Which route racers take is up to them. As the website states, “the rules are simple: no motors, no support, and no wind.” Masochists from around the country show up in Tacoma every June (since 2018) to participate in vessels ranging from tried-and-true to, let’s say, experimental. The starting line is a mixed bag of sea kayaks, rowboats, paddleboards, 20-person canoes, and tandem pedal barges. There are two kinds of racers: those who are in it to win, and those who are in it for the experience and adventure. I am among the latter.

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XPL Oars

Christopher Cunningham — Mon, 23 Oct 2023 14:37:40 +0000

The first time I used the XPL Oars from Duckworks I didn’t even notice them. I was focused on the performance of the skiff I was rowing during speed trials, quick sprints, and sudden stops. If I had noticed the oars, it would have been for their faults—they had none.

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Quick Cinches

Christopher Cunningham — Mon, 23 Oct 2023 14:29:11 +0000

There is not enough room in a small boat to be sloppy when stowing gear not in use. Tarps, sleeping pads, and sails (almost anything made of fabric) can be kept from occupying more space that necessary by being rolled tightly. The trick is to keep it that way. Putting a length of cord around the bundle and tying it with a bow knot, as if tying one’s shoes, is likely to lose tension in the process and a bungee, while it can stretch and keep the bundle compressed, may not be the right length to get the hooks on the end engaged.

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Accidental

Christopher Cunningham — Mon, 23 Oct 2023 14:26:38 +0000

I put the largest of the three bags, carrying about 30 lbs of water, into the stern. The other two bags were compression bags, and when I filled the first one and put it in the bow, the one-way valve to purge air sent a stream of water in an arch against the side of the hull. I rolled the bag to put the valve on top and that stopped the flow. When I loaded the second bag on board, the top of that bag, which is like a soft-sided bowl and attached by four straps as part of the compression system, scooped up a half-gallon of water and spilled it into the canoe. I hadn’t brought a sponge and needed some sort of bailer, otherwise I’d have to pull everything out, roll the canoe on its side, and start packing again.

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Georgian Bay

Al Lyall — Fri, 20 Oct 2023 20:41:35 +0000

We ordered the Georgian Bay, an 18′ cedar-strip cruiser, which would include a 60-hp Yamaha high-thrust four-stroke outboard with electric trim. The base model of the boat, without any of the options offered on the Giesler website, is perfectly fine and I would think it would do well with a 40-hp, but our lakes are large and deep and can be choppy, so the bigger, tougher motor was better suited to our needs.

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Collapsible Water Bags

James Kealey — Thu, 19 Oct 2023 20:17:12 +0000

Our family of four consumes at least 3 gallons per day, more in hot weather. Carrying a week’s worth of water in rigid containers would leave precious little room for our bodies and gear in our 18′ sail-and-oar pram. What’s more, hard-sided bottles make poor use of the irregular spaces where water is often best kept in small boats.

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Centerboard Sloop #226A

Nigel Sharp — Sat, 12 Aug 2023 23:59:15 +0000

Paul specified edge-glued carvel strip-plank construction for the 16-footer designed for Andy. While both previous versions of the #226 were strip-planked, Paul noted “strip-planked construction has its place (working best on long, narrow hulls) but is very much an amateur method. Edge-glued carvel is structurally the same thing but just looks a lot better with plank lines in harmony with the hull shape.

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