General Questions Regarding Seaworthiness of Cape Dory 30'

[jewellre]

Hi All!

I'm a writer, and I have a story regarding a small boat voyage from Florida To Guyana in S. America. I selected the 30' Cape Dory Ketch based simply upon scanning a wide variety of pictures found on the net. To be truthful, she looks sexy as hell, but I have no idea of how she handles in any respect.

Whether she's an elephant in the water, or a dolphin, I have to describe her handling characteristics in a manner where one of you more familiar with her can say, 'yeah, that's right'.

My questions are these:

Would she be a good choice for a sea voyage, as described above?
How would she handle in a squall, given an experienced skipper?
Could she be handled by a single mariner?
What could I expect her normal speed to be under a following wind? Under storm conditions?
What could I expect her normal speed to be under diesel auxiliary power? How long?
What effect would the addition of a mizzen-staysail to her rigging have on her speed?

Any insight you could pass on to me about this particular sailboat would be greatly appreciated.

Regards, and many thanks in advance for your responses and/or comments.

RayJ

[pete faga]

Ray
Google cape dory 30 reviews.that will give you some insight.
I am sure owners past and present will comment shortly.
Pete

[Stan W.]

Would she be a good choice for a sea voyage, as described above?
Yes, especially for a single-hander
How would she handle in a squall, given an experienced skipper?
Very well, especially with the original equipment club jib. These boats sail very well with just "jib and jigger." If that is too much sail, both the jib and the mizzen can be reefed. That should get you through just about anything.
Could she be handled by a single mariner?
Yes. With the club jib, the whole rig is self tacking.
What could I expect her normal speed to be under a following wind? Under storm conditions?
This is mostly a function of the apparent wind. Under storm conditions you would be looking at 6-7 knots, up to 8 or 9 knots surfing down the front of any waves.
What could I expect her normal speed to be under diesel auxiliary power? How long?
Normal speed would be around 5 knots. The Volvo diesel uses about 1/2 gallon per hour at that speed so a 10 gallon tank would give you about 20 hours. For a voyage like that most people would carry extra fuel in plastic jerry cans lashed to the shrouds or lifelines.
What effect would the addition of a mizzen-staysail to her rigging have on her speed?
No personal experience but I would guess that it would add some speed in light winds.

[nosara]

One just crossed the Pacific. Cutter rigged.
http://beelily.wordpress.com

[Klem]

Hi All!

I'm a writer, and I have a story regarding a small boat voyage from Florida To Guyana in S. America. I selected the 30' Cape Dory Ketch based simply upon scanning a wide variety of pictures found on the net. To be truthful, she looks sexy as hell, but I have no idea of how she handles in any respect.

Whether she's an elephant in the water, or a dolphin, I have to describe her handling characteristics in a manner where one of you more familiar with her can say, 'yeah, that's right'.

My questions are these:

Would she be a good choice for a sea voyage, as described above?
How would she handle in a squall, given an experienced skipper?
Could she be handled by a single mariner?
What could I expect her normal speed to be under a following wind? Under storm conditions?
What could I expect her normal speed to be under diesel auxiliary power? How long?
What effect would the addition of a mizzen-staysail to her rigging have on her speed?

Any insight you could pass on to me about this particular sailboat would be greatly appreciated.

Regards, and many thanks in advance for your responses and/or comments.

RayJ

I will take a crack at this as a present CD30k owner.

Whether she is a decent sea boat really depends on your own definition. These boats have been sailed far and wide so in capable hands, they can do it with reasonable safety. They are pretty small for this type of sailing so it won't be as comfortable as some other boats but it is definitely doable.

These boats do well in squalls for boats of their size. Most boats do not have a ton of horsepower so you don't have the ability to punch straight into wind and waves once it gets truly severe. Instead, I use 3 tactics. The primary tactic is to heave to with just the mizzen. In lighter air, you need a very small amount of backed headsail but in heavier air, just the mizzen with the rudder set appropriately works well. If I need to keep on sailing because of sea room or something like that, I reef the main way down and sail with just that (with my own sails, I can reef much further down this way). Finally, you can run off with a sliver of jib to help keep the bow off.

Yes, these boats are extremely easy to single hand. We do not have an autopilot and both my wife and I can easily single hand the boat. The ketch rig actually makes this much easier as you can heave to while setting or dousing the main and you can sail without leaving the cockpit if you don't raise the main (our halyards are at the mast). We sail on and off the anchor the vast majority of the time which is made a lot easier by being able to use the mizzen to hold the bow into the wind or brake the boat when anchoring or using it to hold the bow into the wind and then backing it to fall off on the desired tack when raising the hook.

Normal speed is very hard to define. Once we get 10 knots of wind, we can do 5.5-6 knots broad reaching and 5 knots running. By 15 knots of breeze, we are at hull speed on all points of sail. A whisker pole really helps on a run with boat speed, without one you do better tacking downwind or going wing on wing with the mizzen and main and no jib. In storm conditions, the problem is not going quickly, it is going slow enough. We have had the boat surf to 10+ knots but we were pushing the limits of what I would consider safe. By the time the wind gets to 30, the associated waves if you are in open water tend to build to be enough that you will go from <4 knots on the backside of the waves to >8 knots on the faces with only a bit of jib meaning that it is time to start actively slowing the boat.

Motoring with our Volvo MD7A, we do 5 knots burning 1/4 gal/hour or 5.5 knots burning 1/3 gal/hour in calm weather. Most boats have a 20 gallon tank with a safe, useable 12 gallons. This would be a safe range of 240 miles motoring in calm conditions. In truth, many people motor sail and burn less fuel while going faster or they are pushing into sloppy weather and go a lot slower for the same fuel burn rate. With this size boat, I would not quote a range for motoring offshore, only in protected water where your speed will be less affected by the weather.

I have no experience with a mizzen staysail. I have never really felt that the boat needed one. If it needs anything, it is a whisker pole.

I hope that this helps.

[Adamhagan]

I have tried the mizzen staysail...I can never get it to fly right. I've heard it can gain you 1/2 knot speed but it's hardly worth the effort.

My CD30K was repowered with a Volvo D1-20 = 20hp and I can motor at 6.4knots in calm.

She is wonderfully balanced, big enough for coastal cruising but small enough to very easily manage solo (especially with the smaller sails on the ketch). Her narrow beam makes for a more sea-kindly motion (graceful) than fatter (roomier) counterparts, but a the cost of much cabin space.

IMHO for serious offshore work I would never select a deck stepped rig.

For single handing and and a fresh breeze sailing I will shamelessly direct you to a video I made single handing from Oriental NC to NYC.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9CfC7ojj1TQ

It is a great boat and if I can manage it single handed, ANYONE can.

[Vincent]

I would investigate the Jordan series drogue. I plan to do ocean crossings and this looks like a good idea instead of a sea anchor.