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Author Topic:   15-foot Whaler Hull Above 30-MPH

jonha posted 06-10-2004 09:27 AM ET (US)
whats the chanch on a high gust of wind turning my 15ss into a kite at 30mph. since the bow is so light what keeps it in the water? need to be reassured.
JohnJ80 posted 06-10-2004 09:53 AM ET (US)
I don't think anyone can really say and it really depends on the wind speed. If you are heading into a strong wind at high speed, you should be careful. I would think in normal hull to water attitude you are probably ok, but if you were to hit a wave and get most of the hull airborne at the same time a high velocity wind gust hit, it could be a problem.
Remember that the force of the wind increases with the square of the wind speed. For example, the force of the wind against your surface area at 20mph of windspeed is 4X more than at 10mph. So, if you are going 20mph and you get hit by a 60mph gust (from 0 0mph wind speed before), you are travelling in a 'wind' of 80mph. That is 4X the wind speed of before and 16X the force from your boat just going 20mph in calm winds.
I would think that if you are flat to the water, you would be ok but if you had hit a wave, then you would have a problem. The problem is going to come if you are going really fast in flat water, you hit a boat wake or something at the same time that a very high speed gust hits.
All that being said, if you are able to go 20mph in those kinds of conditions, you have a stronger constitution than I. It is highly unlikely sea conditions would permit it. You also have all sort of other visual clues on the weather and approaching winds (plus you should seek out local knowledge). So, you should operate your boat cautiously in those conditions.
I have a Daunteless 15 and I have operated it in 50mph winds with no problems. However, the sea state on my body of water precluded the application of much throttle at all. Certainly not planing in wind driven chop at 50mph. If I had been hit by a 70mph gust I am sure that I would have been ok.
So, I wouldn't worry about it too much but you should operate your boat carefully anytime you anticpate sudden extreme weather events. Mother Nature has a nasty way of surprising you.
J

Ector posted 06-12-2004 04:07 AM ET (US)
i had a 15ss with a 75 john;
when at WOT, also in flat sea, if there were wind gusts i used to trim all the motor down; this effected the bow, lowering it, but however i always felt very unstable over the 50 mph.
Be very careful!
Ector
jimh posted 06-13-2004 07:57 AM ET (US)
[Changed TOPIC; was "performance in gusty winds".]

I have operated a SPORT 15 at a speed of 30-MPH and not noticed any tendency for dramatic bow rise due to wind catching the bow.
scaleplane posted 06-13-2004 09:26 PM ET (US)
My 1976 15' Sport is solid as a rock as fast as I've had it (32MPH) and like jimh said, shows no tendency to be unstable at that speed, even in choppy water My 40HP Johnson was trimmed slightly for bow down.
Flipper posted 06-13-2004 10:19 PM ET (US)
I routinely go 55mph in my 15. I have a lot of experience with this particular hull over the years, with three different engines - a 60, then a 70 Evinrude, and now a 90 Mercury. The bow lift that the 15 seems to achieve at around 30 mph is due to the design of the aft portion of the hull's bottom, and how your engine is trimmed. Your prop is doing the lifting. I find there is next to no air lift involved at these lower speeds.
Above 50 mph wind starts to affect the track of the boat slightly ( when there are strong gusts), but I still don't get any sudden "lifting" sensations. I do have to watch for wakes though.
Speaking from my experience, you don't have to worry about "blowing over" in the 30mph range.

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Author	Topic: 15-foot Whaler Hull Above 30-MPH
jonha	posted 06-10-2004 09:27 AM ET (US) whats the chanch on a high gust of wind turning my 15ss into a kite at 30mph. since the bow is so light what keeps it in the water? need to be reassured.
JohnJ80	posted 06-10-2004 09:53 AM ET (US) I don't think anyone can really say and it really depends on the wind speed. If you are heading into a strong wind at high speed, you should be careful. I would think in normal hull to water attitude you are probably ok, but if you were to hit a wave and get most of the hull airborne at the same time a high velocity wind gust hit, it could be a problem. Remember that the force of the wind increases with the square of the wind speed. For example, the force of the wind against your surface area at 20mph of windspeed is 4X more than at 10mph. So, if you are going 20mph and you get hit by a 60mph gust (from 0 0mph wind speed before), you are travelling in a 'wind' of 80mph. That is 4X the wind speed of before and 16X the force from your boat just going 20mph in calm winds. I would think that if you are flat to the water, you would be ok but if you had hit a wave, then you would have a problem. The problem is going to come if you are going really fast in flat water, you hit a boat wake or something at the same time that a very high speed gust hits. All that being said, if you are able to go 20mph in those kinds of conditions, you have a stronger constitution than I. It is highly unlikely sea conditions would permit it. You also have all sort of other visual clues on the weather and approaching winds (plus you should seek out local knowledge). So, you should operate your boat cautiously in those conditions. I have a Daunteless 15 and I have operated it in 50mph winds with no problems. However, the sea state on my body of water precluded the application of much throttle at all. Certainly not planing in wind driven chop at 50mph. If I had been hit by a 70mph gust I am sure that I would have been ok. So, I wouldn't worry about it too much but you should operate your boat carefully anytime you anticpate sudden extreme weather events. Mother Nature has a nasty way of surprising you. J
Ector	posted 06-12-2004 04:07 AM ET (US) i had a 15ss with a 75 john; when at WOT, also in flat sea, if there were wind gusts i used to trim all the motor down; this effected the bow, lowering it, but however i always felt very unstable over the 50 mph. Be very careful! Ector
jimh	posted 06-13-2004 07:57 AM ET (US) [Changed TOPIC; was "performance in gusty winds".] I have operated a SPORT 15 at a speed of 30-MPH and not noticed any tendency for dramatic bow rise due to wind catching the bow.
scaleplane	posted 06-13-2004 09:26 PM ET (US) My 1976 15' Sport is solid as a rock as fast as I've had it (32MPH) and like jimh said, shows no tendency to be unstable at that speed, even in choppy water My 40HP Johnson was trimmed slightly for bow down.
Flipper	posted 06-13-2004 10:19 PM ET (US) I routinely go 55mph in my 15. I have a lot of experience with this particular hull over the years, with three different engines - a 60, then a 70 Evinrude, and now a 90 Mercury. The bow lift that the 15 seems to achieve at around 30 mph is due to the design of the aft portion of the hull's bottom, and how your engine is trimmed. Your prop is doing the lifting. I find there is next to no air lift involved at these lower speeds. Above 50 mph wind starts to affect the track of the boat slightly ( when there are strong gusts), but I still don't get any sudden "lifting" sensations. I do have to watch for wakes though. Speaking from my experience, you don't have to worry about "blowing over" in the 30mph range.