A Ghastly Thought

[Floyd]

"Compac 16's go down by the bow."

That is a quote that I got this week from Jay at Lake Fairview Marina in Orlando Florida.

I said "What?"

He repeated "Compac 16's go down by the bow."

After a pause I said, "Um, and do you know this first hand?"

Jay nodded yes with a slight sheepish grin.

Jay went on to tell me that he managed to turtle one of the marina's rental CP-16s on Lake Fairview. He said that a natural air pocket developed in the aft half of the boat, which kept the CP-16 from sinking to the bottom of Lake Fairview (apparently management frowns on this). Jay assumed that it was an intentional design feature.

He went on to say that, based on this experience, if he had a CP-16 model with the open-able locker in the aft cockpit, that he would be certain to seal it tightly.

Lake Fairview is just over one mile at its widest, with no additional fetch due to residential housing. I know from sailboarding there years ago that the winds are always flukey. No, I did not ask him how he managed to turtle a CP-16 on a lake that small. I have done worse myself.

Floyd in Tampa Bay

[skip1930]

To turtle a CP-16 an inapt skipper has to redouble his efforts.

Staying turtle can't happen unless the stick is stuck in the mud. She'll just roll over, and if swamped sink?

As far as 'bobbing' bow down, stern up I guess it can happen but probably not 'factory designed.

There is no meaningful floatation in any Com-Pacs that I know of. Nor is there any Coast Guard requirements to float when flooded.
With  hundreds of pounds in the keel, she won't float no matter what. Button her up like a cork. Corks don't sink.

So don't roll her over.

skip.

[NateD]

I would love to know how he turtled it. My first reaction was "BS", but he knows enough about the different versions of the 16 that he is probably a knowledgeable small boat sailor. I can also believe that if water came down the hatch in II or III (or the boat was holed) that an air bubble could be trapped in the aft part of the boat and keep it floating. So that just leaves the question, how exactly was he able to get water to flow down the hatch on a small lake? Or maybe he was holed?

[kickingbug1]

    the only conclusion i can reach ----its all BS

[wes]

It's plausible. A CP16 displaces 1100 pounds, so it would need 17.6 cubic feet of trapped air to keep it afloat (the air is replacing 17.6 cubic feet of water, which weighs a little more than 62 pounds per cubic foot). That's a cube roughly 2.6' on a side. I think that much air would fit inside the aft part of a 16.

[BruceW]

Back in the day, on this or a previous iteration of the Com-pac forum, it was posited that beercans float, so if we just filled the bilge and extra storage areas with beercans, we'd be floating very well. Only problem I see is that each trip, you make the boat less floaty, so you have to remember to top up!

[Bob23]

   I suppose that if all the wrong stars were aligned, a black cat had just crossed your path while you were walking under a ladder after you'd broken a mirror and you were sitting on the lee side of the boat while getting hit by a gust causing an unintentional gybe- it could happen. I turtled my old Seapearl 21 and got both masts stuck in the bottom but that boat has no ballast at all. It was a classic case of a number of individual things that went wrong at the same time to contribute to what could've been a major disaster. But, if the masts hadn't gone into the bottom, we could've righted the boat, Sunfish style- standing on the centerboard.
   I don't remember if the SP had some floatation- I think it did because she floated with the gunnels even with the bay water. When I got back to the cove, I told myself- "I'm getting a keel boat". That's what led to my buying a CP 23.
Bob23

[hinmo]

Back in the day, on this or a previous iteration of the Com-pac forum, it was posited that beercans float, so if we just filled the bilge and extra storage areas with beercans, we'd be floating very well. Only problem I see is that each trip, you make the boat less floaty, so you have to remember to top up!

now that I can relate to!

[racer129]

Had a hard day and needed a good laugh. Thank you Jay. It was better than the Sunday Funnies.

[Citroen/Dave]

Around 1963-65 I worked for Barrett's Marine on Lake Fairview, my second job. He started by selling two French boats, a 16' (?) twin keel Golif, and a small cruiser, a 24' (?)Tiburon. Later we sold a variety of US boats. The last time I visited my old boss, Joe, he was going out of business. Some where around 2000-2005?  He had a fleet of maybe 6 ComPac 16's for sale as he closed up shop. That was my first look at a ComPac 16 and I thought that it was too small for me, then. Maybe he sold the fleet with the business and that included the one that went down. . .    Now I have one (and love it) and I do not want ever to see it go "down by the stern": open hatch or un-sealable rear locker.  Nice to know that it might float bow up for a while, though.