Jim:
That was on a P19. The consensus, as voiced by the manufacturer and many
P19 owners, was that it was a bad idea. On the positive side, a lighter
daggerboard could be raised with a tackle instead of a winch, and raising
the light daggerboard would not raise the center of gravity so seriously as
does raising the heavy daggerboard. But with the steel daggerboard down,
the P19 seems to approach the stability of a keelboat.
The steel centerboard of the P15 does not pose a problem. It is easily
raised by a tackle, and, since it pivots, the weight remains low in the boat
when the board is retracted.
The P15 is much more stable than a canoe or probably your dinghy, even with
the board up. With the board down, sailing singlehanded, I go on the bow to
change headsails and have never had a problem, although I don't have many
occasions to do that since I use the working jib unless the wind is very
light. I weigh about 180 lb. As I mentioned before, I once rode
singlehanded on the bow without mishap while trying out a self-steering
arrangement. Maybe I've been lucky. The wide, relatively flat-bottomed aft
section of the hull provides its stability, and too much weight on the
narrow bow will tend to lift the stern out of the water, thus decreasing
stability. At the dock, with the board up, I do treat the P15 more like a
canoe, putting my weight toward the centerline as I come aboard.
By the way, it is possible to change headsails without leaving the cockpit.
Don Bergst, one of the Potter Yachters, had his jib rigged with the tack
line going through a block on the stem, then routed back to a cleat so that
he could release the tack line from the cockpit. By releasing the halyard
and the tack line, he could then retrieve the jib by hauling in the sheets.
He was using wire luff jibs so that he could set the jib flying instead of
hanked onto the forestay. Upon retrieving one jib, he could transfer the
halyard, tack line, and sheet to the new jib, then haul in the tack line
and then the halyard to raise the jib.
Harry
P14 #234, Manatee
Mountain View, CA