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West Wight Potter Mailing List maintainer
dfarrell@ridgecrest.ca.us
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> Come to think of it, I don't know why I haven't already bought a
Walker
> Bay dingy. It looks like the perfect carefree rowing/sailing/2hp-motored
> "just throw it in the water and go" solo boat. But is it really
practical
> for two people? Do you have to maintain carefully balance, and is it
easy
> to right after capsize? Is the hardware really of sufficient strength?
>
> Mike
> P15, Alexandria VA
Mike,
The boat will hold two people, but sets pretty low in the stern
when rowing. When sailing, one person sits ahead of the center seat, and
the other (the helmsman) sits aft. The boat is well ballanced this way,
but space for the person forward is limited. I have never capsized while
sailing or rowing and I have been in 2-3 foot waves. I did capsize my
Walker Bay as a test in my pond. I put my 150 pounds on the rail with my
knees and slowly filled her up. Flooded, the dinghy sits quite low in the
water, and I can force it under if it is upright. Empty, the freeboard is
around an inch so it would have to be calm to bail the boat out. The boat
is so light, you might be able to bring it over your head with a life
jacket on and get a lot of water out canoe style. I am an old canoe man,
so I was not concerned with the flex in the hull of a Walker Bay, but you
do feel it under sail. In a gust you can feel the hull twist. I had the
same feeling in my ABS canoe. This dighy is very tough and I have really
tested it. I have dropped it off the roof racks and it has been buffeted
by strong winds at 70 miles per hour and passing trucks on the roads
between Iowa and Wisconsin. I have pulled and scraped it over rocks in the
rivers and lake shores. The Walker Bay is made of "impact modified, UV
inhibited, polypropylene" that is very tough and light, but SCRATCHES
easily. This is not a big problem, but don't let it rub on something very
long. My boat is all banged up but still looks good because the color goes
right through and nothing sticks to poly very well. Just wash it clean
with NO solvents or polishes. Polypropylene is very permiable to solvents
and polish will not stick to the hull.
Sorry so long, I guess I do have cabin fever.
Today is our yearly down hill canoe race ( on snow ), so that will get me
out. :)
Brent Wilson
P-15 #657
Lockridge, IA
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