Re: will this boat work?

Posted by Laszlo on Apr 25, 2007

Steve,

You need to decide whether you want a solo high-performance cartopable rower (the wherry) or a trailered passenger-carrier for bad weather. The 2 are pretty much mutually exclusive.

The wherry being longer, lighter and with a faster hull shape is a better rower. It'll handle any reasonable amount of chop as long as you stay within the weight limits. I tried one at Okoumefest a few years ago and it moved as if it had a motor in it.

The Chester Yawl suggested by Ron will handle rougher water with a larger payload, but its extra weight and shorter length will make it slower than the wherry. That extra 35 lbs also takes the fun out of cartopping.

So you need to figure out which set of characteristics is more important to you. Maybe build both?

The boats you mention are not designed to be good rowers to begin with and stretching them won't make them any better. The hull shapes are just not right for what you want. Stretching will make them heavier, too.

Good luck,

Laszlo

In Response to: will this boat work? by steve on Apr 25, 2007

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