2011/06/09

Know Your Hull Dimensions

To be honest, we haven't done anything with the star since my last post. I've been very busy with racing on other boats and sailing-related volunteer work and I might just talk more about them at a later date.

For now, here's a crude diagram I drew to explain the weird jargon and abbreviations in my last post. What you're looking at is the side of the boat. You have the keel in the centre and the rudder on the right.

LOA = Length OverAll. This is the number we usually answer when someone asks you, "How big is your boat?" According to Wikipedia, it's the maximum length of a vessel from the two points on the hull measured perpendicular to the waterline.

LWL = (Load) Waterline Length. This is the length of the boat at the waterline, or where your boat touches the water. The waterline is drawn with dashes in the diagram.

Freeboard = Height of the hull that's above the water

Draft = Height of the hull that's underwater, usually not including the keel in sailboats. You may notice that the specs of the star doesn't state the freeboard. They just used the word "draft" to specify the overall height of the hull.

Also, not shown in the diagram is the beam, which is the width of the boat.

But enough of the terminology. Here's a little taste of what's to come.

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