Keith Hyde
2016-07-01T09:26:50Z
Has anyone the plans that Bill Parker produced for a system to hold the keel down on a P21? Or has anyone built another system?

Sailing at Ullswater Yacht Club I am always told of the P21 whose keel slid back into the boat. The boat broached, spinnaker filled with water, keel slid into the boat while about 90 degrees and it capsized.

Many thanks; Keith Hyde No 66 Misty.

Geoff Harwood
2016-07-01T13:35:53Z
I don't recall hearing of any system to hold the keel down. You would have to heel quite a bit more than 90 deg for the keel to slide up. I broached Cygnus a few times to close on 90 deg and nothing untoward happened though the spinnaker did take on quite a bit of water which delayed righting till I was able to dump the sheet. P21s have capsized while moored due to flooding. The "fixed" buoyancy in the hull is very low down below seat level and with the keel retracted a full boat will capsize. The 2 instances of this were 1. tide-ridden boat with strong swell entering the cockpit over the transom (later P21 with low bridgedeck) and 2. Short riser and exceptional high tide flooded through chain-locker drain and ill-fitting hatch to cabin. Geoff Harwood ex P21/30
Keith Hyde
2016-07-06T06:32:05Z
Thanks. It is reassuring to know only happened once. Does the Parker 23.5 have a system to hold the keel down?