Below is some analysis of the
Crealock 34 and Crealock 37 vs. various "ideal" designs. It is based on the
excellent database and spreadsheet that I downloaded from John Holtrop's
www.johnsboatstuff.com
circa 2000. (the download link is towards the
bottom of that page)
Here
is an article from Cruising World, April 1998. The quotes in the lower right corners of the
graphs below were mainly from Holtrop's spreadsheets. The other annotations on the
graphs were from various sources (any errors are no doubt mine).
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Man-O-War, 2 Nov 2010
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I am starting to work on an interactive version of the plots below. It should be
found here.
It is still a work in progress, so please give it a try and come back to it from time to time.
I hope to continue to enhance it.
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The worst conditions I've been in was a crossing from Key West to Isla Mujeres.
It was the wrong time of year to be out there (January). I was about half way
across when I got plastered by a 45 knot gale. After a while I hove to and
basically passed out from exhaustion. I thought Breakaway handled it very well
though. The next morning the waves were up to the spreaders (I'm guessing
35'). A Coast Guard Search & Rescue plane flew over (I thought
it was going to hit the mast) and I contacted them on the radio. They asked if
I was boat such-and-such. It had declared a Mayday and they were out searching
for it.
Sometimes I wish I had gotten the Crealock 37. It would have meant more space -
a couple inches here and there would make a big difference down below. Also
there would be more space for spares and stores and such. Plus a 37 would
have been a little faster (0.2 knot based on their PHRFs) and likely
have a little gentler motion. Still, Breakaway will be a little cheaper to maintain
(hauling and slip costs for a 37 would be only slightly higher - 10%; but other costs like bottom paint,
new sails, rigging, etc probably go up with the displacement - roughly 25%). Also,
Breakaway is probably a little easier to manage - consider windage when hauling in the
anchor in some wind, the weight of the chain+anchor and being able to pull up an all-chain
rode from any depth (say, by hand quickly when you are single-handing and in a tight spot),
setting/retrieving a sea anchor or drogue, docking, etc.
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Man-O-War, 30 Apr 2010
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I just watched a larger sailboat come into the harbour and circle around 3 different
moorings. They hit ground at each and ended up tying up to the dock at the marina.
This reminds me of another desireable characteristic typical of a smaller boat - a shallower
draft. Breakaway has the shoal-draft keel option (called the Scheel Keel). So she draws about 4'.
The Crealock 37 with a Scheel Keel draws 5'. I know a foot difference doesn't sound like much
but it really does help. E.g. "going over the bar" in Livingston, Guatemala was very easy
with a 4' draft. 5' meant being careful of the tides. 6' or more was tough.
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Man-O-War, 30 May 2011
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You spend a lot of time in the cockpit - either at anchor or under way.
Another thing about the Crealocks that I really like is the cockpit - with nicely rounded,
large corners to curl up into. Also, the combings are well rounded so it's not too bad when you
knock into them or brace against them when the boat is in motion.
One possible negative is that the locker clasps stick out. Somebody who was
crewing on a Crealock 34 with a tiller arrangement was saying that he found himself
hitting the clasps quite a bit when moving around the cockpit. This is not a
problem with a wheel steering configuration as the wheel pedestal prevents you from
getting too close to the hasps. The tiller arrangement does make for a nice large
open cockpit in port, and is obviously preferable by some for the feel of the rudder
when underway.
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I think the size of Breakaway's cockpit is just right. The seats are just long enough
to sleep on. I "catnap" on overnight passages - sleeping for 15 minutes at
a time. Sleeping in the cockpit is easier than going up and down to a berth below
every 15 minutes. I've read that you don't want the cockpit too large
on a bluewater boat in case a wave fills the cockpit. I've only had a couple small
waves break into the cockpit - in a spot off the Yucatan Peninsula where the strong
Yucatan Current and I believe a counter current meet and create strange wave conditions.
The large scuppers seemed to drain the cockpit quickly. In each case, it was
while I was asleep so kind of a rude awakening having a wave dumped on you out of nowhere :-).
Breakaway's cockpit is IMO large enough to entertain comfortably at anchor or on an easy day sail.
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The figure lying in the cockpit is scaled
to 6' tall. You need to try it yourself, of
course, to see if it fits for you.
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Make sure, if you are shopping for boats, that there are good handholds in the cockpit to grab
onto when the boat is in motion. The U-shaped pipe over the steering pedestal is my main
handhold in the cockpit. And the support for the hardtop bimini is a little beefier than normal
(1" s/s tubing supporting the front with 2¼" aluminum pipe for the aft "goalpost"
support) that I can brace against it with a secure feeling. Also, see if you can brace
comfortably at the front side of the steering pedestal - standing in the cockpit with your rump
against it, looking forward. You spend a lot of time in the cockpit. It should be
comfortable and functional.
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Quito, 13 Jan 2009
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With this being the week of Darwin's 200th birthday, there
have been quite a few articles on the web regarding Darwin and evolution.
Here
is an interesting paper on the effects of evolution on the design of Polynesian
canoes. It includes this cool quote translated from a paper written
in 1908:
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Every boat is copied from another boat... Let's reason
as follows in the manner of Darwin. It is clear that a very badly
made boat will end up at the bottom after one or two voyages,
and thus never be copied... One could then say, with complete
rigor, that it is the sea herself who fashions the boats, choosing
those which function and destroying the others.
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FYI, here
is some background on the paper. The paper is actually trying to sort out the
nature of cultural change. Polynesian canoe design is just the guinea pig.
One of the characteristics that I really like about Breakaway is the canoe stern.
Whenever I have her hauled out of the water, when she is in the slings of the travel
lift or resting in the jackstands, I find myself occassionally gliding my hand
over the contours of her rump. It just looks and feels so nice. I've
read peoples' opinions that a canoe stern tends to behave better in a following sea
(where the waves are overtaking the boat from astern) - parting the waves more easily
and not letting the boat get pushed about as might occur with a flat transom.
Following seas still make me nervous, but Breakaway always seems to handle them
well. I have read that the double ended, canoe stern is based on the designs of
Colin Archer
and the original Norwegian lifeboats.
Probably pretty good genes.
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[JH] John Holtrop's database circa 2000
