Grounding
Why does grounding matter?
“Its said that skippers can be divided into two….. Those that admit to grounding and those that lie about it! “
The impact of groundings and its relationship to structural hull and keel bolt failure is another area needing specific research. There has been some work done on grounding simulations from computer modelling, but overall, there appears to be little formal research into the short- and long-term impacts of keel grounding. see Further Reading
Racing keel boats don’t require regular structural inspections or reporting of groundings, unless racing under the higher categories (Cat 1-3). There is no workable reporting system, record keeping, or compulsory follow up procedures in place to capture the number of groundings, type and follow up. see Racing Rules
When you buy or sell a boat there is no disclosure of previous groundings or history of the boat required – effectively you could be buying a boat that has a history of groundings and not know anything about it. (In Australia – Tasmania is the only state where you must declare the vessel is not unsafe when selling) see Further Reading
There is plenty of anecdotal evidence of vessels who have lost their keel being subject to previous groundings with the full relationship being unclear in the following areas;
– the type of groundings and the impact – (soft sand v’s solid rock etc )
– speed of grounding and resulting damage
– how forces act on the hull and keel components
– effect on different types of keels (full lead v’s metal- shock absorption)
Keel Inspection Checklist After Grounding
Further Reading
Keel Design of a Sailing Yacht Ocean Engineering 35 (2008) 1439–1447
MAST Tasmanian Maritime Buying or selling a motorboat.
Adventure 40 Grounding Grounding with results from the first investigation.
Adventure 40 – Strength and Grounding Resistance John Harries .2022. Attainable Adventure Cruising.
“Serious structural failure of a yachts keel matrix from a significant grounding The Marine Surveyor Ben Sutcliffe notebook. Video.
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Disclaimer
At RWS Sailing Safe we do not pretend to know everything. We are not your naval architects, marine engineers, or part of the sailing elite.
We’re just everyday sailors — the kind who grew up racing dinghies, sanding and varnishing boats, cooking sausages after club races, towing trailers full of boats to championships and regattas. Some of us moved on to keelboats, crewing offshore, racing up and down the Queensland coast, and even taking part in major races like the Sydney to Hobart. We share information based on our experiences and research, but we are not professionals. We cannot be held accountable for the other sites the articles link to. That’s their site. We have tried not to plagiarise anything, just link to the available articles. We have taken all our own photos and copyright stays with us. We are trying to gather all the research and articles and present it in one place for others, as a resource.
Its still up to you Skipper, you are responsible for your own decisions, safety, and vessel.
Always seek expert advice