SO 379 handling in marina

[robbadgie]

Hi,

I currently have a SO 32 with a lifting keel. Frankly I find it a pain to manoeuvre in the marina as the bow takes off on the slightest of cross winds.

I'm now thinking of buying the 379 but, before deciding, I was interest in views on how the lifting, shoal and standard keels handle in the marina in similar circumstances. Given access issues the lifting/shoal keels would be more convenient for me. I'd like to be able to solo sail at times but I don't feel I can do that in the SO 32 given the handling. 

Many thanks

[Chris Meyer]

You will get some interesting replies on the keel.   

We ordered a 389 which will arrive next month.

We ordered a shoal keel mainly since sailing on Lake St Clair in Michigan has some shallow spots.

We also ordered a bow thruster which should help the issue you mention.

[johannes]

All modern boats have this problem in crosswinds. If you don't have a bow thruster, you either have to be very quick or plan your movements so that it is acceptable that the bow falls away.

[jdl01]

Rudder choice will have a bigger influence on docking manoeuvers than keel depth. Twin rudders are less responsive at really low docking speeds as they do not enjoy the direct thrust flow from the propeller to create turning traction. This is noticeable when starting from a dead stop. Extra rev's - more thrust- is required to get the boat moving to create flow over the rudders.
The 379/89 is a big boat with high freeboard - you cannot easily step onto the dock when landing as you can from your current boat - a bow thruster would have merit if you are regularly single handing. As I age towards my nineth season with Feng Shui, I wish I had initially chosen the bow thruster option as the leap from the side deck has become daunting. Boat handling away from the dock is easy as the 379/89 has an excellent cockpit layout for single or short handers. I think you will enjoy this new boat choice.

[ForGrinsToo]

If there were an easy way to install a bow thruster on the 36i, without breaking the bank or doubling the battery capacity, I would welcome it. I have learned to carefully think through line handling both approaching and leaving in any sort of crosswind, and especially what to tell anyone on the dock who "helps" with the lines.

With our freeboard, we find the Fender Step (https://danfender.com/c/products/fender-step) immensely useful as neither the Captain's knees nor the Admiral's appreciate a 1 m (3') jump to the dock.

I fully agree with JDL regarding the rudders.

Geoff

[EMSTAR]

We based our 379 (Lift Keel) in a 'tight' marina; on neap tides only 1.4m of water on the sill - so keel always up to enter.
Even with keel retracted, no problem with handling - including surprisingly responsive handling astern into her berth.
I mainly singlehand, so a bow thruster was fitted; very useful docking in fresh X-winds, but rarely used berthing in the marina. 

The 379 is well balanced and a joy under sail, with the hard chine and twin rudders she tracks like she's on rails!

[Maynard/Murphy]

We moved up from a Beneteau 331 last year to a 379 with the shoal draft option, 2 rudders and an add on bow thruster. I found that she did take some getting used to because of the dual rudders and sail drive, however the bow thruster made handling a dream. She is a lot more stable (tracks better) under a cross wind maneuvering in a marina, however she is bigger. I would definitely recommend the XThruster after market bow thruster. And I do agree that although the helm and controls are very convenient the increased freeboard does make it a bit of a challenge for anyone handling mooring lines. We love our boat and are mastering her after just one year on the water in very close quarters at our Club.