Jimmy Cornell thinks aluminum sailing dinghies are ideal for serious explorers

Jimmy Cornell's Aventura III, Ovni 43, Aventura IV and Garcia Exploration 45 are aluminum dinghies. Having traveled about 100 thousand miles on them (and this is the passage to Antarctica, and the North-West passage), he was more than once convinced of the advantages of a sailing dinghy as a cruiser for safety and convenience.

“I deliberately chose an aluminum dinghy, supposedly designed for walking around famous places.

The main reason for my choice was the desire to expand the range of cruise opportunities. After all, the ability of a boat to quickly get away from strong winds or from any other dangerous factors, hiding in a sheltered shallow place, is very valuable for safety.

And the second advantage was that the centerboard can be used as a "probe" or "tester" of the bottom of an unfamiliar anchorage.

During the Northwest Passage we ran into an underwater rock, and if it had not been for the centerboard, which had risen, scratched on the stone and then dropped to its original lower position, it would not have ended well for the boat.

And so - the damage was done only to my ego, ”explains Jimmy Cornell.  

All of the aforementioned yachts have built-in centerboards, which, when fully raised, are retracted into the hull. Ballast is also internal, with a displacement factor of 32 like most modern cruising yachts. This provides significant performance benefits.

The main task of the centerboard is to provide the lift height during side-haul and to limit freedom of action when reaching the goal.

With the centerboard fully lowered, the Aventura III pulled 2.4m, and with the right trim could show the same height as most fixed keel cruising yachts. But the Aventura IV, having a draft of 2.8 m, with the centerboard down, showed itself even better than the Aventura III.

In order to fully utilize the positive qualities of a sailing dinghy, the yachtsman needs to control the boat in the presence of wind and in its absence in different ways.

This means that the centerboard becomes a real value, as it allows you to reduce the wet surface. The technique is to raise it slowly when the apparent wind exceeds 135 ° and continue to raise it until it is fully retracted.

And this, according to Jimmy Cornell, is the biggest advantage of a sailing dinghy, since it practically eliminates the risk of broaching.

14.11.2020