BayRaider - Early Impressions

[Guy Briselden]

I took delivery of BR3 in mid-August and kept her on a swinging mooring in the Camel Estuary for a couple of weeks of holiday. I am really impressed with the boat, she has really met my requirements for a safe, big family dayboat, but one which has really fun performance when you wish to make use of it. It meets all of Matt's marketing claims and more in my view. We sailed in winds varying from a light breeze to F5, in some of the biggest tides of the year and crew varying from singlehanded to 3 adults and a child:
1. It is a very simple boat to launch and recover, and rigging/derigging takes less than 10 minutes.
2. Several of the Swallowboats design features are clever yet simple ideas which save time and effort, eg. the self-tacking jib, permanently attached rudder with emergency step and outboard well closure system.
3. The water ballast is a great idea, it works well and is simple to use, really giving you two boats in one (the only time it surprised me was when I left the 'fill' bailer open by mistake so that she emptied when she dried out before her weight closed the bailer - leaving me scratching my head when I got back to find her refloated with the ballast tank empty!).
4. The rig is really versatile, she points well up into the wind with lots of sail/weight giving a real feeling of power when you want it. Even with the water ballast in she has a really rapid pick up and a really good turn of speed. Reefing is easy but once under way our default reef was to drop the mainsail and sail under jib and mizzen. Under that rig she still handles well enough to sail on and off our mooring through row after row of boats at Rock and we sailed with small children like that in a F3 as a 'confidence giver', when she tacked perfectly and hardly heeled at all.
5. With ballast in, two crew and one reef in the main she gave a really fun sail in quite a stiff breeze with a reasonable chop whilst remaining predictable and fairly dry. She is an easy single handed sail, the only tricky bit being adjusting the continuous jib sheet, but I believe Matt has already devised a modified layout to solve that.
6. As I didn't know the Estuary I took a crew out a few times, a man who sails and rents out a Shrimper and two Drascombe Luggers from Rock (I have his number if anybody fancies a holiday sail in Cornwall!). He was thoroughly impressed with the BRs design, space and performance which I thought was a pretty good commendation. She also got a lot of admiring comments when on her mooring as she has got very attractive lines.
7. There are are few things which Matt is still refining. I have suggested some lockable storage and we have discussed sail stowage as tidying away boom, main and yard would make picnic sails or fishing under jib and mizzen or motor less crowded, but there is nothing major I have found to address.

As you can probably tell I am really pleased with her and am just frustrated I won't be able to get down for another sail for a few weeks! I have attached a couple of pictures which also give a clue to who really thinks the boat is theirs....

Guy

[Bill Wickett]

Guy, thanks for your early impressions. Seems like you are really enjoying the BR.

I was fortunate enough to sail for a day with Matt in France at the Semaine de Golfe.

I agree that the execution of the motor well, self tacking jib are well done. The feel of the boat under sail was very nice. I had never sailed with a mizzen before, and found it very versatile. The BR handles chop well. We were in some pretty fast tidal rips with standing waves all around.

I sail a 17' boat, and really liked the feel of the extra few feet in length and the wider beam. She has a lot of power.

I think as the boat evolves, some of the small details will evolve with input from early users like you. My point, already mentioned to Matt, would be to raise the height of the seats by 2-3". More leg support for taller people.

Enjoy the boat when you get back to it!

[Julian Swindell]

I fell in love with the Bayraider at Beal Park earlier this month. I have posted a short video of it sailing there in the summer sunshine, for viewing whilst I dream on. You can see it on Youtube at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NFEq9cIZWbM

[Julian Swindell]

To carry on with my love affair with the Bayraider/Baycruiser. I have posted a second video on YouTube showing two Bayraiders going through their paces on Cardigan bay last July. You can see it at
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TzYq5_pB5Xg
These are really lovely boats, both to sail and just to look at

[Craic]

Did a few modifications to my BR Llafurio:

* Put 2 each side extra long holes into the gunwhale timber strip for the forward bungee hooks of the new cover.
* Replaced the fairly heavy timber mainsail boom with one built from a windsurfer mast. Thick side facing aft.
* Fitted a 100 ltr./ min. manual bilge pump onto the outboarder bracket, port side of the engine. As it is mounted it will suck water from the sump, but I can attach a longer suction hose to suck out the waterballast tank if need be.
* Built a teakwood grating for the water sump to hold a 6 kg grapnel anchor in place.
* Below that grating, beside the selfbailer is the new position for the fishfinder transponder.
* Built that goosenecked Mizzen boom.
* Fitted that engraved transom name board 
* Fitted rubber bungees in the swallows nests like in the show BR.
* Fitted a swivel onto the stemhead for the jib clubboom.
* Put a rubber bung under the clubboom rear end.
* Moved the mainsheet footpoint 5" to aft in order to better sheltered space for the GPS cum fishfinder aft of the C/B case.
* Put a fixed position for the battery (17 AH) onto the outboarder bracket, starboard of the engine.

[David]

Hello Claus,

Can you post a photo of the fixed position for the battery, does your outboard charge the battery? How about a solar powered 12v 1.5w battery trickle charger.

Regards

David

[Craic]

David,
pls gimme a few days, I am waiting for a watertight fuse and distribution box which will be part of the installation.

No, my outboarder has no charging coil/outlet.

Re a solar charger: I can do without, simpler to disconnect the battery and take it home for recharging, once per month max. My GPS displays the voltage of the battery.

Kind regards.

[Simon Knight]

Hi All,

I have just had a test sail in a Bay Raider so these are my "First" impressions:  The BayRaider looks a large boat when it is on its trailer but I was impressed how easy it was to move her about while still on the land.  It is obvious that Matt has put a lot of thought into getting the complete design right and making the BR a true trailer sailor as opposed to a boat that can be trailed once in a blue moon.  I like the way the rudder and tiller remain in place when towing (one less thing to forget) and that it is possible to gain access to the lockers when the boat is on the trailer.

The next surprise was that Matt launched the boat with the mast down and proceeded to rig her once she was afloat.  Now on other boats I have almost always put the mast up in the car park because the operation involves fiddling about at the pointy end with a high risk of dropping shackles and pins into water.  None of this was required on the BR as all the work of tensioning the fore stay was done at the mast, all very slick.

Once on the water she was a dream to sail taking the rollers coming off the bar in her stride.  The jib arrangement is just brilliant, I loved the ability to self tack and this is coupled with  very light jib sheet loads. So light I would think that even the smallest crew member should be able to handle the jib if needed.

So in summary a very impressive "trailer sailor". 

best wishes and a Merry Christmas to all

Simon

P.S. I have attempted to post a snapshot......

[Craic]

David,
pls gimme a few days, ....

David,
here comes the photo of the battery position. :

[Bill Wickett]

Hello Claus,

Thanks for the photo showing your pump and battery installation.

I note in your earlier post listing modifications you have made that you have put the mizzen boom on a gooseneck. Do you have a picture of that and what was your reason for the change?

Best wishes for the New Year to all on this forum.

Bill

[Craic]

Do you have a picture of that and what was your reason for the change?

Bill,
why I did it: I like goosenecked booms better. Less fiddling around required when rigging and unrigging the sail. I believe I'll be getting a better (flatter) sailtrim with the new sheeting arrangement.
Have a good New sailing Year yourself!

[David]

David,
pls gimme a few days, ....

David,
here comes the photo of the battery position. :

Thanks Claus,
Have you fixed that timber piece that the battery is attached to? Will the battery be covered with a box to keep it dry? I notice you have two inspection hatch covers into the side stern tanks have you put them into the forward tanks do you use them for storage?  I like the bags fixed to the sides. Do you find the tiller extension useful?

Sorry for all the questions

Happy New Year

David

[Craic]

Have you fixed that timber piece that the battery is attached to? Will the battery be covered with a box to keep it dry? I notice you have two inspection hatch covers into the side stern tanks have you put them into the forward tanks do you use them for storage?  I like the bags fixed to the sides. Do you find the tiller extension useful?
David

David,
no need for a battery cover, the battery is all encapsulated, but the contacts need greasing against the saltwater.
Those inspection covers, I suppose they are standard with GRE / GRP boats? Not using them for storage - yet.
The bags were made by a sailmaker as copies of bags that I could no longer buy from the shelf. Very useful for small items.
The tiller extension (it is a telescopic one) is absolutely indispensable when you steer while sitting on the gunwhale.
Happy New Year.

[Peter Ivermee]

Great article in this months Practical Boat Owner about the Bay Raider.
Matt had given their editor a demonstration the day before we went down to Wales for our test sail.
This should raise the profile of the boat; Matt will be busy at the Boat Show.

[Matt Newland]

Happy New Year to you all!
A few thoughts on Claus' arrangements. I like some of what he has done... but I am yet to be convinced about his mizzen sheeting arrangements!
Each of us are shaped by our own experiences and Claus clearly likes a conventional boom on his mizzen.
Personally I think the sail shape when off the wind is better with our sprit boom, as technically Claus' arrangement needs a kicking strap. But the other disadvantage is that you cannot nearly as easily back the mizzen as you can on our standard arrangement.
I have found this very helpful when tacking in very shallow water, when you cannot always have the board down, or when running aground on the board in light winds prior to tacking slows you down too much to go about using the rudder alone.
With our system instead of using the rudder to go about, simply haul the mizzen in beyond the centreline. This brings the head of the boat through the wind in seconds and onto the new tack, in a similar manner to backing the jib, though it will work through a greater range of wind angles.

I like Claus' other arrangements, though you will see that he only uses a small suzuki engine (2.5HP). Owners with heavier engines should probably not put this much additional weight in the stern. The usual position for the battery is just forward of the CB case. The underside of the timber top plank on the CB case has a full length slot cut in to house power/fishfinder cables out of sight.

Hope to see as many of you as possible at the London Boat Show - 9th-18th Jan 09, on the Classic Boat Magazine Stand.