I regret to admit I was the skipper of the capsized BR20 and the fault was entirely mine, not the boat and not the crew.
The capsize occurred because in the rush to start the race I misjudged the strength of the wind gusts and the capability of the crew and skipper. In my haste to start the race I did not use water ballast (and I don’t think any of the other BR’s did either) and failed to reef so in we went when we jibbed and were a little slow to shift the crew weight upwind.
On the plus side we rapidly received assistance from the Sail Caledonia rescue boat. I was able climb onto the hull from the stern and kept my fingers out of the centre board slot that temptingly offered a finger hold as I pulled myself on, before the raised centre board wacked back into the hull like a guillotine. If anyone needs to climb back onto an upturned hull they MUST keep away from an extended centre board as they climb onto the hull.
I was easily able to get the centre board out of its slot and vertical thanks to the notch designed into its foot and three of us quickly righted the boat by leaning on it towards the self-flooded tank on the port side (starboard when inverted!) of the boat. I am confident that two or even one of us could have righted it. I certainly advocate practising a capsize in controlled conditions (with assistance at hand), it is great boost to confidence in the boat.
Thanks to simple but effective securing of the locker lids and all loose gear in the boat tied-in we did not lose any gear except an unsecured mooring warp. I strongly recommend fastening locker lids, mine have simple Velcro straps that take up no space, are easy to use and worked when needed. I have not fitted seals to the locker lids and they filled with water -in the circumstances seals I don’t think seals would have kept them dry – but maybe Graham can prove me wrong.
After righting the boat we were able to sort out the mess, fill the ballast tank and get sailing again. We completed the course, slowly, with full tanks, no reefs and no major harm except wounded pride.
Given that the other BRs apparently relied on reefing (and better seamanship) without water ballast, I am interested in expert opinion as to whether reefing is more important than water ballast for stability in various conditions.
My only other comment is that apart from my embarrasing start, the Sail Caledonia event was great fun, I learned a great deal and the other particpants were a interesting, friendly and forgiving bunch of people.
Matthew