With the Ballast tanks full she is difficult to capsize.

The topmast and mizzen are both sealed carbon tubes, and the main mast is also hollow and sealed. Together these act to prevent her from turning turtle in a capsize situation. Her angle of vanishing stability with the tanks full is 119 degrees – higher than some yachts, but if the tanks are empty she will lie happily on her side awaiting your attention on her centreboard.

For the purposes of the RCD (EU Recreational Craft Directive) we were keen to select the toughest stability tests from the selection available. This effectively meant she had to be recoverable from a full 180 degree inversion by one person, with the time limit of 5 minutes. The RCD is perfectly happy for the tests to be carried out in calm water, which is slightly unrealistic, but better than no capsize test at all.

We did the RCD rests with tanks full, and tanks empty, to ensure she would pass in all conditions. For the full invert we sailed out into Cardigan bay and had to stand on the mast to fully invert her. It is conceivable that wave action could be so bad that a full inversion does occur, so this is a reasonable test.

Once fully inverted another big safety feature automatically kicks in. Her Asymmetric Capsize Buoyancy (ACB) is a real life saver. Boats that will self right from 90 degrees are usually also very stable upside down. Two or more crew have enough weight to right her from a full inversion, but ACB makes this possible even for one relatively small crew member. It works by flooding one side buoyancy tank when inverted, which destablizes the boat and in about 60 seconds, gives her a noticeable upside down heel angle. The skipper should wait on top of the up turned hull and right the boat by leaning on the centreboard, helping the boat heel to the same side as that induced by the ACB. Once righted, the water in the buoyancy tank floods out though the outboard well via the self draining cockpit floor. Take a look at the video.

A self draining cockpit is another considerable safety feature. In bad conditions spray and even green waves might come overboard. Most of this can be handled comfortably by the self bailer in the sump aft, but in extreme conditions the water can be drained very fast into the outboard well. This leaves the skipper able to give full attention to the sailing, perhaps making for shelter or away from a dangerous lee shore, rather than having to worry about bailing or pumping.

We have talked a lot about capsizing, and righting, but getting back in can be a real problem for all but the young and fit. BayRaider has plenty of positive buoyancy so floats quite high even when swamped. Our solution has been to fit the rudder blade with a permanent step in the trailing edge, rather like a winglet at the end of an airplane wing, it sits about 12 inches below the surface and acts as a step for re boarding. The mizzen mast is within easy reach to grab hold of as is the stocky mizzen mast partners.

When moored near a beach it makes an excellent way of reboarding for children and adults alike and when sailing in shallow water, when the rudder blade kicks up, the step is lifted clear of the surface due to the position of the blade hinge point.

A simple life saver. The step on the trailing edge of the rudder makes re-boarding easier

Lastly the ketch rig itself is of huge benefit to safety, with the ability to quickly drop the mainsail and continue well balanced sailing under jib and mizzen alone. The huge reduction in sail area, and the drop in the centre of effort make jib and mizzen sailing a very attractive way of getting home if conditions pipe up suddenly. With the ballast tank full, the mainsail dropped and the spray hood up, she can pretty much take anything and keep a good deal of your crew members dry and warm too.