There appear to be a lot of varying opinions out there. My experience using the board and sailing with it raised are quite different then some if those expressed. I've sailed and raced for over 45 years in various keel and centerboard boats and that's the perspective that I have on this issue.
The 12.8! underbody was designed to please 7 racers from a yacht club in New York who wanted a keel centerboard boat they could race as a one design class according to what I've read. They were very experienced yachtsmen and apparently we're very pleased with their boats. In addition to racing, they also wanted a comfortable cruiser. Ted gave them exactly what they wanted.
Of course the boat goes better up wind with the board down. That's why the board was installed in the first place. The boat, like the Hinckley Burmuda 40, was designed, I believe, to the old CCA rule. One great advantage of the board is that you have deep draft when you need it to go to weather and shallow draft when you need it like in the ICW and the Bahamas. We find that an amazingly attractive feature.
With respect to performance with the board up, it probably is like a lot of purpose built cruisers with shallow draft and no board. Think, for example, of the Island Packets. As I understand it, Ft. Meyers Yacht and Shipbuilding found enough cruisers who bought the early boats were so happy with the way the boat sailed with the board up that they never used the board. For that reason, I believe some of the 12.8's we're built without the boards. The board became an option as I understand it.
When we sailed in Maine we used just the pennant that ran from the board up through the stainless tubing to the deck to raise and lower the board and it never gave us any trouble. The winch on deck and this 70 year old skipper were capable of raising it just fine. Obviously the pennant needs to be kept in good condition but ours is several years old and seems to be doing fine.
The board did bang on the sides of the trunk when we bought the boat but we had pads installed on both sides to take up the slack and that really helped. Wedge shaped pads would likely do a better job.
To sumerize, the board does add complexity but to me is worth it for the increased weatherlyness that it provides. The fact that such impartial arbiters as Practical Sailor and Cruising World magazine think so highly of the 12.8's validates Ted's design. I love the way my boat sails and accept the fact that it won't be as weatherly with the board up as down but like the fact that I can go places others with deeper draft can't. I wanted a boat with a shallow draft that could still go to weather when the water was deep enough to allow for the use of the board and I got exactly what I wanted. No boat can be all things to all people. This one sure pleases me!
Jack Dexter
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