21EC Door Latch Warning

[dloop]

My daughter and I were out in Puget Sound near Edmonds, WA today taking some fairly large seas on a cold & windy day (I'm increasingly impressed how big this little boat operates btw). When the tide changed it was time to call it quits because the waves were getting too steep. We quickly ducked into the Edmonds marina.

It was probably a fluke, but the rough ride provided just the right amount of movement to swing the door latch over the lock knob and lock us inside the cabin. For a few seconds we were a little spooked to be honest. There was no way to unlatch it from the inside. I was finally able to figure out what had happened (while trying to remain composed in the marina entrance), and then quick thinking by my daughter as she exited via the cubby hatch window and walked around to free me. (I honestly don't think I would have thought of the using the hatch if I was on my own 🙁).

So for all the other 21EC crews out there, be sure to rotate the lock knob 90 degrees before you close and snap the door, or rig up some method to pin the latch plate to the keep it from swinging closed when underway.

dave

 

[No Worries]

thank you for sharing that experience. sometimes the (seemingly) smallest of things can cause the biggest of problems.

i'm curious as to how large the swells were that you were taking on with your 21. did you have any difficulties getting her to track to your destination ?

glad you made it to safe harbor 🙂

 

[johnniethek]

Thanks very much for this tip.

I'm taking my R-21 EC out tomorrow and will pay particular attention to this issue.

John

 

[dloop]

Hi Carl,

Size of swells is always a subjective thing of course...

There was a small craft advisory in effect, and I estimate the swells were 4ft at times. Lots of water over the cabin on some. The 21EC really handled this well when quartering into them with no problem tracking at all. It feels bigger on the the water than my previous 24ft boat. It was only when the swells became steep that it was no longer comfortable.

I've also found that with 2ft and 3ft waves that the ride can sometimes improve with increased speed. Counter-intuitive to my way of thinking, but this is my first semi-displacement hull so what do I know.

dave

 

[hxschiller]

I think I'd simply leave the padlock in place as a blocking element.

 

[rayzickrick]

I think I'd simply leave the padlock in place as a blocking element.

"hxschiller" I also leave my padlock locked onto the door. RWZ