Tornado Damage

[CarpeAquam]

Originally Posted by mad_machine

so it swings up into it's trunk flush to the hull? Was looking at your yard.. all that grass, you might be able to get her off of the trailer and drag her to the water.

The swing keel pivots from the front, but doesn't go into the hull more than about four inches. I've still got about two feet of keel sticking out from the bottom that isn't designed for stress pushing it sideways. Dragging wont work... Keel, rocky shore, not my grass, nothing with enough traction to pull it.

[CarpeAquam]

Originally Posted by Faster

As a swing keel your problems are much smaller than they might have been.. but wow.. must have been something to wake up to!

It was something... The house was shaking, the wind was roaring, and I was running for the basement! In the morning I had to leave for work before the sun came up, so I didn't see it all until last night. It's going to be a lot of work.

This is my friends pontoon who keeps it on our property... It has a 4L inboard that I'm hoping held tight, but we can't get in it to tell.





This USED to be a picnic table!



My neighbors Hobie 16 was about 20 feet from where it was, but surprisingly I think it is going to be fine.



The neighbors aluminum latter, 100 yards away.



It took this pontoon platform and trailer up a hill and across the road about 50 yards from where it was sitting!



There were lots of trees and power lines down, house siding blown off, etc. 12,000 were without power in central Indiana alone. We lost power at 2:30 am when it hit and didn't get it back on until 7pm. Two were killed, but I think we were lucky it wasn't more.

[mad_machine]

Originally Posted by LemonHead

As long as the stress isn't too much for the trailer it should work.

At this point... who cares about what happens to the trailer. You just need to get the boat upright so you can assess and repair. The trailer is the least concern and can probably be welded up to repair it too

[IronSpinnaker]

I would run some straps under the boat and attach to the trailer... Then put a snatch block up that ash that the boat is against and use the tree as a lifting point. Run aircraft cable from the straps under the boat up the tree and through the snatch block, back down to a second block at the base of the tree and then hook to a truck and pull... It will flip it up right.

[RobGallagher]

Have you considered giving your home owner's policy a try? Might not cover damage to the boat, but it might get the boat moved by a pro?

If my home owner's didn't help, I would first secure the boat in position and remove the trailer. Carefuly get the boat on her belly. Then jack up the boat and get it on the trailer or, as someone else said, drag it to the lake. Big pieces of cardboard will help you move her without damage.

However you do it, go slow and be extra careful!

[rugosa]

I've done this rescue before. Separate the boat from the trailer to avoid further damage to both. Work a method to lift boat off trailer, remove trailer, then set boat on soft blocks (styrofoam blocks work great) that will allow you to manhandle/role the boat upright. From there you can level the boat. Removing trailer allows you to assess trailer damage, repair if required.

Challenge is lifting method - the boat is ONLY 3000 pounds, round edged & not a deadweight block - is there a forklift available? A tow truck with high lift? Shingle delivery truck (they usually have a crane)? Can you build a tall enough tripod out of 4 x 4's and attach block & tackle/come along? Sling lift straps between 2 trees? Sound like there are plenty of boaters/neighbors around, plenty probably formulating ideas. Assess your location, draw on materials & equipment at hand, have fun & celebrate surviving to share your story another day.

[Smier]

A good towing/recovery service can right your boat in a few minutes without further damage. They should have all the straps, winches, etc to do it without even scratching anything. I guess it comes down to if you want to spend the $$$ or risk further damage by doing it yourself. From your photo, I would be careful that the winch post doesn't damage the hull if you try and flip it back onto the trailer. I also have an '83 Starwind 22, nice little boats! Good luck, and keep us posted on how the recovery goes.

[CarpeAquam]

All good advice! Whatever we do, I'll make sure to take pictures, or maybe video... Hopefully it will be boring and without incident!

[Smier]

LemonHead, there is an active Chrysler message board, with about the only info on the Starwinds that I have been able to find on the web. Worth checking out once you get everything back to normal at home. I also have lots of pictures and plans for the swing keel brackets and pin.

Chrysler Sailors :: View Forum - General Chrysler Sailing Discussion

[CarpeAquam]

Originally Posted by Smier

LemonHead, there is an active Chrysler message board, with about the only info on the Starwinds that I have been able to find on the web. Worth checking out once you get everything back to normal at home. I also have lots of pictures and plans for the swing keel brackets and pin.

Chrysler Sailors :: View Forum - General Chrysler Sailing Discussion

I'm not a member, but I stalk that board on occasion. I have a small collection of info on the starwind (dimensions, C22 manuals and info, photos of other Starwinds, etc.) but I don't have anything on the swing keel. I'll PM you my email address. I'm building my own manual, bit by bit. It takes a lot of digging to find detailed info on these boats.