Specifications

SECTION FOURTEEN
LAUNCHING AND RETRIEVING
Your swing keel Clipper was designed to be easily launched on any normal ramp. We suggest the
following procedure:
1. Rigging - We have already discussed rigging. (See Section Three) It is much easier to step your
mast before launching. Caution: BE SURE THERE ARE NO OVERHEAD WIRES OR OBSTRUC-
TIONS BETWEEN YOU AND THE LAUNCHING RAMP AFTER YOU HAVE RAISED THE MAST.
2. Tie an adequate length of line to your boat. If there is a dock in the launching area, plan to
launch as close to it as possible.
3. Spread the side guides, if expandable, for lowering the boat in the water.
4. Crank the keel up just enough so that it is clear of the trailer. Be careful not to overcrank. See
Section Ten on keel operation.
5. If you have a motor, it should be attached and hooked up for starting.
6. Before backing the trailer into the water, put one person in the cockpit and disconnect the cable
between the trailer and the trailer eye. The tiller should be attached to the rudder and ready to be
installed on the stern.
7. You should be ready to back the trailer into the water. If you have followed the above instruction,
you should have very little trouble in launching your new boat. Take the line from the boat and tie it
to the trailer or the dock if it is close by. Before backing the trailer up, have all passengers get out of
the vehicle as a safety precaution- Now slowly back the trailer into the water until the boat is float-
ing. It is not necessary to put your vehicle in the water to do this, as the boat can be given a shove
while you are standing on the tongue of the trailer. Normally the boat will float free then the tongue
of the trailer reaches the edge of the water.
8. Before shoving the boat, the person in the cockpit should attach the rudder and warm up the
motor. If you don’t have a motor, the line attached from the bow of the boat to the dock will come in
handy. With someone holding the line on the dock, shove the boat off the trailer.
9. At the dock you are now ready to lower the keel. When the keel is down, insert the keel locking
pin. (See Section Ten)
10. You are now ready to bend on and hoist the sails. (See Section Four) Happy Sailing!
11. Because you will never have your boat closer to your towing vehicle than when it is on the trailer,
this is the best time to load all that extra gear in your trunk onto the boat. When backing the trailer
into the water, it is a good idea to have one person stand behind and off to one side. This is a good
safety tip whenever you are backing up.