# Singlehanding Pearson 35 Centerboard



## dvuyxx (Jun 23, 2009)

What do people think of the Pearson 35 Centerboard (1970) as a singlehanded boat? This would be on the Chesapeake Bay. Would you suggest any modifications?


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## Jeff_H (Feb 26, 2000)

The Pearson 35's were an older CCA era design. They sail pretty will for a boat of that era, but would be a mixed bag for cruising the Chesapeake Bay. Their shallow draft with the board up would allow them to get into many of the shallower anchorages, creeks and rivers. They were reasonably well constructed. They are typically pretty cheap to buy. And that is the good news. 

On the other hand, they are not very good light air boats, and not very good in a chop, two very common conditions on the Bay. They do not have much ventilation. They have the interior space of a typical 30 or so footer from a later era. 

In terms of being a good single-hander, with a few modifications such as running halyards and reef lines back to the cockpit, almost any 35 foot boat can be single-handed. But when you talk about how suitable a boat is to single-handing, ease of handling becomes a lot more critrical. When I think of ideal single-handers, in an ideal worldI would suggest that you would not want a rig that depends heavily on large overlapping headsails as these are hard to tack and require a sail change to safely deal with heavy conditions. What ends up happening is that single-handers try to get by with smaller headsails made with heavier fabric that can be roller-furlered on these boats and so give up light air performance. With a boat like the Pearson 35 that has such poor light air performance on the Chesapeake Bay, you are either carrying a light air genoa, which is hard to tack and requires making sail changes or else giving up a lot of sailing days. 

Jeff


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## dvuyxx (Jun 23, 2009)

Thanks Jeff. Extremely helpful. I've been enamoured with the P-35/CB primarily because of the shoal draft, but I'm certainly not settled on it. Are there any shoal draft, 30-35 ft, light-air, family coastal cruisers, well-built, wheel-convertable, single-hand-able, pretty, reasonably priced, used sailboats that you recommend? Tall order?


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## doubleeboy (Jul 21, 2008)

I won't comment on the well-built part, I have no personal experience. I have met a number of people who single hand Catalina 38 and love them. They have done the west coast to Hawaii races numerous times. Lots of people cruise them with family too. They are reasonably priced and I am pretty sure they made a shoal draft keel version. There is an active C38 bulletin board where a wealth of information on them is shared.

michael

oops, I just got the 30-35 foot part. Anyhow C38 is a pretty popular boat


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## dvuyxx (Jun 23, 2009)

I've been looking for a min draft (either fixed keel or swing/centerboard) of 4'. Seems like a magic number for gunkholing around Chesapeake rivers and inlets ... but I'd like to hear others opinions.


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## mitiempo (Sep 19, 2008)

Regardless of the boat, singlehanding depends a bit on your experience and a lot on how the gear is set up. By running halyards and reefing lines aft to clutches and then a winch on the cabintop it's a lot easier. For the jib rig a downhaul by leading a light line through a small block at the tack and thread it through the hanks to the head. Sheeted in drop and pull down with the downhaul and it should fall inside of the lifelines. If you have furling it's easier. Lazyjacks to contain the main are helpful too. If the boat is larger the sails are heavier but the winches are bigger as well. Main difference on a larger boat is to think ahead.
Brian


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## R.Williams (Mar 2, 2016)

I'm a bit late for this discussion but I feel I have to weigh-in with my two cents. I've been sailing a 1976 Pearson 35 on the Chesapeake for about 10 years now and, in my humble opinion, there are fewer boats better suited to the Bay. The 3ft 9in draft is perfect for "gunkholing",(That's what we do on the Chesapeake!) her large-ish sail plan allows her to perform pretty darn well in light airs (She is always competative in the "beer can races" at the club) and with her heavier than average displacement, full keel and narrow entry, she plows right through the "Chesapeake Chop" one encounters in a 20+ kt sustained. (Even with her rail in the water she's stable as a rock!) As far as interior design... I'd live on her full time except that I couldn't afford the divorce. For the "Old Bay"... You could do a lot worse than a P35...and a lot of skippers have!


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## sonosail (Mar 17, 2008)

dvuyxx said:


> I've been looking for a min draft (either fixed keel or swing/centerboard) of 4'. Seems like a magic number for gunkholing around Chesapeake rivers and inlets ... but I'd like to hear others opinions.


PEARSON 35 sailboat specifications and details on sailboatdata.com

Pretty sure this model was only available as a keel-centerboarder.
But If you find out otherwise, I'd like to know about it. I like to keep these records as accurate as possible.

rb
sailboatdata.com


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## seaner97 (May 15, 2011)

sonosail said:


> dvuyxx said:
> 
> 
> > I've been looking for a min draft (either fixed keel or swing/centerboard) of 4'. Seems like a magic number for gunkholing around Chesapeake rivers and inlets ... but I'd like to hear others opinions.
> ...


To the best of the knowledge I've researched, there were none that rolled out of the Pearson factory in any config other than K/CB, unless someone was confusing the prior Alberg 35 that the Shaw designed P35 replaced. I'd love to hear otherwise.


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## Stu Jackson (Jul 28, 2001)

We have lots of wing keel models of our boat on the Chesapeake.

Here are some single handing concepts for you to consider:

Single Handing 101 single handing

Single Handing 101.1 Midship Cleats Pictures Midship cleat PHOTOS / Flix

Single Handing 101.2 HOPPING OFF THE BOAT IS UNNECESSARY 
single handing


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## roverhi (Dec 19, 2013)

Have single handed my P35 in SF Bay, to Hawaii and around the islands. Made the 2,000 plus mile passage to Hilo in 15 days averaging a little over 140nm per day in atypical light conditions for that typically blustery run. Boat will sail in light air but won't perform as well as light fin keel boat because of the wetted surface. Boat has moderate overhangs and WILL power into a chop though not as well as the plumb bowed, fat assed modern abortions. But then it's got a really easy motion and it's relatively dry in the cockpit. Only time I had an issue with chop was in the 'Potato Patch' outside the Gate in winds barely strong enough to sail. The Potato Patch is an area that is notorious for lumpy, short period waves that everybody has trouble in. Did have to jibe rather than tack but she still sailed to weather against the short near vertical waves, just not enough power to punch through the eye of the very light wind. Got me out of there relatively quickly on a reach once around. Run a 135 foam luff furling genoa on the furler for ocean passages. That has been a good all around sail from light to 40k plus winds. For the Chesapeake would probably go with a 150% foam luff jib for the lighter winds. Should get you through almost anything you'd chance out in there. Use an Asym on a short removable bow sprit for really light air on close reach to DDW points of sail.

Biggest negative is the close quarter maneuvering because of the shallow rudder and full keel. Boat does not turn on a dime, not even a silver dollar. Need a bit of way on to make 90 degree turn into a slip in a narrow fairway. Helps to practice using prop walk to maneuver. In reverse, the boat goes where it wants. I've learned to live with it.


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## paul45c (Jul 14, 2011)

My family owned two of these, one a yawl-rigged with a Westerbeke diesel and the other an older sloop with the Atomic 4. I much preferred the sloop. Sailed here in the Ft. Lauderdale area with big winds in the Gulf Stream all the time. I really don't get the much earlier comment about not handling chop very well. As has been pointed out, the overhangs were fairly moderate as was the beam, and it's got a fairly fine entry and significant displacement. I found it had a very smooth motion with just the right dynamics to run through anything that could unsettle the boat and crew. I regularly took out people with no sailing experience and they felt very comfortable and secure all the time. No bucking or pounding. Winter conditions in this area bring a lot of winds out of the NE that oppose the stream and stack up the waves to considerable height and nasty faces. 

Given its displacement and sail plan, I can get the criticism more that it's not the ideal light airs boat. I understand the Chesapeake doesn't have much wind in the summers. The OP didn't mention anything about racing, though. For general cruising and daysailing, the P35 is a gem. Solid, imho good looking, smart cabin layout and cavernous cockpit -- truly, maybe the biggest in its class. There's a reason why Pearson kept it in production for something like 14 years.


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## Sailormon6 (May 9, 2002)

The ability to sail in light air has far more to do with the sailor's skills than a boat's design. Even full keel boats are capable of sailing nicely in light air.

The same is true of singlehanding. As Jeff notes, some boats are more easily singlehanded, but the ability to singlehand depends far more on the skill of the sailor than on the design of the boat. 

If I was looking for a boat today, I'd prefer a fractional rig for singlehanding, but I certainly wouldn't reject any well designed, well built, well maintained boat out of a concern for it's ability to be easily singlehanded or sailed in light air. Those are skills that can be learned.


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## Sax07865 (Jan 30, 2017)

I have a 35 and bought it to fix up. The drop keel is broken in half and only have about a foot left. Anyone have drawing of the board so I can make another?


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## Jeff_H (Feb 26, 2000)

The board is mostly rectangular except for the end of the board that you already have. You can see the approximate shape here: PEARSON 35 sailboat specifications and details on sailboatdata.com


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## capta (Jun 27, 2011)

In my opinion, any capable sailor can single hand nearly any Marconi rigged boat with roller furling sails, *IF* he/she has an autopilot or vane gear that will hold the boat on course in any amount of wind and knows how to use spring lines.


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## Gail Peterson (Apr 16, 2017)

I'm am glad this older thread was resurrected as I just purchased a Pearson 39 and am in the process of becoming comfortable single handling her--especially when it comes to getting back into the slip. The boat does have AP and and spring lines and I plan on reefing very early during this learning stage if I think the winds may pick up during the sail, but still, coming from 30 footers to this does create somewhat of a steep learning curve punctuated by occasional bursts of adrenaline....


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## Ajax_MD (Nov 24, 2009)

Gail Peterson said:


> I'm am glad this older thread was resurrected as I just purchased a Pearson 39 and am in the process of becoming comfortable single handling her--especially when it comes to getting back into the slip. The boat does have AP and and spring lines and I plan on reefing very early during this learning stage if I think the winds may pick up during the sail, but still, coming from 30 footers to this does create somewhat of a steep learning curve punctuated by occasional bursts of adrenaline....


I've sent you a PM with some possibly useful resources.

Cheers,

Ajax


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## capta (Jun 27, 2011)

Gail Peterson said:


> punctuated by occasional bursts of adrenaline....


I've heard sailing referred to as 99% shear boredom and 1% shear terror. Sound about right?


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## Jeff_H (Feb 26, 2000)

Gail Peterson said:


> I'm am glad this older thread was resurrected as I just purchased a Pearson 39 and am in the process of becoming comfortable single handling her--especially when it comes to getting back into the slip. The boat does have AP and and spring lines and I plan on reefing very early during this learning stage if I think the winds may pick up during the sail, but still, coming from 30 footers to this does create somewhat of a steep learning curve punctuated by occasional bursts of adrenaline....


As has been suggested, almost any decent monohull can be single-handed by some mix of a skilled skipper, in great physical condition, and with properly gear. But as a life long singlehander, the Pearson 39 would have to be one of the harder 39 footers to single-hand.

If you outlined the ideal design for an easily singlehander, it would almost be the antithesis of the Pearson 39. There are things that you can do to handle the boat motre easily in terms of figuring out your physical location on deck to be in during sail adjustment and course changes and how to time and sequence tasks.

I think that you have joined CHESSS and that should be a good source of information, and short handing resources.

Jeff


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## Gail Peterson (Apr 16, 2017)

Jeff_H said:


> As has been suggested, almost any decent monohull can be single-handed by some mix of a skilled skipper, in great physical condition, and with properly gear. But as a life long singlehander, the Pearson 39 would have to be one of the harder 39 footers to single-hand.
> 
> If you outlined the ideal design for an easily singlehander, it would almost be the antithesis of the Pearson 39. There are things that you can do to handle the boat motre easily in terms of figuring out your physical location on deck to be in during sail adjustment and course changes and how to time and sequence tasks.
> 
> ...


Hi Jeff,
Why do you feel the P39 is such a bad choice for single handling? Please be frank as I can use this information to perhaps make some additional changes to make it a better platform.

For a little past history on this particular P39, when her racing career was over in CT, she was professionally reconfigured with the aid of a naval architect to be sailed as a cutter, so she does not fly the huge sails the usual CCA-type boats do. In fact, her working headsail is only 95% and her main's foot has been shortened by about 1' to better balance with the smaller headsails. The staysail is also self-tending, so that is not a huge issue.

All of the lines have also bee lead aft to the cockpit and the traveler moved to the cabin top, so sail handling is fairly easily done. The decks are wide and uncluttered and the forepeak is open and flat. She is equipped with both a wind vane and autopilot, so she can be self-sailed for periods if I have to go forward for sail work.

~Gail


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## Ajax_MD (Nov 24, 2009)

I think the traveler/mainsheet being on the cabin top is a disadvantage for singlehanding. You'll have to jump from behind the wheel to trim, release it or draw it to windward as necessary. 

Fortunately, having an autopilot helps overcome this. Also, if you are comfortable sitting in front of the wheel and reaching slightly behind you to steer, the cabin top mainsheet is less of a handicap. 

The layout diagram of the P39 on sailboatdata.com is unclear. Is your wheel pedestal far aft or far forward in the cockpit? Where are the primary winches in relation to the helm? These are also factors that impact ease of singlehanding. As you stated, having a self-tacking staysail is a great help, especially in heavy air. One of our members sails a P 367 cutter and that's how he operates. It sounds like your layouts are similar. I'll put you in touch with him so you two can share tips and trials.

By a happy coincidence, the critical functions are all within reach from behind the wheel on my boat, though it means stepping over the traveler track when I need to go forward of the wheel. 

Do you have single line reefing, or jiffy reefing?


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## Jeff_H (Feb 26, 2000)

Gail,

I am a little pressed for time this morning, but it sounds like some good things were done to make the boat a better single-hander, but things like the conversion to a cutter rig and shortening the boom may actually be heading the wrong direction. Here is the mid-length version (if not exactly short). (I can give you the longer more detailed version if we happen to meet at one of the CHESSS Challenges. Also I don't know how familiar you are with terminology so I will define terms in parenthesis at times to make sure you, I and anyone reading thus understand the terms the same way. I apologize in advance if this is unnecessary.) 

When you talk about a boat that is a good platform for single-handing there are a variety of aspects that are important. From my perspective, if there was single way to describe the collection of attributes that make a good platform for short handed sailing, it is a boat that is easily adaptable to changing conditions and which sail well across a broad range of windspeeds, points of sail, and sea states with a minimum of number of sail changes and reefs and which can change tacks easily. (This last is not as important for a long range cruiser than it is for a coastal cruiser.) 

This general 'mission statement' can be broken into a number of components as follows: 

Easily Driven Hull form: The P-39 actually has a pretty easily driven hull form. Its comparatively cylindrical cross sections mean a minimum of wetted surface for its displacement. It also has comparatively straight 'buttock lines' (This refers to the shape of vertical cuts made through the hull parallel to the centerline of the boat. Hull form drawings show 'waterlines' which are horizontal cuts, Sections, which are vertical cuts made through the hull perpendicular to the centerline.) This helps at the light air of the wind range. But the P-39 has a large displacement relative to its water line length which means that it will quickly and disproportionately build drag as the wind speeds increase. That early increase in drag with wind speed increases means that the P-39 will need to be able to carry more sail area than a boat will less drag in this same wind speed, but to do that the boat needs a lot of stability. 

Stability:
In order to stand up to a large enough sail area to sail well across a broad range of wind speeds, points of sail, and sea states, the boat needs to have a lot of stability across a range of heel angles. This is one of the main shortcomings of the P-39. The rounded sections, and narrow hull form, combined with the height at which its ballast is carried due to the comparatively shallow draft of the keel means that these boats do not have much stability relative to their drag. More than anything else it is the P-39's lack of stability relative to its drag that makes this a tough platform for a single-hander. On the other hand, by using the centerboard to balance the rig, this is somewhat mitigated by the fact that these boats will tolerate higher heel angles than a lot of designs which have greater stability relative to their drag. 

SA/D: 
Here is where it gets tough. In order to have decent performance in lighter conditions a boat needs to have an actual SA/D (sail area to displacement ratio) somewhere in the SA/D in the mid-20's range or more. The SA/D that I am referring to here is different than the accepted way of measuring SA/D. Normally SA/D is measured and published with the full mainsail and the 100% Foretriangle. The P-39 like most masthead rigged boats of that era has an SA/D around 16.35. (Yours with the shortened mainsail has something less than that). In order to achieve adequate sail area for light to moderate winds, these boats were designed to be sasiled with very large overlapping genoas. In the case of the P-39, the published sail plan shows a 170% genoa. But as the overlap of the sail increases the efficiency drops considerably. But there are also some other major downsides to large overlap headsails in that they are much harder to trim, stretch more and so need frequent adjustment, are harder to tack, and do not adapt well to changing conditions. 

So, while it may seem counter-intuitive, because of the disadvantages of of having large overlap genoas, an ideal single-hander actually should have a standing sailplan (main and 100% foretriangle) somewhere in the low 20's. Of course, that is a lot of sail area. In order to effectively use that much sail area, the boat requires a lot of stability and requires a sail plan that can be easily and quickly be depowered (depowered=reducing heel force relative to the required drive force. I am not using that term to mean reefing or furling since furling a jib actually powers up the sail -i.e. makes it rounder). 

But even if the SA/D of the standing sail plan of the P-39 could be increased to a number closer to 20-or more, the boat lacks the stability to stand up that much sail in a building breeze and the P-39 rig configuration makes it harder depower. 

Wind range and Ease of Depowering and tacking: 
It is the rig configuration that is one of the most critical elements of the P-39 that makes it a less than ideal platform for a single-hander. When we talk about depowering a sailplan, it is all about controlling the draft (depth of the camber), twist, and angle of attack to minimize heeling and leeway. 

There are a lot of components to this but the quickest way to depower the whole sail plan is to be able to induce mast bend (flattening the mainsail and twisting off its upper leech) and tensioning the headstay, (flattening the jib and twisting off its upper leech). That can be coupled with dropping the traveler and tensioning the mainsheet (the combination reducing twist at the same time that the angle of attack is diminished). That works well in quickly adapting to a gust and for short increases in wind speed. But when coupled with increased halyard, mainsheet, vang, and outhaul tensions, this can greatly extend the upper wind range of the boat (especially when used on a boat with lots of stability). 

To discuss your specific P-39, (set up as a cutter with minimally overlapping headsails), as configured the lower end of the wind range is greatly diminished. Cutters do not do well at the lighter end of the wind range. While the staysail adds luff length and sail area, it diminishes the efficiency of the headsail (I am using that to refer to the sail on the headstay which is your forward most jib) by congesting the slot and reducing air flow, which is very critical deterent in lighter winds. 

To perform across a wider wind range the headsail needs to be properly shaped a little fuller for the upper end of light air to the lower end of moderate air, but it also needs to be flatter for heavier winds. That change in fullness can be obtained by tensioning the forestay to flatten the sail or allowing the headstay to sag a little adding sail cloth to the leading edge if the sail. 

But it is still a very difficult battle to control draft. And this is where your options become limited. In order for that to work, the sail cloth needs to be light enough to allow the sail to hold a proper flying shape in light air while being low enough stretch to remain flat in heavy air. This is especially critical on a boat with a sail plan like the P-39 where the jib is the primary source of drive and so needs the proper shape. In your case this is made more critical by the fact that your jib is only 95% and your mainsail foot has been shortened, meaning two very high aspect ratio sails, and high aspect ratio sails, while theoretically more efficient, are also wildly less forgiving, i.e. requiring more attention to trim and course. The high leech loads on high aspect ratio sails mean that there is more stretch which can cause a hook and that can add to heeling. 

Ease of tacking and sail trim:
Lastly, one of the shortcomings of a cutter rig is the need to drag the headsail over the forestay. This makes tacking more difficult since you need to wait for the sail to blow through, or drag it through and that usually means a lot more grinding (even on a small sail). But the cockpit layout on the P-39 makes it harder to sail as well. With the wheel as far forward as it is in the cockpit and the traveler on the cabintop, making quick and precise traveler adjustments are not easy. With the high aspect ratio jib, frequent sheet adjustments are very beneficial, but with the winch behind the wheel it means having to step away from the wheel to make adjustments or face aft. Anything that makes adjustments harder makes sailing shorthanded harder so in that regard, the deck layout of the P-39 also makes it less than ideal. 

Lastly, I don't know whether you use spinnakers, but with only a 95% jib, some kind of downwind sail would greatly extend the sailing ability of the boat off the wind. The sheer size of a masthead chute will make it much harder to handle and there is less of lee of the mainsail to help drop a chute. An assym that large is harder to fly short-handed and the forestay makes jibing a pole harder. The smaller mainsail also hurts a lot downwind and reaching. 

Anyway that is the mid-length version. I need to get back to work.....
Jeff


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## Gail Peterson (Apr 16, 2017)

Ajax_MD said:


> I think the traveler/mainsheet being on the cabin top is a disadvantage for singlehanding. You'll have to jump from behind the wheel to trim, release it or draw it to windward as necessary.
> 
> Fortunately, having an autopilot helps overcome this. Also, if you are comfortable sitting in front of the wheel and reaching slightly behind you to steer, the cabin top mainsheet is less of a handicap.
> 
> ...


That is a valid point about the traveler location, but the recommendation to try sitting in front of the wheel to steer may be what I will have to do. The primary winches are just about inline with the wheel (maybe a little forward) which is forward in the cockpit. One of the POs changed the primaries out to ST 50s, so that will also be a help.

This is the first wheeled boat I have worked with, my other 2 were both tiller steered, so any changes I need to make in my positioning should be pretty easy to make as I have not had time yet to develop any habits.

What is the remainder of the CHESS schedule for this year and when is the next meeting. I'd like to continue this conversation with both you and Jeff before I find myself in one of those sailing moments of sheer terror...lol!!


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## Ajax_MD (Nov 24, 2009)

The CHESSS schedule is in the upper right corner of the web page and is updated fairly frequently: www.chbaysss.org.
Right now, only races are shown. We are planning another non-racing, experience builder for the July 23rd weekend, I believe.


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## Gail Peterson (Apr 16, 2017)

Jeff_H said:


> Gail,
> 
> I am a little pressed for time this morning, but it sounds like some good things were done to make the boat a better single-hander, but things like the conversion to a cutter rig and shortening the boom may actually be heading the wrong direction. Here is the mid-length version (if not exactly short). (I can give you the longer more detailed version if we happen to meet at one of the CHESSS Challenges. Also I don't know how familiar you are with terminology so I will define terms in parenthesis at times to make sure you, I and anyone reading thus understand the terms the same way. I apologize in advance if this is unnecessary.)
> 
> ...


Jeff,
That was an amazingly informative read. From what you've indicated, about all I can do to further improve the 39's ability to be single handed, would be to learn to use the centerboard effectively and purchase more performance oriented sails to minimize the inherent drag of the hull form, learn to perform backstay adjustments efficiently and perhaps consider adding a gennaker to her sail inventory.

This is going to be a more challenging learning curve than I had anticipated, but I believe I am up to the challenge, at least for the 4 more years I'll be sailing only in the Chesapeake due to work.

I will keep in mind that I may have to consider getting a different boat when I am able to expand my cruising grounds and distance off shore.

~Gail


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## Richard Paquette (Apr 1, 2020)

I had a 1968 Pearson 35 from 1978 to 1991. I single handed it in and out of harbor and in San Francisco bay many times. Was especially easy after installation of a monitor wind vane. Great boat; solid, and faster than mot 35' at the time.


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## chef2sail (Nov 27, 2007)

Aside from the original thread post being from years ago, I have to challege the statement these are fast boats.
Their PHRF ratings of 177 make them on the slower side. We have a number P 35 in our racing fleet. They are rarely in front. For example our boat Haleakula a C&C 35 MKIII.conservative PHRF RATED AT 117 - 127.

PHRF New England - Handicapping - Base Handicaps


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## seaner97 (May 15, 2011)

Pearson35.com back up. I know it's been a long time.


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